I am new to blogging. To get into the habit of writing, I set a goal to write daily for 30 days - but had to overcome several issues first that kept me from getting started.
Are you ...
- new to blogging and don't know where to begin?
- scared to put yourself out there?
- worried that you have nothing worthwhile to contribute?
- not sure how to structure your blog posts?
- getting stuck on markdown details?
- wondering how to add emojis to your dev.to posts?
I'm with you! This is what I've learned, maybe it will resonate with you. If not, please share your own experiences & thoughts in the comments below to help your fellow devs!
My obstacles & how I hacked them
😱 Fear of authenticity & vulnerability
Being authentic and vulnerable is hard, and online shaming is real (thankfully not allowed on dev.to). Sharing your thoughts, experiences, and knowledge online with the entire world means you have to be courageous, vulnerable, and open to criticism.
My discovery of Brené Brown and Gabor Maté helped me understand why I struggle with vulnerability and authenticity, and that it's worth to overcome those fears to live wholeheartedly, to tell your story, and connect with people. To get an intro, check out these videos on vulnerability and authenticity.
“Courage starts with showing up and letting ourselves be seen.” - Brené Brown
😟 "I have nothing new to contribute"
This kept me from writing my own content for many years - even though I always wanted to! There are plenty of reasons to start blogging. Making a list of your "why" will not only help you overcome self-doubt when you need it most but also give your blog a common thread.
Here is a list of my reasons to start writing:
- I love writing - I have journals and handwritten notes everywhere. Maybe going online will help me declutter my home? 😜
- I choose to learn in public.
- Writing helps me to structure and remember what I'm learning.
- I can use my blog posts as a library of my knowledge that I can refer to later on.
- I've been inspired by numerous blog posts written by "ordinary" people, and I am very grateful to have found those. Even though it's not the main reason for me to write, the likelihood of someone getting inspired by what I write is
L >= 0, which is good enough for me 😉 - It helps me practice vulnerability & authenticity.
- Getting the social media dopamine boost when people like my content is fun and the least damaging when applied to blogging 🤪
🤔 I don't know where to begin
Just write about what you're currently learning, working on, thinking about, dreaming of, creating, contributing to, or wondering about. Simple as that 🙃
🗂 How should I structure my blog posts?
A simple structure like this will do:
I found this article helpful.
I enjoy visual blog posts and like to create my own images, GIFs, and visualizations to explore and express my creativity. I do currently use the following tools:
- iPad Pro + Apple Pencil + Tayasui Sketches
- Giphy account to create & upload my GIFs
- Imgur account to upload my images
🙈 I keep putting it off
I tend to procrastinate when I'm supposed to do something that feels uncomfortable (like writing!). After taking the infamous "Learning How To Learn" course on Coursera, I've learned that the icky feeling I get when I'm supposed to do something I find difficult is actual pain. Procrastination simply helps to avoid feeling this pain!
Understanding that helped me be more compassionate and patient with myself. It was also helpful to hear that the pain subsides shortly after you get started on your task and that the pomodoro technique 🍅 is a powerful tool to overcome this problem. I like to use this app on my mac.
ℹ How to format & spell check your blog post
- Markdown Cheat Sheet
- How to add emojis to dev.to posts
- Grammarly if English is not your strongest suit or native language.
Summary
Writing is not easy but well worth the effort and time. If you struggle with getting started, you might want to take some time to identify your personal obstacles and find strategies on how to overcome them.
Share your personal experience with blogging in the comments below!
Top comments (15)
Hey Kat,
great plan.
My goal for a post is: 1 Like.
That means one person learned something.
Because I learned the stuff anyway,
I only took my learned lessons and wrote them down.
And I repeated them by writing them down.
Have fun.
Thanks for sharing! That's a great way to look at it.
I really like this
Kat
The timing of this couldn't have been any better. I published my first post today after months (years) of putting it off because I struggle with everything you mentioned.
The positivity I've seen on dev.to is really what made me feel comfortable putting myself out there and getting started.
Thanks for the tips, links and general encouragement in your post!
Same here - the fact that dev.to is a bully-free zone really helped me get out of my comfort zone 💛
Totally love how you mentioned the "Learning How to Learn" course. That course changed my life. All the other tips are really great. Brene Brown's book Dare to Lead is also fantastic. I'm also trying to make writing a habit. Your post has been motivational for me. I look forward to your other contributions.
Brene Brown is the best 🥰
Also, I just published this article that dives a little deeper into the "learning how to learn" course and how it applies to study data structures and algorithms 😁
Hi!
I glad to read articles like this one because I started my blog on Dev.To not far ago.
I also had that doubts about writing posts, their structure and reaction of people, which I might get.
But step by step, I overcome myself. I want to keep writing at least one article per week.
I want to talk about useful approaches to work with files, different topics, which I'm interested in, etc.
Also, I want to shed light on the machine learning topic.
P.S.
I had the same structure for posts :)
Thanks for sharing! That sounds great, I'm looking forward to reading your blog posts :)
Kat, thanks for this. Timely advice. Just wondering, do you have a running / training / hiking adventure blog as well or just related to work / coding?
I just started blogging (this is my 3rd post so far), but I'm planning to write about training, personal development, finances, and mental health in the near & far future. I'll let you know once I get there! Thanks for asking :)
Thank you for writing this! I am in the phase of "thinking" about writing, but it is probably just any one or more of the things you mentioned keeping me from starting.
Thanks for sharing :) Let us know once you've identified your own roadblocks, it might help out others to find theirs.
I might have missed it, but could you provide a link to your blog?
I just started blogging and all I have written so far is here on dev.to 😉