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The 30 Blog Posts in 30 Days Challenge. What Have You Learned ?

By
Real Estate Agent with New Home Hunters of Fort Worth and Tarrant County

There are quite a few of us here on Active Rain... myself included... who have taken the "30 in 30" Blogging Challenge, and have committed to writing one post each day... for thirty consecutive days. 

In early August, Active Rainer Karen Bernetti wrote a post titled Taking the 30 DAY BLOGGING CHALLENGE!

In Karen's post, she invited us to go with with her on her blogging journey.  From August until September 30th... she challenged the rest of us Active Rainers to write one blog post each day... for thirty consecutive days.

It was part of Karen's "Unstoppable" personal challenge... to change and re-model her own blogging behaviour.  She was after consistency in blogging, and was obviously out to improve her blogging skills, as well. 

Many, many Active Rainers accepted her challenge, and quite a few, as of today's date, September 17, 2010, have completed the 30 in 30 Challenge. 

Here is a link to one post by someone who made it... who has already achieved her 30 in 30 goal. It's by Tish Lloyd, and is titled I eat Challenges for breakfast!

This post I am writing today, for me, is Post Number 21 of my own 30 Posts in 30 Days.  Twenty-one down, nine to go.

There have been months for me when I have written more than thirty posts... but I have never been able to be consistent enough to write at least one post every day.

Gee... what's the big deal about writing one post every day ? 

Consistency.  Have you ever watched The Today Show on NBC ? 

Well... they don't call it "The Almost Every Day" show, or the "Every Day If We Feel Up To It" show.  If viewers could not count on finding the show THERE every day... sooner or later, they would quit watching.

Now... I could write a post about what I have learned over the past 21 days... but I'd really like to throw this subect "out there" in Active Rainer Land.

So... here goes !

If you have been participating in Karen Bernetti's 30 in 30 Challenge... what have YOU learned along the way ?

What things have you found that have surprised you during your consecutive days of blogging ?

Has it been harder than you thought ?  Why... and how so ?  Has it been easier than you imagined ?  How so, and why do you think that is ?

What has been the hardest thing for you to do... about taking on this 30 in 30 challenge ?

Please... tell us your 30 in 30 story.

Posted by

Marian Goetzinger
Pine Knoll Shores Realty 252-422-9000 - Pine Knoll Shores, NC
Crystal Coast Real Estate NC

Karen Anne, Today is #19 for me and I realized that I'm actually finding my "style".  I'm not you, or Craig Rutman or Amy Hahn, or Cynthia or Tish.  I'm me and I need to write my blogs more from ME. 

I'm liking this challenge.

Sep 17, 2010 09:23 AM
Karen Anne Stone
New Home Hunters of Fort Worth and Tarrant County - Fort Worth, TX
Fort Worth Real Estate

Amy in # 5:  Twelve more days for you, and you will be THERE.  You can do it.  Just stay away from the beach.  Now THAT... would distract me... but, then again, that's not a bad thing.

Yes... a new habit.  Consistency.  I am sitting here... Friday afternoon... writing replies to my comments, and my post for tomorrow... is done, and is just "sitting there" in the Draft file.  What a cool concept.

Some folks have said this challenge make them feel MORE stressed.  I think it is just the opposite, at least for me, it is.

I have gotten some new subscribers as well.  That... is exciting.

Sep 17, 2010 09:24 AM
Karen Anne Stone
New Home Hunters of Fort Worth and Tarrant County - Fort Worth, TX
Fort Worth Real Estate

Marian in # 20:  I just MUST respond to your comment !  Finding your "style," your blogging "voice" is both very exciting and very soothing... at the same time.  And, of all those people you mentioned that you are NOT... I am MOST glad that you are not Craig Rutman.  The clothes would look very funny, and with you living in his body, you could NEVER cross your legs like you have in your profile picture.

Funny thing is, Ms Marian, the more your blog posts are from YOU... the more people will really enjoy reading them.  This is not about posts, or stories, or whatever.  It's about relationships. 

