Let me start by saying what kind one should not be. An automated blogger is to be despised. This is pretty self-explanatory but basically it means the coward blogger who has nothing to say nor inspiration to spread. These blogs are all over the place and some people even make some money at them. Unfortunately for them though, people catch on fast and expert seo with good keywords tend to burn out when blogging is automatic. Another type one should not be is the emotional gusher. Need I explain the lack of appeal these hold?

There are other types to avoid but I leave it for you to think about. The type of blogger I have become and strive to remain is one who writes from an area of specialty or expertise and works blogging into her/his routine of life. This causes less headaches and produces a blog that is much more interesting. If you can monetize this type of blog you are set because it is integrated into what you do, automatically.

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My “Other” Blog
Thanks to my readers here at Damien at the Speed of Life (DATSOL). I’m excited to tell you about my “other” blog today. Around July 2008 I launched a teaching-oriented blog entitled “Dynamite Lesson Plan.” (DLP) It’s grown since then to have about 200 RSS subscribers. I’ve sought to make the site a trusted brand, like for example Blue Cross NC. By creating a name where teachers can get and share information, I hope to improve my own teaching along with others’.

A Community
The comments have been enlightening and educational to read and it feels like a community over there. I hope you can help me spread the news about this blog. If you are a teacher or if you are interested in education and teaching, I invite you to visit DLP:

SITE: Dynamite Lesson Plan

-or try the feed for a while to see if you like it-

RSS FEED: Dynamite Lesson Plan FEED

Guest Post Authors Invited!
I hope my articles there continue to be informative and interesting to teachers and all readers. In addition, I had the special opportunity to host a guest blogger twice. She is a wonderful writer and I am interested in hosting more from her and others of you out there. If you are interested in a guest post spot on DLP, please get in touch with me at:

EMAIL: rileycentral at gmail dot com

Here’s to a great summer 2009 for all of us!

-Damien Riley, Author of “Dynamite Lesson Plan”

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Table of contents for Blogging A to Z

1. Blogging A to Z – Series Introduction
2. How to Install a Free-Hosted WordPress Blog
3. 10 Tips to Writing a More Focused Blog Post
4. 3 Important Tips for New Bloggers (Video)
5. Assigning Due Dates and Blog Productivity
6. The First Blogs Were Online Diaries: What is Yours?
7. How to Monitor the Analytics of Your Blog

Nowadays, a lot of people have blogs. At the same time, not as many know how to check and monitor their stats in a productive way. This is a quick way to check the daily visits, or analytics, to your blog and how you’re doing compared to your monthly average. Just like custom address labels are there when you need them, so a few tools can help you check your analytics quickly on demand.

What you need (materials):
A Google Analytics account for each if you have multiple blogs.
Optional: Mozilla Firefox (for ease of shortcuts)

Steps:
1) Make a new folder on your shortcut bar entitled Analytics (or whatever you choose).

2) Go to your blogs “Overview” page in Google Analytics.

3) Drag that url into your new Analytics folder on the toolbar.

4) Repeat steps 2 and 3 with any other blogs you wish to monitor.

5) Click on the folder. When all GA shortcuts drop down. click “Open all in tabs.”

6) Start on the left tab. Look at your graph. Note yesterday’s number of visits by scrolling over the point. (ie; 151 etc.)

7) Now find the monthly number of visits on the bottom left of the graph (ie; 4,846 visits etc.) Click on that.

8) In the same area you will now see a visits / day number. That is your daily average for the past 30 days. (ie; 156.32 etc.)

So, if you had 151 visits yesterday, you were about 6 visits lower than your monthly average.

9) Go back to step moving one tab to the right and repeat the rest of the steps until you’ve monitored all your blog analytics.

10) Note the changes or lack thereof. Make tasks for the week that will help you raise your analytics or keep them high.

This is an excellent way to monitor the “A” in my acronym CAN. CAN is a method I created of improving blog stats through setting strategic goals.

