Monthly Archives: January 2013

Networked Media, Produce This!

The first post is always the hardest

I always have difficulty with the first blog post. Should it be a personal introduction? Some kind of manifesto identifying what the blog is going to be about? A non-descript, general post, with style and content akin to your 3rd, 30th or 300th post? It has always been quite a quandary for me.

When I find a new blog that I enjoy and want to keep reading, I have a tendency to go through the archives, way back into the depths of the blog’s history, to that very first post. Apart from wanting to read the blog from the beginning (to get a feel for the style, catch up on the content, and learn how the blog has evolved over time) I want to know how it all began.

A Google search will bring up a number of articles on how and what to write in your first blog post. While it would be nice to pick up a checklist and go through it point-by-point in order to overcome this seemingly difficult hurdle to starting a blog, I believe that this goes against the grain of why one blogs to begin with, and how one develops their own ‘voice’.

Evidently, I’ve now written an entire post about writing your first post. It really wasn’t as hard as it had initially seemed. I would suggest that if you just start typing, the ideas will come. Then, once you’ve hit that big ol’ PUBLISH button for the first time and your words have gone live for everyone to read, re-blog and scrutinise, you’ll be ready to just get on with it.

NB: Just in case you would prefer a little prompting to help get you started, I really enjoyed the article What to Write for Your Very First Blog Post and thought it made some relevant points as well.

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Everything Else

New year’s resoDOtions

Happy New Year!

Like most people, I’m a sucker for new year’s resolutions. Every year I make my mental list of all the stuff I should and shouldn’t be doing (get fit, lose weight, quit coffee, quit sugar, get organised, blog more, blah blah blah…)

And every year, my resolutions last for all of about five minutes.

Upon reflection, I think the reason for my lack of resolution willpower has a lot to do with the negative context behind said resolutions. Don’t do this, don’t do that. You’re not doing enough of this, and not nearly enough of that either. I don’t really blame myself for not wanting to keep my resolutions!

So this year, I’m giving myself a bit of a break. I’m going to resolve to DO some positive, life-enhancing things. Less “quit sugar” and more “take up yoga”, for example.

Here’s what I came up with:

  1. Take up Yoga again, and do it regularly! Because it is fun, and relaxing, and challenging, and will give me some “me” time.
  2. Write more regularly, and remember why you love it Regardless of the medium, style, or reason, writing is something I love to do. I just need to book some time in every day to give myself the opportunity to actually do it. This one is important.
  3. Say Yes! to every opportunity that comes your way Without wanting to run the risk that I’ll start sounding like someone out of a Jim Carrey movie, I think this is an important one to try and uphold.
  4. Donate your time to excellent causes Anyone who knows me, knows that I will always give my time to something worthy of it. I’ve already got a couple of volunteering roles in the pipeline for 2013, but I’d like to try to volunteer for at least one good cause at any one time.
  5. Pick a distance race and learn to love the challenge of doing it! Running and I don’t get along. Never have. So I’m going to try and complete a formal race, just to prove to myself I can. If I get a bit fitter along the way, all the better!
  6. Bake more often! Why do I even need a reason to do this? Who doesn’t love baking? In fact, I already started this resoDOtion today.
First batch of salted caramel pecan chocolate chip cookies (recipe via Sally's Baking Addiction blog)

First batch of salted caramel pecan chocolate chip cookies (recipe via Sally’s Baking Addiction blog)

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