I received a great question by email last week:
“I realize there are thousands of blogs out there and the majority of them do not make money. I've also heard that many are saying that blogs are passé but I rather enjoy reading them and from all the comments they receive I would say there are many others that also still enjoy them. What’s your opinion? Is it too late to start a blog that could be successful?”
I wish we could be instantly transported to my favorite cocktail place so we could really have fun digging into this question, but as a consolation prize, I thought we could talk about it on the blog today.
The best time to start anything was five years ago, but starting today is a good backup plan.
Sometimes it can feel like the world is moving so fast that by the time we discover what we love, we’re already behind. It reminds me of my favorite scene in the roller-derby movie Whip It:
Iron Maven (Played by Juliette Lewis): Hey, guess how old I am.
Bliss Cavendar (Played by Ellen Page): [guessing] 27?
Iron Maven: [not at all touched] Oh, that's sweet. I'm 36. Guess when I started skating. I was 31. ‘Cause it took me that long to find one thing that I was really good at.
The one thing no one tells you is it’s a little terrifying when you find something you love.
It’s not a “The call is coming from inside the house” kind of fear, but more of a “Tremble and feel awe! Behold your passions! Also, no pressure, but if you screw up at these, then you’re officially doomed. Have fun!” kind of fear.
In my world, the best response to the fear showing up and bullying you is always curiosity and action.
Followed by naps and mojitos, in the order of your preference. But first, curiosity and action!
Truly, it's not too late to succeed at what you love. It just isn’t.
If your definition of success is making a living off your blog, then monetizing a blog isn’t as easy as installing Google Adwords. But it's also not impossible – not by a long shot! I've seen it done many times, and by people who are as human, wonderful and imperfect as you and I.
Figure out who you want to help, and then find a simple blog design template with as little obsessing as possible.
Start posting and discover your opinions.
Keep writing and work one-on-one with the people you want to help.
Offer incredibly helpful services and products instead of just ads, and make sure your paid partnerships with advertisers are creative, true to your personality, and in line with how you help your people.
In short? Make what you do count.
And whenever you hear the little voice that says it’s too late? Or that you can't share your work until you get a degree, or interview a million experts?
Know that’s the voice of your boring, run-of-the-mill, “The call is coming from inside the house” fear. Then breathe deeply and pick a goal you can knock out of the park within two weeks. Your fear won't know what hit it.
In the spirit of “It’s Not Too Late!” what’s a new skill or inspiration that you’ve just discovered?
LAST UPDATED ON: June 9th, 2015
CATEGORY: Content Marketing Strategy Productivity for Entrepreneurs
OH thank you so much for this inspiring post. I love reading blog and eventhogh I’m not planing on making any big money on my blog it would be fun if one day people wold reand it. So it makes mo totaly happy to read that there are people that don’t think that bligging is a dying thing. I don’t think so either. /love ida
I enjoy your posts. I always find some wisdom be here. I just started a baking blog…about food and influence of memories. I did too much research and if course couldn’t really compete with the blogs I came across as they are already successful. I almost didn’t take the leap. But I leapt!! No where close to rocking it. Through all of the research I discovered that I really enjoy the peacefulness cookie decorating brings..it takes me outside of my own head. I don’t probably fit with the creative minds, I am not techie,but I enjoy your space and your words.
I think you fit in perfectly, Lisa! Thanks for sharing your experience with me, and I’m glad that you’ve joined the fray of blogging. What I’d recommend you do first is to do some brainstorming and think about what your perspective & opinions on baking and food are, and to try and emphasize that in your posts as you figure out your new blog. The best part is that you don’t actually need to compete against anyone (yay!/thank goodness!) because if you make it easy to understand what makes your blog special the readers who love that will stick with you when they find it. Thanks for commenting!
This is really insightful. I always have to remind myself that it’s never too late to do what I love – even if I’m still figuring it out.
I’ve always pushed against my natural talents to try to be someone that I’m not. I’ve recently started to embrace them and learn more about my personality type to see how I can combine them into something that can make a difference in someone’s world. I guess you can say I’m in the process of “rediscovery”.
Your point about figuring out who you want to help and then starting are spot on. I think those are so important. For me, figuring out the who has been most difficult.
Thanks for this post and little push of motivation!
