This guest post is by Mr. Self Development of Mr. Self Development.com.
Success is not the result of luck, chance, or coincidence. Success comes when an individual decides to follow the principles of success.
The principles of success will produce success every time. So today I want to talk about five success principles that will result in successful blogging.
1. Get motivated
“Motivation is the fuel necessary to keep the human engine running.” ~Anonymous
Motivation is like water: you don’t fully understand its importance until you don’t have any. Nothing happens without motivation. You can have all of the talent, all of the time, and know all of the blogging success principles, but if you don’t have the motivation to turn your blogging dream into a reality, it doesn’t matter.
You must have a vision that motivates you. If you’ve lost your passion, get a new vision to re-ignite the ashes so your blogging dreams burn bright again.
2. Work harder
“Success comes before work only in the dictionary.” ~Anonymous
Successful bloggers don’t just work harder than other bloggers: they work much, much harder.
To be the best, you have to give your very best. One of my favorite quotes is by Greg Evans. He said, “I do not have superior intelligence or faultless looks. I do not captivate a room or run a mile under six minutes. I only succeeded because I was still working after everyone went to sleep.”
There is no success without very hard work. Thomas Edison said, “Opportunity is missed by most because it is dressed in overalls and it looks like work.” Don’t miss your opportunity because it looks like work.
To succeed in blogging it’s going to take hard work, and a lot of it.
3. Fail
“If at first you don’t succeed, try not to look too surprised.” ~Anonymous
In blogging as in life, failure is not only certain, but it’s necessary. It’s necessary for your growth, and it’s necessary for progress. Your failures will make you better, sharper, and more relevant; your failures are your teachers and they will qualify you for success. So embrace failure, learn from failure, fail some more, and then dust yourself off, look up, and succeed.
Les Brown has a saying: “When life knocks you down, try to land on your back, because if you can look up, then you can get up!”
You will certainly encounter failures in your blogging ventures, but remember, if you can look up, you can get up. You can learn from those failures and emerge victorious.
4. Do what you ought
“If you would live your life with ease; do what you ought, not what you please.” ~Anonymous
It’s easy to do what you please, but to succeed you must do what is necessary. You must create the habits that cause success. If you can create the habits that produce success, then success is assured. Labor to understand the habits of the successful, and then work to make their habits your habits. Study the successful bloggers, and then get in the habit of doing what they do.
5. Be willing
“Success: willing to do what the average person is not willing to do.” ~Anonymous
Anyone can write a good blog post, but everyone’s not willing to write a good blog post every day. Successful people do what the unsuccessful are unwilling to do. Not what they are incapable of doing, but what they are unwilling to do.
To succeed in blogging, you must do what others are unwilling to do.
And it’s not about discipline; discipline is a highly overrated limited resource. To succeed you must be willing and committed to creating the right habits. When you create the right habits, your habits will carry you to blogging success.
What other factors do you believe play into your success as a blogger? I’d love to hear about them in the comments.
Mr. Self Development is an author who teaches a motivational and practical guide to success. Please visit him at Mr. Self Development.com.
One more thing I’d like to add, is that some bloggers when they start blogging and not making money since the begining they quit. And this is not how it should be.
Even if you’re not making money at first, keep it up for few months till you earn a loyal readers and start getting huge traffic then the money comes!
I agree with u..we should create a community first (our readers) before start making any money online
I don’t think there should a tendency to make money from your first month.Try to learn from others,learn other weakness and strong point,learn how they started.Give yourselves some time to relax on and start thinking and start planning to utilize your time and hard work,so that it can bring back some fruit.
I really like the method of providing excellent content, and then mentioning a very relevant affiliate offer. I’ve done great with my affiliate blogs with this format, and readers don’t seem to mind at all.
This blog kept my faith up when I was wondering if I should quit. I’m finally starting to make a little bit of money off my product. It’s also hard working on your product AND your blog. ;-)
It is hard Leslie, but I visited your blog and I hope you don’t stop doing both! I’ve forwarded the link to my sister who is a hobby photographer – I’m sure she’ll love it! (I wish I were so creative!)
Stay the course – you’re doing a great job!
Lori
Brilliant article, thank you for sharing, I agree with everyone of those points mentioned. Implementing right now.
Thank you once again,
Ali
A good pep talk on this firday morning. I can digg it!
