This is the last review of a series, of a book called WeBLOG, by Rebecca Blood.
Although I will go over the last Chapter, I urge everyone to look beyond Chapter 7 into great tools included by the author in Appendix I, II and II at the end - which cover tutorials from writing linktext to buying a Domain.
I found the author's tone in this book to be motherly and nurturing, as if Rebecca was speaking directly to me and telling me the do's and don'ts of blogging - as if she was holding me by the hand showing me the ropes. Chapter 7 was especially impacting because I have been there and knew exactly what she was talking about.
This Chapter deals with how blogging affects you life - here are some points to always keep in mind.
SCHEDULE - Here in Active Rain, we often hear about our AR addiction, how we can't stop blogging, how our spouses complain (Rick not excluded....a lot of you know he calls it ACID RAIN). Rebecca touches into having a life beyond blogging and how to know if your blog is taking over and what to do if it does.
She starts by saying that "It's true that the only way to cultivate an audience is to provide them with new content on a regular basis. Becoming a slave to your weblog schedule is a sure way to burn out, so the first thing I advise you to do is to create a reasonable schedule for yourself and then stick to it."
REPUTATION - We also need to worry about our reputation - no it is not high school, but everything you write is there to stay..."everything you say online may live forever". Think before you publish, choose your topics wisely and avoid at all costs, writing when you are angry. If you do, don't publish right away, read your post/comment a couple of times, wait until you cool down and rethink the post/comment - edit personal attacks, arguments, unsupported claims, and remove inflammatory language. Always approach your colleagues with respect!
PRIVACY - "life online is more permanent than life on the street"- Some bloggers put their life out there for everyone to read and some others are very private - so think about which route you feel comfortable with. You also need to respect other people's privacy - and most importantly - protect your children online as you do in everyday life. **Rebecca cautions us to think carefully about blogging information that could tie our children to a physical location***
SUPERSTAR SYNDROME-I know this applies to a lot of us here, since most of us have profile photos - but don't be surprised if people start recognizing you. As real estate professionals, using our photos for marketing purposes, including blogging can be a little overwhelming. I had a mom run to me at my son's preschool and say, "I knew you looked familiar, you are Ines from the Rick and Ines Team! I look at your photo on my refrigerator everyday!" That's the reality of the Internet - it makes us mini-celebrities, enjoy your stardom!
TAKE A VACATION- Lastly the author talks about taking a break from your blog. If you are burning out, if blogging is not longer fun, if you are stressed about finding new subjects to blog about. Let your readers know you will not write as often, take a vacation from your blog. When you come back, you will feel refreshed and full of life, or you may choose to post less often and change your blogging habits altogether.
The most important factor is to keep it real and keep it fun!
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Just in case you missed the rest of the reviews:
1. Mariana Wagner - BLOG History 101 ~ Review #1of The WeBLOG Handbook, by Rebecca Blood
2. Ines Hegedus-Garcia- Why Blog - Review #2of The WeBLOG Handbook, by Rebecca Blood
3. Ann Cummings - Creating and Maintaining Your BLOG - Review #3 - The WeBLOG Handbook by Rebecca Blood
4. Ann Cummings - Finding YOUR Blog Voice - Review #4 - WeBLOG Handbook by Rebecca Blood
5. Monika McGillicuddy - Find an Audience and Obey the On-Line Rules of the Road
6. Mariana Wagner - Behaving in the Blogosphere: Review #6 of The Weblog Handbook, by Rebecca Blood
**Thank you TLW, once again, for putting this talented group of ladies together and for leading us through yet another GREAT book. ** I wonder what TLW has in store next? Hmmmm......SVW
Ines - You did a WONDERFUL job on summarizing this chapter, and I'm really glad you mentioned the Appendix at the end. Those are just chock full of great information that could easily be overlooked. The way you described Rebecca's style of writing is exactly that - nurturing and as if she's speaking directly to each of us. I thought that was a wonderful way to learn from her.
Nicely done! Love what you did with the links, too. ;-)
Ines- What agreat wrap up. These are all such good points to remember. (I also love what you did with the links...) Unfortunately, our children have Realtors as parents and we have many house parties that include our client base. We also market to our neighborhood. ANd we office out of our house. In some cases it is hard to keep our location a secret.. .But that IS something to keep in mind.
Again, you did a wonderful job with our last review!
Ann - thanks - the Appendix is really great - lots of useful info. I found it difficult to summarize the book because it was packed with great stuff.
Darren - thanks for the visit - don't miss the rest of the reviews and the reviews we did for Realty Blogging.
Bryant- I think TLW picked a great group of women to pull these together, thanks for the praise.
Mariana - I found the "children safety" an interesting issue because of all that you mentioned. We work and are very involved in our community. I blog about the teams we sponsor and coach, about the schools - not tying a physical location to our kids whereabouts is tough - but we need to think SAFETY - there are sick people out there.
Ines...What a perfect wrap up! Awesome job and I love the links...thank you so much. Great tips...I struggle with Blog life and Real life and need to continue to work on balancing them...Thankfully my guy is also on AR so he understands my other passion :)
Great job Ines!!!!!
Ines....
Ahhh. Nice wrap up...Really nice. Makes me want to get a life :)
You Ladies have done an awesome job putting these reviews together and working as a team. You all make me so proud :)
Stay tuned. I still have a little magic for you...Sha Zaam...TLW strikes again :)
Hey Monika - it's difficult to follow you guys but I do think we are all getting better at this. I also struggle with Blog Live/Real life and that's why this chapter meant so much - we can all learn a lesson to not take it so seriously.
TLW - thank you , thank you - you are the one responsible for keeping it together - THIS IS FUN!
Boy do I need to get a life. My wife went upstairs to shower almost 45 minutes ago. I said, "I'll be right up." She was naked, in the shower, and I missed it. For this? Boy do I need to get a life.
You guys just made me crack up!
Jeff B- the longest blogging vacation I have taken has been 3 days and I was going through withdrawals - not a good sign.
Ardell - Some agents more than others - the screeching tire story is funny, I've been there!
Stare-away-Jeff - PLEASE GET A LIFE!
Ines, thanks for another great post. Can I ask for your recommendation of just one blogging book to start with? I've seen several highlighted here in AR and am not sure where I should focus for my very first one. This one maybe?
I'm bookmarking so I can read all the other great posts you mention.
Thanks!
Maggie - we started these reviews with REALTY BLOGGING by Richard Nacht and Paul Chaney and found that extremely helpful, (that link will take you to the last review with all the links to the previous ones)....but you need to get the WeBLOG handbook as well.
Jeff B - one day at a time...and don't take it so seriously.
Ines... yea, yea, yea... I know.... that was my whole point. I just walked away from it.... just trying to have fun again and blog when I want and what I want. It's tough though when some people just bring you down. Check out a few of my blogs.... just pieces of info.... nothing deep.... lol
Anyhoo.... off to watch Louisville Cards go beat Brian Brady's Villanova Wildcats who play each other at noon today. That is my fun for the day..... ciao
Tony - what are you waiting for - get to it - it's only collecting dust on your smart shelf.
Sarah - let us know if you have anything to add once you read it - that's what these reviews are for, to encourage discussion and to pose questions.
Diane - thank you - I know there's another book to come - keep tuned to find out.
Thank you , Ines .
I have just found TLW's blog book group (yesterday ) and on perusing some of the info here, I see I am going to become quickly addicted. So many treasures ! Thank you for your wonderful summary of Rebecca's timely advice .
Jo