My Road to Recovery and Change
March 9th, 2008 Posted by ChanyaLately, my life has been spiralling out of control. As such I’ve made a decision that’s been a long time coming. I’ve debated whether to share this part of my life with you because it’s a very private issue. In the end I think it’s in my best interest to tell you about my problem.
You see, I’ve decided to check myself into rehab.
Blog rehab that is.
Admitting you have a problem is the first step to recovery:
“Hello, my name is Chanya and for the past 8 months I’ve owned . . (deep breath) . . a blog about blogging.”
“Although I’m new here I’ve been trying to abide by the tenants of the Bloggers Anonymous Five Step Program“:
1. Admit that one cannot control one’s addiction or compulsion. I partook of the advice of A-list bloggers. This led me to binge on BlogRush, WidgetBucks, DealDotCom, and Google Adsense. I’d check my stats for these affiliates several times a day; it was addictive. Although they never generated much traffic or provided much income I continued to give them prime real estate on the site. In the end they led me down the dark path of failure and smart pricing.
2. Recognize a greater power that can give strength. Visiting BloggingZoom, Make Money for Beginners, and Court’s Internet Marketing School on a regular basis has kept me going. You can’t go wrong with those guys because they give it to you straight.
3. Examine past errors with the help of a sponsor (experienced member). A few weeks ago I had a private consultation with my “counselor” Courtney Tuttle. Court spent an entire hour with me critiquing BlogStruk as well as my two other niche sites. He told me what worked and what didn’t. It’s because of him that you no longer see Amazon or WidgetBucks in the sidebar. Since most of you are savvy bloggers you’d never click on those ads. Instead I have ads for things bloggers can really use like SEO Elite and Article Marketer. Court’s advice was invaluable, especially for the niche sites. I plan to touch base with him in a few months.
4. Learn to live a new life with a new code of behavior. I’m seriously thinking about changing the focus of this blog. Goodness knows we don’t need another blog about blogging and even if that wasn’t true, there are plenty of people out there that are no kidding authorities on this subject. Why rehash what they’ve already covered? The title BlogStruk is general enough to allow me to focus on just about anything, but I feel I need to do just that: focus on something so I can target specific keywords.
Help others that suffer from the same addictions or compulsions.
My advice to newbie bloggers: don’t put all of your faith in one particular blogger. Read lots of different blogs and compare notes so you can make educated decisions, especially about monetization. Also, beware of people that brag a lot about their online monetary successes or spend an inordinate amount of time trying to sell you something. Consider their motives. If you want some honest tough love about your site, contact Courtney through his Contact Form and set up a private consultation or schedule a site review.
For me, I’m going to continue my stint in blog rehab. Perhaps I’ll run into a former A-list blogger here!
Sunday, March 9th, 2008 at 1:26 pm and is filed under blog tips. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
You scared me there for a moment - whew. I think blogging about blogging may be the easiest addiction to kick though and when you have a new focus please let me know and maybe I can kick start a few links in which ever direction you choose. You couldn’t have picked a more sensible fellow to listen to - Court is as good as they come.
I’m pulling for you and if you need a hand …
Grizz: Thanks so much for the offer, I really appreciate it. I’ll probably take you up on that once I decide on a new direction!
Wow, you had me going there too. I pictured you holed up in your house,, mouse in one hand bottle in the other.
Which is kind of funny since I don’t really know what you look like. Besides your one blue eye and green skin. 
I’m in the same boat as you. I’m not exactly sure what direction to take my blog. I have some other half started sites but, I’ve never even done my keyword research before posting. That’s the next thing I’m working on. I have a feeling the hardest part is breaking through with that first real money maker. After that it probably becomes easier.
Once again great message and clever intro. Emma
Emma: Thanks for the input. I’m going out of town this week and I plan to make a conscious effort to observe things around me to see if a topic “jumps out at me” that could be used for the focus of the blog. I’ll keep everyone posted.
LOL. It’s been 10 months for me and I think a couple of months ago I would have joined you in rehab. My blogs not about blogging, but I was certainly addicted to blogging.
Teeni: Your blog is fantastic and you’re clearly doing the right thing with 50,000 visitors in 10 months. Keep it up. You’re where I aspire to be.
If I’m dreaming what other people are blogging, is that a sign of blogging addiction?
Yes, that’s one of the first signs. If it continues you may need to seek professional help!
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I hope you make a complete recovery. I too had to broaden my focus. With your prolific writing skills I know you can write about just about anything and still maintain a successful blog. Go on get your feet wet! Have fun!
Thanks for the encouragement Debo!
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