According to an article in the New York Times, 95% of blogs are ghost towns.
The fact is, the vast majority of blogs are, for lack of a better word, failures. They generate no money and very little traffic.
No wonder people quit — I’d quit too. In fact, I did.
The first blog I started, ACoupleTravelers, is now one of those blogs sitting on the internet that hasn’t been updated in months.
Now, in its heyday, it did make decent money and have decent traffic — but I STILL got burnt out.
The next blog that I started, SelfMadeBusinessman, is off to a better start. I have more motivation to keep it going and have avoided blogger burnout on numerous occasions.
Here’s how you can too.
1. Start with your passion
Preventing burnout starts before you even begin blogging, by picking your niche.
It’s a common debate — go for the money or go for the passion. In general, I recommend trying to find the overlap between them.
But if I had to choose, go for the passion.
My first blog was about travel. I like travel, perhaps I even love it — but I don’t like writing about it and therefore a travel blog is not something I’m going to be passionate about in the long run.
What am I passionate writing about? Business.
This is why my next blog is set up to have a better finish.
Before you start blogging “for real” I recommend trying to write 20 articles in your target niche. Not only will this take the pressure off future blogging, but it will let you know that you can continue blogging past the easy articles.
2. Outsource whenever possible
I get it — you’re bootstrapping.
You don’t have the money to hire someone else or the time to manage them. Or, you just don’t feel comfortable letting someone else into your work space.
Whatever the reason, it’s probably misguided.
I started outsourcing my more menial tasks a few years ago and it has literally changed my life. Over a thousand hours of work has been done – and I didn’t have to do it.
Not only has this helped me avoid burnout, but it has also propelled my business in unimaginable ways.
Not sure how to get started? Check out my post on virtual assistants.
It’s everything you need to know, and you can have your first virtual assistant up and running tomorrow.
3. Say “no” more often
Why do we get burnt out?
Usually, it has to do with doing too much — overwhelming ourselves beyond our capacity to work.
The thing is, however, many of the things overwhelming us are in fact voluntary commitments.
“If it’s not a hell yes — it’s a hell no.”
Basically, if you’re not incredibly excited about it, don’t do it.
Examples include:
- Guest post invites for a blogger you don’t really know.
- Requests to partner on a project you didn’t come up with yourself.
- Basically, anything you don’t HAVE to do.
Remember that, first and foremost, these are OTHER people’s priorities — that’s why they seemingly come out of nowhere and are proposed by someone else.
If it was that important to you, you would have come up with it yourself most likely.
I try to do as much as I can to help other people within reason, but sometimes you just have to say NO.
4. Relocate your work space
I spend most of my time writing in my room, but sometimes, it gets a little claustrophobic.
As an alternative, I’ll go to a coffee shop.
I find that relocating is more than just changing your physical space, it’s about changing a state of mind.
You start to notice things you didn’t before, which introduces new thoughts into your head and gets the creative juices flowing.
Some fantastic places to write are:
- A local coffee shop
- Outside, such as a park or patio (if you can manage without Wi-Fi or plugins)
- A library or a bookstore
- The beach
- Your bedroom
Perhaps even a rotating schedule might be conducive to your writing.
5. Disconnect from the internet
If all of the above fails — just take some time off.
This isn’t just about blogger burnout, but really any burnout.
Sometimes the best recipe is to take some time off and come back rejuvenated.
Personally, I like to spend some time outside, such as going for a hike. I find doing something the exact opposite of what I normally do is a way to let that side of the brain settle and exercise some different muscles.
In fact, recently, I took a whole week off and you know what happened?
Nothing.
I came back and — surprise, surprise — I still had traffic. I just picked up where I left off, but way more refreshed.
Conclusion
Burnout usually strikes on account of these things:
- What we’re doing
- How much of it we’re doing
- Where we’re doing it
If any of those three things are out of whack, you’re at risk of blogger burnout.
Luckily, it’s rarely necessary to do something drastic. It just requires a little separation from your work through the methods above.
So, how do you fight blogger burnout?