For me... it's about getting to know each other... and just like a cook might take a sip of her soup she has simmering on the stove, your (and my) readers take lil sips of our "style" as they read our posts.  And, the more consistent we are, so many other things get better or more meaningful... and the soup gets tastier, as well.

I just noticed.  It figures, but while I am typing this... I am sipping on my soup.  <soupy smile>

Sep 17, 2010 09:32 AM
Karen Anne Stone
New Home Hunters of Fort Worth and Tarrant County - Fort Worth, TX
Fort Worth Real Estate

Karen in # 6:  You are very welcome.  How could I write this post... and NOT "mention" you, and link to you ?  It's both the "what goes around, comes around" thing... and it is plain and simply "respect" as well.

Changing the subject a tad... it is funny what things I notice.  Like I mentioned somewhere about you... I notice your "fresh'ness..." or at least that's what I call it.

Also... and this is silly.  I like clothes.  So, when I see some profile pictures, I give them an "extra" click... which makes them larger.  When I do that to your picture... I notice what a cool blouse you are wearing.  When I was younger... much younger... LOL... just about all of us women dressed that way.  Not that the present style of "more relaxed" dressing is not good... but, I gues it goes along with that "fresh'ness" word again.

About the comments... and keeping up with them.  I worte a post about that very thing perhaps six months ago.  I will look back, and put a link into this comment response that will lead you to it.  It made answering all the comments when there are so many... much easier.

Here is a link to a tutorial I wrote.  Hope it helps.  A New Way to Respond the Mega-Comments on a Featured Post .  I wrote a mini-explanation below in my comment to Kristen in my comment # 33.

It's funny that some of us complain... as did I... when so many others would just LOVE to have that problem.  So... please know, everyone, that I am not bragging OR complaining... (she said, trying to pry her own foot from her mouth...)

Sep 17, 2010 09:44 AM
Karen Anne Stone
New Home Hunters of Fort Worth and Tarrant County - Fort Worth, TX
Fort Worth Real Estate

Ms Kathy in # 7:  Cool.  We're both on day 21.  Maybe we can celebrate together (in different places... LOL) when we each reach day 30 !  I sure wish I had taken piano lessons.  I took four years of accordion lessons, but when I hit puberty, it pinched too much, so I quit... LOL.

I agree with "looking" at what we hear and see... and from the new things about them that we see... we end up getting blogging ideas that we never knew were even there, before.

Yes, it has been a challenge, but I must admit, I have enjoyed it more than how I was blogging before.

Sep 17, 2010 09:54 AM
Karen Anne Stone
New Home Hunters of Fort Worth and Tarrant County - Fort Worth, TX
Fort Worth Real Estate

Paul in # 8:  Actually... I don't think it is that you don't have anything to say... I think it is MORE an idea that you don't KNOW just how MUCH you have to say... if you would just be yourself.  Ask Miss Amy in # 5 about that.  She has done a FABULOUS job... just by knowing it was OK... to just be herself.

Paul, I think after a while... if you keep at it... you may find that things just "come" to you... or just start to "hit" you differently.  And then... there is a new topic.  And when that finally happens, blogging gets to be much more fun.

Sep 17, 2010 09:58 AM
Karen Anne Stone
New Home Hunters of Fort Worth and Tarrant County - Fort Worth, TX
Fort Worth Real Estate

Troy in # 9:  Two listings is very cool.  Sounds like an old TV show... "Blogging for Dollars."  Oh, wait... that was Bowling for Dollars.  But, I was close.  Bet before you started you didn't think you'd really end up getting PAID for blogging.  Yes... blogging works.

Sep 17, 2010 10:00 AM
Bill Wilson
Paradigm AdvantEdge - Edmond, OK

I just finished day 22 today. I've learned I really need to plan ahead. Right after the challenge started we left for a 4 day trip to Las Vegas. So I had to get my posts in order before we left and leave them in draft. Then had to get on AR daily on my phone to publish the post.

Sure made me wish for WordPress and its' scheduling capability. I use that a lot on my other blogs.

