I’ve had this post planned for a while but every year it just doesn’t feel right unless it’s the first day of the year (or in this case the first biz day of the year. That’s kind of funny as I’m not a big maker of resolutions and even if I was I have always felt that you don’t wait for a starting gun, you start the minute you make the resolution. What evs.
I read a lot of blog posts. Some are insightful, some are thought provoking and then some are just for fun. Sad and Useless falls into that category and as I was struck by one photo that would be perfect in my ‘resolution’ post. I wont bore you with memes and useless pics – I promise. 😉
#1 Don’t Chase Shiny Objects
When I mention shiny objects it’s usually referring to apps or services that promise to do everything for you and do so automatically. Because your site is built on WordPress that usually means they have a corresponding plugin that can be installed in your site.
Hey, I get it. I’m an early adopter of everything. That doesn’t mean that everything new that comes out isn’t worth adopting into your biz and marketing plan. What it does mean is to take a little time to explore and understand what the new SO does and doesn’t do before jumping on the wagon. That’s all.
#2 Define Your Goals and Work Your Site
Before I build a site I generally ask you WHO it is that you are hoping to attract to the site, WHAT type of content you are planning on producing, WHERE they are coming from, WHEN are you going to be adding content, WHY do you need a site at all, and of course – HOW do you plan to attract and retain your target audience.
If you have those answers well defined you can start to work your site. If you don’t you are just wasting your time hoping and like I’ve said before Hope Is Not A Strategy. (go read that)
#3 Develop an Editorial Calendar
If your plan is to create content on a regular basis you need to…
- Decide what kind of content you are going to create,
- Decide what topics you need to cover,
- Decide on how much time you have to create the content,
- Decide on how often you can update your site with this content.
I won’t do this all over again for you because I’ve written it all out in ‘Creating an Editorial Calendar and you should also go read that!
#3 Learn Something New
(nope. going to break that promise as some of these are too good)
Like WordPress’ new block editor! They are going to stop calling it Gutenberg but that’s exactly what I mean. It’ll be tough at time but the learning curve will be easier the more you use it.
- Start writing a post.
- Follow my tutorials at https://areweconnected.com/gutenberg/
- Add a picture, a video, a block of colored text.
The fact is, your site is running a new block editor and the longer you avoid it the less your site will be updated and well we go back to #2 and abandon all of our goals. IT’s going to be ok – make it a postive and learn something new. 🙂
#4 Learn From Past Misatkes
(see what I did there?)
Making mistakes is a great learning experience. Go ahead branch out – try video, try podcasting, try something that makes you a little nervous and pushes your boundaries. If you make a mistake it’s ok. Learn from it and try again, and again.
As you look back a year ago at this time you probably tried something similar. You didn’t like the way it turned out and so you never did it again. Instead, this year, let’s look at that and see what it is you could do to do it better.
When I started doing video, just like you I didn’t like the way I sounded, I didn’t like the way I looked. I started trying to reduce the amount of ‘Ummmms’ in my speech pattern and well there’s not much I can do about the way I look so I just got over it. My YouTube channel has around 1,000 videos right now in it and I can say that while I’m not perfect I’m much more happy about the way they look and sound today than when I started.
#5 Try Something New
Doing the same thing, the same way, over and over again might be ok for some people. Personally I get bored and start losing my enthusiasm. Adding a new thing to your site might add a whole new amount of enthusiasm, for you and maybe for your readers too.
What that new thing is – I can’t say. Let’s start with this. If you haven’t written on your site on a regular basis, maybe having and sticking to an editorial calendar might be that new thing. Try that first.
If you are a regular writer, how about a new series of posts based on a single topic. “Market Mondays” – just a thought? I have seem wonderfully personal series of posts like “Thankful Thursdays” where each week the writer shares what they are thankful for (obviously). I had my 2 Minute Tuesdays for a while there, I really need to get back to doing those.
Try doing video, try doing a podcast, try doing anything that get’s your creative juices flowing.
Remember: you’ll make mistakes and that’s ok. Lather, Rinse and Repeat.
Oh, and that thing about cheese. Some of you might know that I am pretty handy with sourdough. I’m working with a bavarian starter that dates back to the mid 1600s. This year I plan on adding cheesemaking to my fun. I’ll be starting out with a nice chèvre and then work my way up to hard and aged cheeses.
BONUS #6: Keep your site safe and up to date!
That should go without saying. But seriously nothing is worse that being hacked or brought down by malware. Keep your site backed up, Updated and safe in 2019!
Here’s to you and have a great and prosperous New Year!
Mike Mueller
He's an avid hockey fan, rides a mountain bike, sometimes rides a road bike, has a few motorcycles (he had a really fast one, bought a cool orange one, rode a really slow one, and wants a really small one). If that isn't enough, he makes cheese and sourdough bread, loves strong beer and good red wine, and poorly plays the Mandolin.
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