[tentblogger-vimeo 16279421]
[This is part of the Escaping the 9-5: My Road to ProBlogging series. Like the quality of the screencast? I use the Screenflow app for it!]
This post was inspired by a simple question via DM on Twitter from Adam Smith (@jackalopekid):
I answered it quickly and thought that it would be a great video post to share with you guys.
[I love how Twitter can be used as both a tool for connection as well as a source of "instant" inspiration. Thanks for that Adam!]
Some additional food for thought as you guys consider blogging as a potential full time profession:
- We operate best in our “sweet spot.” Writing has been one of those for as long as I can remember. What is yours?
- Is blogging something that is a part of that “sweet spot”? Are you forcing it or is it something that comes naturally? Are you willing to ask yourself these hard questions to dig a bit deeper into the world of blogging?
- What exactly are your goals as a blogger and writer? What are you hoping to accomplish?
I figure that there are things that you’ve been doing way before you had the responsibilities of cashing a paycheck at the end of the week. Is writing really one of them?
[This is part of the Escaping the 9-5: My Road to ProBlogging series.]
I wrote about this today somewhat in the same vein. I have determined to “write what I know”. And by know, I mean have experienced first hand. I write mostly about my faith but I think it still stands.
You have personal experience in what you write about. It’s not theory, it is what you learned personally by “doing it”. Your posts are always first hand accounts of what works or doesn’t work. I think that’s why you are so respected and influential.
Great job and thanks for sharing this great question for all of us who consider ourselves bloggers.
thanks for the encouragement tony! it’s been a long road and there’s much to learn. i hope i can pass on a few tips here and there and make everyone else’s journey a bit easier!
Nice… I’ve dabbled in writing for a while, but never had real training in it (besides a couple of English Comp classes in college). But I also LOVE one of the more valuable skills of a writer… reading. Most of my professional experience is in Learning and Development where I write training programs, and that is something that I really enjoy too.
Blogging is something that I’m pretty passionate about, and it usually comes easy for me. I’d love to make the jump into professional blogging so that I could do it more often… Ahhh… but that leap is a scary one to take!
you are SO right. reading is so important to me and has definitely impacted the way i write.
the leap doesn’t have to be a leap… it could be a step like the one I took!
Yo! I love poetry and brit lit too! I actually considered doing english lit in college cause I was exposed to so much exciting stuff in high school and early in college. But thought Medicine my calling. Later God showed me that He wanted in ministry.
medicine and ministry are pretty similar…….!
good thoughts John. I had a similar epiphany as I got more and more into blogging, i looked back and realize I loved writing and had been doing it for years and years without ever really considering myself a “writer”.
At this point I’m a full-time blogger in that I do it 5 days a week, but not in the monetary sense…but hopefully i can get there some day.
And while I’ll continue to pursue other avenues of writing (i have my first humor piece in the JAN/FEB Relevant!!), i’ll never give up blogging for the instant feedback and community that it provides.
sweet! can’t wait to read it!
your header on your blog is ridiculous. love it.
My spot is helping people. Blogging helps to tell the story. Writing is easier when it’s thought out days ahead. I learned some insightful tips about posting from my fellow tentbloggers in a Skype meetup yesterday morning.
Shout out to Blane, James, and Randy!
Q: Did Bolles have anything to do with the writing niche?
in fact, i had an english teacher there that changed my life. he made it interesting and i fell in love with brit lit, romantics, and more.
best thing that happened at that place, bar-none.
It’s a full time job just to keep up with reading all your blogs! I don’t know how you find time to create and share so much quality content. You must be made for (maybe even called to)it
it’s what i do………………………….! among other things.
I’m not a fan of vlog’s. They take all of the control away from me, the consumer.
With text, I can read and re-read sentences and paragraphs, get distracted and instantly go back to where I was reading, copy and paste quotations and use a different level of concentration.
I don’t have the concentration or the peaceful surroundings required for a vlog.
Sorry, I ‘watched’ this but have no idea what you said past ‘starbucks’
… and that’s why i spend the time to write a few things after the entry… does that help?
It helps… but a summary of the main points in the video would help more.
Your test doesn’t give the ‘one reason’. I know that would mean people don’t have to watch the video but…
I like the way the BBC do it with their news video’s. You feel like you get the information you need but yet leaves you wanting more and makes you want to watch the video: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-11640578
i don’t have that accent though.
i believe the one reason was that i had been doing it for years.
Ah… I see… I DO have that accent, so should I start vlogging?
yes.
thanks for your quick answer buddy. inspiring for sure. oh and i like vlogs
for shame!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
sure thing bro!
My sweet spots are counseling/coaching and writing. I am a trained counselor and I have been a writer for years through preaching, teaching and publishing local church pubs. Most of my writing has been Bible study or small group curriculum…some published and some produced in-house. However, I’m also a “journaler.” I could easily see myself in a place where I could counsel/coach and mentor and write/blog full-time with content that speaks to the life challenges people experience.
great. what specifically in counseling?
Awesome. Enjoyed it. I also enjoyed seeing you in video for the first time. It’s like putting a face to the name. Thanks again!
awesome!