I’ve had it.

No more.

I’ve had it.

The slope is too steep.

The wind is too fierce.

The pain is too great.

I could never reach the summit.

Why did I even bother?

Nobody cares.

Go on or go back – it won’t make a difference.

So scream the voices.

But I refuse to listen.

Because I can see.

And I can see …

… because I believe.

photo by Peter Gene

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Have you ever expressed thanks for having the material comforts that you enjoy?

Have you ever thought of yourself as a beggar?

We are all beggars.

We may live in large, air-conditioned homes with strong roofs and foundations.

We may possess many expensive things.

We may sleep in soft beds in quiet rooms at night.

But we are all beggars.

We beg the sun for warmth.

We beg the earth for food, water, air.

We beg others for friendship and love.

There is nothing that you have that makes you better than anyone else.

Never forget the poor.

For we are all beggars.

If you care, then why not serve your fellow beggars?

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That’s because I am literally forcing myself to write it just once.

You see, I struggle a lot with perfectionism – wanting things to be done perfectly – especially when I write for you.

That’s a good desire. But I sometimes – okay, a lot of times – allow that to supersede the need for deadlines and regularity.

So I’ve published quite a few blog posts that probably took me several hours too many and generated an effect only slightly more powerful than the versions I had written in just a few minutes.

Not that it’s always best to shoot first and think about questions (or conversations) later.

Just that I personally need to learn to stick to a publishing schedule, come what may.

So as an exercise, I’m going to make myself publish this post, polished or not, 10 minutes from the time I write these words.

The second struggle goes hand-in-hand with the first. It’s procrastination. When I want something done marvelously, I often put off working on it until I’m “ready.”

Ever read that old email forward where it talks about how to write a college paper, and it gives like 40 steps and about 10 of them are “sharpen your pencil?” I’m not at that extreme, but I am definitely guilty of saying, “I’ll do that later when I’ve got a bigger block of time and fewer distractions.”

This isn’t an apology post (although of course if I’ve ever offended you in any way and haven’t resolved the matter, I deeply apologize and pledge my best efforts to make things right).

More like a conversation starter.

Guess who sparked these thoughts? My wonderful wife.

I’m one of those blessed souls who married not only their best friend, but also someone who is way smarter than them.

She toasts me every time at Scrabble. I’ve never beaten her at thumb wars.

And she has incredible wisdom that sets my blogging mind straight.

So she gave me some advice on how to be better in my business, which is blog consulting.

I’ve got a ton on my plate right now, but that’s no excuse for working ineffectively.

My wife’s advice was essentially this:

Do each thing once, for as long as it needs to be done, and then stop.

And in the case of a blog, it’s get the post up and pass the baton to the readers for conversation to flow.

I love her guts.

And I care about you who just read this post.

I hope you find this inspiring, or at least a small motivation and enouragement to get more done while “doing and redoing” less.

No more perf and proc!

Any tips on overcoming this two-headed demon? It sure is a blogger’s productivity nightmare.

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Welcome to Part 5 of a 5-part series on the elements of visionary blogging. This article will help you become a more diligent blogger so you can increase your blogging success.

• Part 1: Increase Your Awareness (the ability to see)
• Part 2: Sharpen Your Focus (the ability to look)
• Part 3: Hone Your Discernment (the ability to evaluate)
• Part 4: Excite Your Imagination (the ability to create)
• Part 5: Strengthen Your Diligence (the ability to endure)

Recognize this mountain?

Look closely at the colossal peak in the photo above. Can you name it?

• Hint: It’s bigger and taller than Mount Everest.
• Hint: It can be seen from two cities that are more than 350 miles (560 kilometers) apart by car.
• Hint: Its name in Athabaskan means “the Great One.”

You’ll find the answer at the end of this article.

What’s with the mountain shot anyway?

I showed you the mountain photo to help you ponder two things.

First, the incredible diligence required for a mountain to rise up from the earth over millions of years.

Second, the incredible diligence required for a human to climb it in a matter of days.

What is diligence?

Diligence is zealous, intense, sustained effort. It’s refusing to give up no matter what. It means never forgetting or laying aside your vision for your blog.

Why does diligence matter to business blogging?

A lack of diligence has killed more business blogs and ruined more bloggers’ efforts than anything else, with the possible exception of self-doubt.

I’ve seen hundreds of professional blogs start out well, like hikers setting out for a summit on a clear summer day.

But then the weather begins to rage. One by one the mountaineers turn back, exhausted or afraid.

Only the bravest and stubbornest of souls can conquer the highest, loneliest peaks on earth.

So it is with blogging.

If you haven’t wept over your blogging, maybe you are not diligent enough.

If it hasn’t physically hurt, you might not be working hard enough.

Do you know what it’s like to clench your teeth in frustration because your blog is not making the difference you had hoped?

Or what it’s like to bite your lip and push forward, whatever the consequences and no matter the obstacles?

Without diligence, none of the other visionary blogging elements can guarantee your blog’s success.

It is diligence alone that seals the deal, making sure that your blogging vision finally becomes reality.