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C: Circulation 108 Links in and Alexa rank 372,149
A: Analytics 5,342 Visits 166.94 Visits / Day
N: Net Less than average. This is obviously due to me not taking as many paid assignments and more writing for my own enjoyment. There is value in that sometimes but next month I plan to get back to work blogging for dollars wherever I can.

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Wow.

That goes to show you just how valuable one man’s vision can be! What’s the impact this knowledge should have on you and I? Nurture your vision and don’t let it die.

Some might think of McDonald’s as a less than “amazing” thing with regard to recent issues of obesity and saturated fats etc., and they might be right. But no one can deny the amazing feat accomplished by Ray Kroc when he started his idea.

To close this post, I offer my readers this telling quotation from Ray Kroc himself describing the time he started McDonald’s. His life’s work is truly an “Amazing Thing“:

I was 52 years old. I had diabetes and incipient arthritis. I had lost my gall bladder and most of my thyroid gland in earlier campaigns, but I was convinced that the best was ahead of me. -Ray Kroc

Sometimes our vision needs a jumpstart, whether it’s an Orlando vacation or a good old fashioned nap. Nurture it for it is valuable. Ray Kroc showed us that.

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I read about Wrigley, the famous gum mogul, tonight on a website. He started selling soap as his main source of income, but kept a secret hobby of making it in the chewing gum market began in his basement. He never thought chewing gum would bring in enough money to be a big business, so he poured himself into the soap as his career. After a time however, the soap didn’t sell as he had hoped. Before long, he would be in chewing gum orbit.

To better market the soap as a novelty, the family started adhering a small package of his tasty gum to each soapbox they sold. After a short time people were buying the soap just to get the gum. You know the rest of the story. Spearmint chewing gum and gum in general is synonymous with his name.

I think the energy in our jobs and in our writing, should not always be spent on what we think will sell, but rather on our pet projects we truly feel invigorated about. We may find, as Wrigley did, that other people like them as well and they may even end up paying us money to continue doing them! Thanks for the life lesson Mr. Wrigley and thank you for Wrigleys chewing gum.

Wrigley’s full history

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1. Set your watch and clocks in your house to ten minutes ahead.
2. Use an online task manager like Remember the Milk.
3. Use an online Calendar like Google Calendar.
4. Set email reminders.
5. Get ready earlier (no brainer).

I thought of this post while lingering too long in my local Best Buy, DOH! Got any other ideas to help avoid tardiness?

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My dad told me in my freshman year of high school that I had to either pick a sport and compete or get a part time job. I see the wisdom in that so much now that I have a son of my own. I weighed around 100 lbs. at 5’8″ so football was out. I suppose I could have been a wrestler like my friend Kevin, he was 5’5″ and about 95 lbs. Before meets he would fast and run in plastic to sweat it off. I wouldn’t have had to do that because I never ate and I was a bag of bones. Literally you could see my ribs. I was healthy, just very gaunt. Thank goodness I finally filled out in college. I’m about 170 now, and needing to lose a spare tire. My how age changes your worries. One day you’re worried if a girl will dance with you, the next thing you know its the worry of getting life insurance information for your big family.

But back to the memory of running. I chose running X-country and track instead of getting a job. It was a wise decision. I have 4 years worth of remarkable memories stored away in my mind forever and anon. If you’ve run, you know that running is ethereal … other-worldly. One practice for X-country, we were running a 10 mile workout. Can you imagine that? It was from Mission Viejo to San Juan Capistrano and back again. The coaches ran with us but one took a car halfway and parked it beforehand so he could ride alongside us driving like horses to the destination. I would do those workouts without a thought. It was like riding on my legs. I do my treadmill now all these years later and remember how I was back then … so much endurance. I miss that, but I know it would take far more discipline than I have to get there again. In fact, it might not even be possible anymore. Back to the memory: It was almost prom and I had no date. My mom had been pressuring me like moms do to ask someone ANYONE. based on my slight frame and my somewhat immature disposition back then, I wasn’t the BMOC in the eyes of the girls. Nonetheless, I found myself staring during that workout at a freshman female. She was a friend, I was a senior. I ran up alongside her and after a few words regarding the prom, she agreed to go. I remember running faster than I ever had to finish that 10 miles.

