Before I type this part I have to actually go to my blog and look at my archives, how long have I been blogging? Ah yes 15 months, jeez it feels like a lifetime. Did I have a life before becoming a blogger?
Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net
When I first started blogging I will be totally honest and say I hadn’t a clue what I was doing and still don’t. I made so many mistakes and in doing so pissed many off, I am like that in real life too so it was nothing new to me, annoying people that is. I have learned some tricks along the way and the biggest secret to successful blogging has to be to become a snake, OK you don’t need to actually become a scaly reptile, but you seriously need to grow a thick skin and shed the one you have once in a while.
While I have been given the opportunity to create some amazing friends I have also a trail of enemies, these come in mixed forms, those who take an instant dislike to me, or the tweets or blog posts I write, yea as that really shows the real me? Non the less you will offend someone at some time and come under fire.
There are those who were blown away by my determination not to back down to certain blogging bullies and trust me there are a few out there, sadly even a few will go as far as messaging other bloggers to make sure they too keep you out of their gang. They are the ones I name the blogging bitches.
Blogging can be and is very much like a school playground, where bloggers who have formed friendships or attend the same blogging course all stick together, while those who are that little bit different are not that popular enough to be in the cool gang. You will find your own circle of friends and blogging is very much like real life and yes, women can be bitches when there’s a group of them. So you need to learn to be a blogging bitch too and shake it off.
I have lost sleep, shed tears and told myself I was stopping blogging endless times. I stopped enjoying being a mommy blogger and it became more of a chore.
The one thing that saved me from the clutches of blogging fail was to stop being so god damned bothered about what others thought about me and my blog. I had to take a long hard look at why I started blogging, was it too be accepted, fit in, win awards? No, I blog because it provides me a space to voice my fears and worries and hopefully help others in some way.
No matter what you do or write on your blog there will be that 1 person who dislikes you, is jealous of you or does not understand you, on the other hand there may well be 10 who do get it. My advice is if you don’t like a blogger or a blog get over it, they are probably many who are not much of a fan of you either.
The best thing I ever did was stop watching my stats counter, to ignore that others read my blog and begin writing for me again. I learned not to worry about what others were doing, what I should be doing and following endless rules and just write from the heart. That’s when I noticed a huge difference and that my love for blogging came back, I also unfollowed those who made me feel inadequate and surrounded myself with like minded bloggers.
I am proud of all I have achieved and I have become much like a snake, I take the praise and the criticism, OK so more criticism than praise but hey, and then I shed my skin and grow a new one. The best advice I can give you as a blogger, is to become a snake too.
Don’t take criticism to harm, it can be a good thing.
