Is a Sense of Purpose the Key to Running a Successful Blog
A sense of purpose is absolutely necessary for the success of anything. When I was in college my friends started out blogging because it was gaining a lot of traction. I was blogging since before I even knew that it was supposedly a big thing to do and you could earn money doing it.
My friends saw it just as a way to earn some extra cash. But, to me, it always meant more than that. Eventually, most of them stopped because life happened. I stopped as well.
So what’s changed between then and now? It’s the first line of my article. I have found a sense of purpose to have a blog. Call it jealousy, call it a challenge, but I reckoned that if people out there could maintain their blogs even with a busy schedule, so could I.
Motivation to do things can come in various ways though. Just because something inspires me and pushes me to do something doesn’t mean it will do the same for you.
The motivation for one of my friends was that people were making money off their blogs, then why shouldn’t he? There are numerous examples, from within my friend’s circle, and from outside, of people who are long past the need to hold down a routine 9-5 desk job to pay for their livelihood.
Why? Because their blog (and associated services from it) is minting them enough money. This is the new face of entrepreneurship, and he still wants a piece of it. The best bit? Unlike traditional businesses, the barriers for entry are pretty low (if not non-existent). There is no need for radical amounts of capital to be expended. Most services are free. And those that are not, well, they only cost a nominal amount a year.
To drive him forward in this new goal of his, and to ensure that he didn’t just get demotivated like numerous times in the past, he decided to make it a wee bit more challenging. He quit his day job and is now concentrating full time on his blog.
His aim for his blog is to become self-sustaining within a year, and hence, he has left himself just about money in savings to tide him over this time.
Is a challenge worth fighting for? You bet!
Now, since you’ve landed on this blog, I’m sure you’re also looking to branch out and make a living off blogging. For you, I have one piece of advice and one piece of advice only. Much like my friend did, at the very outset, set a challenge for yourself.
Anything to keep you fired. Anything to keep you going through those tough days where the post refuses to write itself. Those obnoxious days where you take your blog for granted and decide to go out drinking with your friends rather than concentrate on that article you have to push out.
A sense of purpose is key to a successful blog. It will not just keep you motivated, but also influence every little aspect of your blog. It doesn’t matter what it is to you, it just has to be there.
