Why I am participating in Sarah Arrow’s 30 Day Blogging Challenge (after blogging for nearly 6 years)
There is a popular saying that you don’t know what you don’t know, and that’s why I joined Sarah Arrow’s 30 Day Blogging Challenge, after blogging for nearly six years. I have never taken a blogging course, but I have read books and a lot of blog posts, and watched a webinar here and there about the topic. Some of the advice is great, and some are sketchy. And there are times when you come across great advice, but the time commitment it takes to follow the advice is too much. And still, there are times when you read a blog post that offers what seems like great advice, yet you end up feeling like an idiot because the blogger makes many assumptions about your level of expertise, therefore you do not have a clue what to do or even how to proceed. Who wants to feel like an idiot?
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In my book, there is always room for improvement. I am very proactive in my learning and development, and I will find the time to commit to learning a new skill, but there comes a point, where you can achieve more with a little help from a friend. In this instance, the little help I am speaking about is the daily challenge you receive from Sarah, in the form of an email. There are many things I have to do better on my blog. I recognize my limitation, and the room for improvement, because I do not get the kind of traffic that I dream of coming to my blog posts, even the ones I spend a lot of time on. I often feel like I am whistling in the dark. I have gotten some ghost blogging gigs because of my blog, but I have never received any projects as a result of it. The projects that I do get are from word-of-mouth or from people who have experienced the quality of my work. Wouldn’t it be great if I could turn my blog into a lead machine, without compromising quality or being cheesy?
But there are many people out there who get projects because prospects found them through their blog posts. This led me to believe, that I had to make changes, but I had no idea really what to change. One day of the challenge was to work on your About Page, and mine was a bit busy and unfocused. By following Sarah’s instructions, I was able to revamp the page in about 20 minutes. It’s not perfect, but it’s a lot better than it was before, and life is about growing and blossoming, so that means my About Page should be evolving to keep pace with me as I learn and grow. For those who have a hard time coming up with ideas to blog about, you get tons of topic ideas to choose from while participating in the challenge. My blog is very structured because I do book reviews and interviews with successful people, but I have still found the list of topic ideas very useful.
In the past, I have gone through my blog archives to create curated posts of my content, but the challenge on list posts offered ideas that I did not know about, or would ever think of. There is a challenge to write a case study blog post, and I would love to write one. The issue is that a lot of the work that I do, the clients do not want others to know about what I have done or am doing for them, so I am thinking of ways I can incorporate elements of a case study into another post type, and have the same impact. I have struggled with which keywords to use for my blog because I do book reviews and interviews, so the keywords are always changing. In the comment section of the 30 Blogging Challenge Facebook group, Sarah and other participants offered some very good suggestions. That is the benefit of belonging to a community.
I am now midway through the challenge, and I cannot wait to find out what’s coming next. There are several things that I am learning that I already know, but it doesn’t hurt to have reminders. And one of the things I like most about participating in the challenge is the sense of community. The tag line for The Invisible Mentor blog is “You’re Never Alone,” and the definition of an invisible mentor is a unique leader you can learn from by observing them from a distance. I provide invisible mentors to my audience, and I would like to do a better job, by improving how I blog. And best of all, by participating in the challenge, I am never alone.
I have not had the opportunity to read Sarah Arrow’s book on the 30 Day Blogging Challenge, but based on what I have seen so far participating in her challenge, I have no doubt that it will be an excellent read. Why? Sarah offers the blogging challenge for free, and on top of that, she has created a vibrant community on Facebook, and if that is not enough, she is responsive to your questions. The challenge is already making a difference in my life. I may have been blogging for nearly six years, but there are still lots of things that I don’t know.
What’s the implication of this post?
There are always ways for each of us to improve, to become a better version of ourselves. If you get the opportunity to become better at your craft, take it!
Get Started Here – I want to help you get started on your learning journey. Grab a copy of Zero to Blogger in 30 Days!: Start a blog and then join the 30 day blogging challenge to get results (Blogging book 1)
. Join The Invisible Mentor 2015 Reading Challenge today, connecting the ideas from the books you read!
In the meantime, THANK YOU for your time… Thank you for sharing this post, and thank you for connecting with me on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter! What was your biggest takeaway from today?
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