30 Day Challenge: Some things I’m Struggling With
I'm 10 days into the 30 Day Blog Challenge and for the most part I am doing pretty good with it. I have posted every day with one exception, which is good considering all of the activities going on.
I must admit that there are a couple of things that I am struggling with in regards to blogging.
When I look at the blogs of other participants I realize that although I know quite a bit about the web, when I see some of the expertise of other participants I tend to feel like what I am blogging about is quite a bit different and that I don't have the "smarts" that most of the other bloggers have.
While I am a pretty technical person, I just don't seem to be able to gather enough logical thoughts to write a technical blog post. Also, I'm just not so sure what to blog about music that some of the other music blogs are not already doing.
Blogging, podcasting, or really anything online costs money. So far the associated costs to running this blog and podcast has been out of my pocket. I don't mind one bit because I see this as a ministry and a labour of love. However, it would be nice to be able to recover some of the cost to pay for expenses. Most importantly though, I don't want to alienate my audience in the name of making a buck.
There you have it. 3 things I am struggling with. I would love to hear your feedback and what you think about my struggles.
- Do I really have enough knowledge to contribute?
- Is what I blog about even relevant, and will people get anything from my posts?
- When, if ever is it OK to monetize>
I’m Hooked on the Stanley Cup Playoffs..
I’m a hockey nut…. I admit it. Hockey is a game of immense skill and conditioning and I am always amazed at some of the things these athletes can do. The goalie is probably the most under rated position in all of sports. Not only do these guys stop a frozen puck winging at them at speeds of over 100 miles per hour, often while they are in some sort of compromising position with some other big guys around them blocking their view.
This year’s Stanley Cup Finals this year are between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Philadelphia Flyers. The goalies in this series are Anti Niemi for Chicago and Michael Leighton for Philadelphia. Both of these guys have been incredible in this series making some incredible stops.
I am a die hard Washington Capitals fan, but since the Caps are out of it, I am pulling for the Blackhawks. They have always been my second favorite team, and besides, they have not won the cup since 1961. Besides, being a Caps fan it would just be wrong to pull for the Flyers. As I write this Game 6 is going into overtime, it just doesn’t get better than this! Go HAWKS!
30 Day Blog Challenge: Why I Choose To Podcast
Today I conclude my series titled Stepping Out And Moving On for the 30 Day Blog Challenge.
In this series of posts I tried to share with you a little about where I have been and now its time to talk a little about where I am going. I decided to walk away from radio and start podcasting for a couple of reasons.
- Listeners don’t need to be tied to a radio or computer to hear the show
- Podcasts reach a worldwide audience, while radio only reaches a local audience
- Listeners have a variety of ways to listen to the show
While I was doing the radio show, I noticed that the listener numbers I could track were somewhat stagnant, and on a slight decline. In the beginning, I didn’t produce the podcasts consistently and had a somewhat nominal amount of subscribers. I noticed that when I started producing more consistently, the subscribers started to increase by 300% over last year and had a reach of over 18 countries around the world. In May 2010, my listeners totally blessed me by accounting for over 1/3 of the total amount of downloads since I started podcasting.
I must say that my decision was not totally based on the numbers. I prayed about it and I totally believe that podcasting is the path that I am being led down, and I am so excited about what the future holds..
30 Day Blog Challenge: Radio Show Interviews
Today I continue my series titled Stepping Out And Moving On for the 30 Day Blog Challenge. One of the things I really loved doing that will continue on with the podcast is doing interviews.
During the run of the radio show I was very fortunate to interview guests on the show. As a music show, I had alot of different artists on the show, but I did one series of interviews that I really enjoyed doing, the 40 Day Fast.
The 40 Day Fast was a series of posts where a blogger would fast for 1 day and blog about a ministry of their choosing. It was fascinating to talk with people like P.D. Ross and how a simple t shirt can make such a powerful statement and make a positive change in the world. Another favorite from that series was Kat, a stay at home Mom who had the inspiration to start the 40 Day Fast and it was interesting to learn about the inspiration for the series, as well as her thoughts on blogging, family, and privacy.
Tomorrow’s post concludes the series, and I will be talking about why I am leaving radio in favor of podcasting.
