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There is a saying about luck, “You don’t have good luck, you make it.” The same thing is true when it comes to inspiration, so how do you stay inspired? For me, inspiration, especially when it comes to blogging lies in habit.
This lesson about habits (and what happens when you fall out of a habit) really hit home this week. I’ve been on a blogging break for a two month maternity leave to have my first child. While it’s an exciting time for my new family, this break has shown me just how much I relied on my daily habits to stay inspired. When I’m in my groove, I can whip out post ideas like there is no tomorrow, but today, sitting at the computer, it takes so much time to conjure up something.
Not practicing my daily habit of blogging has made me rusty.
But there is more than avoiding the “rust” when it comes to the blogging habit, it makes you a better blogger, here is why…
Practice makes perfect
It’s an old saying, but it’s true. There is no blogging school, there is no formula for the perfect post. You have to find what works, and how do you do that? Practice. Honing in your skills through trial and error helps you develop your unique voice and a strong relationship with your readers. It also helps you understand what doesn’t work. There is no better education than getting out there and doing it, so if your blogging is a habit, you’re getting a lot of practice.
You know what’s going on
Blink and you’ll miss something on the internet. It’s never been easier to fall out of touch with what’s happening, the latest trends in blogging, in your niche, with your community, etc. Making a habit of staying in the know is a lot easier than catching up.
Getting started is a lot easier
One of the hardest parts of writing a post, is getting started. What do you write about? What do you say? Being in a habit makes these actions natural, almost automatic. Sometimes you don’t need to over think your beginnings, you just need to do it. There is always room for rewriting later.
Consistency helps build a readership
As a reader, nothing is more frustrating than falling in love with a blog and not knowing when the next post is coming. If you’re coming up with new, fresh content your readers will be more apt to subscribing, following, bookmarking, sharing with their friends, etc. Believe it or not, people love consistency (but not monotony). Show up regularly with something new for your readers and they will keep coming back.
You can’t have writers block if you’re on a roll…
When you’re on a roll, inspiration flows… it doesn’t happen ALL the time, but if you’re in the habit of blogging and regularly writing, the chances of getting on that “roll” go up. The statistics are in your favor! (I don’t have any studies to back that up, but it HAS to be true, right?)
You get faster
When you are in the habit of blogging, many of the more mundane tasks become automatic. Elements you don’t think about, ie, like how many of you have become faster at typing since you started spending all day at your computer? Have you ever took a break from Twitter, then come back to spend a weird amount of time thinking about what to tweet next? If it’s a habit, and it’s part of you, you just do it, you don’t waste time over thinking the things that really don’t need that much thought.
You don’t wait for inspiration, you find it.
The beauty of making blogging a habit, is that you don’t rely on that bit “ah ha” moment of what to blog about. You make a habit of being inspired by continually looking for new ideas to explore. Inspiration isn’t magic, it comes to those who work for it, and anyone can do that.
[Image Credit: Shutterstock.com]
