Blogging Wisdom

Ever since I started blogging, I’ve learnt a lot. It’s quite strange because I never thought I could learn anything from recording down my thoughts on a webpage.

Here are some things that I’ve learnt from blogging:

Time – Blogging is something that takes time to grow. It’s not about how many posts you make on that one day/week. In the end, the blogs that are most successful are ones who have devoted themselves to a consistent schedule and are people who blog regularly.

Loyalty – I’d rather have 100 loyal followers than 1000 followers who just come by my blog once and never again. I want people to follow me happily and willingly. I don’t do the whole “follow for follow” because I think that’s not genuine. If I’m going to follow someone, I will take the time to read their stuff and actually care to comment. I find the whole “buying follower” thing on Instagram and other social media platforms so sad. They’re not even real. Why would anyone wanna lie to themselves?

Consistency – When I first started blogging, I was a bit sad because no one would read my blog. I would get a couple views from facebook on the day I posted it, but then it will be zero views for the next days to come. I want more people to read my post, but there’s only so much I can promote. I didn’t actually get any real followers on WordPress (people that don’t know me in real life) until almost a year after I started blogging. But what were the reasons?

1. I was inconsistent. Last year, I only blogged 14 times and I had no set schedule. On some months, I might blog once or twice. Then, I would disappear for another month or so.

2. I blogged whenever I want, but the problem was, I never felt like blogging. 

About half a year ago, I decided I would commit to a post on Monday every week. At first, it was very difficult because I wasn’t used to it. It felt like so much work. But now, I’m getting the hang of it. I’ve realized if I don’t follow a set schedule, I’m never going to blog. If I want to succeed, I have to force myself to do things even when I don’t feel like it. It makes me happy to know that some people check my blog weekly for my new post.

Don’t give up – There were times when I wanted to give up because no one was really reading my blog. I thought to myself, “What’s the point? I write all this stuff to try to help others but no one even wants to read it.” Zero views were very discouraging, but I kept going.

Today, due to my translation for Zui Wu Dao, I am getting hundred of views consistently. Most of them purely come for the translation, but once in awhile, I have a few followers who also check out my other posts as well. It makes me feel good.

I could have stopped, but I kept going. If I had quit, I would never get any views. 

Lastly, I’ve truly realized that, the more well known you are, the more criticism you’re going to get.

In the past, when I had no followers, no one would say anything to criticize me. That’s because no one cared? But as I am getting more views, I’m also starting to receive more negative comments/feedback too.

For instance, on novelupdates.com, someone rated my translation as a 2/5. I know, it’s just two people (so far); but it still makes me feel terrible. Although I’m not the best translator, I feel like my translation deserves at least a 3/5.

Also, on reddit, there are people who would downvote my posts. It makes me sad because I put a lot of work into it. Although I know you can never please everyone, and there are always bound to be haters, it still makes me sad.

All in all, I’m still happy that blogging has taught me so much. I’m very thankful for my subscribers and those who enjoy and appreciate my content and translation.

Sometimes, when I’m down and feel like I’ll never succeed, I think of blogging and smile.

Blogging is something that I put my heart and soul into, and I am slowly getting the rewards for it (although not financially).

Always remember how far you’ve come, rather than how much longer it will take.