Simple steps to a better blog: Brazen Careerist is a perfect example of learning to find your writing voice
By Carolyn Tann-Starr
According to Brazen Careerist: “The most sought after people in today’s job market are not the most educated. They’re the most connected, the most networked, and the most visible.”
The first question people may want to consider is, “Are you squandering your social media relationships?” Social media newbies may find themselves wondering, “Do I even have any?” If you don’t, you really do need to get some because it is always comforting to share with a friendly face.
LinkedIn? Facebook? ActiveRain? Twitter? MySpace? WordPress? Xing? There are so many platforms to choose from that will require your attention to maintain once you get your social media blogging party started. Don’t go for quantity straight out of the writer’s gate, go for quality relationships because the whole purpose of starting a blog is to start conversations and create relationships between you, the writer and those who read your portfolio of work. People who like your work will start to look forward to reading you. They will share links to what you write because that is what most people do if you create something interesting and useful.
If you are going to blog you might as well have fun with it. Your virtual life is an adventure that should complement your brick and mortar one. As you grow with your on-line experience you are going to discover new things about yourself as people respond to your writing. I am going to quote Penelope Trunk because I love her views regarding self-discovery: “A blog is a great way to figure out what you want to do with yourself because writing regularly is a path to self-discovery. And a blog is a great way to build a network of people who respect you for your ideas, so it is the perfect tool for helping you to attain your goals and dreams, when you know what they are.”
So now you are seriously thinking about taking the plunge because you may be (a) curious, (b) struggling in this recession, (c) thinking about a career change or (d) a host of fun, other personal reasons because blogging may be a virtual adventure you might also be able to monetize down the road. Some of you definitely want to start writing on-line so you can get more business because you are starting to realize there may be value in investing in cultivating social media conversations. As a newbie, you may find yourself wondering (1) how to build and maintain your credibility with your virtual audience once you start and (2) what on Earth are you going to do with all those virtual people when they start hanging around your blog waiting for your next post. May I suggest you explore Brazen Careerist before coming back to read my next post on taking simple steps to building a better blog? Newbies will find this post very useful: http://blog.penelopetrunk.com/penelopes-guide-to-blogging/
Penelope Trunk is an amazing writer and I highly recommend her blog for anyone who is looking to be inspired to take their careers to the next level, or to simply just start writing….
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