Are you thinking about starting a blog?
If you’re on Pinterest you might have seen some pins about how great blogging is for mamas! From monetizing your blog to networking with other mamas to getting to know your audience, blogging is an amazing and creative outlet for moms.
I know for me, one of the reasons I wanted to start Twins Mommy was to have that outlet to talk about the challenges of being a work-at-home mom and to meet others doing the same.
While Twins Mommy has grown to helping mom bloggers with little children become successful mompreneurs, I still get excited every time I create a post of pin graphic!
But, I won’t lie; starting a blog while having to take care of my twins isn’t easy! My twins no longer nap (a unicorn died when they dropped their nap….) don’t go to daycare and all they want is to go outside, paint and do playdough.
Do you have little ones at home and not sure you can start a blog? Here are my tips to help you be successful in starting your blog when you think you don’t have the time or the patience…because there is NEVER the right time to starting something new.
Before you get into the nitty gritty of this post, I want to let you know that I have a step-by-step tutorial on how to start your own mom blog. Indulge today and invest in yourself mama! You won’t be disappointed!
1. Know Your Why
It’s much easier to pull the trigger and start your blog when you know the why behind it. What is the main reason you want to start a blog? Is it to:
- Share your experience in a topic
- Help others
- Inspire others
- Teach others
- Build a following
- Have a creative oulet
People start blogging for different reasons and it’s important to know yours. As I mentioned before, I started Twins Mommy to share my experience as a work-at-home mom.
If I can help others doing the same then my blog was worth it.
It can be hard to remember your why when you’re three months into blogging and you hit a plateau or you have blogger’s block and can’t think of topics for your blog. Plateaus usually happen during seasons or holidays or several months after you started your blog.
It happens to everyone so go back to your why and keep focused on your end goal and know how you’re going to complete those goals in mind.
One strong element to having a successful blog is having a blogger friend that’s in the trenches with you. When you have someone to be accountable, you actually do better and meet your deadlines!
2. Work During Nap Time or Quiet Time
My twins no longer nap and it’s really hard to find any time to blog. I’ve had to find creative ways to occupy my twins and make sure they are happy doing it!
Like:
- water play in the bathroom
- cutting paper
- stamping galore
- spaceship and camping play
- stickers
- watch a TV show (but that doesn’t even work anymore since they have different preferences. My daughter loves My Little Pony. My son loves Rescue Bots. Neither enjoys the other’s shows…so it’s a stalemate a lot of times…)
Anything to keep them a bit quiet so I can create a blog post or email newsletter or client work. Something else that’s helped a lot is being a fast typer!
If you can type faster, you can whip out a blog post in no time. So, do practice typing tests!
And one thing to remember, is to not beat yourself up if you don’t end up having time to write a blog post or have time to promote your blog post.
That’s hard for me. For a while I was writing two blog posts a week – good ones too! But, I got too busy with my client work and other obligations and my twins stopped napping, so I mostly write one blog post a week. This slows down your traffic, but if that’s all you can do for now, then do it!
If I can write two posts a week, then I’ll do it, but I don’t kick myself if it’s not every week.
If your little one still naps, take the time to batch your tasks and get your content schedule up and running. And if your little one doesn’t nap, work before they wake up, when they are asleep for the night or find other ways (like quiet time) to focus on your blog.
3. Create a Plan
One of the biggest takeaways I got from my epic roundup of 40 moms was to have a plan and stick to it. Now, I don’t know know about you, but I do have a hard time sticking to a plan. I get distracted easy. But, I make sure to write it down, tell someone (my husband or blogger friends) and remain accountable.
I have plans for this blog and for my Elna Cain blog and juggling that is a little hard at times. For most of March I focused on revamping and re-launching my Write Your Way to Your First $1k course.
I totally re-did my sales page, redesigned it and created more graphics too. I also moved the course to Teachable and because of the revamped and new lessons and new platform, raised the price.
I also did five days of Facebook live sessions for freelance writing tips as part of my launch and boy oh boy…that didn’t leave much time for Twins Mommy.
Now, it’s April, and I’m switching focus on Twins Mommy! Go figure…for you though, having one blog and one focus is ideal. Spend time creating a plan (want some free planners? Click here to find the perfect one you want) and pinpoint these things:
- Your launch date
- Three to five posts
- Your social media profiles
- Choosing your email provider
- Plan for monetizing your blog
- Long vision for your blog
Now, if your blog is a fun blog and you’re not sure if you want to monetize it, then your plan can be completely different! So, based on your why, create a plan and goals around that why.
4. Block 20 Minutes 4x a Day
Okay mamas!
Let’s get down and dirty and think about your day. What does it look like? For me, I spend a half hour doing email in the morning and the rest of the day is a combination of doing chores and blocking time to work.
I block 20 minutes and work on my blogs and business. Twenty minuets is the perfect time for your child to be focused and then move on.
It’s also proven that this amount of time is effective to be more productive.
So, what can you do in 20 minutes:
- Set your Tailwind and Buffer accounts
- Reply to emails
- Draft a blog post outline
- Create several pin graphics
- Write a newsletter
- Engage in Facebook groups to grow your brand
- Answer comments on your blog
- Look at affiliate programs to join
- Read two blog posts and comment on them
- Write the introduction of your post
- Start creating a lead magnet or content upgrade
- and more….
Remember, you have four blocks so you can effectively write a blog post during these blocked times (outline, intro, body, conclusion and graphic) if you’re a fast typer 🙂
5. Get Used to Distractions
You’re a mom and you’re working from home so get used to distractions from your child, family, friends, email and social media!
What I like to do is make time for distractions (one of my blocked times). I find time to take time to go on Facebook and Pinterest. Or I listen to a podcast and just take a few minutes to read social media posts and engage online!
Remember, starting a blog isn’t in a vacuum; you want to network with others and meet other bloggers in your niche and grow your community!
So mama! If you haven’t started a blog, what’s holding you back? Tell me in the comments. And, if you already started a blog, please tell me about it in the comments! I love reading new blogs!
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