Long distance runners have an expression. They call it “hitting the wall.” If you’ve ever run a few miles, you’ll know the feeling. It’s when every fiber of your body is screaming “Stop"! When your lungs are about to burst, and your muscles feel as though they are going to explode. Most runners stop, or at least slow down at this point. But what happens when you keep going? Something really quite magical! The pain subsides, you can breathe again and you feel stronger with every stride.
There’s a blogging “wall” as well. Most bloggers hit it somewhere between month 3 and month 6. It’s when the excitement of your new venture is beginning to wear off, when ideas for new posts are starting to dry up, when your traffic, which rose so well at first, begins to plateau. This is the blogger’s wall.
They say that 97% of blogs don’t make it past six months. The net is littered with these projects, sitting there unloved and unvisited. Those bloggers reached the wall and couldn’t find a way over it.
Here are four ways to get past a wall:
Go Crashing Straight Through It!
Don’t change a thing, just get your head down and keep going. You’re on track, you have your objectives, just push, push, push!
Climb it!
Increase your activity – write more posts, comment more on other blogs, be more active in social media. Do everything you’ve been doing, but just run a little harder, for a little longer.
Go Around It!
Stop to review what you’ve been doing, and make some changes. Is it time for a new theme? Should you change the slant of the blog? Do you need to write different articles? Make some changes and step around the wall!
Get Some Help!
Get someone to help you over the wall. Work with another blogger to give each other a lift, or invest in a product or program which will help you up and over.
Have you need through it yet? Are you about to go through it? Which strategy did you / will you use?
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I didn't realise that the
I didn't realise that the number was that high, but it does make sense. I've been blogging for years; my problem is changing house too often, not running out of steam. But then, I am a born pontificator.
Good suggestions. Blogging, like anything else, is something we go into high and excited and then the new wears off and we're faced with something that takes work. But blogging, just like everything else, will become exciting again if you just don't quit. Maybe we could call it the 3(6)-month itch? And if we do, would buying a red convertible sports car help?
Jake's last blog post... Going Back to School: Welcome to Twitter High
Hi Jake
I keep reading that percentage on other blogs, so have mistakenly assumed it's true - probably one of those internet myths, but even in my relatively short time as a blogger I've been amazed at how many on my RSS feed just seem to stop. Then you get the apology which says something like "Really sorry folks, been so busy with xxx lately I haven't had a chance to post, but I'm back now and will get back to posting regularly." It's usually at that point that you never hear from them again.
A red convertible sports car will help most things - ask my wife! What car have you got in mind?
Mike
Thank You
Thank for sharing with us such a great informative post. It drives me to look forward to hearing from you for guidance.
Good stuff
Interesting post. I am pretty new to blogging myself. I just started a few weeks ago and now I'm hooked, constantly thinking of what to write next. I am sure the day will come when I also hit the "blog wall" but for now, I'm taking it one day at a time. Thanks for the great advice! Keep up the momentum!
Hitting the Blogging Wall too on Eight Women Dream
Dawnda, one of the eight writers on our blog has hit the blog wall. But don't you think with any dream it always reaches the point of critical mass and those that are successful push through? Just like in exercise, working out, going back to college ... anything you commit to over the long haul ... even relationships? We'd love to hear your thoughts.
Oh, and your captcha is really hard to read.
Eight Women Dream's last blog post... Hitting the Wall
hate Captchas!
Sorry about the captcha ladies - it should only come up when the system suspects you're a spammer - so hopefully you won't see it again. I hate hard to read ones too - drive me insane!
Yes I agree - most things do reach a critical mass, and some people push through while others fall by the wayside.
I did comment on your blog, and I wonder if revisiting the original aims would be helpful to all. If not, maybe find another motivator.
I had a similar situation on a specialist blog I run. Three of us write it, and one was doing much less then the other two. Fortunately, that blog makes money, so we simply agreed to share the proceeds based on how much writing we did. We do a monthly divvie up of the profit, and I always get the most!
Mike
http://3freester.com/
Stop to review what you’ve been doing, and make some changes. Is it time for a new theme? Should you change the slant of the blog? Do you need to write different articles? Make some changes and step around the wall!
3freester
You didn't mention the other
You didn't mention the other option. Simply quit. If you feel like blogging isn't for you anymore, and you can not see a future in it, stop wasting time and focus on something else. There is no shame in quitting, look at it as steering in a different direction.
Bob Jones's last blog post... What does your about you page say about you?
You're right Bob, I didn't!
You're right Bob, I didn't! But that is an option.
Mike