Can’t Think of Anything to Blog About? Try this.
Like Mom used to say…If you don’t have anything to blog about, don’t blog at all.
Wait a minute that’s not right. Quite the contrary, in fact. Keep blogging!
Out of ideas? Just not feeling creative? We all get like that. Here are some tips and tricks to help you through (less creative) rainy days…
Stock up. When your writing juices are flowing, keep going. (Excuse the rhyme.) If you have the time to devote, then write as many blogposts as you can. You’ll appreciate the stock pile when you have a blogging dry spell.
Short, sweet tips. Something you do, maybe everyday, may be the exact thing someone else can’t figure out and has been searching for relentlessly. A quick, simple “how-to”. For example, I couldn’t figure out how to fix my Google Analytics scheduled reports and when I finally did, I wrote about it.
Top 10/Most Popular Posts. If you can’t think of anything at all, go with what you’ve already done. Compile a list of your most popular blog posts – it might help someone see what they’ve missed!
Videos/Articles…not by you. If you see a great video, article, post, even podcast…take a clip, copy and paste, or drop it into a blogpost (giving the author credit, of course). Then, write a little about your take on it.
Write it down as you think of it. If you come up with a really great idea, but don’t have the time to expand on it, jot some notes down. Better yet, use a voice recording device and transcribe it later.
How about you; what’s your best tip for when you can’t think of anything to write?
Nicki Hicks
Today is my creative day
Tags: Blogging
December 31st, 2009 at 9:54 am
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Nicki Hicks, Glance Networks. Glance Networks said: RT @nickihicks Can’t Think of Anything 2 Blog About? Try this http://bit.ly/7ay2NC [us: Solid tips 4 keepin' the thought leadership flowing] [...]
December 31st, 2009 at 11:02 am
This is good advice. It might be worth adding some tricks used by the improv crowd to jumpstart the creatve process. I don’t know what they are, but I think I know someone who might….
December 31st, 2009 at 12:36 pm
Peter,
Great thought – I bet Rachel will have some great insights on this!
Happy New Year to you
December 31st, 2009 at 4:43 pm
Thanks for thinking of me guys!! Some of the thoughts and suggestions I have are from improv but I also have thoughts as an acting instructor.
1)Don’t dwell on the negative. You know, the “I can’t think of anything” story you start telling yourself and repeating over and over. That self monologue is poison for new ideas, it leaves no room for anything else.
2)Start where you are. Put pen to paper, fingers to keys, bloody finger point to scroll…and just start writing. You don’t have to press “post” but you might be surprised if you worry less about your product and give over to the process.
3)Opinions matter. Give yourself a moment to think about things you love or hate or feel passionately about in some form. Hone in on the top few and think about WHY you care about these things so much. If your post isn’t instructional, at least it will be something that someone can relate to.
4)Laugh at yourself. Remember to have a sense of humor and not take yourself too seriously. If you’re not having fun, no one reading will have fun. So don’t sit at your computer/desk/dungeon for too long. Put on a song you love, dance around, shake it out and THEN go back to it!
Hope these help!
January 3rd, 2010 at 11:21 pm
Great article. Similar to your tip on writing about videos and articles – If I have writers block or am not feeling creative, I tend to see what’s going on in the news. It’s a big world and there’s a good chance something newsworthy/ relevant is going on in your industry, hobby, or whatever you blog about. I use Google Alerts to keep track.
January 6th, 2010 at 6:56 am
I used to have the same problem before. But its well worth it in the long run. Like amy said, Writers Block. LOl
January 6th, 2010 at 11:08 am
Amy, Thanks for the fantastic tip!
Google Alerts are a great way to keep up with your industry!