what i've learned about blogging

It's now past my one year blog anniversary and I wanted to reflect a bit on what I've learned about blogging so far. When I first started it felt like everything was going to just happen all at once. Obviously, that's not what happened - and thank God for that! I would die if I had major blogging success piled on top of homemaking, motherhood and what's left of my social life. I'm glad I've had a year and probably a few more years to iron out the creases and find my niche. My blog evolves everyday and I still haven't quite found a comfortable place yet. I'm not an expert by any means, but, I've definitely discovered some good tips. And despite blogging meaning different things to different people, I think these are some Do's and Dont's we can all learn from, in no particular order:

♥ DO care about aesthetics. This is definitely something I am constantly struggling with. You want your blog to be unique and beautiful, right? But you also want it to function well and be organized to make it easier on your readers eyes. I am the first person to admit I will never read a blog again if it's not aesthetically pleasing. And hey, if you're no good at html coding or designing, there are plenty of lovely people on the internet that would be more than happy to help make your blog a beautiful place!

♥ DO find subjects you love to write about. Don't write solely based on what everyone else is writing about. Find what you love to discuss and stick with it - don't worry about how many readers that topic will get you. You don't have to be a professional writer or have these crazy amazing ideas. Just write about what makes you happy and trust your instincts. If you're writing about stuff that you feel you know nothing about or that you're not quite happy with, then don't write about it! And if you're writing to get traffic you're going to end up hating your blog.  And with that being said...

♥ DO ignore all the numbers. This is something I struggle with but am slowly learning to let it go. Everyday I used to go online and post my topic for the day and then reload the page to see how many page views I was getting. Bleh - STOP! Check your numbers monthly when updating your stats, and then walk away. It doesn't matter how many people are reading your blog or how popular you are or aren't becoming. Your heart should fuel your blog, not your numbers.

♥ DON'T compare yourself to others. This is my main struggle. Not everyone is the same, has the same talents, or likes the same things. I constantly find myself wondering "Why can't I have amazing photos like that?" or "I wish my wardrobe/house was that incredible" or "I wish my life was like that" but you, nor I, should ever think that! We are all unique, we are all awesome and we all have great blogs.

♥ DO work out a schedule that works for you and your posts. I know, writing a schedule seems silly but your readers will love coming back on certain days expecting to read the latest installment of their favourite subject. Also, find the time of day that suites you best to publish your posts. Eventually you will discover what time of day works best for you and also brings you the most readers (I know that sort of goes back on what I said about numbers, but it doesn't hurt). Think about different time zones and schedules. You may post in the morning but throwing a tweet out in the evening about your post from earlier may attract your readers from other parts of the world.

♥ DO network and make friends along the way. Like I said above, social media is your best friend when it comes to promoting your blog, and will help you reach your long term goals. It will also help you make some friends and make blogging that much more fun. Making friends has really helped me with my self confidence to be honest. In the beginning I felt alone and afraid to share my outfits but now that I have some friendly peers I feel much more comfortable! It's also really fun to collaborate for guest posts, giveaways and ad swaps!

♥ DO ad swap but DON'T rely on only ad swapping. I am a broken record, yes. But, ad swapping is great for making friends, great for dipping your toes into advertising but bad for getting stuck in a little corner. As much as I love swapping - I realize that it kept me from branching out. I ad swapped the same 10-20 blogs for a year before it dawned on me that those 10-20 blogs, probably share the same readers and thus, probably already knew about my blog and have been my readers for awhile as well.

♥ DON'T be afraid to put some cash out for advertising because in my experience, it REALLY helps. And try to find the blogs that offer up services for your money. A blog that is going to feature you, tweet about your blog, offer you extra ways to promote yourself, or even extend a nice email to get to know you better - is a way better advertising route than spending money on a blog that, although really popular, isn't going to do anything for you except throw your tiny ad on the side of their blog. The quality lies in the content so research the blogs you're going to sponsor before you put money into real advertising.

♥ DO take advice and learn from your peers. The best advice you can get is from people who have lived it. Don't be afraid to ask either! They're not unreachable people and they most likely love to help. I've received a heap of advice from Kaelah from the Clueless Girl's Guide through emails and through her Blogging Tips column (Must reads!). Here are some other great and very informative articles from successful bloggers:

How To Be A Happy Blogger // Scathingly Brilliant
5 Tips For Bloggers // A Beautiful Mess
5 Blogging Tips For Purchasing Advertising // The Clueless Girls Guide
How To Start Your Blog With A Bang // A Beautiful Mess featuring Sincerely, Kinsey
Blog, Blog, Blog // I Might Just Explode
5 Blogging Tips // The Clueless Girls Guide
How To Start A Blog // Gala Darling

Mostly importantly, DO have fun! 
Don't take yourself so seriously. And if you're ever feeling down or feel like giving up just know that some of the most successful bloggers had a tonne of hurdles to climb to get to where they are. And even on your worst day, you're still a really great person, and with the right inspiration and attitude you can have a really amazing blog!