Nothing ever came of the friendship between she and I. We had a great prom night of dancing and walking on the beach with our friends in our formalwear. I’ll leave her name out because too many people have found me through things I’ve posted and I’d rather just keep her mysterious anyway! My wife has seen the prom picture. My mom has it or I would post it. My hair was like a pompadour and her hair was like an exploding lion’s mane. Don’t you love the 80′s?

I have memories of running in so many situations now as a  dad, teacher, blogger. It’s like I wouldn’t feel as much if I hadn’t pushed back then. All I had was what I gave and as long as I did my “personal best” the coaches were happy. Great paradigm for life I think. It certainly is mine. Today was good run for me, I’m back at it after a long time away. The body reacts a little slower when I make it go fast. I think I can get it back up to pace … after a while.

Oh yeah, and I will review the book I mention when I get around to reading it. It probably has nothing to do with this post, but you never know ’til you pop the cover. I got inspired enough, just seeing it on the shelf to write my own post of the same name.

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I just read this article about how California lawmakers have no budget and no agreement in sight. This is sobering to say the least. I often wonder if this debacle is solve-able. I mean, do any of us know how big a 19 billion dollar budget really is? Even if we did have ideas, how could we get them to capitol hill? I think the internet has deceived us into thinking we can affect change on a street level when things really don’t change just because we have blogs.

But let’s stay positive. Positive is the way we need to be these days. I shudder to think what we could become if we succumbed to negative energy at this gaunt, restricted time. I have a few ideas that might help. Please don’t pigeon-hole me as a Democrat or Republican, I am just a guy throwing out ideas. I think we all should start talking about this however, whenever, and wherever we can.

• Raise taxes. With a deficit this huge, we probably need to increase revenue. This is done in our present system through taxes. I can’t afford to pay much more myself with the life I have gotten used to but I accept the fact that our state needs to keep the lights on so I could probably accept my taxes being raised. Before you stone me Republicans, hear the next idea:
• Stop giving away money, or at least stop giving away so much money. This one is pretty self-explanatory. Although I work for the state as a teacher, I WORK. Our state gives away billions of dollars with supposedly good intentions. This could save us a bundle and put the state in a position to help more people if it was strong. As it is, we are only postponing the inevitable when we continue to give Californians thousands of dollars each for things that really don’t merit monthly cash. To avoid getting in deep controversy here, I’ll stop now.

I feel like raising taxes and ceasing the giving away of countless dollars can save California. Please understand that I prefer things to stay the same but with a 19 billion dollar state deficit, we have to start making major changes. We are no longer the state that can sit idly by watching Jersey Shore while our state crumbles.

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Table of contents for Add VALUE to Your Blog

1. Add VALUE to Your Blog :: “V”
2. Add V.A.L.U.E. to Your Blog :: “A”
3. Add V.A.L.U.E. to Your Blog :: “E”

Here in this post you find series links to 5 aspects of a valuable blog. I gave the blogosphere this post because the others sites and books I ran across failed to define. I also give you examples to make the abstract aspects apply a little more. This short series I have published over a few days will pack a powerful punch for your blog’s value and what will that mean for you? well … 1) Greater traffic, 2) longer bounce rate (people will stay longer to read your work), 3) More fans/readers, 4) Possibly higher rank and authority on the web. Let’s review what we’ve covered up to now and then I will close the series by discussing the last letter: “E.”

1. V stands for visceral
2. A stands for aphoristic
3. L stands for linkage
4. “U” stands for ubiquitous
5. “E” stands for extracurricular

Sometimes you have to walk away from your little world that is your blog. While away you will find out all kinds of new matierial for posts as well as a new appreciation for other types of blogging. A couple great places to “get away” are:

BlogCatalog.com

Chawlk.com

Twitter

Search out forums and social networks. These are great places that will add value to your post and your blog.

