How To Prevent Content Creation Burnout

September 21, 2012 By Brankica Underwood Filed Under: Blogging Tips 55 Comments

blogging burnout It takes some bloggers a long time to realize that creating content every single day isn’t necessarily the “make or break” of their blog. Usually, by the time they realize it – they are already experiencing burnout.

It is interesting to think and read about it if you are a beginner, because you are sure that you love your topic and can write about it forever. But trust me, no matter how much passion you have for a topic, you can burn out.

It happens more often if you are trying to post daily, and you aren’t really “feeling it” . In time, what was passion for sharing your knowledge about a niche becomes a chore and you slowly slip into the phase where not only you can not think of writing more content, but you are starting to dread the process.

One of the ways to prevent this is not post daily. Instead, post 2 to 3 times a week and when ever you feel like writing, instead of publishing the post straight away, leave it in drafts of your blog, so you will “pile up” posts you can publish when you don’t feel like writing.

Another thing is not making yourself write all the time and trying to write a lot in short periods of time.

What? Life Outside Blogging?!?

There is life outside of blogging, and you have to keep living it. Staying away from your blog and experiencing new things may actually give you more ideas on new blog post topics.

Another bad part about pushing yourself to write a lot in short period of time is that your content will most likely suffer. I am yet to meet a blogger that can post daily for a long period of time, without their content suffering. And you know what? Your readers will notice.

You will notice as well. I can always tell when a post of mine isn’t going to do good, because I squeezed it out of my head using pure force. At the same time, I am writing this very post and feel relaxed and the words are just coming along.

If you are just starting a new blog and you think that making money online has some “rule” that says that you will make full income after you post 40 posts, forget about it. There is no rule, some blogs make money after 5 posts and some don’t make anything after 100 posts. So don’t chase those numbers because you will help your own burnout.

Instead of pushing yourself to write more, you can do two things that will help your blog, that don’t include more writing.

One would be polishing the posts you already wrote – finding better expressions, making it more personal and more “you”, finding your own voice and angle on the topic. That will sometimes bring more results that just writing more content that sounds like Wikipedia.

Another thing to do when you don’t feel like writing is actually promoting your blog. If you have some good content on your blog, instead of writing more, make sure to put that content in front as many eyes as you can.

Conclusion

Pushing yourself, what ever you do, can and will lead to burnout. For a blogger, content creation burnout may mean the end of business, so prevent it with those few tips.

Write when you feel like it, let your mind rest when it needs rest. And let me know what you think about this?

Buffer

About Brankica Underwood

Brankica Underwood is a social media sharp shooter who helps small businesses, bloggers, and freelancers gain followers and sales and build better websites. Check out her blog if you want to learn how to earn online income.

GrizzardComm

There is life outside #blogging, people. RT @DannyBrown How To Prevent Content Creation Burnout http://t.co/4NDTihaQ via @BlogTipsOnline
- DannyBrown
  
  @GrizzardComm Say it isn’t so!
  - GrizzardComm
    
    @DannyBrown I know. It’s taken me awhile to come to grips with this troubling development, as well.
    - DannyBrown
      
      @GrizzardComm I believe cognac is the best remedy.
http://dannybrown.me/ Danny Brown

Solid stuff, Bran. I know, personally, I reached that wall earlier this year, and made the decision to post just when I wanted to, as opposed to some perceived “I need to post now!” mindset. Like you say, you don’t deliver and your readers will notice – and they won’t stay reading for too much longer afterward…Cheers, miss!
- http://onlineincomestar.com/ Brankica
  
  Danny Brown I’ve been there a few times this year. Trying to get out. I basically let my own blog suffer to try and keep up with other blogs I post on but the less I worry the easier it gets. I also turned off internet for some things so I do more stuff offline and it has helped a lot.
http://YourStressMatters.blogspot.com/ Dr_Rae

Thank you Brankica for your much needed reminder
- http://YourStressMatters.blogspot.com/ Dr_Rae
  
