The Future Buzz | Media, Marketing, PR

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I’ve written previously on how your resume is meaningless, on building career security, not job security and on the rise of personal branding.  To summarize the overarching themes of those three posts quickly:

• Your work should be working for you, building your reputation, not locked away in a resume.
• A resume proves nothing, a living case study proves everything.
• Creating a name for yourself in your industry provides you the ultimate freedom:  career security.
• The tools exist for you to influence your industry in deep ways to make positive change and carve out a name for yourself.
• Building your personal network enables incredible connections with the world around you not previously possible.

A blog is the ideal avenue to accomplish all of this and so much more.

I’ve been telling my personal contacts the content from the three posts linked above for years.  Great to see several of my thoughts reverberated in a recent article by AdWeek entitled:  save your career, start a blog.

A quick quote from the writer of the article, Joseph Jaffe:

“I cannot stress enough how powerful an established and Google-juiced blog can be for yourself and, ultimately, your company. Google doesn’t discriminate in terms of how it rewards relevance and resonance, and you’d be surprised how many leads, press inquiries, resumes and business-development opportunities will present themselves through blogging.”

Joseph is absolutely spot on.  I can personally attest to a myriad of benefits in both the physical and digital worlds by keeping this site. 

Just a few things that have happened since keeping this blog…I have:

• Received inquiries for several local speaking engagements, taken a few of them up
• Been quoted in local and national industry trade publications as an expert source
• Built close relationships with countless incredible people, even met some of them in person during business travels
• Had my thoughts read by well over 100,000 people since starting The Future Buzz
• Contributed to a global, ongoing dialogue in the marketing, public relations and tech industries
• Worked relentlessly to sharpen my communications skills and cognitive functions daily
• Been interviewed by several other bloggers, reporters and two college students as a reference on digital media

There are so many tangible and intangible benefits, if you are serious about leading your industry, helping others and building your global reputation, you can’t ignore blogging.

Tom Peters on blogging:

“I will simply say my first post was in August of 2004…no single thing in the last 15 years professionally has been more important to my life than blogging.  It has changed my life, it has changed my perspective, it has changed my intellectual outlook, it has changed my emotional outlook (and it’s the best damn marketing tool by an order of magnitude I’ve ever had…and it’s free)” — Tom Peters (watch clip here)

The sticking point…

The software is free, getting a domain and hosting are dirt cheap, and setting up Wordpress couldn’t be simpler…

At this point, especially to readers here for any length of time, you are either sold on the idea of having a blog (many of you already do), or you’re never going to do it.  To those who aren’t interested, you can stop reading here (or forward this to a friend you think might be interested).  Everyone who is still interested, the rest of this post is to help you overcome the one major issue I know you’re struggling with.

The only real impediment between many smart professionals and blogging?  Time.  Mainly, a lack of it.  That’s it.

I know you can write, want to make positive change in your industry and desire to create a name for yourself.  I know you are motivated and intelligent.  You know the technology is simple to setup (77 million+ others are using it just fine).  But on more than one occasion when encouraging people I know would be a fantastic bloggers to start, the sticking point for them – and perhaps the issue for you – is time.  Many think that they simply don’t have enough of it.

If you’re someone who thinks that, you’re wrong.  You can make time and be efficient with blogging.  You don’t have to commit insane hours, you don’t have to give up sleep, and the positives far outweigh any hours you’ll miss being mildly entertained. Here’s a few tips for how to integrate blogging into your busy life successfully:

Write what you know, write what flows easily

The content on your professional blog should be just that – posts about your industry.  Share what you’ve learned with the world in an open format.  This should be a joy, as you’re writing on something you’re passionate about.  Both new and experienced professionals should be able to come up with something compelling to say, as everyone brings different and useful viewpoints to the table.

Audit your time

To be successful, you should build blogging into the natural flow of your day.  To do this, you need to first audit your time.  Create a spreadsheet outlining every hour of the day you’re not at work.  Logically see where you can fit in 15-30 minutes to blog.

What do you do when you get home?  If you watch TV, spend hours on Facebook, or surf the web aimlessly consider using some of your free time to help yourself and write instead.

How much time do you spend doing chores/cleaning?  Batch task and streamline your processes and I guarantee you can come up with some extra time here.

Do you go out with your friends every night?  Don’t become anti-social, but take a night off now and then to work on your personal growth through writing.

Keep an idea-pad, write down potential post topics as you think of them

What you’ll find is you come up with fantastic ideas for blog topics when you’re not actively thinking about it.  In other words, you’ll be at work or with friends/family and all of a sudden a brilliant topic hits you.  Keep a notepad with you at all times (digital or analog) and jot down ideas as they come.  Knowing what you want to blog about will save you a lot of time when you’re actually ready to write.

Your blog and the benefits grow slowly over time if you stick with it

You don’t have to write 10 posts the first week.  In fact, you don’t even have to write every day, or every other day.  To begin with, just start slow and write when you can – the main thing is to keep at it, even if you can only start by writing once a week.  As you get more comfortable with the platform and as you get feedback, you can step it up if you’re so inspired.  Blogging is something that gets more enjoyable with time.

Blogging must be viewed as an intellectual challenge and a joy, not a chore

Writing is a fantastic way to keep your mind sharp.  Just like weightlifting, you have to challenge your mind or it will never grow.  That is why it is vital to write on something you’re passionate about, you’ll be motivated to stick with it.  Write on what you love and you really can’t fail.

Get into a groove

Once you’ve made blogging a part of your life, you will wonder how you lived without it.  It becomes something you look forward to daily and something which enriches and empowers you.  After a short time, you will find your blogging groove and it will be like second nature.

Conclusion

Blogging as a platform has matured significantly and is the ultimate tool to shape your industry, build your reputation and share your thoughts/expertise with the world.  If you are a professional who wants to lead, you can’t ignore personal publishing – it is far too powerful.

Related posts from The Future Buzz

10 Reasons Why Organizations (And Individuals) With Audiences Win

Findability, The Long Tail Of Search, And Building Deep Interactions

Every Blogger Is A Marketer

Related posts from around the web:

How To Start A Professional Blog:  10 Tips For New Bloggers (Andrew Chen)

Build Your Network:  People Do Business With Those They Know (Small Business Branding)

What Should I Write About?  Well, Who Are You Writing For? (SkellieWag.org)