I’m closing this series but for me this concept is never ending. I am always asking myself: “What makes my blog valuable?” I hope I hit some of these ideas, but these are just what I do. My advice? Ignore what Google Page Rank and Technorati say is a valuable blog. Find your own purpose and goals and then measure your own “rank” based on what you set out to do. I feel like in the future, arbitrary measurements of a blog’s worth are going to fall by the wayside. In some people, they already have.

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When Theodor Geisel was a young child, long before he would become Dr. Seuss, he used to mark in books. He had a set of books he had made his own by putting drawings and writings in. This should have been a clear indicator to his parents that one day his books would change the world. I am sure in their wildest dreams they never would have imagined what this young boy would one day do. Letting his imagination run wild was the first thing he did to set his dream in motion. These pictures made him happy. Following what made him happy would eventually make millions happy.

When Theodore got older and graduated college, he decided he wanted to write children’s books. He spent a lot of time and energy making his first book, an ABC book. No one published it. He felt rejected. He did not write another book for four years. This is identical to the experience of another great artist I have written on, Charles Schulz. Neither gave up altogether though. Both rose to great acceptance after a major rejection. I think this is very important for us to note. Have you been rejected at something? How many years will you let pass you by before trying again. While we’re at it, can you imagine how cool it would be to have a copy of that ABC book that got rejected? Something to remember when people reject your work.

In 1936, Dr. Seuss was on a boat to Tudor. He heard the engines “talking to him” in the sounds they made. Standing there at the engine he “heard” the idea for another book attempt. This is probably one of the most quirky stories I have ever heard. That’s why I love it so much. I am like that. I hear my car creak and talk to me, I hear lots of strange sources of inspiration every day. I am also quirky. Are you? Don’t look at it as a bad thing.

The quirky book that was borne out of the engine sounds was And to Think That I Saw it on Mulberry Street. Now 50 years later it is one of Dr. Seuss’ most favorited book by children all over the world. After that is time in a blender history. Dr. Seuss has published hundreds of books since then, as you likely already know.

Theodor Geisel had a goal: he wanted to write books that were easy to read. As he worked for that goal he brought millions of people happiness and taught millions to read: including me as a young child!

Currently set for release is Horton Hears a Who. A major motion picture created from another Dr. Seuss masterpiece. When millions watch it they will be seeing a product of a quirky writer who had a vision and kept at it. The message of this book is that even the smallest person can make a difference. What a message!!! We all wish he could have given us more. He is a lesson to me to never stop giving. Read one of his books and start making your crazy dream happen!

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This is a great movie for kids, but also for grown-ups (hmmm I find myself saying that a lot lately). The graphics, of course, are stellarly cool. Watching the spaceship alone is a marvel worth the 10 dollar admission. But there is much to marvel at in this movie. It is so complicated in art and story that it is one I’ll be buying on DVD so my kids can watch it over and over. As they get older they will come to understand it’s message about belongingness and believing in your own dreams. There are a lot of surprises in this one, and they all serve to make you more brave about being human with yourself and others. What does being “human” mean? Hmmm. That’s another blog altogether, but trust me, you’ll get it when you see it.

The movie closes with a quotation from Walt and it is like a perfect espresso after a delightful meal. This is one cartoon that won’t fall by the wayside with “Barnyard” or “Over the Hedge.” While those movies are good, they aren’t great like “Meet the Robinsons.” Did I mention I liked it?

Around here, however, we don’t look backwards for very long. We keep moving forward, opening up new doors and doing new things and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.
-Walt Disney

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Podcast File: Thankfulness

Link Mentioned: Statement of Faith

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Table of contents for Add VALUE to Your Blog

1. Add VALUE to Your Blog :: “V”
2. Add V.A.L.U.E. to Your Blog :: “A”
3. Add V.A.L.U.E. to Your Blog :: “E”

stands for aphoristic.

In many posts here I’ve written  about how Google PR and other ranking systems for blogs fall short of really determining blog value. Let’s face the fact at the start though not everyone agrees on what is valuable. There are some things that are universal though. I started this series writing about an acronym v.a.l.u.e. and specifically the “V” in value for a blog. I chose the word “visceral” and targeted to a nice short 200 words because so many blogs have posts that are too long and not heartfelt.

