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Home » The Famous Blog » Why Working Too Hard Sucks and How it Can Hurt Your Blog?

Why Working Too Hard Sucks and How it Can Hurt Your Blog?

March 28, 2012 - Last Modified: April 1, 2014 by Jeevan Jacob John

Working Hard Blogging

Work harder! We hear that a lot, don’t we? I used to believe in the principle of working as hard as I could – doing things over my limits, but I don’t anymore. Want to know why? Then, read on.

First off, I want to thank Kittie Walker for her awesome comment at my post over @ Smartboydesigns (her comment is my inspiration for this post).

Here is what she said:

I also think that bloggers often burn out because they don’t pace themselves. Harnessing that creative energy in order to prolong it is really important! The same can be said for video games

That may sound simple, but I think it is one of the most important points of blogging. We bloggers tend to put a lot of effort for now – and we get tired of that, over time.

For instance: As you may already know, I have been doing some writing for the past month. And now I am [slowly] getting tired of it. Because I invested a lot of effort into the same act for a period of time. Right now, I realize that it was a great mistake to focus too much on writing and putting my best efforts into it. Sure, I might get good results in the short term. But in the long term, it is just going to hurt my blog. Need to know why? Read on 😀

Smart bloggers are ones who realize that hard work is really important (And then put their best efforts in now to achieve their goal).

Wise bloggers are bloggers who realize the importance of hard work (and the cons of working too hard for a short period of time) and pace themselves; they divide up the work over time.

I have given you two options. Which one would you go for?

As Benny Hsu said in this recent blog post, small things add up (In his post, he asks his readers whether they will take $3 million or a penny that doubles in amount for the next 31 days – If you calculate it, the penny ends up being $10 million at the end of 31 days).

Smart blogging does give you a lot of instant benefits – exposure, traffic, subscribers etc. But, wise blogging is better.

Because it adds up.

Let’s think about a scenario:

Blogger A is a smart blogger. He puts his best efforts into getting more traffic. He writes awesome content, promotes it, networks with others and guest blogs at various sites. He keeps on doing this for a while. But, after some time, he gets tired (too much working in too short a time). Now, let’s think about Blogger B who is a wise blogger.

Blogger B knows the importance of hard work over time. So, he decides to pace himself and work hard over time, instead of putting all his effort right now – or for a short period of time.

In this case, Blogger B will have better results because:

  • He is consistent with his efforts
  • He is smart enough to distribute his efforts over time
In the case of Blogger A,
  • He will get good results, but soon he is going to get tired (and he may stop working hard to generate new traffic; he might even lose some of his existing traffic).

These things will add up. And soon, help your blog.

So, what should you do?

Step #1: Ask yourself

  • Where do you invest the most time for blogging? Why?
  • Are you tired of doing it all over again?
  • Do you think that you should do something different?

Step #2:

  • Decide and plan to divide up your efforts.
  • [Optional] Make a schedule and stick to it.
  • Ask yourself: How are you going to divide up the efforts? How can it help you in the long term? Realize the importance of dividing the work up and do everything accordingly.

Here is what I can give you:

First off, let me be honest:

I haven’t tried any specific techniques with this – so, I am going to tell you what I have been trying (and what I am doing right now).

  • Involve others in your blog, Diversify your methods.

Collaborate if you can. Allow Guest Posting. Do whatever you can do to involve others within your blog (you know what I am talking about, don’t you? Yes, Mention them, write guest posts, promote their content – Help them out!)

  • Make a Plan – See how it works out

Experiment with your techniques. For instance: Try experimenting with the amount of time you spend on each act – writing posts, marketing, and engaging with other bloggers. Use various analytic tools – Google Analytics, Social media Analytics like Crowd Booster to see what works and what doesn’t. Mix and match. Just be creative and experiment.

  • Enjoy blogging, Take Breaks.

Make blogging a fun activity. Think about how you can make it a fun activity and make changes. For instance: Changing your writing environment may have some effect on you. Or what about the software you use for word processing? What about your body position? Experiment with all these situations. See what works for you. Make blogging a fun activity using different tools that are available online.

You could even host/participate in personal and public blog challenges (I can assure, this is a great way to make blogging enjoyable). Also, take blogging breaks. It freshens up your mind and helps you to maintain blogging as a fun activity.

