This week's Fashion Beauty Friend Friday topic deals with blogger burn-out, blogging habits during holidays and recognizing when it's time to stop blogging.
1. How many hours a week do you spend blogging? Has that number changed since you started blogging?
How much time I spend blogging usually depends on two factors:
? Text vs. photos/video post: Putting together a mainly text-based post takes a lot more time than those focusing on photos or video. Writing and editing are hardly a piece of cake!
? How much time I actually have: if I'm in a hurry, I'll spend much less time writing a post than if all the hours in the world are at my disposal.
However, actually blogging (i.e. putting together a post) is only a small part of the blogging experience. In my case, the bigger part consists of reading other blogs, forums, books and sometimes magazines, which is how I get ideas and inspiration for my work. I like to call this creative process "blogging even when I'm not." :)
2. There is always more you can do, write, read, comment on... how do you limit your time spent on these tasks?
I only subscribe to about 10 blogs in my RSS reader. I visit other blogs I'm interested in (mostly those without fixed posting schedule) about 1-2 times a week. Leaving comments is something I used to do every day, but now I find that spending a lot of time on it distracts me from working on my posts. I've decided to leave comments only when I really feel like I have something to say.
3. Have you experienced blogger burnout yet? How have you dealt with that?
I've never experienced a blogger burnout per se, but sometimes I don't feel well and cannot concentrate on writing. These times I'll skip a post and get myself together until the next.
I much prefer skipping a post to publishing filler content (e.g. "inspiration" photos) because I don't think such posts really do anything for your readers. Killer content > filler content!
4. This time of the year is always a lot busier than any other time. Will your blogging change as a result?
Holidays are never very busy for me. I'll prepare a post or two in advance in case any last-minute unexpected obligations get in the way, but I don't think my blogging flow will change.
I'm going to Milan sometime between Christmas and New Year and if I'll have internet access, I'd even like to do a post from there. Blogging is high on my priority list because I enjoy it, holidays or not.
5. Could you foresee a moment in which you are not blogging anymore? How would you you identify that it's time to walk away?
Right now I cannot foresee that moment. Even if I landed the super demanding and exciting job-slash-life(style) of my dreams and didn't have time to update my blog 3 times a week any more, I think I'd still post, just less frequently. If these people can do it, why would I be an exception, especially as blogging is where I come from anyway? I think blog will stay the medium that fits my personality best for quite some time.
Amen to no filler content! If only more young bloggers realized this! No one wants to read it...it's a total waste of time!
I wish there were only 10 blogs in my reader. I have 100+...half of my "blogging time" is most definitely spent commenting.
? V
http://www.gritandglamour.com
twitter: @gritandglamour
I see blogging much more personally, i am embarrassed to say that I do not think too much about my readers, in a sense that i don't post for them anymore and i hardly read other blogs. like you, i have maybe 10 blogs that i follow and only comment when i feel a need to. sometimes i feel like everyone will abandon me because i don't visit them, but i am really nice and always answer comments on my blog, so i don't know... i've been through phases, but right now i really can't do the whole "promoting" thing, it seems totally unimportant to me. what is important is the blog itself, as a medium for self expression, and i too can not imagine my life without it. regardless of how often i post
The most important thing for me is blog as a medium for self-expression too. In a certain moment it became exactly the right medium for me and that never changed. The thing with me is that I feel responsibility towards my readers, but not in a negative way, more one that "keeps me going" so to speak. If I don't update on schedule, I'm not content because I know some people visited the blog expecting a new post and I didn't deliver. Neglecting my blog makes me unhappy, it's my baby. (:
Also, thinking that everyone will abandon you because you don't visit them ... SHEESH :D
I love your image above re: time for rest. It's spot on.
I spend time blogging for my business but incorporate my personality into all my posts.
I also make it a point to comment on other blogs regularly in my industry. One can't expect to be successful at blogging by being selfish and making their blog all about them. It's the readers that make the blog. Without readers, you just have an online diary.
"I much prefer skipping a post to publishing filler content (e.g. "inspiration" photos) because I don't think such posts really do anything for your readers"
I wanna hug you for saying this. =)
*virtual hugs galore*
Wow only 10 blogs in your reader? I can't even imagine such a thing. They must be blogs you absolutely love reading every single time they post. Do you intentionally keep it at 10 or is that just what happened? - Katy
It's like you said - they're the blogs whose updates I want to read immediately. I did a "Spring cleaning" in my reader a few weeks ago and ended up with number 10, not really intentionally, it could've been 15 or 5 or something else. I read a lot more blogs than the ones in my reader though (via Facebook, Twitter or visiting a couple of times a week).