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Anniversary Post – Seven Years of Blogging

A good question to ask on your 'Blogiversary'--What goals do you have for your blog? Here are a few of mine... I organizedartistry.com

This October marks the 7th anniversary of my blog!

In the Spring of 2009, I attended the NAPO Conference in Orlando and signed up for a workshop on how to start a blog. I loved to write and I enjoyed sharing my organizing knowledge–blogging married those two loves together.

I started my blog shortly after my then three year old started preschool. I began on the Blogger platform and a few years ago my blog moved to WordPress coinciding with the redesign of my website. I reviewed ‘Cool Products,’ offered ‘Organizing Quick Tips,’ and wrote about anything I thought my readers would find helpful. Then child #2 came along and I did my best to keep up with blogging. Three years later (when he, too went to preschool) I decided to resurrect and complete a ten year old manuscript and self-publish a book. Still kept up with my blog. It was a challenge–but when you’re writing a book, the writing somehow just flows off your fingertips.

Recently, I was reviewing my posts and noticed I hadn’t written one for my 5th or 6th anniversary.  I didn’t write a 5th anniversary post because I was heading towards the self-publishing finish line and needed to focus to complete the enormous task. The 6th anniversary post never got written because I stopped blogging. Completely. Not one post for fourteen months. What happened?

A home renovation/addition project.

We purged our home, packed it all up and moved out for nine months. My brain was making so many renovation-related decisions and adjusting to living in temporary quarters–I just had no brain bandwidth for blogging. Took it off my plate completely. It was a bit weird–not writing at all. But sometimes in life we must put certain tasks on the back burner to accomplish a goal.

It took fourteen months, but in July of this year I got back to writing for my blog. I wasn’t sure how I’d jump back into the blogging pool so I decided to write about what I knew–my home renovation/addition experience. I thought about my experience and the knowledge I could pass on to my readers and the words started to flow.  After a year’s+ hiatus, I had some time to think about the steps I wanted to take to move my blog forward.

In past ‘blogiversary’ posts, I’ve talked about my blogging goals for the year ahead. Here are a few for 2017…

 

I 'Heart' Pinterest I organizedartistry.com

Boosting Pinterest traffic to my blog

I ‘heart’ Pinterest. I could be on that site all day if I had the time! There is a wealth of information in those millions of pins for both personal and professional use. I am planning on joining a few group boards and posting my blog posts to them to grow my blog traffic. I’m learning how to write more descriptive, keyword-rich pin descriptions for my blog posts and communicate more with those who are pinning them. Did I mention how much I ‘heart’ Pinterest?????

Using Canva to brighten up my blog posts I organizedartistry.comCreating Images in Canva

Canva is an online tool used for designing professional-looking graphics. If you’re on Pinterest or read a ton of blogs, you’ll see many utilizing Canva or similar tools to create eye-catching images for their blogs, later to be pinned and posted to social media sites. I used to be a graphic designer and I wasn’t happy with the look of my blog photos so I started learning about and using Canva. My first ‘creation’ can be found here.

Creating a Blogging Calendar

I’ve tried this in the past but it hasn’t worked for me. Maybe I wasn’t using the right calendar? Maybe I’m not spending enough time on the planning process? This is something on my to-do list for December so I can start in January.

Stop Comparing Myself to Other Bloggers

This is a tough one. I read many blogs and I wish I could have a larger readership and stunning photography like them. I’ve come to realize that for many bloggers out there, their blog is what they do for a living. That’s their main focus and they can create beautifully written and photographed posts 5-7 times a week. My situation is different. I work when my kids are in school. I travel to and work with clients for a large chunk of that time. I just started a newsletter. I’ll be adding Virtual Organizing services to my business model in 2017. I am working on the three goals I stated above. I blog when I can.  I just have to keep reminding myself that there are only 24 hours in a day and that I’m moving my blog and my business in a positive direction…

It’s not easy to come back from any kind of hiatus. I’ll be coming back to blogging slowly–keep an eye out more pretty pics, ‘cool products,’ gotta-tell-a-friend ideas and of course, organizing know-how.