Let all the people say Amen.
great post
Some nice tips there, I believe number one is the most important factor of all, since laziness is our biggest enemy in blogging, we need to be constantly inspired or motivated, either way to actually get some work done.
Oh and why are all the quotes said by anonymous? Haha
Anyway, things well said in the post :D
Harrison
Thanks for the post. Motivation is indeed an important part that push us to another level of success, a day follow by another of disappointment, tiredness, frustrating, blur and many, motivation keeps us moving.
Keep moving, keep building, just a little bit more and keep fighting, and we’ll eventually achieving great success. Patience and our heart count.
We have to read this tips again and again. Although it is repetitive sometimes we forget them!
All good points Mr Self Development [interesting name – your parents were quite creative!]
No 3 sticks out to me, and funnily enough I got a bigger lesson in failure through my blog –
Lessons in failure – trying to be something I’m not.
I’d hope ‘enjoy your writing’ would be point 6, although I suppose it depends on how you define successful [sorry, just had to say it]. To me, it can only be successful if I’m enjoying it, regardless of how many people read it.
Thanks for the good post.
5 Forgotten Keys — very interesting. I think the bottom line with having a successful blog is to never quit even if the situation begs you to. I mean, I agree with the other comments that some bloggers readily quit when they have failed the first time. Failure is part of success. Successful people have experienced failure at some point in their lives but they struggled to succeed.
I believe that the major motivation should be thinking positively that things will work out well. If things don’t work out, change the strategy. Don’t dwell on failure too much.
Well, thanks for this post! It sure helps a lot of people who are fairly new in the industry.
Very good post this! Motivation is hard; it comes and goes. For me, the thing is to reach a high standard and stay there.
I agree with your points. Another thing to note about motivation is that it is the basis for finding inspiration. In my opinion and past experiences, being inspired towards your life’s mission is paramount if you want to succeed…
I mean, anyone can decide they want to better themselves, but only those who add inspiration to the mix will turn that decision into a firm commitment and do what it takes.
Most find it hard to be inspired towards a life mission, only because they fail to understand what foundations create that inspiration. Motivation would be the answer, and finding a reason WHY you want something in life (for example, my reason why is because I have a family I am supporting) is what creates motivation.
It’s all confusing to talk about, but really it’s part of the “step-by-step” approach to getting massive amounts of things done in your life according to what you want out of it.
Very excellent post here, everyone can find something to benefit from!
Take care,
Chris
Superb article and good points.I usually use to think how to succeed in blogging,then i just stop thinking and discourage muself that i cant succeed in blogging,But by reading this article i learnt a lot of thinks mainly motivation and willingness.
I totally agree with all 5 factors mentioned in the article but I feel two of the most important have been left out:
The first one is patience. In the blogging business, where the competition gets harder day by day, patience is the key. I see a lot of newbies losing interest in online business after a few months.
The second one is perseverance. Making money online takes time. You need to invest a lot of time and effort before starting to see results. In most of the cases in the first year of blogging you will be providing free content to the world.
A very strongly written and helpful post. I especially like the idea of “creating the right habits”. I’d only add one more point: Give yourself time to rest. For without rest and relaxation fresh ideas for posts just don’t come up. It was my first mistake as a beginning blogger: I worked too hard during the first few months and then got short of ideas. Thus my brain told me to slow down.
Great tips. I don’t know about a post every day though. Maybe that’s just me, It seems like you are inundating your reader and writing quality content everyday is a challenge.
Thanks for sharing!
I have to keep reminding myself everyday that it takes time to build loyal readers. #5 resonated the most with me – be willing to create the right habits. It’s always exciting in the beginning of creating something new but the right habits of writing, re-reading, editing. focus on the customer will pay off, I’m sure.
The work harder one might be the simplest of the lot but everybody always glosses over it looking for some sort of magic answer. It’s not glamorous but its no coincidence that the big sports teams, bloggers, business people and people in all walks of life say that working hard got them to where they are. Tons of people always look for other hidden answers but it’s all in number 4 here!
Having that enduring mindset and a positive attitude is key. It will help you get through the times where you check your analytics and 8 people clicked on your blog, and you were 6 of them. The successful bloggers are the ones who think innovatively and when they come to a wall they not only look to see how they got there but how to move forward. Sometimes the only think keeping you from success is your own frame of mind.
