We received a question recently from a reader who was wondering about maintaining a website. By posting this, we’re hoping to inspire others and get them in the game.
Question: I’ve always wanted to maintain a website/blog. I’m not sure what I’d want to write about, though, since I have so many interests. What should I do?
Answer: Write about what you’re passionate for. If you’re passionate about mountain climbing, write about that. If cooking turns your crank, so be it. Whatever you love talking about in your personal life will make a great blog. Trust us, if you are interested in it, there are going to be other people out there looking for interesting content on the topic as well; that’s what having a niche is all about. Readers will know if you’re stoked over what you’re writing. Passion can’t be faked (at least not for a long period of time).
Once you figure out the above, the next step is to simply get started. Don’t stress yourself over format or how things look. Just start writing. You can start a blog for free to try things out before committing to a paid website. There’s nothing to lose by getting started.
Question: What if I run out of things to write about?
Answer: Then you’re not creative enough. There are websites out there dedicated to cooking with a single ingredient that don’t run out of things to talk about. No matter what you’re interested in, there are always countless angles to come at a topic. Personal finance has given rise to so many varied blogs because money literally impacts every facet of our lives. Cash flow dictates to a degree where we can eat, the type of vehicle we own, the neighbourhood we live in, and so on. While we often write about dividends, we also cover other facets of investing as well.
You can take any topic and boil it down to specifics. For instance, you can write about what type of tire to have on your bicycle for a triathlon. In the next post, you might switch gears and talk about the triathlete’s mindset and go off in a philosophical direction. Variety is the spice of life. When it’s your site, you decide what goes on it.
Conclusion
The Internet’s real purpose is to connect people. By starting your own website/blog and sharing your story with the world, you are contributing to the incredibly global community that exists. We started this site to share our point of view with the world. We were inspired by other bloggers and hope we can serve to do the same for you.
Always remember that your story and your point of view are important. You matter and others out there most definitely will gain by hearing what you have to say (or reading it, whatever!). Stake your claim on a piece of cyber real estate and don’t forget to let us know when you do. We’ll be sure to stop by.
Thanks for stopping by.
– The Get Rich Brothers
What do you enjoy writing about? If you could share one thing with the world, what would it be?
Hi,
I’d say to a beginner that you have to be passionate about what you write or you’ll end up quitting very fast.
If you jump into a very popular niche, don’t expect to become an authority very fast unless you already have a reputation in the real world that could attract people to your blog.
Guest post on other’s blogs will drive more traffic to your blog than posting on your own blog and build your reputation faster.
Do not write too often but write inspiring content and spend more time promoting it than you spent time writing it.
Build it and they will come… No it won’t work!
You’ll realize very fast that traffic is hard to get and that most bloggers eventually are obsessed with traffic generation because they preach in the desert.
Before starting a blog, I suggest you read http://www.boostblogtraffic.com. This guy has found the Saint-Graal niche and has become THE authority.
Creating a blog is easy. Writing only meaninful content… not that easy. People who don’t know you don’t care how you feel. They are on the internet to solve a problem and find a solution. Offer solutions!
Generating meaningful traffic in a very competitive niche… far from easy!
In the end… do exactly the opposite I did! Ahah
Great advice for aspiring bloggers, Allan.
I’ll have to check out the link you provided and see what can be learned. There’s no doubt that traffic generation is important for a number of reason. First, who wants to write things people will never read? It’s gratifying to receive feedback on something a writer has poured their heart into. Secondly, monetization won’t happen without readers and if that’s the goal, generating traffic is a must.
Thanks again,
– Ryan