You don’t have to wait ’til January 1st to set goals. Do you have any goals for your blog, business or personal life? Share them in the comments below.


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14 responses to “Anniversary Post – Seven Years of Blogging”

  1. Seana Turner says:

    Congratulations on 7 years! It can be hard to get back into a routine after being away. You were smart to step back when the rest of your life was so demanding… I think it shows when a blogger is “working” rather than writing/sharing/inspiring. I look forward to many terrific posts!

    • Stacey Agin Murray says:

      Thanks! It WAS tough getting back into blogging but because I had experienced so many organizing challenges during my home renovation, turns out I had a lot to write about! I’m getting back into a routine and working towards my blogging goals…

  2. Julie Stobbe says:

    I like the idea of anniversary posts, I never considered doing one. I think it is great idea to tell your blogging story so others can see when they stop blogging it is ok, everything will be fine, and begin when you are ready. Thanks for being a role model.

    • Stacey Agin Murray says:

      You’re kind words put a smile on my face today! I think anniversary posts are the perfect way to reflect on what you’ve done with your blog during the year. What needs to improve? Be added? Eliminated? I read my past ‘anniversary’ posts’ to see how my blog has evolved. Seven years and two kids later, I don’t remember much!

  3. I LOVE your fun photo with chair and pink balloon. It’s so festive and a perfect way to celebrate your 7th Blogiversary. Congratulations! I’ve never celebrated my blogiversary, but what a great idea. You’ve got a wonderful attitude. We can’t do everything, but we can set goals that make sense for us. I came across a quote that I love. It says, “Comparison is the theif of joy.” And how true that is. There will always be someone smarter, funnier, bloggier (is that a word,) than we are…but it’s irrelevant. Go out there and be you. Go out there and live your life in a way that makes sense for you. From my vantage point, it sure looks like that’s exactly what you’re doing…in your way, in your style. Go Stacey!

    • Stacey Agin Murray says:

      ‘Comparison is the thief of joy’–so true. We all have to have our own individual kind of ‘blogginess.’ My big challenge is to get past the fact that there will always be someone ‘bloggier.’ I think you invented a new word–Janet would love it. I will happily work on my goals knowing that they will improve my blog and my feelings towards it. I’m not even thinking about comparing my blog to others today because I’ve really been feeling the ‘blogiversary’ love all day thanks to the Organized Bloggers!

  4. Kudos on 7 years! I like how you shared your blogging ebbs and flows in this post. And how great to share your upcoming goals with us. I’d like to get better about using a blogging calendar too.

  5. Stacey Agin Murray says:

    Thanks so much! A blog isn’t static–it definitely has it’s ebbs and flows. Sometimes the words flow freely and sometimes I’m staring at a blank page waiting for inspiration. Some months I have time to blog and some I don’t. Maybe finding a good blogging calendar will help that. If I discover one, I’ll let you know!

  6. Janet says:

    Congratulations, Stacey! I love that you’ve set blogging goals, and that you’ve shared them publicly (great for accountability). I really need to do that too!

    • Stacey Agin Murray says:

      Thanks, Janet. I’m happy to report that I’ve met most of the goals I set for myself in some of my previous ‘blogiversary’ posts. You’re right–they’re great for accountability. I look back at my anniversary posts a few times a year to make sure I’m on track to meet those goals. Looking forward to reading your 10th anniversary post!

  7. Congrats on 7 years! I’m so happy you are still here and that I have the chance to get to know you and work with you! 🙂

    • Stacey Agin Murray says:

      Aw, shucks! Thanks so much. Right back at ya. I can’t believe it’s been 7 years (minus a one-year hiatus)!

  8. Janet says:

    I hesitate to announce my goals publicly, because I’m afraid of slipping and then everyone will know! I have ended a few posts with “I’ll be writing more about this in the coming weeks” where it didn’t happen, and I feel bad about letting down any readers who were counting on that information.

    • Stacey Agin Murray says:

      I understand and have done the exact same thing on occasion. I have two kids and sometimes life prevents me from blogging about what I’d like when I’d like. I chalk it up to being human!

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