Hi,
Excellent tips here.
Getting and staying motivated separates top shelf bloggers from the rest. They do it when others get frustrated and quit. The blog when others get bored and throw in the towel.
Top bloggers blog when others sleep in, or take extended breaks, or do anything to avoid writing a blog post.
Reading other blogs helps inspire me. Know everybody started someone. Darren R didn’t start out with 321,000 readers. He worked at it, and needed to stay inspired in the face of obstacles, just like all of us.
Practice writing on a consistent basis to keep your blogging momentum going and remain inspired. You’ll be amazed at the amount and quality of content you churn out by simply deciding to write at least 1 blog post a day, no matter what.
Keep with it, stay persistent and you will become a successful blogger.
Thanks for sharing!
RB
Always great to read an inspiring piece of writing every now and then. Without these Foundations it will be hard to make money online. A Blog is only the vehicle, it is your mind that MAKES the blog and it uses these values you have mentioned.
Thanks for sharing- lanced on this blog while looking for resources online to help me develop my new blog.Thanks for the simple tips on how to go about this
Mashk
I like number 3.
I think it is important to realise that you need to fail in order to succeed, in fact one of my favourite quotes is “99% of success is failure” because it is so true.
On a side note – I wonder how many times this page will be found organically using the term “forgot keys” – because I for one am ALWAYS losing my keys LOL.
Thanks for sharing the post, great points listed and an easy to digest writing style.
I have one more forgotten key though, a blogger should always include a name, especially when guest blogging. Makes it more personal and allows the commentators to interact on the human level that blogging requires.
Thanks Mr SD.
Thanks for boosting me again, actually i gone so dejected and decided to quit blogging, but after reading the above article– i’ll give it an another try.
Number 4 “do what you ought” suggests success comes if you “follow the herd”. My observation is that success is more likely if you know where the herd is going, but then go off in another direction.
At least you will be noticed!
Great points to remember when it comes to online success. Working harder and longer than everyone else will help you in the long run. It’s even easier when you have a team to help you.
I like the part about failure.
MOST people give up very fast if they don’t see the results they want. On the contrary, only a FEW stay focused on there goals and keep pushing forward.
That’s why there are only a FEW who actually go on to be successful because only a FEW never give up.
Great post! All true too…Would only disagree with your statement about discipline…Discipline is developing the right habits – something that you promoted further on in that same paragraph. Discipline can be attained by anyone…and doesn’t have to be rare…
Get motivated. Yes, and then get up and get motivated tomorrow, too.
Work harder. How about working smarter? I’m working very hard at mastering WordPress and haven’t quite caught on. “Before anything can be done, something else must be done first.” — I don’t know whom I’m quoting, but the point is once that something else is finished, actually doing what you intended in the first place isn’t such hard work.
Fail. I’ve got that down! But actually, when I fall flat on my face, I’d rather think I just haven’t succeeded yet.
Do what you ought. Certainly. Alas, that includes keeping statistics and some promotional activities that can be pretty boring. Somehow that ties in with motivation.
Be willing. Certainly. That ties in with getting up over and over when the whole process looks like a failure.
And here’s another: whatever is worth doing is worth doing badly. Think about how much time we waste trying to make something perfect. If we’re writing every day, not everything will be a masterpiece. Finish it, publish it, and move on to the next thing. If you can write a masterpiece, you probably can’t write crap. If it seems like it might be crap anyway, set it aside and write something else. Then learn from why it wasn’t at least pretty good at first.
What a wonderful post! I completely agree with every point that you have made, and I look forward to reinforcing my blogging goals. I would say another important aspect is to stay consistent, and always follow through with your plans. If you’re consistent with your blog posts and offer a certain level of content to your subscribers, consistency will help you to remain loyal to your followers, and them loyal to you, and in always following through with your posting goals, you will end up with a very high level of self-trust that will keep you motivated in the face of anything that may happen to detract you from your goals.
You make some great points in this post, but I just wanted to add this:
There’s nothing wrong with motivation, but it’s also overrated. First, if you don’t educate yourself as to the basics of blogging then no amount of motivation will help you. Also, motivation doesn’t often strike like lightning so those who wait for it before acting may never get it. Just like success, motivation most often find those who are already doing.
I’ve seen too many people get a big dose of motivation then work extremely hard doing the wrong things. You have to be doing the right things for hard work to pay off. This requires becoming educated on whatever it is you’re trying to accomplish.