In this post, I teach you to make posts that are short and “aphoristic.” An aphorism is a short quote or phrase. Another word for this might be “quotable.”

Writing a blog is unlike writing a book. Readers rarely will “curl up with a good blog.” On the other hand, when they read a book they are more patient and allow more time for ideas to develop. SO, be careful to not fall into the trap of thinking you are a JK Rowling or Eckhart Tolle online. Even if you write that well, you have a different sort of audience that doesn’t want to hang out long.

Here are three tips on how to add value to your blog by being aphoristic:

1. Wait to create your title until you have written your 200 or so words in your post. 9 times out of 10 you will have a better title after you have the post.
2. As you write thing more in sound-bytes, or lines people could quote. I did that when I wrote: “Readers rarely will “curl up with a good blog.” On the other hand, when they read a book they are more patient and allow more time for ideas to develop.”
3. Use the blockquote function as much as possible without being over-the-top.

So now we’ve covered 2 aspects of a valuable blog: 1) visceral, and 2) aphoristic.

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You’re out of reach, out of reach
I try to reach you try to make you believe
But you’re out of reach . . . to reach your peak.

Okay okay, so it isn’t “Every Breath you Take.” I hadn’t lived or read much but I had the music bug in me . . . the drive to write. After years of studying songwriting and spending time recording in the studio I can tell you that the drive and inspiration is the thing that can’t be taught. BUT other things can be, so let’s take a look at those:

Songs are not just one part, they have several. Breaking songs into parts is the first thing to teach about songwriting. The example above was, as I said, a chorus. The chorus is the singable melody, or the bit you can’t get out of your head on the golf course or at work. Have you ever just had a dumb song stuck in your head? Chances are that’s because they wrote a catchy chorus.

Next is the verse. The verses are where you develop the main idea (chorus). For example, if a girl is singing in the chorus about tears on her guitar, then in the verses she is tellin us why she’s cryin’ them.

Next is what the British call “The Middle 8.” I have no idea why they call it this. It could be because it comes in the middle to take the attention away from the chorus and verse. This is a short part you come up with that serves to bring back the sweet chorus and welcomed verse again.

Instrumentally, there is usually a solo and then a return to the chorus again and a fade or stop.

This is just one example of a song structure. It’s a fairly common one though. –so– How do I write songs?

Wow, quite a question. Let me explain how I wrote one song, my song “Talk to Me:”

1. Had an idea for the chorus in my head (this is a common way that songs come to me)
2. Sat down with a yellow pad and wrote an outline of the song.
   Chorus: “When you’re ready oh please talk to me.”
   Verse: “As we’re drivin’ there has grown a great big wall . . .”
   (repeat)
   Middle 8: “Don’t you tell me . . .”
   Solo: —-
   Chorus
   fade/stop
3. Worked it / recorded it / slept on it / changed it / (repeat bazillion times)
4. Book the time and do the final recording!!!

I’ve given just one example of how a song is envisioned and born. There are many ways to Rome. I’ve also left out elaboration in inspiration which is really the most important part in song creation. Anyway, I hope that took you to a new place, if it didn’t . . . all I can tell ya is that : Hey, I’m a simple man and a simple songwriter. Below is the song as it was recorded back in 1993 with some production help from Dave Sharp and all my buddies in my band back then.

Talk To Me ’93

More of my recorded tunes and info at my MySpace Page

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Table of contents for Add VALUE to Your Blog

1. Add VALUE to Your Blog :: “V”
2. Add V.A.L.U.E. to Your Blog :: “A”
3. Add V.A.L.U.E. to Your Blog :: “E”

Write no more than 200 Visceral words

Improving your blog should be a concern if you are a blogger, especially if you are looking to make money blogging. For years I have studied how to increase the value of my blog. As a results I started this series with the letters V.A.L.U.E. The stuff that has been worth my time doing however has been stuff that increases the VALUE of my posts and blog. I am talking about the stuff that increases my traffic and decreases the bounce rate: So, having said that that, I will examine a letter from the word VALUE in each post in this series. I’d encourage you to subscribe so you don’t miss anything. Let’s start with what you can do to create more value for your blog: V.A.L.U.E. V=visceral

