I found this on pinterest and I posted it over the weekend but again….
We all blog. We all blog for a reason. Im sure mine is not that different than any of yours.
I started this blog because I wanted a place to write down my thoughts and be able to “remember” these years. The important stuff…..
I have met some of the most important and amazing people in my life through blogging.
I have learned many valuable lessons through blogging.
I have gotten a thicker skin.
Lately I have heard/seen a lot about numbers. Followers, comments etc. I am guilty of this too. I said things like “when I get 1,000 followers I will have a week of giveaways” I get down when I dont get a certain amount of comments.
A week or two ago I did a complete 180.
I cant tell you the exact conversation, or person or what but all the sudden I realized that I didnt start blogging to reach a certain number of followers, or comments. I started blogging for me. I remember when I had 10 followers and I thought “WOW I cant believe 10 people care about what I have to say”
I feel like I need to get back to that. That is what I have been working on.
People have asked me “how did you get so many followers” granted I dont know how one categorizes what “so many” means. Im still surprised 10 people read my blog.
There is no secret to gaining followers.
I write what is true, and real about my life and the way I see things.
I try to be nice to everyone.
I treat others the way I want to be treated.
I try(as much as possible) to stay out of drama.
I try to not get caught up in the “numbers.”
Your blog will be as successful as you want it as long as you stay true to you, dont be fake and let people know you are genuine, honest and real.
Host giveaways, as many as you want as often as you want. Or don’t at all. Its not a blog law 🙂
Post things that are real.
Post without spell checking.
Post not caring if 1 person or 100 people comment.
Post the link to your post on twitter 5000 times a day if you want.
Write things that scare you.
Dont get involved in cliques. This isn’t high school lunch.
Don’t comment to get more comments, or not comment because someone doesn’t comment on your blog. Thats silly.
If I comment on your blog its because I truly want to.
Lets all try to get back to the reason we started blogging. I know I am working on that everyday.
This is just my take, my opinions, what I think. You may agree you may disagree. You may unfollow me.
Also lets remember that manifesto up there. Dont feel bad if you dont comment for a week or two, or if you dont respond to comments. Guilt is a bitch.
I am not perfect, I know I have gone against a lot of the things I have said here. But I am trying….
What is your take on blogging?
AMEN! AMEN! AMEN! Girl, I started blogging over two years ago, and I know that I will never have thousands of followers. But I am SO ok with that, because I know the people who do read are interested and they make me happy and I just love doing it:)
Amen! I couldn’t believe when I had 4 followers a few months ago, and now I have 74! I can’t imagine that I’m interesting enough for 74 people to want to read what I have to say, but I’m honored that they want to share their free time with me and hear what I want to say. I have met some of the most amazing people, and some of my best friends, through blogging. I hope to keep my blogging “pure” and to continue not to get caught up in the drama and the “numbers”.
Well said! I was actually talking to someone the other day about the sudden trend of a lot of bloggers trying to get tons of followers. I want people to follow my blog because they like what I have to say, and even more so, I’d love for them to comment if they really like a post.
Great post!
Love this, you said it perfectly. I just love blogging, and even though it is nice to have the followers, I do it for myself. In the beginning I didn’t even know if I would gain any followers, but I loved doing it anyway!
Love this! Sometimes we all get caught up in the numbers because it’s exciting/exhilarating, etc. But lately, I’m posting more because I want to. Lately, I’m reading more because I love meeting new people. Learning new things. I started a blog to write more. And yes, I’m writing more!
It doesn’t hurt that I’m also making lots of new friends 🙂 (Like you!)
Yep, it’s easy to get wrapped up with the numbers some days. Love that blogging manifesto!!
I agree. I blog because I love to, I never imagined gaining hundreds and hundreds of followers, and I probably never will. I am going to write whether people read it or not … the extra support is just a nice perk. 😉
I really enjoyed this post! You pretty much wrote exactly what I have been thinking over the past month. Thank you for sharing this!
AMEN! I love this! I am as guilty as the next person of wanting more followers … but at the end of the day: I blog for me because I enjoy it and love the people I have met through blogging!!! 🙂
Totally agree. It’s so easy to get wrapped up in the numbers sometimes. But you’re right– none of us started blogging so we could get a huge following. Great post!! 🙂
so true girl- i realize i was the same way when i started blogging only 11 months ago and we all get caught up in the ‘big numbers’ and wanting to be exciting for our readers- point is we all love it for our own reasons 🙂 xo
AMEN!!! I saw this print on Pinterest and it totally put me back into the blogging mindset. I forget I started my blog not for the glory but as a place to write down my thoughts. Thank you for posting this post!
