This guide is two specific things. First, it is my New Year's Blogging Resolution. When I was writing my Declaration of Independence piece last December, I was also planning on writing a blogging resolution as well, but I thought writing one was quite trivial. Was I wrong?! Secondly, after writing my response to John Kownacksi's "Before You Start Being Relevant" article, I wanted to write a follow-up guide of the things I have learned about making it as a blogger and social media participant these days. It is not all peaches and cream like many bloggers seems to live through everyday. I want you to learn from my mistakes. So this is my New Year's blogging resolution and your guide to becoming a better blogger. So, what have I have experienced through this ordeal?
1. Be humble with what you already have. Be grateful with how much traffic you receive and the number of followers and comments you get daily. I am now grateful that 27 people think that my blog is worth their time to read and comment. I may not have the influence and a big fan base like many other popular bloggers have right now, but my brand will only become bigger and successful if I put the time and effort in the long run.
3. Have a strong, healthy ego. Do not try to become a shameless self-promoter all the time. There are times to do it, but not everyday. Link your blog posts to a couple of social media outlets at a time. If you promote on Twitter, late afternoons and evenings are the best times to get more retweets and publicity. Do not spam Twitter or forums like I have because people will not take you and your brand seriously. I've learned the hard way and I will never do that ever again. Shameless self-promotion makes you appear desperate and ignorant of the proper way of social marketing and personal branding. Patience is a virtue.
4. Be Yourself. When you write your blog posts, be yourself. When you reply to your follower's comments, be yourself. When you go on social media outlets to promote your brand, be yourself. Do not try to be anyone else other than yourself. As I was watching the first season of Glee all this week, I realized that the characters on the hit TV show discovered that they could finally be themselves and appreciate their own musical talents as a part of their high-school's glee club. High-school is ground-zero for social pressures and conformity already as teenagers are pressured to become images they are not. The glee's club win at the sectional competition only proves that with talent, determination, and through adversity, you can be victorious. If you can be yourself, your passions, your influence, your integrity, and your blogging leverage will follow through.
What have you learned as a blogger?
A couple of days ago, I was strolling through my Tweet Deck until I came across a ijustine tweet with a link to a recent Justin Kownacki's article entitled, "Are You Waiting Until You're Popular Before You Start Being Relevant?". The title alone struck a chord to me. His words defiantly brought life to a continuing situation in my life: what is my path to success and how I can implement it in social media and in other mediums? Am I socially irrelevant? It only took me only two minutes to decide to write a response to this insightful article. I am here to confess to you that:
1. I am a shameless self-promoter sometimes. Who else is going to do my dirty work? Me.
2. I tweet celebrities and other famous people (in their own right), seeking some form of self-recognition and acknowledgment from the people that I admire, when nine out of ten, they don't response back.
3. Twitter and other micro-blogging platform feel like continuous beauty pageants. Everyone including myself, is seeking their fifteen minutes of fame in the most constructive or ludicrous ways possible. I personally was not the most popular girl in high-school, so I may already be at a disadvantage.
4. Setting yourself and your personal or professional brand(s) is harder now since more and more people are now signing up to Twitter and other social networking sites and creating new blogs at an astronomical rate. Your Twitter account or blog is like a resume/cover letter with hundreds of thousands of hiring managers grossing over it to see you are worthy following.
5. Twitter has now socially integrated into my own personal life. So for people who think I have no life outside my laptop computer, you can just stuck it.
6. Despite my pleas for self-recognition, I fear overexposure. Case in point, Justin Bieber. I still do not know why is he is a constant trending topic on Twitter.
7. Fear should be a sin. Like what Kownaski said in his article, what is stopping you from being the real "you"? I do not have a definite answer, but the plot thickens.
Despite these confessions, I am more grounded than I had thought. I do not compare the Twitter backgrounds or the tweets or writing styles of successful bloggers and social media experts to my own brand because everyone is different. There is no point in trying to be someone else or be another ijustine or aplusk. What I do envy, however, is the self-recognition and support that these people get on a daily basis. I just want to be known for my visionary talents. When you seem like you have a good foot in the door, another obstacle crashes on top of you. Despite my fears and problems, I see the brighter side of the rainbow. (To Be Continued).
What are your fears and anxieties using social media tools to enhance your business or brand?