1. Be visceral with a target of 200 words

If you are like me, you have to look up visceral to know what it truly means. I knew it meant to be “of feeling” but check out the other definitions:
Visceral \Vis”cer*al\, a. [Cf. F. visc['e]ral, LL. visceralis.]
1. (Anat.) Of, pertaining to, or affecting the viscera;
splanchnic.
[1913 Webster]

2. Fig.: Having deep sensibility. [R.] –Bp. Reynolds.
[1913 Webster]

3. proceeding from emotion or instinct rather than from
intellect; deeply emotional; — as, a visceral reaction.
[PJC]

4. dealing with coarse or base emotions; — as, a visceral
literary style. –[RHUD]
[PJC] (source)

Doesn’t that say it all for a valuable blog post? Write from a place of inspiration. That will vary from writer to writer, but many things never change. I chose 200 words as my target because shorter that that is often considered spam by the search engines and more than that often makes me click away. Let’s face it, who has time in their bloghop to read more than 200 words. Oh and guess what else? IT’S EASY TO WRITE 200 words! Everybody likes stuff that’s easy. Sometimes longer posts are okay when they contain excellent research, but as a general rule, 200 words will be read whereas more may not.

Write 200 visceral words is the first part of adding value to a post/blog. Stay tuned to my blog for the next post in this series.

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In a guest post Cody Myers, 2010 Winner of the Wren SRO Scholarship, shares his story on why he loves his job as an SRO, and how continuing his education will help make his school a safer place. This is refreshing to see someone so dedicated to students as well as his own continuing education. May his tribe increase!

I’ve been a school resource officer (SRO) for four years. And, if you asked me where I see myself in ten, fifteen, or even thirty years down the road, I would tell you: right here – continuing my work as an SRO in my hometown of Riverton, Wyoming.

It may not be clear to anyone outside of the law enforcement profession as to why officers who plan to stay in their positions would want to advance their education past the police academy graduation ceremony. But, for me, education is a continuous and lifelong process. Even after I earn my bachelor’s degree, which the Wren SRO Scholarship will help me attain more easily, I plan to continue my learning track for reasons that are important to me both professionally and personally.

I originally intended to earn a four-year degree when I attended Sheridan Junior College on a rodeo scholarship in the mid-1980s. However, when I decided to join the army, my plans changed. After my service was completed, I returned to my lifelong home on the Wind River Indian Reservation and decided to become a police officer. Having worked in a number of law enforcement positions, including on the SWAT team, and as a First Aid/CPR Instructor for the department, I found my true calling when I received the opportunity to serve as an SRO in Riverton’s school system. And, while my work in the department and training from the Police Academy have completely prepared me to effectively maintain security on the school’s campus, I recognize that obtaining an advanced educational degree can not only help me to achieve my own goals personally, but it also has a ripple effect in how I can better perform my number one responsibility: keeping our kids safe.

It was also my very supportive family who helped to motivate and inspire me to apply for the Wren SRO Scholarship and further my education. My older brother, who serves as assistant principal at Riverton High School and holds two masters degrees and is working on his doctorate, has always encouraged me to go back to school. My wife, whose own persistence and tenacity to stick to a goal until she achieves it, won her the title of Miss Rodeo Wyoming on her third try, also influenced me. They both inspired me to the core to always push myself because they not only told me to go for it – but they also serve as their own best examples of their advice to me.

Obtaining an education as an SRO is so important, that I personally feel it should be a required part of the credentials for the job. I use the lessons I learn in every college class to better connect with professionals such as administrators and teachers on their level about school projects, safety practices, training procedures and even individual student cases and how students’ situations can be improved. On the students’ own level, they relate more closely to me; and I to them when we both realize we face the same struggles, challenges and triumphs everyday as fellow students. Students who come in my office and see a stack of books on the corner of my desk realize I have similar demands on me to learn. And, it helps me make a deeper impact in the safety and criminal law courses I teach with my sergeant, Charlie Marshall, the coaching I do with youth sports teams, and most importantly, to have a rapport with students where they feel comfortable sharing information with me that is critical to maintaining a safe learning environment.