I completely agree! I love getting new followers but I’m not in a hurry to reach a certain number and I’m so grateful to the 68 followers I do have. If others are trying to reach a certain number, I have no problem trying to help out but as for me, I just prefer to let it be. And when a blogger tweets “wow, no one’s commented on my post” when I know I did and maybe a couple others did, I feel like it’s a slap in the face. I’m happy when one person comments on a post. I blog for me, it makes me happy, and I’m just glad to be able to share it with others. 🙂
This is a fantastic post! I used to care a lot more about numbers as well…but I realize that at the end of the day it’s my own posts that I enjoy looking back on. I care that people like my blog, and I love having people that read it. I like doing giveaways because I think they’re fun, but I ultimately want people to follow me because they like what I write, will tell me what they think, and want to comment about things that I write about. 🙂
My take on blogging is that you do it for yourself. I have like 22 followers and most are my family and friends. When I got my first “stranger”, I was like wow! Someone actually thinks this is worthwhile reading, really? Pictures of my dog? I struggle with should I do more random posts to get my readership, or stick to why I started, which was to keep friends and family updated on my husband and I’s life. I think it it fun, so I think I am going to start doing some more fun and creative posts. Thanks for inspiring me!
Of course we love followers and comments… But I know a lot of people that read my blog daily and aren’t public followers and don’t leave comments! It’s hard not to get caught up in numbers, but I try to tell myself they don’t matter 🙂
I have been thinking about this a lot too! Though I have to admit, I got really excited when I reached 200 followers last week. It’s just exciting that people read/care about what I have to say. And sometimes I feel like I don’t say much at all. Which it probs true.
This is inspiring and reminds us all of why we started blogging. I didn’t even know about GFC for awhile when I started blogging. I didn’t blog because I knew other people did. I just did. For me. At least that’s how it started. And now, I’m so happy to truly have gotten to know some of my followers and fellow bloggers, including you!
It’s just great to meet new people who become great friends through the blogosphere. I don’t understand why some people have to drag drama into it. This is supposed to be a fun way to express ourselves and write about the things that are important to us, regardless of what people think.
So write on, woman! For you, if for no one else! Thanks for the reminder, doll face!
Love this!! I started this blog for myself, and I have to remind myself of that every so often.
I just love this post and wanted to let you know that 🙂
As a new blogger, I’m finding this list really helpful. Thanks for posting it!
I’ve found it particularly helpful to remember that ultimately, I’m writing because I LOVE it. If other people like it too, great. If not, fine.
I absolutely love this. It drives me nuts when I see bloggers focusing on numbers or complaining that they didn’t get a lot of comments on a post. Blogging isn’t (or shouldn’t be at least) a popularity contest. I am just as excited now as I almost have 100 followers as I was when I had 5. I want genuine followers who care what I have to say and want to interact with me. Thank you for posting this. 8)
Agreed girl! Our roots are what keep us grounded and followers can provide encouragement to lift us up! 🙂
I LOVE this post!! I think so many people get caught up in the whole “how popular is my blog” aspect that they lose sight of the real reason they started blogging.
I also agree that I have met some FAB people through blogging!! I never thought when I started this thing two years ago that I would actually meet the people who were reading my blog.
Have a great day girl!!
🙂
Thinking back when I got my first comment, I was soooo excited. It’s strange how we change and our blogs change!
It’s so hard to not get jealous of the big bloggers & wonder “why not me.” But then I remember that I have actual friends from this thing & my little follower count doesn’t bother me so much.
plus? I refuse to whore myself out to get popular.
Great post. Totally true.
I started my blog two days ago and only have a few followers and I am so grateful for them! Since I’m new to this, it’s been a challenge to figure out exactly how I want my blog to be. Your post is so inspiring! I am so glad I came across it because it is exactly what I needed to hear right now! Thanks so much and I’m looking forward to reading more of your posts!
So, so true! I love this post! 🙂
Hey girl! I love this post, you really hit home.
awesome!!! i love this!! thanks so much for sharing it 🙂 I haven’t found anything more useful than the fact of having a few “good followers” instead of a bunch of random followers that aren’t even interested! I do love getting those followers who actually care and do the same thing- that’s the best!
