How to Stay Inspired and Find Motivation to Blog

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The longer you blog, the easier it becomes to fall into a writer’s block. Despite what you may think, blogging is not an easy process. As a blogger, you are constantly trying to come up with new ideas and find topics you haven’t covered. You can’t simply blog here and there and expect any type of return. Instead, you have to keep with it, keep writing, and make it a daily commitment. There is a pressure to write more, post more, promote more, and make your content better and better. Most blogs fail within the first few months because it is so hard to stay inspired and find motivation to blog.

The majority of new blogs fail. It’s a commonly known fact. With so many bloggers in the market, quick results are hard to come by. Finding success takes time that most bloggers aren’t willing to wait long enough to find it. I found this tweet from Ramsey Taplin, author of Blog Tyrant, that sums up why blogger burnout occurs and new blogs end up failing.

Does this surprise you? Most bloggers had the time and didn’t care about the money. For those of you who have experienced the blogging blues at some point, you know what I’m talking about. If you have yet to experience this, consider yourself lucky.

Lately, I have fallen into a bit of a blogging rut since starting my blog in the fall. I have always loved to write and take photos for my blog, but the last few months have made it feel more like an inconvenience than a hobby. With so much going on in my personal life, blogging has been put on the back burner. I find that it’s hard to focus on it and put in the time when there are more “important” things I could be doing.

It’s not the lack of ideas that’s causing me trouble. It’s the lack of motivation and inspiration to write a great post and connect with people. I typically don’t have an issue with words. They flow naturally for me. I can start a post I’m excited about and fly through it. However, I’m finding that the last thing I feel like doing is writing and my excitement has vanished. When I have spare time to write, I sit down at the computer, but the words are rarely flowing and finishing my posts is draining.

I often wonder, why am I still blogging? What am I getting out all of the time and effort I am putting in? Wouldn’t it be nice to have more time to spend doing things other than blogging? Would anyone really even miss reading my blog if I stopped writing?

These are the type of questions that end blogs. Fortunately, it’s never too late to do something about it. There are always ways to inspire, motivate and re-ignite your original passion. My own feelings about my blog and lack of motivation inspired me to write this post to, not only encourage others going through the same thing, but also to encourage myself again! Avoid blogger burnout or get out of the blogging blues with these tips and suggestions.

1. Study the competition

Who are your favorite bloggers? What are some similar blogs in your niche? Reading other blog posts can spark ideas and creativity within your own mind. It can give you a fresh perspective because it makes you ask questions. In no way am I suggesting using someone else’s words, but to only find new topics that interest you and are popular within your niche.

2. Look back through your google search history.

Sometimes the best questions are the ones you ask yourself. If you’re asking it, others are too. Go back through the last things you googled about. Is white denim still popular for this spring season? Can I wear suede with silk? Am I too short for maxi skirts? The internet is full of opinions, so why not create your own? Choose a question you have, research it, and write your best, educated answer for your readers.

3. Leave the house

Many bloggers work on their blogs from home on their comfy sofas or even while laying in bed! The same scenery can get mundane and uninspiring. Try escaping to somewhere new. Write at your local coffee shop or on a park bench. Find a place that gives you inspiration, makes you feel creative, and most importantly the want to write.

4. See what’s trending

Look up what posts and topics are popular within your niche. Find new ideas that will work for your blog and interest your readers. If everyone wants to know about spring trends, write your own blog post about trends. It’s a great way to generate a list of new ideas and know that you’re posts are more likely to be relevant and get views.

5. Read your blog comments

Use your blog comments as a tool to see what you’re readers loved, didn’t love, or have questions about. What popular posts could you further expand on? Are there any questions you may be able to answer in a new post? This is a great tactic to make sure you’re readers will actually be interested in what you’re saying. You already have all the information you need, you just have to use it and be creative with it.

1. Set goals

Creating competition, even if it’s with yourself, is a great way to get motivated. Want more page views? Choose a number. Want more engagement? Figure out a plan to make it happen. Keep in mind, while it’s great to have goals and expectations of your blog, be realistic with where you’re setting your goals. Are they attainable? Is there a limited time frame? Pushing yourself too far too fast will be the downfall of your blog. Set goals that will push you, rather than overwhelm you.

2. Celebrate the small successes

Any success, no matter how small it may seem, should be celebrated! If you sold a product or got a lot of views on a post, you should feel proud of yourself. Many people, including bloggers, feel like they can’t enjoy their success until they’ve reached a certain point or met their goal. While you should always have big goals, enjoy the small moments along the way. Those are the things that motivate you to keep going and make it possible for you to achieve your larger goals.

