Apr 29, 2013

Hello World! One Year Later …

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WordPress

WordPress (Photo credit: Adriano Gasparri)

Happy Blog-o-versary to me … One year ago I started blogging after three months of prep time.

I spent almost three years debating: should I or shouldn’t I? Once I decided I should then, came the other hard part:

  • Choosing a blog name
  • Picking a theme
  • Determining a publishing schedule (ha)
  • Writing posts (just in case inspiration didn’t hit on schedule)

I remember reading all the information WordPress had for new bloggers. And there were a few suggestions or statements that stuck with me.

  1. Blog often
  2. Like and comment frequently
  3. Make it a year and you’ll have staying power

It’s been an evolution and not the revolution I expected. Some how I anticipated that I would “arrive”, but understand now, it’s a journey.

Walk on the Edge

Walk on the Edge (Photo credit: Lel4nd)

“Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says I’ll try again tomorrow.” ~Mary Anne Radmacher

And it’s on this journey that I’ve found a supportive community … I’d like to say thank you to all the writers, creators, artists, innovator, and dreamers. You’ve made this year worth every moment. Thanks for each “like” and comment and follow. Thanks for reading and sharing. Thank you for letting me be a part of your journey and engaging me in conversation.

Although it’s been everything I hoped and nothing I expected all at the same time … maybe this next year holds the best!

Happy New Year … Anniversary … Birthday …

Images from Zemanta via WordPress

Filed Under: Personal · Tagged: , , , ,
Oct 27, 2012

Twitter Feed Tells All

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Twitter Logo

I wrote a post a few weeks ago about being boring. Part truth, part joke conceived in a moment of weakness.

Thanks for the outpouring of love from the WordPress world to assuage my fears.

Sadly (and quickly) I find myself standing at the crossroads of uncertainty and hilarity again. Maybe I will gain some knowledge with this one.

I’ve finally taken the leap into twitter and I have to say I don’t get it; yet. My writer self knows I need to build a platform so maybe that’s part of my apprehension.

But what does my twitter account say about me?

  • Boring?
  • Conservative?
  • Publicly private?
  • Unavailable available?

If I had to wager a guess, my twitter account probably conveys “undecided” more than anything.

Don’t get me wrong I find it fun and challenging to make a compelling statement in 140 characters. Sometimes I can. Sometimes I can’t. I enjoy following close friends and seeing what they have to say throughout the day.

What I’ve realized is my interests are limited. There are very few things I am so vested in that I want to have it streaming to me at all times.

  • Stuff on writing? Sure.
  • Family and friend feeds? Absolutely.
  • Blog buddies? Yes.
  • Everything else? Undecided.

Like the beginning of my blogging life, I don’t know the etiquette; twitter-quette if you will. For example, I don’t believe in automatically clicking follow for someone who follows me. And, when I follow someone and there are too many tweets (about stuff I’m undecided on) in a short period of time it becomes white noise. So almost immediately I unfollow.

Plus it’s a place of promotion; self promotion which I am not good about doing. I’ve noticed people will tweet the link to their latest blog post multiple times. Not sure I’d be comfortable with that … It would be helpful if I only post once a week but still.

Then I agonize over the gaining and losing of followers (again due to writer platform) like I’m day-trader. I shouldn’t worry I know.

Social media is where it’s at … but I will have to have limits. My writer self has a blog and a twitter account. My personal self has a Facebook page. One of my selves will eventually need to be LinkedIn. That’s all I think I can do or handle.

For now, help me move through this latest intersection of concern. What’s your best twitter advice for a newbie like me?

Thanks in advance.

Gail @Undecided @twitterchallenged #confused #amlearning

Filed Under: ~isms · Tagged: , , , , ,