Who to invoke

It's way more interesting for us to do something than for me to do something.  The collective is a way more interesting voice.  In writing I can choose to write as myself: "I did this, I do that, I think this, I thought that."  I can also choose to write as the collective: "We do this, we do that." or I can write speaking to you directly: "You think that."  I haven't yet figured out which voice or command I prefer.  Does it really matter even?

How I write blog posts: alphabetically

I use a pretty simple process to write blog posts.
It works for me.  Find your way.

I'd like to share with you the overall method that I use to write blog posts.

I have a technique and a standard.  First, I have to think of the ideas.  For me, that part is really easy but it has taken practice for me to think of what I think will be interesting.  Of course, these ideas can happen at any time so I use Remember the Milk on my smartphone to keep a list of blog post ideas as they come up: when I think of a new idea, I simply record it in my RTM "blog post ideas" list.

When I have the time and interest to write posts, I open up my RTM list and take the one from the top (they're listed in alphabetical order).  I take the top post idea and if I think that it still sounds interesting, I head into my blog application (Blogger) and start writing a post on that topic.

If, during the writing process, I find that the topic is boring or difficult to make a point from, I delete or archive it and move onto the next one.  If, on the other hand, I can make good points from the topic in what I feel to be a semi-compelling way, then I go ahead and keep writing the post.

After I've written the overall post, I go back through the post and read what I've written to make sure that it's interesting and compelling.  Oftentimes, upon re-reading the post, I will completely change the purpose of it to better align with what I'm thinking.  In this way the process is very agile.

After I've written the text that I'm happy with, I go find an image using Google Images and embed it.  I give the image a caption (this is a fairly new practice for me but I enjoy it) that I think is interesting.  I add Labels (tags) to my blog post so that it is more search engine optimized and readjust the title if necessary.  Then I publish it.

I might announce it but sometimes I do not.  For me, blogging is more of a personal and private thing but I like the idea that people might read what I'm writing.

Frankly, I'm still afraid to share my writing with too broad of an audience but I do share it sometimes with all of my FaceBook friends, which is obviously very public.  Most of the feedback that I've had on my blog has been positive but I still don't have that many followers to really know what people think.  I could really use more feedback!  I'd really like to have a much bigger audience, but at the same time it makes it a lot easier and a lot less stressful for me when I think that fewer people are watching.

I hope that you, too, can find a way to write blog posts of your own.  I find it to be a very fun and helpful, introspective process.  Also, I get to learn every single time that I write a post.  With every word.

6 Ways I'll Make a Better Professional Blog

I recently wrote a blog post (here) that I shared with several people.  Some liked it and were "with me" yet others wrote somewhat lengthy feedback about how I needed to improve my delivery method.  They were commenting more on my style more than the content.  So I guess I'll focus on style for the moment. 

Here's what I'm going to do about it.  I hope you'll take what I'm  learning and apply it to your own experiences writing, blogging, and career management. 

Thanks to Don L. and John S. for their feedback and insight.

How I'll Offer More Quality Content to My Audience:

1. I'll get to know my audience better and understand their needs and desires in order to offer more relevant information and conversation about the topics that interest me most. 
2. I'll be more clear about my point and ramble less.  I'll try to capture the audience's attention ASAP, get to the point and get out the information that I'm trying to convey as compactly and rapidly as possible.  Maybe I'll use more graphics (see this post).
3. I'll be more precise and specific and cite references more. I'll read more as an input.
   
4. I'll have a call to action if possible, directing my audience to next steps, further reading, engagement, etc.
   
5. I'll build a community and drum up input from them on my delivery and content (effectiveness).  
6. I'll tell more people how to sign up for my blog and think of other methods of reaching my audience (podcast, email, speaking engagements, etc.)
   

My overall goal online here and professionally is to create a dialog and debate with my audience about topics that matter a great deal to me.  I'm trying to learn and help my audience as much as I can with insight that matters to them.  I'm seeking insight from them on the topics that matter most to me and also looking for feedback on delivering the best way possible.  Thanks for your patience and participation in this process.