Recommended Resources (and Tips) to Starting Your Own Blog

A very good friend of mine recently asked me what I would recommend him to read or research to get started as a blogger. I love blogging. As much as I love to think I am an expert, I am still learning and starting out...after two years of seriously blogging. I was able to share with him some information that helps me as a blogger.

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Here are a few articles to get you going. The #1 Tip - write about transformation whether it's your own or someone else's. People read blogs looking for some kind of transformation...I would count getting a great experience at Disney World a form of transformation, too (WDW Radio, All Ears.net). It could be about becoming a better person within, such as my blog where I am striving to be a better husband and father for my family sharing those experiences with you. It could be a transformation about weight loss, leadership, professional growth. Pat Flynn started his first blog as a study guide to pass the real estate LEED exam. It is now a paid course called greenexamacademy.com.

Michael Hyatt, How to Launch a Self-Hosted Wordpress Blog in 20 Minutes.

and 3 Great Blog Post Structures You Can Use Today.

Self-hosted Wordpress is the preferred method for bloggers. It allows for a lot of customization, and you're not at the mercy of companies like Google or Wordpress. BlueHost is said to be awesome when it comes to hosting your blog. I had one experience when all my recent posts dropped their photos, and I had to spend a Saturday finding or replacing those images. Why? Because I deleted what I thought was the "backup" to the images on my Google storage not realizing that is where Google stores my blogs images, too. Doh! Now, I can't trust deleting images from Google without impacting my blog, and I can't seem to figure out how to the auto-backup on my Android phone.

I use Blogger for now, but that was because it was what integrated into our old BAF Men website and it was free. I have been working my budget to justify upgrading to a Wordpress blog on BlueHost. We're talking $7/month? I'm such a cheapskate.

Blogs I follow for tips on blogging:

MichaelHyatt.com - Didn't see that coming, did you? He also talks about overall platform building and leadership. I modeled a lot of my blog off Michael Hyatt's.

Jeff Goins, goinswriter.com - Jeff gives more frilly, go-with-your-passion, write-for-yourself type of content and advice. Makes sense. If you're into building a niche audience, or don't care to build one at all, then here's a good place to start.

The above guys are the top two I follow for blogging tips. You can use the Search bar on these two guys to glean a lot of information. You can even see how I've applied some of it in my own blog.

Others I follow to see how they build their readership, email list, etc. include:

Pat Flynn, smartpassiveincome.com - He started out with a blog to help him study for a real estate/architecture exam, turned that into a paid content prep course type of thing, and makes a ton of money blogging because of it. So, I follow this guy for inspiration. Note - his first blog was about helping him pass a test. Years later, he began writing for the masses.

Leslie Samuel, becomeablogger.com - Graduate-level biology/anatomy professor turned full time blogger and online instructor gives tips and advice on how to build a better blog.

What questions do you have about blogging? What tips do you suggest? Leave a comment below.

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