The Key

The key is to be wise and smart at the same time. Be smart enough to realize the importance of hard work; Be wise enough to realize the importance of dividing up the work and pacing yourself.

So, whaddaya think?

What are your thoughts?

Do you think that working too hard can hurt your blog?

Do you think that you should restructure your blogging plan (do you have a plan?)

Tell me all your thoughts 😀

Pace yourself.

Use your energy wisely.

Image © wallace – Fotolia.com

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Filed Under: Blogging, How To Blog

About Jeevan Jacob John

Follow @DaringBlogger

Heya there! My name is Jeevan Jacob John. I am a blogger, marketer, learner and a lot more things. You can learn more about me by visiting my blog - Daring Blogger.

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{ 32 Responses }

  1. Stephen Kavita says:
    I must admit that when i started out in blogging i was like blogger A. But i learned the hard way and I have now taken it easy. The results are amazing and I now have more time in my hands to attend to other important activities.
  2. Samuel says:
    Balancing work and play is a challenge almost everyone faces on or offline. I think you gotta treat blogging like a hobby but work at it as if your salary depended on it. The experienced bloggers always tell you to blog about what you know and what you enjoy, because if you do that half the equation is done for you. There's no shortcut to having a successful blog, but the upside is that you can always choose a niche that you know you can enjoy.
  3. shawn says:
    I am a first time visitor an I can say that this post is really great. Very informative and I can really use this on my research on the topic titled "Inside the Internet World". Keep up the good work.
  4. Investing Young says:
    One thing I have found that kills blogging time is unscheduled or unplanned linkbuilding and SEO. When you just happen around the web, randomly placing content or backlinks you end up getting far less done and much less value. One example of this time killer is sitting around online forums too long. Yes, certain forums can give excellent traffic, but they have to be planned and targeted. Putting together a plan and a strategy for this at a set time of the day in a certain method works much better. Say for example, after accomplishing a post or guest post, spend from 9AM-10AM building backlinks on blogs. Do this only one Wednesday. Tuesday is spent spreading your links on social media for one hour. Thursday is spent starting threads and replying to them for an hour. This is just an example that has worked well.
    • Samuel says:
      Excellent advice. Doing things randomly is an easy way to waste time and get little done. Also, the forums.. I think for the most part you lose more than you gain on forums. There are too many misleading information on webmaster forums and it's easy to get caught up in discussions that have much hype but little in the way of substance. I agree with you that you need a schedule that you can adhere to if you want to become successful in anything you do really.
  5. Jason Mathes says:
    "A smart man learns from their mistakes. A wise man learns from the mistakes of others." (unknown) Well... I'm still a pretty smart guy :-) I'm a confessed "part-time" blogger. I do 3-4 updates a week and take the weekend off. Don't get me wrong though I still have to respond to comments, and if trouble arises I have to fix it. But otherwise I take a breather away from the internet and relax with my family. What is the whole point of blogging if you are stuck working on it 24/7? Sure you might reap the benefits - but when you finally turn away from your computer - you will end up being all alone. I agree - be a Type B Blogger.
  6. Trung Nguyen says:
    Thanks for your great post, Jacob, we should be blogger B, a wise blogger, do less - get more :)
    • Jeevan Jacob John says:
      No problem, Trung :) Glad that you agree. Thanks for the comment!
  7. Aryan says:
    Conclusion - Smart work is better than Hard Work :)
    • Jeevan Jacob John says:
      Yes, of course :) Thanks for the comment!
  8. JamesW says:
    Amazing post, definitely stands out from the crowd. And I agree that working too hard can harm your blog, it's the same case like when you looking at your test at school, the more you work on it the more times you will change your mind and erase the one thing that was good. And I agree with you that we need to be both smart and wise, maybe being the wise is not modern today and that's why we are seeing these fast growing blogs that eventually just die. Building your blog honestly and on normal way will have more benefits and it "adds up" thanks for sharing
    • Jeevan Jacob John says:
      Thanks :) Oh, that's a great analogy. I am glad that you agree with me. Thanks for the comment, James!
  9. Sara says:
