The Real Secret to Blogging

Jan 20, 2009
23 Comments

So you have this blog… and it’s just… sitting there. Not doing much of anything. You’re having a nearly impossible time getting traffic, comments, or subscribers. You’ve tried every trick in the book to generate traffic: social media, SEO, whatever. 

Nothing seems to be working, and it sucks. You feel like giving up.

Why? Why isn’t it working? 

Don’t worry. I’m going to tell you the secret to blogging.

All the external tricks in the world aren’t going to fix the problem. The tricks seem to work great for some people, though, don’t they? In fact, you might even think that bloggers who have popular blogs and lots of traffic don’t even need any “tricks” like SEO or blog commenting a certain way or getting some friends to vote up posts on StumbleUpon.

And you would be right. They don’t. Take away the SEO, the social media tools, the brilliant blog design, strip it all away and what do you have left?

The real secret to a killer blog.

Take any video or audio, and divorce it from its surroundings on the blog, and what do you have left? Just the faces, the spoken words, the body language, the vocal inflections.

Spoken or written, blog posts seem to be nothing but words. 

But if you’re thinking I’m going to say that words are the real secret to blogging, you’re wrong.

Words are an external manifestation of what’s inside of us. From them the reader knows you, feels you, senses you. The reader knows when your heart is in the words and when it isn’t.

Which means that words are not the real secret to a killer blog. No. This isn’t another “content is king” diatribe. It’s not the words. Or, rather, it’s not just the words alone.

It’s what’s behind the words, between the words. It’s what creates the words in the first place: the heart, the soul, the passion.

That’s the secret. Passion and heart make everything else happen. Passion comes through even when you’re not the best writer or speaker. 

Passion however, will drive to you improve. Passion will drive you to press on and never give up. Passion will drive you to learn to write more eloquently and persuasively. Passion will drive you to learn how to record and edit sound and video to best of your ability. Passion will drive you to seek out people to share with. Passion will attract people through all avenues… including the ones that look like “tricks.” Passion will drive you to do what it takes, so that when you do it, you make it look easy.

If you have no passion for what you’re blogging about, all the tricks in the world will fail, because everything you do is a hollow waste of time. When you love what you do, everything you do is an act of love that shines through.

Find your passions and let them out onto the page. Release them into the world. Let them catch fire in people’s hearts and shine back on you.

That’s the real secret to blogging.

  • Michael,

    You said it! It's all about passion. As the old song says, Love will find a way. If you're passionate, then your passion will attract to you all the resources you need out of the blue. Make a decision and take an action.

    Rasheed
  • Rasheed, thank you. I never thought about that song in relation to life outside of a relationship, but it's very apropos in this case!
  • This is a fabulous post. I've just started blogging and am feeling like a complete newbie. I have NO background in either computing or journalism and feel like I'm struggling at the moment to figure out small things (like how do I do a nice box round the "subscribe to my email"?) and not so small things (how do I track traffic to my blog and what the hell do I then do with that information), never mind the crux of it, which is to write great blog posts. And that's all alongside an evolving day job. But this post made me remember what it's all about. Passion. I have loads of that. It's what drove me to work out how the hell to get Wordpress running on my domain, and then how to upload Thesis onto that. Hell, without passion, I wouldn't even know what Wordpress and Thesis were!! Thank you for reminding me that that's at the core of everything!
  • I like this. Passion leads to sincerity, authenticity in blog posts.
  • This is pure truth. My blogging is a new endeavor, but I've seen these principles play out in other scenarios...everyone's looking for a trick. talent is involved, and things like SEO are very real, but at the end of the day, the dude who outworks you is going to be the one who wins.
  • Amen to that, Mr. M! Great post.

    Passion + Courage = Destiny

    Thanks for the reminder to always be who I was created to be....ME!

    Keep the faith and keep being YOU!

    ~Ronald
    TrueBeliever & HopeDealer
  • @Ronald - I like that formula! Thanks for sharing.
  • Michael:

    Awesome post. You can spot a fake blogger 10 words away.
  • This makes me feel a lot better about being a novice blogger!
  • Well this is just right on. I keep telling clients this also: there are no shortcuts to success. I think this is an applicable message to not only blogging but to all businesses.
  • I have nothing more intelligent to add to this than, "Yes."
  • @James - I have nothing more to say to that than, "Thank you." :)
  • Right on Michael and SO TRUE! I enjoy (and admire) your integrity, honesty, and giving us the *real deal* and not just some sales-y hype.

    In my own coaching business, I've found that writing has been one of the keys to my growing success. And I always write from the heart, and what I write about I'm passionate about.

    That's what makes bloggers and biz people successful, because they're passionate about what they are doing. And being true to their passion. I'm so glad I'm living my own passion.

    Thanks for the reminder Michael!
  • What a powerful post... and how appropriate on Obama's inauguration day.

    Desires fueled by deep-seated passions and unwavering purpose are the instigators of personal, business and global transformation.

    Thank you, Michael.

    Mary Anne
  • Brilliant! Sometimes we just need posts like this to remind us what the most important parts are of blogging. Trust me, visitors to your Blog can sense your passion. And if you do not have a lot of passion and then you will not have a lot of success.
  • Definitely very true. Passion will almost always put you on the path to success.
  • Thanks for this post. I definitely have passion for what I write and it does make a difference.

    Your words ring so true!
  • Why are some artists more succesfull than others? Why some designers? Why some public speakers? It's because they're passionate and can move people in a way they listen to what they have to tell.

    Somewhere on the road we lost the passion to read great storytelling. Maybe it's not entirely correct (books are still succesfull) but every blogger is a writer, so to start and gain a bit of momentum... passion, like you say, is the way to do it.

    great post!
  • TRUE THAT, Mr. Martine!

    Loved this post. No info product can give it to you, it isn't available at any price, but it is the one thing that, if you can find it inside you, can push you to the next level.

    Loved it, Michael. Thanks.
  • Michael - I read your post and feel like I know you! I think if we sat and had coffee I would enjoy your company as much as I enjoy your blog...and that is the key. Ask your friends if they can "hear" you when they read your posts, make sure you are writing something interesting to you and you will interest others.
  • Michael,
    Integrity of voice is a finely honed idea. IMHO. The more aligned we are with what is truly important, the meaning we find, the more resonant that voice can be. Whether it is in our work, our home, our community or ourselves, that care for our deeply held passions is exactly where the treasure is.

    Beautiful post Michael.
  • Passion for my message has carried me through many moments of boredom with doing the same thing for several years.

    If I'm not passionate about something, it's next to impossible to get myself going and doing.
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