Greg
Verdino, VP Emerging Channels at Digitas,
wrote a
post about how he uses RSS feeds to manage the blogs he reads.
He subscribes to blogs (via RSS) that catch his interest and
then deletes them if they don’t maintain it.
I do the same thing. I also delete blogs I’ve been reading if they
start to feel stale and repetitive.
So, how important is it to balance being
consistent, and thereby fulfilling audience expectations, with staying fresh
and relevant?
How do we continually find fresh ways to get a
message across?
This is something that I need to work on, but so
far I’ve found that I have more ideas when I change things
up.
I try to interact with lots of different people,
attend interesting conferences, read about different philosophies, and avoid spending
too much time locked in front of my computer (that one’s really hard).
Triggers come from the oddest places!
But, getting into a rut doesn’t just happen with
writing.
What about our careers, family life, hobbies, businesses?
What do you do to keep it fresh?
That’s a great point, Jeff! If we’re fortunate enough to really start a conversation (or go find one to participate in!) – the danger of getting stale starts to diminish because the world (and everyone in it) is far from stale!
Every time I think about how I might be getting stale, a reader writes in with a comment inspiring a cool new slant on an old subject. It happens almost every week.
Hi Derrick!
I’m beginning to think that I could avoid the problem (or minimize it) by getting out more – out of my own head and out of my surroundings. What do you think?
Ann
Good post. I’m facing the same problem, finding a balance between maintaining the same theme and finding something new. It’s hard to do.
Ah Spring Feed Cleaning!!!
I’ve been on an adding spree lately – but that means that in about a month I’ll be in the same place you are – deciding what I read and what I don’t read.
Let’s face it – we can’t read it all!
Love the purple Ann. Very warm, hip, and happening, just like you.
I agree that we need to keep it fresh. I’m in the process of going through my feeds too and getting rid of the dead wood. There’s a LOT there, and I may end up just moving to a completely new reader altogether.
I got a kick in the pants a few weeks ago from a friend who told me to “keep it fresh” (not in so nice of terms) and advised he was thisclose to not reading my stuff anymore. Sometimes, we just need the nudge to get us back on track, and sometimes we need a big WHACK. This article’s a nice nudge. Thanks Ann!
One Word Inspirations From 100 Sites
In the past few days Ive been surfing through several … well quite a few … blogs that I admire. I thought Id spotlight colors of inspiration by one word that inspired me in a recent blog at each site….
Valeria –
That’s certainly true – we are more receptive to things that resonate with what we’re thinking about. Thanks for the great ideas!
Ann
Ann:
I like the new look, I don’t know if I told you. To keep things fresh I join a lot:
* group’s initiatives
* people’s projects
* individual’s views
* new ventures
* new tools and widgets
* new angles
And I mix it up. I wrote about interest from readers this past Friday — it depends on their frame of mind, too. We are more receptive to what we’re thinking about. For example the industry we are in, or what we’re working on — Steve was a perfect example of that here.
Wally – that’s a great approach. What’s an example of a typical study project? That really intrigues me!
Overall, I think the way you stay fresh is to keep fresh stuff coming in. I try to do that by varying what I read and by having a “study project” going all the time. For my blog, I generally write about the issues relevant to the selection, training and support of supervisors. But I also do blog posts about other interesting blog posts and news articles and, once a week I try to do a “think” piece about whatever interests me at the time.
Great post, Steve!
(oh – and I am still subscribed!)
Shane- you are so right.
I used to get frustrated with myself if I didn’t write every day. Then I realized that if I was sitting in front of a computer struggling (sometimes) for what to write that I wasn’t out building the experiences I needed to write about – so I gave myself a little break.
I try to write 5 times a week – but 4 is ok with me too now – and every once in a while I might go three days without posting – hey, life happens (or it should be happening) – right!?
Ann
I like to take time out. I could write more than 5 posts a week, but they wouldn’t be as good.
It’s important to venture out and bring something new back regularly.
Ann, you made me think about the whole “fresh” thing in a way that caused me to continue the conversation…
Thanks for the genuine inspiration!
Hi April!
Sometimes getting stale to a single reader doesn’t necessarily mean you’re getting stale over all.
Some of the blogs I’ve deleted were ones I felt I got the point about and there were too many new things to explore to keep reading about the same point (and examples of it) over and over again!
I struggle with that too – whether it’s getting in a rut or just realizing that there are many examples of the same principles.
When I think of the blogs that keep me long term, they’re news or event related, created by someone in an industry that I want to follow, or represent a concept that’s new or near new to me.
Thanks for coming by!
Ann
Guess I had better ask
Just came across a post by Ann Michael. Rasied a great question about blog content and interest and such. It got me to thinking since I author two blogs, a website, and a newsletter.
Would you guys tell me if I was putting out junk? I mean not in …
I have been asking myself this same question. I am not typically a “if it feels good” kinda person. But, I have taken that approach with my blogs. I have two – this way I can have career person stuff on one and wife/mommy/me stuff on the other. It’s working so far.
I am hoping that my readership will let me know if I am getting stale before they delete me – that would be a big help.