This above all: to thine own self be true
- Polonius

Another morning dawned, another morning routine, another day at the office and it finally dawned on me . . . .

I’m doing what everyone else tells me I should do, not just with my job or my daily routine but also with my writing and blog. I’m using the same tools, programs and processes everyone is using, I keep thinking what I should be writing to form that “cornerstone content” that I should have on my blog, what social media avenues I should be using, the list goes on and on and what is the result?

A rut, with no growth and since the only difference between a rut and a grave is the depth I best make some changes.

The 365 Day Project is over

Back in January I thought this would be a great idea, a daily post with a photo, nope just a gimmick. Looking back on this I saw a great opportunity to have a steady stream of posts but it wasn’t my idea, I thought I could make it work for me. Nope, it isn’t me. I don’t walk around all day thinking what will make a good picture and quite honestly many of the photos I posted were taken very near the end and posted to Flickr quickly to make the deadline.

Doesn’t fit me so it goes.

Blog Extensions, Plugins and so forth

While I do enjoy toying with numerous extensions, plugins and all manner of customization I’ve come to the realization that in most cases the additions were based on what I saw on another site and thought since it’s working for them I need to have it on my site too. Big mistake – copying an idea is not a bad thing but doing it on an assumption that it will pay off for you too is just nuts. So I’ll be changing things up a bit, removing things and adding others – based on what I think will work for me and the site.

Post, post, and post some more

A lot of great bloggers out there say you need to post a certain number of times a day, week, month, or whatever to gain audience, or traffic, or the necessary ad impressions based on what they see as a successful blog. Well, I’m going to break the mold and post when I want and not keep a “schedule” like so many feel you need to. Why? Simple, life happens and quite frankly while I would like to have my blog make money for me it’s not going to be at the expense of spending time with my family and friends.

My goal is find a balance and keep it. I may go weeks between posts (it’s been two weeks since my last post) or I might post more than once in a given day, that’s just the way I’m going to roll with it.

Social Media

Yes, I use it. Yes, I would like more followers. No, I will not allow it to run my life, so feel free to follow me as you never know when I’m going to pass along an interesting website, quote or note – just don’t expect me to follow you back (see My Twitter Policy).

So what’s up with the quote?

Polonius was referring to the very real need to be true to yourself. Do what is best for you so that you can be in a position to do for others and as light dawned on marbled head that quote came to me. I’ve spent so much energy doing what others feel is right, I stopped doing what is right for me.

So, no more trying to find the right niche or article. No more trying to imitate what others have done before “just because.” It’s time I go back to what I enjoy, finding solutions and exploring options and writing about them as I go. No more rules, just writing and we’ll see what comes out on the other end.

Hopefully you’ll come along for the ride, and if not . . . .

May the road rise to meet you,
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
The rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of his hand

As I sit here writing this the first day of 2010 is coming to a close and while I had hoped to post something sooner the delay has caused me to rethink what the post would contain – a combination of what so many others have done today, a look back and a look ahead.

Looking back

The first thing that comes to mind is that I posted very little in 2009 on both this blog and on my RPG blog, of Dice and Dragons, which had resided at this URL (http://newburyonline.com) for over three years (started on 12/23/2005).

The obvious thing to say to that is just get writing. I’ve tried that in the past and it really hasn’t gotten me anywhere, so this time I took a different track, why am I posting less?

After the usual, “no time, nothing to say,” was dispensed with it, it really comes down to my tendency to want to get everything just right before posting. I’m not talking about just the spelling or grammar, I’m talking about links, any graphics, follow on items, in short I want it all to be perfect going out of the gate. That’s going to stop.

The second item that came up was my tendency to constantly tweak, and tweak, and tweak, and . . . you get the idea. I’ve spent more time than I should looking for new plug-ins, ways to automate postings to some of my social media outlets, tagging, categories, the list goes on from there.

After those it’s just a matter of shifting my energy – do I need to check my stats? Do I need to look at what my ad revenue is? The answer to those is I do, but not at the frequency I have been.

In short, I’ve managed to kill a lot of productive time for writing by focusing on those items I can’t control, trying to hit a level of prefection that is styfling and succumbing to my inner geek more often than I should.

Looking forward

Well, after looking back and thinking on things during the day today (cleaning a kids’ room with nothing but your music can be such a benefit sometimes) I’ve made a few commitments to myself that I’m going to share with you. These aren’t resolutions per se, but instead some of the goals I’ve set for myself, and those things I do online.

Start a 365 day project

Done! Ok, it really should be complete a 365 day project but hey, at least it’s started. I decided to take a photo a day using my iPhone, and just my iPhone. No high end camera, no fancy lens, no studio, just the iPhone and the built in camera app. I’ll be posting them to my flickr account, if fact the first one is already up and I’ve included it here. I’m not counting the title shot of the set, so there will be 366 in total.

I’ll also be including them here from time to time (maybe even every day if folks don’t object).

Post more frequently

I already have my weekly reading log published each Saturday and that will continue, and now I’ll be posting my progress on my 365 project so I’ve already increased from the dead stop I was at not too long ago. The next step is to stop trying to get it perfect out of the gate, just write and post. Posts can always be updated and modified – need to keep that in mind as I move forward. I also need to apply this same thinking to my other blogs as well.

Stop tweaking

Okay, maybe it should be don’t tweak as often. I need to get settled into an rythym and then worry about everything else – I need to write, see above!

Grow my Twitter following

One of the things that stood out as I looked back over the last year is that my Twitter following has stagnated (just above 600) and I would like to see that grow. I typcially share when I post something, when I read something interesting or just to share what’s going on. I’ve got an interesting idea on how to do this and will be kicking if off once I’ve ironed out the details.

I think I’ve rambled on long enough, I would welcome any and all comments you may have including any goals you’ve set for yourself. Sharing goals is one way to help you stay focused on them.