    Yes I agree that we grew up with the principle of working as hard as you can and that this is the absolute rule of success.A blogger must be creative and full of ideas, in order to add stuff into his blog and also give to his readers new and fresh content, and not get burned.A working plan with specific goals and breaks in it is required.
    • Jeevan Jacob John says:
      Sara, Yes, of course :) A blogger must be creative (but, we don't necessarily need to be full of ideas). It is all about using those ideas that you get and converting them into reasonable experiments (Which gives you experience and experience = content). Thanks for adding value through your comment, Sara!
  10. Jane says:
    Hey Jeevan!Nice presentation. You are explaining facts in a very lucid way. It is true that consistency matters most. Instead of working hard and giving 'no show' for some days, a blogger should have reserves of strength and skills to spread over a period of time.
    • Jeevan Jacob John says:
      Hey Jane, Thanks :) I am glad that you agree. Thanks for the comment!
  11. Nikoya says:
    It's very refreshing to see sound advise on blogging and sticking with the heart of it. As publishers we should always be aiming to evolve and create wisely vs. burn out. I like to do and flow with what comes natural, because I find plans and schedules daunting. Blogging is 50% networking anyway, so dispersing energy wisely is required for longevity!
    • Jeevan Jacob John says:
      Nikoya, I am glad that you consider my article as great advice :) I am glad that you like to do it. Yes, we need to spend our efforts wisely to achieve the maximum success. Thanks for adding value through your comment, Nikoya!
  12. Kimberly Gauthier says:
    Sorry if this is a duplicate comment by me - I'm commuting and lost my internet connection mid post. I'm the author of three blogs, I have a direct marketing business, and I work full time. All of that and I manage to have a pretty great personal life. I totally agree that you have to work smarter, not harder. I've created a soft blogging schedule - soft because I'm not married to it. The schedule carves out time for me to work on blogging, networking, promoting, etc. Like now, on my 50 minute commute home on the train. I've considered cutting back on my blogging, even stopping one all together, but I love what I do. Posting 2-3x a week on each blog leaves me time to do other things. I'm having a blast.
    • Jeevan Jacob John says:
      I think Hesham took care of that, Kim :) Wow, that's a lot of work. I am glad that you are managing time wisely, it is certainly important to do it. That's great. I hope you are having great success with your efforts, Kim! Thanks for adding value through your comment!
  13. Michael says:
    one thing i've learned about internet marketing is thinking smart than doing too hard. The reason is to avoid spending much time to things that doesn't really matter. The key is targeting that goal and applying the necessary formula to internet marketing success.
    • Jeevan Jacob John says:
      Hey Michael, Yes, of course. The key is to targeting and applying that I would recommend that we play with everything because even a small action make a huge difference, over time. Thanks for adding value!
  14. Pete Goumas says:
    Hey Jeevan, I am a wise blogger so my vote is for blogger B and I am successful because of my consistent efforts.
    • Jeevan Jacob John says:
      Hey Pete, I am glad that you do :) Thanks for adding value through your comment!
  15. Navin says:
    Thanks Jeevan for your views, I really appreciate your handwork which shows in this post. Being honest, working with fellow bloggers, feeding your visitors with what they are looking for and stick to the niche are the ways to be successful in the blogosphere!
    • Jeevan Jacob John says:
      Hey Navin, No problem :) Yes, of course. I am glad that you agree with my points. Thanks for the comment!
  16. Sona says:
    I would say that consistent work is must for the bloggers with a knowledge what they are publishing and how they make the article to read by user readable manner. These are the key of success.
    • Jeevan Jacob John says:
      I am glad that you agree. Thanks for adding value through your comment, Sona!
  17. Bishwajeet says:
    Planning is key to success in Blogging. Techcrunch, Makeuseof & Mashable all started as a blog and now look where are they.
    • Jeevan Jacob John says:
      Planning is important, but I wouldn't say it is the key. You can also succeed without planning. You just need to take action :) Thanks for the comment, Bishwajeet!
  18. shenoyjoseph says:
    definitely i have seen many bloggers they have hard worked from whole the day but final result was not up to the market. I hope that this article will give them a boast and dedication towards their blogs. :)
    • Jeevan Jacob John says:
      Glad that you agree. I hope too, Shenoy :) Thanks for the comment!

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