These are the tips for success in all walks of life, and not just blogging. As somebody has said: ‘winners never quit and quitters never win’.
Santosh, I think you must read a book “The Dip’ by Seth Godin. He convincingly makes the case that the axiom “Quitters Never Win and Winners Never Quit” is wrong, as long as quitters keep searching for the things they can win.
Thanks for the excellent post.
For me motivation is the key, as I’ve gone through period where it hasn’t been there and my blog and blog posts have suffered. Being able to keep motivated is something I work on each and every day.
Great post! I’m an Italian blogger (don’t read italian? I’m sorry you miss my blog!! ;) :D ) and I’m very enthusiastic about this blog. Thank you Mr. Self Development for your sharing and your contribution: it is just what I need at this moment.
My factors are:
passion: I adore the subjects I write about
readers: I feel committed with my readers and I want them to find on my blog what they need and they like.
I really really like your principles here, Mr SD.
Perhaps I would add “be patient”, and not only know but embrace wholeheartedly that you cannot do everything at once, and there will be some things that you miss or overlook or leave out. It happens not only to the best of us, it happens to all of us.
Thank you for this wonderful guest spot (anagram for “post”;))!
Peter
I would say your advice is wonderful and extends to living your life in general, It’s all about the power of NOW. thanx
You forgot one important tip: Be Original (something this post certainly is not). “Get Motivated”, “Work Harder”, “Be Willing”? These are the “forgotten keys”? Seriously. These are the ABCs of starting just about anything. This is the “rah-rah” speech I give my daughter before her basketball games and/or to get her to do her homework. Like the rest of humanity, she’ll only go on to hear these tired “keys to success” only several thousand more times in her life from her teachers, coaches, Eminem, Katy Perry, TEEN Magazine articles, her youth pastor, future employers, etc. So how anyone actually forgets these “keys to success” is hard to fathom.
Does Darren let anyone post blogs on his site?
Yes motivation is the start and hard work next. It’s all about setting and keeping to the daily rota of little tasks such as blog commenting, guest posting, posting, sorting comments, visiting your niche forums, networking on Twitter, researching long tail keyword phrases, social bookmarking. A little daily input makes a huge difference every 30 days! So persistence pays off!
A great and inspiring post. These things always lift and inspire me, even if only for the moment. Good, generous and uplifting writing never fails in that respect.
I’m a once-in-a-while blogger, who is trying yet AGAIN to blog on at least most days, after a long neglected spell from my blog.
The hardest bit for many, if not all, writers is the Backside-On-The-Chair thing.
I frequently don’t write because I can’t think of a single thing to write, but do you want to know the trick that never fails?
Backside-On-The-Chair ……followed immediately by Start Writing.
It doesn’t matter what you write….. it really doesn’t. Drivel, what’s outside the window, what’s on the wall, anything. Before you know where you are, it all just comes out, and away you go. It flows from nowhere.
The mysterious thing about it all is that even knowing it works from repeated experience, to just sit down and start writing is STILL somehow the hardest thing to do. I KNOW it works, but I STILL don’t do it.
Why????
It has something to do with an inner resistance, and the fact that moving from a standstill always takes more energy.
That’s why ‘habit’ is good. Everything in life, once it becomes routine, becomes a daily habit, and a habit is ‘movement’ that hasn’t effectively stopped when the activity has finished. Because it’s a habit, it will automatically run again the next day, and so far easier to do.
Habit is movement.
Movement has momentum.
Keep it going.
K. {:o)
I think “passion” is missing in the list. Every blogger needs to have passion to connect and communicate to the community. In that passion, the blogger will find endless energy to overcome failures and lack of revenues. And success should never be measured in dollars alone.
These are really nice keys for getting any blog sucess.
Thanks for the information.
“Success: willing to do what the average person is not willing to do.” ~Anonymous
Great quote thats sums up the article, build the community, then the followers and then everything else will fall into place.
I agree with the principles you posted. All points made are contributing factors to a successful blog. However, I strongly believe that a competent degree of researched preparation and relevant content to ensure value is absolutely necessary for your readers.Without content relevance there is likely to be no value to your readers.
Motivation is definitely the key to having a succesfull blog, and the idea works in all the other aspects of life. Good post :)