Space … Silence … Solitude … [What I Need More of as a Blogger]

As I reflect upon the times when I’ve felt most “effective” as a blogger (and perhaps as a human), I think it’s times when I’ve built these three things into life.

Perhaps it’s just me and my personality, but I find that if I don’t create space…

to reflect on lifeto consider how I’m feelingto analyze what I’ve experiencedto ponder priorities.

then I tend to allow the busyness of my life determine what I do, rather than letting what is important determine my actions.

I find that if I don’t create space, blogging either doesn’t happen, or it happens in a very ad hoc way without me really thinking clearly about the journey I want to take readers on.

Image copyright Tyler Olson - Fotolia.com

If I don’t create silence, I don’t notice the gold in the clutter of life.

I need to turn off what distracts me sometimes—Twitter, Facebook, Gmail, the Media, the iPhone—to truly hear what I need to hear.

I spend too much time broadcasting, and I need to learn to listen more. When I do listen, I find what I say is more useful to others.

I spend a lot of time alone physically, but emotionally, in the work that I do online, I’m realizing that I’m not switching off from those around me.

This point is connected perhaps to the silence I mention above, but the realization that I’m having is that I need to build times of solitude into my life.

I need to learn how to disengage—if only for short periods of time—from the conversations, the requests, and the demands of readers, friends, and followers.

I need to do this not because these people are unimportant, but because if I don’t experience solitude, I’m not really in a position to be able to help anyone.

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How to silence readers from commenting on your Blog

This guest post is by Ramcel Gatchalian for Meek Watcher.

You wake up one day and check your mobile phone for a new e-mail messages. There are none. Surprised, you can quickly enable your laptop and watched your latest blog post comment status. You can't believe it. No comments. Zero as in zip, zilch, nil, nothing.

Copyright Artsem Martysiuk-Fotolia. comYou open your Google Analytics to monitor your blog stats. And you feel a bit relieved to learn that you have a number of pageviews. At least someone saw your recent post. But how come your visitors left without leaving a comment on your blog? Not one!

Your blog is turning into a "ghost town" as far as I can tell. People just passing by, that no traces. The worst part is you are blogging for several months now and it has been the same.

"So, what seems to be wrong?" you ask. Well, you can have honed the skill of your readers silenced. And how to refine this flair? Let us count the ways.

You may have published a number of articles and achieved movement of a species, but unless you relentlessly promote your blog you'll be just a small spark in the blogosphere. No matter how big is your content.

It might sound stupid, but people usually don't have anything if you don't ask them to. In fact, even if you are the best article that you can craft, prove if it is actually inspire interaction is not written, people will have no reason to comment. So why don't you invite them literally comment on your blog?

Readers love to think — especially if they have your article interesting, relevant and fascinating find. It encourages them to their thinking caps and their thoughts on the subject. If you do not call seduction and your topic with a few questions close, then why do you expect answers?

Why, oh why you Force your readers to register or login to your blog? Do you think they find it fun type valuable insights in that comment box of yours, just to get rid of a message that says they are not logged on and they need to register? You wasted their precious time — something that cannot be reduced.

Readers came, but felt lonely because no one was commenting. Why would they be the first? It's not fun to go to a party with no people on it. And you're not DoFollowa.

Now that you came to realize this "talents" of yours, you are ready to go to the next level? I hope not. Let's go for an open session: How you can counter these pitfalls? Are you a budding blogger, what advice can you give to bloggers who are in this situation?

Happiness is only important to get the chance to sell itself at the right time. After that, you have a talent and know how to use it. — Frank Sinatra

Ramcel Gatchalian is a blogger who writes blogging about and a food criticism of his Food blog. Checkout his blog where he shares about blogging and how he can tease your food cravings.

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