I’m glad it’s helpful, Krysten. I definitely relate what your journey. A lot of us go through a long process figuring out who’re not before we figure out who we are! If you’re looking for a woo-woo free (nothing against it!) way to find out more about who you are & how you can work with that, I’d recommend two books: Strengthsfinder and How The World Sees You (it comes with a Fascinate assessment). They both have a research backed, scientific approach to finding out what your unique strengths are and how you can put those to work for you in the world, and both include online assessments that give you a personal report with a lot of great, actionable information. Fascinate differs in that it tells you how people interpret who you are so you can harness that and amplify your highest strengths. They’ve both been really helpful to me. Thanks for reading, I’m happy to be part of your journey!
Kyla! I always love a great book recommendation. Shh…I kinda love “woo-woo free”. ;) So, thanks so much!
I was recently able to take the Fascinate test with a coupon code – I love taking tests – and I’ve been trying to decide if I should grab the book or not.
I haven’t heard of StrengthsFinder and after looking on Amazon….I’ve really gotta check it out. That might be my next purchase. Thanks for taking the time to reply to my comment. You are awesome. I can’t wait to read more of your posts. :)
I love that it’s already crossed your path! If you take it, feel free to drop me an email. I’ve done some training on how to use it in your copy writing to attract the readers who are most likely to love your take on your topic. It lets you take your language and use it as short hand to reach similar people, it’s great :)
I love this! I hadn’t heard this proverb or idea before (“The best time was 5/20 years ago”). But monetizing my blog + increasing my sales is something I so desperately want that I *do* get paralyzed researching how to improve + forget to DO. Thanks for the reminder! :)
Thanks Annie! In terms of monetizing your blog, what have you tried so far? Or are you feeling stuck in trying to figure out where to start?
I’ve done Goggle AdSense + promoting my favorite programs in my side bar with referral links (Amazon, Ebates, etc). I’ve also promoted my etsy shop above the fold but don’t have any ebooks, etc that I can sell directly from my blog (yet).
I’d love to have sponsored sidebar ads from other small businesses and possibly do a sponsored post once or twice a month. As well as digital content for instant download from my blog (PayPal button?). Other than developing digital content for instant download, I don’t know where to start looking for sponsorships.
Thanks Annie, I appreciate you sharing your experience. You’ve tried a lot of different things, and that makes you really advanced! I’m going to think about ways that I can help you out with this. If you have any ideas on what would be helpful please don’t hesitate to let me know!
Hi Kyla,
I guess how do I make my etsy shop sound/look more appealing on my blog? It is currently a gallery “badge” just below my About Me section. Should I still keep it in my sidebar or should I try moving it to my header (and how)? Or would it do better between blog posts (which doesn’t seem cohesive because blog posts range from a few personal/family posts to small biz/etsy tips). Thanks in advanced, Kyla!
Great post! Even if I never make a single cent from my blog I know I will be so glad I have it around. It is a view into my past, just like every other online journal I’ve written in since I was 12. (Yikes!) I recently decided the more I tried to focus on creating evergreen content and making a business blog, the more miserable I was which lead to me not writing at all. So I’m done with that! … but I have the freedom to change my mind at any time ;)
Yes! That’s great to know, Laura. “Is this a hobby?” is one of those questions that people tend to skip over, and it’s worth trying out different things and seeing what works for you. Now you can focus on making your blog into a full realization of that journaling space idea, and you’ll get so much more from it than if you kept trying to make it into something that was out of sync with what you enjoy most about your blog. But it takes trying new things, and stepping back to assess that before you can know. Good job on doing that for yourself!
I learned how to change a video from MPEG to MP4 and installed a small one in my last post. I think it really captures who I am and the post will be reaching new people so I love it. It wasn’t hard to install but I did have to work at it. Totally worth it.
That’s great, Kellie! Video is a big leap, congratulations on taking it :)
Great post Kyla, this is such a good point! Reminds me of the Chinese proverb – “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” It’s so easy to get discouraged when you see so much great content out there already, but we all have a unique voice.
I’ve never heard that proverb, but it’s exactly on the money, Brigette. Thanks for sharing it. Showing up and sharing your work with the people it affects is what counts, and will always get you better results than staying in your head or “at the whiteboard” with your ideas.
Oh I just love that proverb. I’ve never heard it before either. Totally applicable to so many decisions. Thank you for sharing! :D