3. Ask for feedback.

Don’t let your ego keep you from asking for help. Feedback and constructive criticism is crucial to getting motivated to push yourself further. Ask other bloggers and your readers for feedback on your blog and post content. What does your audience most like reading about? How could you make your website easier to navigate? What could you improve on? Their feedback gives you specific things to work on and accomplish. This can make it easier to check things off an overwhelming do-to list and feel more productive with your time.

4. Avoid negativity

In a world where anyone can write and say whatever they want from behind the protection of a screen, negativity is becoming harder and harder to escape. One way to avoid negativity to not let it get to you. If someone writes a rude comment on your blog or Instagram photo, don’t let it consume you. Read all of the positive comments and don’t harp on only the negative ones. Instead, use their negative words as motivation to do better or to prove them wrong. Giving up or giving in to internet trolls won’t help anyone.

Another big way to avoid negativity is to stop comparing your blog to others. It’s easy in the world of picture-perfect Instagram feeds and bloggers who rake in 6 figure incomes to feel jealous and disappointed in your own blog. However, their stats and successes will always be different than yours. It’s not fair to compare them as if they’re equal because so many factors play into the outcome. Instead, try to focus on more positive things. What are you doing well? What goals can you make to get you where you aspire to be? Use their success as motivation for your own, rather than as discouragement.

5. Get organized

Motivation can be hard to come by if you don’t know what to focus your time and energy on. Between replying to emails, forming collaborations, promoting on social media, and creating photos and graphics, it can be hard to even remember to write the blog post. Drowning in a mile long to-do list is one of the least motivating things you can do. The feeling of having so much to do can be so overwhelming that nothing gets done. To help with this, use a planner or calendar and create a list of everything to do and select times to do all of it. Having a specific task during a specific period of time will be much more productive and motivating.

1. Keep writing

Write, write, write. Write about anything. It doesn’t even have to fit within your niche. In fact, it may never be worthy of publishing. What makes you happy? What do you need to get off your chest? Keep writing because getting your thoughts down and flowing again will help you get back into your blogging groove.

2. Start a journal

As you probably have realized, you can’t force good ideas. Keep a journal, or something with you at all times, where you can jot down ideas as thoughts and inspiration come to you. You never know where or when you will be inspired. It could be at the grocery store or the dentist office, it doesn’t matter where. Jot them down when they come to you. There’s nothing worse than having a good idea and then not being able to remember what it was later on. Good ideas are hard to find and this method will always allow you remember inspiring new ideas!

3. Change your niche

Write what you’re passionate about. For example, sports may be a high paying niche, but if you don’t absolutely love talking about sports and spending all of your time keeping up with sports, you probably shouldn’t be blogging about it. Perhaps it’s time to think consciously about making changes and improvements to your blog. It’s never too late to change your niche and re-brand your site. Writing about something you aren’t in love with day after day is setting yourself up for failure.

4. Use your life experiences

Write about something that’s more personal to you. What have you been through? Do you have any wisdom to share? What can you tell others who are going through a similar experience? Share it. Be open and transparent with your readers. Talking about yourself and your journey can be inspiring and motivating. Receiving positive feedback on a special post might be just the motivation you need to keep writing.

5. Find support in your community

One of the best ways to get inspired again, is to find other people with common interested. Read related blogs in your niche and find new bloggers to follow. What are they writing about? What do you love about their blog? Use social media to gather inspiration. Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter are full of other bloggers just like you. Who are you following and why? What are their words/photos saying to you? Once you find like-minded people and bloggers, don’t be afraid to reach out. Ask questions. Tell them you love their work. Find out their blogging secrets. Ask for support and guidance. Create genuine relationships and bonds. They have all been where you are right now, use their knowledge as a resource.

6. Take a break

When all else fails, stop and take a break. If you’ve tried the tips above and nothing is sparking your passion or motivating you to keep going, it’s okay to stop. It could be for a day, a week, or even month. Choose a timeline that works best for you. During this break, take a step back from writing and being involved in social media for your blog. Give yourself some time and space to miss it or re-discover what you loved about it. When you’re ready to get back into blogging, you’ll know. You’ll feel re-invigorated and ready to try again. You’ll come back with new ideas for better content and a game plan to avoid blogger burnout again in the future.

Reading this post isn’t going to cure your blog troubles. You still have to put in the time and effort to make it happen. Even I need to take my own advice and use these methods to get out of my own blogging rut. If you’re currently in the midst of battling the blogging blues, I hope these ideas will encourage you to keep going!

Feel free to share your advice about how you overcame the blogger burnout in the comments below! Subscribe to the blog for more blogging and entrepreneurial support!

The post How to Stay Inspired and Find Motivation to Blog appeared first on Limpert in Leopard.