How can you strengthen your blogging diligence?

It’s simple. It’s hard, but it’s simple.

1. Look in the mirror. Becoming a harder worker is impossible until you examine yourself carefully. When are your least productive times? Your most productive times? What do you waste the most time doing? What causes you to work harder? What leads you away from blogging diligently?

2. Decide. Set an ultra-specific goal that tests your utmost limits as a blogger. If it don’t make you hurt from the strain, it ain’t gonna make you more diligent.

3. Work like a burro. Or work like a banshee. Take your pick. Either way, make up your mind to put one foot in front of the other nonstop until you stand on the summit – the roof of the world.

If you do these three things on a daily basis, I promise you that you will always be a little more diligent than you were before. And your blog (and your blog visitors) will thank you for it.

Remember These Words

I once sang them in front of a crowd. They mean everything.

I can climb up to the mountaintop
Touch the stars out in the sky
And I can change this cold world to a better place
Brother, you can bet I’m gonna try
Just watch me fly

Thank You

You have now learned the fifth element of the Visionary Blogging method for blogger self-improvement.

And whatever makes you a better blogger will also make your blog better.

I know that awareness, focus, discernment, imagination and diligence are vital to long-term blog success.

I challenge you to set a goal right now to work to become a better blogger in one of these five areas over the next seven days.

If you stubbornly strive to achieve that goal, you will make yourself a more skilled, more successful blogger. I promise.

I invite you to subscribe to Visionary Blogging so you don’t miss future updates on how to speed up the blog improvement process and make it more effective.

If you’re serious about improving your blog, I also urge you to try my Iris blog consulting service. Your blog will never be the same.

Thank you so much for reading and responding to me. I appreciate your support, your questions and insights.

My next post will reveal the ultimate secret to easy blogging success. Unless you already know it, of course.

I wish you the best as you strive to become a more diligent, perseverant blogger.

Enjoy this inspiring video.

Photo by Unhindered by Talent

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Those are the three most despicable words you could ever say as a blogger. Or as a professional.

Or as a human being.

I don’t matter murders your faith, your hope, your courage.

I don’t matter exalts your despair, your doubt, your fear, your failure.

I don’t matter may be why you stopped when your blog stuttered. Why you looked back when it got hard. Why you remain silent.

Why so many bloggers will skip Blog Action Day. Why one more person will die alone.

I don’t matter is a lie. A damnable lie.

I don’t matter shoved me mercilessly to the very brink of doom one dark night in 1998. Those three words would have murdered me had a dear friend not rescued me from the abyss with an embrace I shall never forget.

If you never listen to anything I say ever again, listen to these two gloriously true words:

You matter.

And so your blog matters.

You will never know in this life how great a difference you will make and how many lives you will bless through your devoted service.

Remember these words. They saved me 10 years ago. They may save you or someone through you someday.

Please show this to a friend who needs it.

Thanks to Darren for the inspiration.

Photo by junku-newcleus

—

Note: This blog is all about blog improvement. It’s what I do for a living. And I believe the best way to improve your blog is to sharpen your sense of vision and purpose – for yourself as well as for your blog. The rest becomes so much simpler after that.

Thank you for coming. I hope we can get to know each other.

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So far we’ve discussed fear, courage and doubt. Now let’s talk about faith and how to develop your powers of faith as a professional with a blog.

What is Faith?

Faith is confidence or belief in something you can’t see or don’t know. Without it, nothing happens. Faith is raw power.

Faith is like water. You can have a droplet or you can have a whole bucket of it, but you can’t survive without it. And you can always get more of it.

3 Ways to Develop Faith as a Business Blogger

Fight your blogging fears and doubts. Vanquish them and faith will naturally replace them. You minus fear minus doubt = fireball of faith.

Preach to yourself. Give yourself a pep talk whenever possible. “This blog post of mine can generate valuable leads for my business.” “I believe I can fly.” “I am confident that this blog can succeed.” You get the picture.

Trust in miracles. When you truly believe in your blogging abilities, miracles can become easy to perform. Just work, work, work and prepare to be amazed by the results.

I’ve left this post a bit shorter than the previous ones in this series. Why?

Because I want to find out what you think.

How much blogging faith do you have? What has challenged your faith the most? How have you strengthened your faith as a blogger?

photo credit: fazen

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Did you attend the SOBCon08 business blogging conference last week in Chicago?

If so, I have an idea.

If not, I have an idea.

Let’s take a blogging/business step forward together in May 2008.

Let’s each put a piece of SOBCon advice into practice in our online efforts by the end of this month.

Why?

Well, why not?

How to Participate in the May 2008 SOBCon08 Step Forward Challenge

1. Pick one item from the SOBCon08 tips list to do by May 31, 2008.

2. Leave a comment below announcing your resolution to participate.

3. Fulfill your resolution. (Ah, the easy part.)

4. Leave another comment below explaining how you took your step forward.

I’ll keep track of things and report back to the community at the beginning of June.

Many hands make light work.

What do many feet stepping forward do?

Let’s find out together.

Who’s with me?

Photo: One Step Beyond by kirtaph

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