I think I have formed that habit of getting out content on a daily basis. I now think I would miss it if I skipped a day.

Sep 17, 2010 10:26 AM
Karen Anne Stone
New Home Hunters of Fort Worth and Tarrant County - Fort Worth, TX
Fort Worth Real Estate

Bill in # 27:  I think right there... in the last part of your comment... you have discovered the crux of this whole idea.  Make dailling blogging get to the point where it feels "natural."  A new twist on an old saying becomes... "a day without blogging is a day without sunshine."

Planning ahead, consistency, letting those who you blog to... become used to expecting and finding your blog posts.  Sounds like a great paradigm to me.  I have been trying to figure out WordPress for about two months now.  I've got two WordPress.com blogs I am experimenting with... trying to get comfortable with how they work.

It sure would be great to have a source of up-to-date and valid tutorials so I could, besides consistency, develop some "independence."

I am going to go to your profile page and see if I can find your WordPress blogs.  Thanks so much for adding to this discussion.

Sep 17, 2010 11:44 AM
Karen Anne Stone
New Home Hunters of Fort Worth and Tarrant County - Fort Worth, TX
Fort Worth Real Estate

Marc in # 10:  I must confess that when I first saw the hyper-local challenge in the summer of 2009... I more or less ignored it.  I really did not realize its importance.  I sure do, now.

I have done the same as you... up until about four months ago.  I would sit on my hands except for a couple of posts... and then wait until Saturday, maybe even Sunday... and try and squeeze everything for the week into such a short time period.  It just about burned me out on blogging.

In fact... for several periods... two weeks here, three weeks there, I DID put away the keyboard.  I had had enough.  But... I must admit I had either "missed the point"... or had gotten the wrong idea... about this.

Yes... Google loves regularity.  In fact, all of us (I mean me) older folks love regularity... <really dorky smile>

Sep 17, 2010 11:50 AM
Joan Mirantz
Homequest Real Estate - Concord, NH
Realtor, GRI, CBR, SRES - Concord New Hampshire

I have learned...not to leave your post in draft mode and when you discover it it's too late to start over!

Sep 17, 2010 11:51 AM
Karen Anne Stone
New Home Hunters of Fort Worth and Tarrant County - Fort Worth, TX
Fort Worth Real Estate

Joan in # 30:  Ahh... it's the old "now just where IS that doggone post I started.  I just KNEW I put it somewhere ?"  Yes, there have been a few times when I forgot stuff was in draft.  Made me feel kinda silly when I finally stumbled over it.

 

Sep 17, 2010 11:53 AM
Karen Anne Stone
New Home Hunters of Fort Worth and Tarrant County - Fort Worth, TX
Fort Worth Real Estate

Marie-Denise in # 11:  I know you can !  It often seems like so many of us can commit to others, but have a more difficult time committing to ourselves. 

Sounds like you've got a great attitude about always being able to find things to blog about.  You are fortunate, because there are so many "out there" who think just the reverse... saying "how in the heck am I going to find something to write about.

Sep 17, 2010 12:49 PM
Karen Anne Stone
New Home Hunters of Fort Worth and Tarrant County - Fort Worth, TX
Fort Worth Real Estate

Kristen in # 12:  Funny how we're both on day 21.  OK... three of you are saying the same thing about keeping up with the comments.  I have said I will put a like to that post I wrote about that very thing, but all I have done so far is just talk about it.  I'm going to go find the link right now.

Here is the link.  A New Way to Respond the Mega-Comments on a Featured Post.  Unfortunately, doing this requires you to have a wide-screen monitor.

It requires you to be able to "split the screen" and have the running set of comments on one side... and have another copy of that same blog post on the right side... always sitting at the bottom end of the comments... with the "Leave a Response" comment box open and in front of you

So... you look at the comment on the left, and, while it is still there, rather than scrolling up and down... from the comment you are commenting ON... down to the comment box you are responding/typing IN.

I hope the post makes more sense than that mini-explanation just did.

