Where did April go? It’s a blur to me. In truth, most of this year has been a blur. If you journal or keep a diary, you understand the benefit of review. If you blog you know that you should be able to write a blog post in 70 minutes or less[1] and should have five main components including:
- Lead Paragraph.
- Relevant Image.
- Personal Experience.
- Main Body.
- Discussion Question.[2]
Make sure you publish your post between 8 AM and 11 AM on a Monday morning[3] and include bullet points. A blog post without images and bullet points is highly ineffective. Yes, I’m a bit sarcastic. But don’t you feel that blog posts seem dehumanized by formulas for effectiveness and templates for success?
I look at my journal pages and see business cards and receipts stuffed between pages. On one page there’s a list of numbers (after deciphering them, I realized they are the CMYK break down of a turquoise color for a book project). Another page has an appointment date and time crossed out. My favorite is an unfinished note at the bottom of one page that simply ends mid-sentence. No conclusion. Random, incomplete entry. Even productivity guru and author of Getting Things Done David Allen tweeted a few months ago:
“Life is messy; that’s why it’s so dynamic.”[4]
May is almost here. Glancing in the rearview mirror of analog and digital review helps me set goals for the horizon seen through the windshield. If this were a highly effective blog post, I would include a discussion question like: “How does journaling help you create dynamic goals for the next 30 to 90 days?” But this is not a successful blog post even though it has bullet points and an image.
NOTES:
[1] Michael Hyatt, “How to Write a Blog Post in 70 Minutes or Less,” michaelhyatt.com, September 15, 2011 accessed April 29, 2013 http://michaelhyatt.com/how-to-write-a-blog-post-in-70-minutes-or-less.html
[2] Michael Hyatt, “Anatomy of an Effective Blog Post,” michaelhyatt.com, January 31, 2011 accessed April 29, 2013 http://michaelhyatt.com/anatomy-of-an-effective-blog-post.html
[3] Daniel Zeevi, “STUDY: When is the Best Time to Publish a Blog Post?,” Dashburst.com, February 4, 2013 accessed April 23, 2013 http://dashburst.com/report/best-time-to-blog/
[4] David Allen, Twitter post, September 27, 2012, 3:11 AM accessed April 29, 2013 https://twitter.com/gtdguy/status/251111806951649280
Coffeehouse Junkie 