This guest post is by Kate Miller of BestWebsiteHostingServices.org.
Today’s new bloggers are a fortunate group. The blogging community is swarming with a plethora of experienced bloggers who they can turn to for advice, tips and DIY tutorials. These bloggers are the thought-leaders, renegades and early-adopters of the industry. Turning to them to learn the ropes of the blogosphere is a no-brainer.
But what about those thought-leaders and renegades for whom the concept of blogging, much less computers, was inconceivable? Believe or not, there is much to learn from some of the greatest minds in history when breaking into the blogging world. Just take a look at some of this advice.
“One can win the attention and time and cooperation of even the most sought after people by becoming genuinely interested in them.”—Dale Carnegie, How To Win Friends & Influence People
One of the most valuable assets for a new blogger is having someone they can turn to as a mentor who’ll take them under their wing. Nothing can beat the one-on-one personal advice of an accomplished blogger.
Have a blogger you admire and wish you could learn from personally? Do as Mr. Carnegie suggests and become genuinely interested in him or her. Read every blog post he publishes and comment in a relevant, valuable way. Don’t hesitate to reach out with a thoughtful email, but don’t become a nuisance.
You just may be surprised by the attention and willingly helpful attitude you are met with in return.
“Opportunity is missed by most because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.”—Thomas Edison
Any weathered blogger can tell you that there is no such thing as overnight success. Blogs that are worth reading don’t just emerge without a lot of hard work and dirtying of the feet going on behind the scenes.
Between learning your way around whatever blog platform you use, deciding on your niche and content, researching the nuances of html, learning to decipher the lexicon and so much more, the work can seem endless. However, the payoff can be immense and those that are willing to don their overalls and jump right in will be the ones to enjoy the fruits of their labors first.
“I have been up against tough competition all my life. I wouldn’t know how to get along without it.”—Walt Disney
In March of 2012, Nielsen published findings which tracked over 181 million blogs around the world. That’s a lot of competition!
Fortunately, there is an infinite amount of space on the web and as such, there is room for all bloggers. No matter how saturated you feel your niche may be, you can carve out your own spot for success. Accept that you’ll have competition, embrace it, and learn how to get along with it. It will push you in new ways as you strive to rise above the fray. Keep at it and someday you’ll not know how to get along without it either.
“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”—Martin Luther King
Unless your blog readership consists of only your cats and your grandma, it’s safe to assume that you will, at one point or another, be challenged by a reader. Facing controversy is a very likely scenario as well. Just ask any blogger who has unwillingly become the center of a firestorm of internet criticism.
When you begin blogging, remember that you are putting your thoughts and ideas out into a public space. Just as you wouldn’t yell fire into a crowded room without expecting some kind of outrage, so should you approach your blogging. But also realize that challenge and controversy is nothing to fear. In fact, many a blogger has a made name for him or herself because of controversy. Be prepared for it and then write away!
“The most effective way to do it, is to do it.”—Amelia Earhart
Just get out there and do it! Hesitating to pull the trigger on making your blog live because the layout isn’t quite right? Nervous about leaving a comment or joining a link-up? Scared that your first guest post attempt will be rejected?
Let go of all of that and just do it. You will most certainly never become an effective blogger if you don’t get out in the blogging world to begin with. If Amelia Earhart could get up in the air; you can absolutely hit the Publish button!
Do you know any other quotes or advice from great minds throughout history that you think would be helpful to newbie bloggers? If so, share them in the comments.
Kate Miller is a blogger and writer for BestWebsiteHostingServices.org, a site dedicated to helping users find their ideal web host through the web host match survey, a tool that automatically compares hundreds of hosting providers to find the best one for the user.
“I believe that anyone can conquer fear by doing the things he fears to do, provided he keeps doing them until he gets a record of successful experience behind him.” ~Eleanor Roosevelt
Once you decide to start, keep moving forward. Don’t let the little things bog you down.
yes, many bloggers feel lack of energy before a blank online diary and this may hold them back. I strongly believe the term blogging means more than an online journal. I believe a blog is a conversation. People go to blogs to read and write, not just consume.
Not sure about that, if you are (or want to become) a blogger then a lack of energy may suggest you blogging isn’t for you. There are so many topics to engage in so no excuse for that.
BTW my fav quote there is
“I have been up against tough competition all my life. I wouldn’t know how to get along without it.”
I can’t thank you enough for all that you said. Those quotes wow all of them fitted every word you spoke. I was feeling a bit low and you made be alright.
“Where there is love there is life” ~ Mahatma Gandhi
Where there’s Google, there’s an update ;-)
Wonderful post, great insights Kate.
Hello Kate Miller!
This post was really inspirational and it helps people to understand some basic concepts related to success! If you want to be a successful person then you should know some people who have reached their goals in the past…some very successful people!!
You know there are many many bloggers outside and also there are about 200.000.000 blogs online so this field is extremely competitive. But you can actually make money online by blogging if you know what you are doing and what kind of people you hire to work for your business. You know you cannot do everything in one business, even top internet marketers have some talented people to work for them!
So if you want to be a successful blogger or interent marketer you need to have the access to the right information and to the right people! Very important thing to know is that you will not succeed in your first month online because as a beginner you can’t….internet marketing is very challenging area and you need to test and track everything in order to find a positive ROI if you spend money!! If you are completely a beginner I suggest you to make a research and find some great content and legit coaching programs online and learn how to start your business!!
Don’t believe anyone online but make a research first. If you want your dreams to be true then you have to put aside your fear and start to implement your knowledge because many people worldwide don’t act because of fear and procrastination…
Good luck!
Zouras
You are right we should learn from history’s great minds but if we really have to learn we can do so from our surrounding. Yesterday I was passing through a retail iron market I saw a man was honing the iron in shape he wants but before that he heated the iron to the hottest degree to hone it easily. So first we have to bring passion for blogging then start doing it. Similarly if we see a pottery maker, a goldsmith, a carpenter, a mechanic, a laborer, a teacher, an artist every body is performing one or more than works which are simultaneously essential for the successful blogging. Anyway thanks for such a wonderful and unique post.
Hi Katie,
Inspiring! All successes needed to think this way to succeed.
Love the AE quote: just do it. Write. Post. Repeat. Succeed.
Thanks!
Ryan
“The most effective way to do it, is to do it.”
This is one of the areas I need to work on. Sometimes, I spend “too much time” thinking over a topic and finally when I finish the post I get the feeling that “I could have done this in less than 2 hours.”
So the lesson learnt is, “Just do it right away.”
Amazing post and I don’t know where to start from thanking you! Really got inspired by the quotes above most especially what Martin Luther King said; It really left a lot of queries where I stand at my times of challenge and controversy. Very encouraging and inspiring tips there, I look forward into getting more. You saved me a lot, thank you!
Amazing points Kate! I can’t figure out how far you have brought me from. Every quote sounds so real, inspiring, encouraging and challenging to me. This is a clean and perfect write up with a lot of teaching to make one endure troubles and gain confident of life. Thanks a lot for sharing!
I love the advice!