Have you decided to start blogging? That’s wonderful news! People choose to blog and write for all sorts of reasons. No matter your reason, it’s important to choose a blogging niche that suits your passions. Writing in any niche can be more challenging when you don’t like what you’re doing.
But when you love what you’re doing, you wake up in the mornings with the energy and the enthusiasm to get to creative work. Take a few minutes and consider which niches might fit with your creativity and passions. If you’re not quite sure what your passions are, imagine you have a whole day to yourself. What do you spend it doing?
Would you spend it perfecting new recipes, or preparing food for the week with your kids? Exploring your city or town, maybe spending time in nature? Writing book or movie reviews? If you’re still having trouble, look at your existing hobbies. What do you enjoy doing in your spare time? What do you spend your money on? What are your go to activities that really bring you joy?
Begin reading and researching. Fully immerse yourself in your chosen blogging niche.
Sign up for every email list that you can. It pays off in big ways to know the current issues and events in your niche, while keeping your own interest peaked. Spend time browsing other blogs – both of experts and amateurs alike. Search blog directories for your category by going to a search engine and typing in “blog directories.” Then choose a blog directory and browse it by category.
By now, you probably have a list of potential niches just waiting for you to navigate and explore. If so, it’s time to consider trimming that list. Par it down to your top three. These three should be your main choices – the niches you have the most interest in, the ones that get your creative juices flowing.
Once you know which niche is right for you, take a minute and ask yourself, “What’s not being covered? What topics and questions have I personally sought out and were difficult to find? Which audiences are being ignored? Who are the blogging influencers on the horizon and how will they bring more expansion to the niche?”
But Danielle, how will I possibly find the time to start blogging and make this all happen?
That’s a great question! I’m glad you asked! How many times have we all said, “If only I had more time then I could get more done in my creative projects?” The solution is not getting more time – at the end of the day, we all have the same amount of time granted to us. The key is to manage the time we do have and make it work more effectively for us.
Even if you think you don’t have time to take on anything else, you might be surprised to discover how much time you’re actually wasting during the day. (I can point my finger here in the direction of some social media outlets!) The truth is, you can start a blog whether you hold down a full time job or not. You might want to check out my post on staying focused on your own creative projects.
Sometimes when it comes to starting a blog, many people have the mental picture that it’s all or nothing – that in order to be their own boss, they have to take the plunge, quit their day job and put all of their effort into building their presence online.
If you have a day job that pays the bills and provides you with health benefits, keep the job while you work on launching and growing your blog part time. You can get up an hour earlier in the mornings to work on it if you have to. As with any creative endeavor, you must carve out some time in your day – maybe it’s only one or two days a week to begin with. It really doesn’t matter how often. It’s sort of like going to the gym – it doesn’t matter how often you go, it’s what you do when you’re there.
Is there anything you feel you can even temporarily give up, that takes up even one hour of your day?
Start a journal if you feel that may help you begin to log where your hours go. Perhaps – like me – you wait until the later hours when the kids are asleep and the house is quiet. I personally find that I work better in the dark and quiet, but it took a bit of practice and application to discover this about myself when it comes to writing. I wrote a post here about how to use journaling for deeper self-understanding.
As you keep at it, you will begin to discover what is working for you and what isn’t.
You will begin to understand through trial and error, what topics suit you best and are most comfortable to explore and write about. You will also discover which social media platforms suit you best. It is truly only through practice that you will discover what your perfect niche is, and how it is best supported in the online world with the cleanest efficiency. It’s not so much about finding the time as it is taking the time and if you’ve always wanted to start your own blog, there’s no better time than this moment!
Catherine @ To & Fro Fam says
I totally agree that even with something that feels as big and daunting as starting a blog, the first thing is to just start. You can totally grow something that fills you up and ignites your passion by dedicating just an hour a day, or a little time here and there!
Heather says
I love this! It’s so important to find your niche.
Brittany Limberakis says
When I started blogging I’d wake up an hour early to blog before work! You can always find time somewhere in your day! Love this post (:
Artney says
I started off on one topic and settled into my true passion. It makes a difference when you “figure it out”. I know new bloggers will find this helpful!!
Leigh Suznovich says
These are such great tips to get started blogging!!