Today I’m pondering the question, why blogging is so hard, especially right now. I have been blogging here on Tidbits of Care since January 2020. And I love my blog and content creation. I really wanted to share my own experiences with anxiety and personal growth in the hopes of helping others. I also really wanted to write, as that has been a life long dream of mine. And for some reason, blogging has always appealed to me. I didn’t really know what I was doing when I started this blog, but I did a lot of the right things. I created business accounts for Pinterest and Instagram, I found out how to make appealing pins, I sought coaching to learn more about the work of a blogger. I joined the blogger community on Twitter and have been working hard to create the blog of my dreams as it were.
And here it is. What you see is what I always wanted in a blog. Of course, even though I am so happy with what I’ve created, I want more. I want it to get better, to evolve. I want to run this blog as a side gig to make some cash, as many bloggers do. I’ve been working hard to create content and gain subscribers even as I became a new mom.
But, blogging isn’t easy work. You don’t just throw up some quality content (and it has to be quality) and become an “influencer” or start raking in the dough. It’s hard work and a lot of the work I should be doing as a blogger, I just I don’t have the time to do at present, and I’m still learning. Two years in, and I just discovered what short form vs long form content is. And which is most popular right now. Guess what, your girl Giulia here isn’t creating the popular type.
The Work of a Blogger
What exactly is the work of a blogger? Here is some of the work bloggers do every single day.
- writing blog posts
- taking photos for posts
- creating pins for Pinterest
- pinning the pins
- creating Instagram posts including reels
- posting content on Instagram
- promoting content on social media
- updating old posts
- ensuring SEO is optimized
- become affiliates with brands
- creating extra content for newsletters/resource libraries
- working with brands for collaborate posts
- creating ebooks/resources to sell to your audience
I’ve probably left out some, and that’s okay, I think you get the idea. The work of a blogger is time consuming. Now, two years ago this was all hard, and I wasn’t getting to as much of it as I should have been, but I was learning and trying to build a quality blog. Two years in, and now when I should be bigger (I think) than I am–and I never expected to be very big at all–I feel as though I am blogging to myself.
Some of you may have seen that tweet blow up.
It’s all About Short Form Content
To my utter dismay, my style of content creation isn’t popular right now. It’s all about short form content. Reels, Youtube shorts, quick read posts. I don’t create that content. I’m not set up for video content at all. I’ve given that kind of content creation some thought and find myself utterly uninspired. It’s not even content I consume.
Plenty of Other Blogs
Another thing I worry about is that there are plenty of other blogs. What makes mine stand out? I don’t even know! I think that is okay too, by the way. And here is another thing I think is important to note: how many blogs can a person consume? After all, you only watch a certain number of TV shows, or use a certain number of apps. But think of all the streaming platforms and how many shows are on each. Think of all that content you aren’t consuming. I feel as though I’m a needle in a haystack, hoping someone will find me and love my content enough to come back.
Loss of Inspiration
All of this, plus two years of constant content creation, has left me of late, uninspired. I’m not sure what to write about anymore. I recently threw myself into creating a mental health series about hoarding disorder and decluttering, and those posts did not do as well as I would have liked. That’s disappointing, but that’s okay too. Not everything I’m excited about will resonate with others. But, the main point being…blogging is hard. I feel behind the game in so many ways, but I still thirst to do well, to create. Just right now, I’m not sure what direction to go in. And oddly enough, even far more seasoned bloggers than me are feeling the same at the moment. So I consider myself in good company. But feeling this way makes doing my work as a blogger even harder.
What to do When It Gets Hard
I don’t like to quit if I’m passionate about something and it means something to me. I always want to *solve* the problem, although sometimes things are out of my control. Which has given me a lot of anxiety in the past, and likely will again. But there are things you can do when the blogging gets hard, as it were.
- update old posts
- work on a side blog project, like an ebook
- set some goals–what do you want to happen in the short term? In the long term?
- ask for guest posts
- go through old posts for inspiration
- create a monthly or seasonal feature series
- round up some old great posts in one post
- invest in some blogging resources
- take a break
- don’t give up
- recognize we are all in different places in our blogging journey
Are you a blogger? Share some of your thoughts on why blogging is hard work below.