In all of the programs I run that involve youth, I always strive to lead by example. When I coach wrestling, baseball and football, I am down on the ground ‘giving myself’ twenty push-ups or doing laps side by side with the kids. Inside the four walls of a classroom – it’s no different. I can better protect the students in our school by also being one of them – even on the college level – in addition to being an SRO. Leading by example, and having the generous support of the Wren SRO Scholarship to continue working on that goal of a higher education until I achieve it, will ultimately help make my students, my school’s staff and the overall campus and community a safer place. And, I plan on being here for a long, long time to ensure it.

My advice to SROs who want to improve their processes, as well as make themselves an invaluable, irreplaceable asset to their schools, is to further their education. Applying for the Wren SRO Scholarship, and becoming involved with NASRO, is the most sensible way to do it!

Thanks to Cody for writing this encouraging post!

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Table of contents for Blogging A to Z

1. Blogging A to Z – Series Introduction
2. How to Install a Free-Hosted WordPress Blog
3. 10 Tips to Writing a More Focused Blog Post
4. 3 Important Tips for New Bloggers (Video)
5. Assigning Due Dates and Blog Productivity
6. The First Blogs Were Online Diaries: What is Yours?
7. How to Monitor the Analytics of Your Blog

The article linked here on Wikipedia describes “Online Diaries” quite well and fascinatingly so I might add:

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• How to Monitor the Analytics of Your Blog
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Table of contents for Blogging A to Z

1. Blogging A to Z – Series Introduction
2. How to Install a Free-Hosted WordPress Blog
3. 10 Tips to Writing a More Focused Blog Post
4. 3 Important Tips for New Bloggers (Video)
5. Assigning Due Dates and Blog Productivity
6. The First Blogs Were Online Diaries: What is Yours?
7. How to Monitor the Analytics of Your Blog

I know a lot of you out there probably don’t like the word “work” as it relates to blogging. You see blogging as therapy, fun, a way to network etc. You guys are awesome, I hope I never lose you as readers. At the same time, I blog for money and in that process, I often get frustrated and yes … sometimes I fail at meeting my own goals. What this equates to is less C.A.N. and part of that is less income. I have found assigning due dates to blog posting and other blog work to be extremely helpful in increasing my C.A.N. stats as thereby my monthly blog income.

I wrote recently about doing topical series on blogs. I think these are great. They work seamlessly as you attempt to assign due dates. For example, this post is part of my Blogging A to Z series. I put a recurring weekly due date on these posts for each Monday. Incidentally, I use Remember the Milk to remind me of these blog tasks. Google Calendar, MS Outlook, or many other services exist to help you with assigning due dates to blog work. I don’t always meet my deadlines but they never disappear. They sit in my to-do-list and I get to them as soon as I can. The result is higher productivity, self-improvement, hopefully higher C.A.N. blog-stats and that means more … well … ya know ;)

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Table of contents for Blogging A to Z

1. Blogging A to Z – Series Introduction
2. How to Install a Free-Hosted WordPress Blog
3. 10 Tips to Writing a More Focused Blog Post
4. 3 Important Tips for New Bloggers (Video)
5. Assigning Due Dates and Blog Productivity
6. The First Blogs Were Online Diaries: What is Yours?
7. How to Monitor the Analytics of Your Blog

Isn’t it cool when you get a comment on something you published a long time ago that you’d all but forgotten about? That happened tonight with this Youtube vid I made quite a ways back. here it is, I still think these tips are really important.

In the same way you might check into diet pill side effects, or something equally related to your health and well being, so you should always weigh advice you get on blogging. I’ll admit there are exceptions to these absolutes I share in the video. Consider them though and see if you agree they will make your blog a more valuable piece of the internet.

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