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So You Want to Start a Blog? | The Content

Mary8 Comments

I’m going to start this off by telling you the opposite of everything else you will read: you do NOT need to choose a niche. Take a look around my blog, it’s been four years and I’ve yet to pick. Don’t worry about it.

What do you like?

The most important thing about blogging is you need to write about things you like. It doesn’t matter if it’s not popular (trust me, you aren’t the only person who likes something), it doesn’t matter if you don’t know everything about it (learn). What matters is that you enjoy what you’re talking about. It shows when bloggers are writing about what’s popular, what they think will sell, it’s not what they care about, they’re doing it for the views.

Find Your Folks

This is the only place you’re going to have trouble when you don’t have a niche- but it’s doable. My folks are for the most part other twenty-somethings generally at the same stage in their life as I am. Each person and I have something different in common, all of my folks are from different “tribes” (a term for another post) if you will.

Finding Your Voice

I don’t like to be professional on my personal blog, these are my thoughts and opinions, and I want to write in a very familiar tone. I want people to know they’re reading Mary’s Average Adventures by a line. I don’t want to be authoritative, I don’t want to lecture, I just want to be, so I use my own voice. A lot of my writing is exactly how I talk– run on sentences and scattered ideas. I’m very scatter-brained- the kind way of saying a mess, but that’s me and that’s what I want my blog to show. My voice is not me showing my best self (did I get tipsy and write the other night, yes), it’s me showing me.

That’s not to say that’s the only way of doing things. If I was talking about business that wouldn’t be okay, but I’m not. You have to figure out what voice fits your blog.

This is you.

A blog isn’t meant to encapsulate anyone but you. It’s meant to house your thoughts or information you think the world should have. It’s you. Don’t worry about what’s popular- it’s easy to fall into the trap of what will get views but at the end of the day it needs to be what’s best for you. Don’t burn out over a blog, that’s silly.

Thoughts? New blogs I should be looking at?

 

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I’m Content

MaryLeave a comment

I’m sorry about my brief three day break, I didn’t intend on this happening but I ended up just living life. I’ve been hanging out with my friends and trying to be an active participant in life, a change that I’ve been working on for a few months now. I actually went on a hardly documented adventure yesterday and it was the most fun I’ve had in a long time.

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The documentation of my day trip.

Up until today I’ve been very content and the only reason I’m not today is because of the day and history and such but I’ve been so content with being back at school. I feel much more at ease here, mostly. I am finally happy with where I am, I feel like I’m surrounded with people who enjoy my company and people’s whose company I enjoy. I’m just content with where I am and who I am, the only thing I’m not content with is what I’m doing.

“You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.”

-Jim Rohn

What I’ve really realized is that life is all about the people who you surround yourself with and the influence they have on their life. I strongly believe that you are the average of the people who you are closest to. It’s very important to choose those people carefully because even if you aren’t actually a bad person if the people around you are it will rub off. I would say that I’m very adaptable to the people who are around. Not to say I’m a different person depending on who’s around but once I start hanging out with someone a lot I start to pick up on their mannerisms and their habits. That’s probably weird to admit but it’s true!

I think it’s just important not to associate yourself with negative thoughts and energies because it’s not worth you changing your emotional complexion to fit in with someone else or adapting to someone else. By making the choice and effort to surround yourself with people who truly care and are positive influences on your life will really provide a better mentality for yourself. Life is so much better when people respect you and your opinion rather than the opposite.

Be content. Find people who let you be that way. Don’t dwell on the negatives of life, focus on the positives. Allow yourself to be happy because happiness is what’s important and that should always come first.

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