Great post, Neely! While I agree with everything you said, we’d be kidding ourselves if we said we “didn’t care about followers.” Yes, the blog is for me, but it makes even better to have an audience. Blogging is targeted to an audience, no? If not, we’d all be writing in our Lisa Frank diaries with the little heart locks. LOL. I am so honored to have the followers that I do, though. I am thankful for this community! I will never complain about not getting comments or followers because if I blog true to myself, they will come! *hugs*
This is a wonderful post Neely! We ALL get caught up in the numbers at some point, but you know, not all those followers read and take the time to comment on things they enjoy. All that matters is that you yourself enjoy blogging and putting your thoughts out there :).
I fully agree with this! Thanks for posting girlfriend!! 🙂 Have a great Thanksgiving week!
Amen to that lady!!! Funny thing is, followers alone aren’t the only ones reading the blog…there are plenty more people out there skipping through, reading and all…and yes, life happens outside the blogger world too…we should always remember that!
Hope you had a great day.
You are a fabulous blogger!! I just want to let you know I stil read your blog everyday. I just read from my reader app on my phone and it does not allow me to comment. I rarely get on the computer at home to make comments. There is just not enough hours in the day!! But I am still here.
Meant to comment earlier but holy shitballs, didn’t want to be all looking like I was contributing to drama on Twitter and all. lol.
I agree- I’m so blown away by the people who actually care to read my blog. I say ‘I love you’ to more internets peoples than real life ones. The blogging community is amazing. I get caught up in numbers sometimes. I like to hit that milestone. And being a blogger, I’m a little narcissistic and believe people should read everything I write because, well, I’m charming, right?! 🙂
Ultimately, as much as I like the followers, it’s totally more about quality over quantity. I think I average 5 comments/day, but those comments make my day. They are from local readers who I interact with everywhere and it’s special 🙂
Awesome blog post, my dear.
I love this, Neely!! I have gotten really tired of seeing so many people beg for followers lately!! It’s totally not about that!! I definitely remember when I had like 5!! And I was excited to have those 5!!
i agree with all you said…the numbers can be fun but should i really get down on myself if i never get to 1000 or even 100? i didn’t think when i started blogging “lets see how many people will read this”. i actually lost 2 followers in the past few weeks and i felt bad at first and it does make me sad but i have left blogs before because they just weren’t for me. love this post
I am going to ask a twitter question, but I need more space so I am writting here. You seem to be on twitter a lot. Is there anyone you would recommend me following. I want someone who is cool, roughly our age (you are younger than I am I think???), who doesn’t self promote themselves, who basically is just cool. non-celebrity of course…maybe another blogger.
I feel like this is exactly what I needed to hear. I get disappointed when I don’t get comments but I know that its not that important. Its just nice to feel like someone appreciates what you took the time to blog. Love ya!
Thanks so much for writing this post!! I’ve been blogging since august, and originally I started it for the same reason as you but lately I’m thinking how can I get more followers or just like you, I get a little bit down with not many people comment on my post, or when I think I don’t have enough followers. But you made me remember I BLOG FOR ME . Thank you so much for that reminder!
Lauren
http://www.laurensweetnothings.blogspot.com/
Love this post! Completely agree with everything
Finally reading this! Love it! I am happy with my 60 followers 🙂
Totally thought I commented on this post over the weekend, but apparently I commented in my head! You and I have had talks about this so you know my opinion, I just want to say thank you. Thank you for saying things like this and sometimes saying things that others are thinking. You rock and I’m glad to have you as one of my blogger/internet friends!
I love this! It’s good to hear why some people blog. Your blog is interesting because it is real. I hate fake blogs, people who try too hard. Can’t wait to read more of your blog!
-Bridgette
bridgettenicole.blogspot.com
This post warms my heart. I just started blogging recently, so I’m looking high and low for guidance. This helps a lot…I need to just be who I am.
Thanks!
-Pricilla
http://www.pricillajdesigns.com
Enjoyed that like a good meal. Thanks for your take!
i think number counts are important because they indicate to advertisers (revenue streams) how valuable your blog might be for advertising purposes. your content is more important since it helps to determine those numbers, but without clear statistics it would be very difficult to “prove” worth to advertisers, if that’s part of your blogging thing. why did you center all of the text?