Sep 17, 2010 12:52 PM
Karen Anne Stone
New Home Hunters of Fort Worth and Tarrant County - Fort Worth, TX
Fort Worth Real Estate

Ms Jennifer in # 13:  Not to worry.  I am not even sure what day this is... let alone which day in the contest I am on.  As you continue to blog, you will relax more, and your self-confidence will flourish.

Now please... remember... it took me over three years to get to this point.  And I had a decent degree of confidence in my writing ability to start with.

And most assuredly so... if you are blogging from your heart... it will definitely show in what appears on the screen.  Blogging is not for everybody.  And... depending on a person's personality type... what they write will definitely reflect that type... that mind-set.

The MBTI is a great example.  In it... the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, I test out as an INFP... and it surely shows in what I write... although at times in some of my mortgage posts... the "me" can get a tad obscured.

You are quite correct in that AR is a great place to meet people... and some of them... to make friends and build relationships with.  I only wish we had some sort of Star Trek "transporter" so we could instantly visit with the folks we find we "click" with.

Sep 17, 2010 01:12 PM
Endre Barath, Jr.
Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties - Beverly Hills, CA
Realtor - Los Angeles Home Sales 310.486.1002

Karen Anne, It was brought to my attention on August 31st, shows you how sheltered life I live so now I have 18 under my belt. I find being consistent is the hardest part. Some days I have less time then other times. Then some days there are family obligations, dinner functions, fundraiser, and all that must be considered and planned for. So here I am hopefull that the next 12 post will be easier:))

Sep 17, 2010 08:28 PM
Roger D. Mucci
Shaken...with a Twist 216.633.2092 - Euclid, OH
Lets shake things up at your home today!

Until I got an e-mail from Sharon Tara telling me I only had 5 more posts to write and I would be awarded the 5000 bonus points, I had not idea there was a challenge.  I had been posting daily the entire month of August and had no idea...........so I posted for the next five days and boom.........500 bonus points after e-mailing Kerrie.

Sep 17, 2010 11:03 PM
Gabrielle Nemes
RE/MAX Realty South - Tumwater, WA
206.300.8421, S King & Pierce County RE Advocate

Good morning, Mz. Karen Anne! Yep, I'm here too. Today is day 25 for me. FIVE more to go and that was after a restart when I missed the 9pm deadline (that's when tomorrow starts here on the West coast). When I started the daily blog thing it was actually mid August and I was actually after the goal of reaching 100k in points. I'm not going to quite make it I don't think in this 30 day challenge period. But it'll be close. I'll probably end up about 3,000 points short of my goal by writing blogs and comments. But then the 5,000 point thing will boost me over the top! YAY!!

Anyway, I've been reading your posts forever it seems and I'm always amazed at how you can pull blog content out of the air and make it interesting and a fun read. You seem to have an endless resource of material. When I grow up, I wanna be a blogger just like you!

Sep 18, 2010 05:56 AM
Lisa Hicks
Hoang Realty - Augusta, ME
Serving Central and Southern Maine

Karen Anne - I've learned to blog.  Yes, to blog, period.  I had just barely signed on to ActiveRain when I was nudged into this challenge...in fact I had posted only 2 posts before I jumped into the 30 Day. Today is Day 23 and I'm really looking forward to next Saturday when I can say I finished.  It's really tough coming up with original content every single day...I suspect when next Saturday comes I will be more comfortable with "wave" blogging.  But who knows...it has become habit...and I really like blogging!

Sep 18, 2010 10:16 AM
Cara Marcelle Mancuso
Golden Girls with SW Desert Homes - Tucson, AZ
Call a Marana neighbor, I'm THERE!

I find I keep counting and counting to be SURE when I know day 30 is because I want a weekend off!!!(2 more blogs to go after Sunday)

I do blog consistently, but when I HAVE to blog, it's like going from watching what I eat to suddenly being on a diet.  I'm constantly looking for the finish line.

I don't think I'd do another challenge like this.  I'm better at doing things because I WANT to, then when I tell myself I'm SUPPOSED to...

Sep 18, 2010 05:59 PM