I have done a lot of blogging in the past – Blogger and WordPress.com – none really lasted too long or amounted to much. But I “enjoy” blogging (though it has been really hard to get started and this is my first post on this blog) and wanted to create a blog that has the potential for a lot more, in terms of information, customizing, reaching audiences, gathering followers, being an influence and helping my business grow.
I researched (“googled”), read successful blogs, followed successful bloggers, watched YouTube videos and came to the same conclusion that most successful bloggers do – WordPress.org with web hosting was the way to go. There are plenty of hosting platforms out there, and everybody has their favorites, but almost everybody agrees with WordPress.org as being the king of blogging platforms.
The first thing, once I decided to go this route, was to get the web hosting. Trying HostGator unsuccessfully, I went to BlueHost and got my WordPress blog, IndiOdyssey, up and running – simple and quick! The next step should be to select a theme (template), and here again, research told me that usually, a purchased one has more flexibility and growth potential for a blogger. But…there are so many out there, that as of this writing, I still haven’t selected a theme and am just running with the one “given” to me at time of WordPress installation. I’ll need to make a decision fast..
Before I even wrote this first blog, I installed the plugin CoSchedule, a social media editorial calendar to keep me (hopefully) on task. And I love it!! Once CoSchedule was plugged in, I also connected with Buffer and Bitly, which Coschedule recommend I do.
Now, I just need to write…anything, something…on a daily basis. My CoSchedule is filled ideas ad drafts -getting the Elephant and Rider going happily in the same direction, well that’s the work ahead.
Reading: “Switch: How to Change Things When Change is Hard”, by Chip Heath and Dan Heath. They talk about the Elephant and the Rider, the analogy originally used by Jonathan Haidt in his book “The Happiness Hypothesis” also downloaded and waiting on my ipad Kindle app to read next.
Phew!! My first blog post done!!