20 Comments
I totally feel you on this! Short content is not something I read or have much inspiration to create. I think it’s important to remember why you started blogging, which will hopefully spark some inspiration x
Caroline recently posted…March wildlife to spot in the UK
That’s a good point Caroline!
I’m sorry that you’re having a hard time right now. I am as well, but for different reasons. Blogging is a lot of work. I am in the early stages and the list of things I need to pay attention to that require action from me is Huge! EverytihngI read said that long form content was the thing. I naturally write that way, so until a few minutes ago, I was feeling pretty good about that. I am working on SEO, which is constant and trying to get traffic via Social media until SEO picks up. I have one post in 1st and everything indexed, but still very little organic traffic. I hope that you find your way again. just go about life. I’m sure you will find something else to inspire you. You never know, even when you might not be speaking to the masses, there is likely at least one person who is getting something out of your writing.
Cassie recently posted…Happy Women’s Day
I think long form will always have a place and will outlive short form, so don’t despair! Thanks for your thoughts and kind words.
I love your blog post and i cannot agree more with you! I am a pretty new blogger, but i can see how stressful and hard it can be! I needed a post like this to read, thanks!
Dragana recently posted…Blogging vs Freelancing
I hope it helped!
I have often felt this sneaking discouragement, so I love your ideas for how we can still do the behind-the-scenes blogging work and stay in the community until inspiration hits again!
Jaya Avendel recently posted…Skyfall
I never would have thought Jaya! Hope the ideas really help 🙂
This post hit me exactly in a moment i feel a bit discouraged with all this job i have to do as a blogger. Thank you for providing alternatives about what I could do when i am left without inspiration!
Eri recently posted…How Does Freewriting Help to Writer’s Block
I’m glad it helped! I honestly wasn’t expecting this to help anyone, but you’re not the first to say it has so I’m really blown away.
Blogging is a hard slog sometimes; my husband is constantly surprised by the amount of work that goes into it. I’m lucky that right now I’m in a really good place with my site but I’ve had terrible bouts of difficulty (life stuff took over). It’s encouraging to know that everyone seems to feel this way sometimes; sending you all the good vibes you need!
Molly | Transatlantic Notes recently posted…Here’s How You Can Help Ukraine
Yes, I currently feel like a complete failure! But as in all things, this too shall pass!
You’re right – blogging is a lot of hard work! It takes time and dedication to your craft in order to succeed (and of course, success looks different for everyone). Over the past year, my focus has been quality vs quantity, so I’ve been doing a lot of resharing old posts and working to make them better than the first time I shared them. Not a single one of the top performers over the past few months has been a new post, they’re all old. It takes time for articles to gain steady traffic – especially if you use Pinterest – but it’s worth it! I think so, at least. And while I really dislike video content, I’m still trying my best to diversify and include that when and how I see fit. It’s a learning curve for sure. You’ve got this!
Stephanie recently posted…February 2022 Reading Wrap-Up
Stephanie, thank you so much for sharing your own experience! You’ve added some great tips here that I’m sure everyone, me included, can benefit from. While video content isn’t my thing, I am thinking about ways to spread my wings into this and see how I can incorporate it as well. Especially on my second blog which lends itself better to that kind of content!
Sometimes it does get pretty hard to stay motivated and to do the work. Blogging really is a lot of work but it is still super rewarding! I don’t think anyone gets in to blogging and realizes just how much you have to do though. It is very humbling and this is one of the many reasons why I admire bloggers!
Lisamarie recently posted…Shopping Wars
It is a lot of work for sure!
starting a blog is actually easy. Thousands of new blogs are started every day. Anyone can create a blog in 5 minutes, but very few people will create blogs that matter.
I think the issue is more that some people start a blogger without knowing their direction or vision.
I felt this in my soul. I wish we could get a quick win when starting out which we could reflect on when blogging gets tough and you don’t feel like you’re getting a return on the amount of time you have invested.
AMAZING BABY recently posted…8 Epic Ways to Play With Your 3 Year Old
That would be nice 😃