  Thanks Danny for liking my comment! ‘You’re the top…’
rymould

As a new blogger, it is sometimes easy to forget that writing everyday isn’t necessary. It is more important to have 2 or 3 great posts a week, rather than 7 mediocre posts. Also, I am starting to keep a Google Docs document, so no matter where I am, I can jot down some ideas that come to me for my blog!
- http://dannybrown.me/ Danny Brown
  
  rymould Have you tried Evernote?http://evernote.com/Both Gini Dietrich and Michael Schechter swear by it, and they’re usually pretty smart folks.
  - http://onlineincomestar.com/ Brankica
    
    Danny Brown rymould I swear by it too, amazing app, the best tool you can use for anything! Definitely try Evernote, works better with mobile devices and easier to use on them than G.Docs.
- MSchechter
  
  rymould Drafts on iOS is also a really good tool for this if you’re a user of it. It’s all about quick capture and then figuring out what you want to do with it. As for GD, it really depends on connectivity. Since I’m often offline (yay subways) I count on apps like Notesy (which stores everything as a plain text file on Dropbox) and occasionally Evernote as Danny mentioned for capturing and expanding on ideas.
  - http://dannybrown.me/ Danny Brown
    
    MSchechter rymould Also, you could do a lot worse than check out Mike’s blog over at http://bettermess.com/ – very helpful and useful when it comes to techy tips and tools, even though I don’t understand half the stuff he says…
    - MSchechter
      
      Danny Brown rymould You’re exceedingly kind
  - http://armentdietrich.com/ ginidietrich
    
    MSchechter rymould And Mars Edit, if you’re on a Mac, is particularly good, too.
    - MSchechter
      
      ginidietrich rymould I will literally never understand how you draft directly into a post I spite you for your abilities
    - http://www.facebook.com/InklingMedia KenMueller
      
      MSchechter ginidietrich rymould I do the same thing. WordPress is just like writing in Word. I figure why bother adding an extra step.
    - MSchechter
      
      KenMueller ginidietrich rymould Don’t even GET me started on Word for bloggers…
    - http://www.facebook.com/InklingMedia KenMueller
      
      MSchechter KenMueller ginidietrich rymould Hey, ya gotta write it somewhere. I just like doing it right in the WordPress framework.
    - MSchechter
      
      KenMueller ginidietrich rymould I admire those of you who can do it. Although writing for the web in Word would be crazy talk. Creates way too much cruft and gives crappy HTML export.
    - http://www.facebook.com/InklingMedia KenMueller
      
      MSchechter KenMueller ginidietrich rymould Hmm. Livefyre acting up for me. Yeah, I don’t write in Word, but WordPress now has a special interface for posting from Word that removes all that HTML crap.
    - MSchechter
      
      KenMueller ginidietrich rymould I write in plain text as it lets me flesh ideas out over time and keeps everything synced across my devices. Wish I had it in me to write and edit directly in, but doesnt work with the way I work
    - http://www.facebook.com/InklingMedia KenMueller
      
      MSchechter KenMueller ginidietrich rymould Completely understood. I only write on one device, so that’s a major factor.
    - http://dannybrown.me/ Danny Brown
      
      KenMueller MSchechter ginidietrich rymould The full screen option in WordPress is pretty cool.
    - MSchechter
      
      Danny Brown KenMueller ginidietrich rymould Agreed, they did a nice job with it.
    - http://armentdietrich.com/ ginidietrich
      
      MSchechter And I will never understand why you can’t do it!
    - MSchechter
      
      ginidietrich The iOS app is a POS and I do a ton of writing on the phone. I also like having the offline backup of everything.
    - http://onlineincomestar.com/ Brankica
      
      MSchechter ginidietrich I write directly into the WordPress, draft or a whole post, doesn’t matter. It is just the easiest
    - lindaw
      
      Brankica MSchechter ginidietrich Hello, Branika. I agree. When there’s everything you need on WordPress, why would one need to use anything else, I wonder. Draft and dashboard mean that editing and improving over time are effortless. Even I can do it!Regards,Lps – just checking – is the ‘like’ button a way of showing you agree with something, without having to write and epilogue each time? If so, it will help shut me up a bit….
    - http://onlineincomestar.com/ Brankica
      
      lindaw Brankica MSchechter ginidietrich haha I am not sure, I guess you can call it that
    - lindaw
      
      Brankica lindaw MSchechter ginidietrich Oh, but I should say… I lie!Happy weekend everyone :0L
http://joshuawilner.com/ thejoshuawilner

Every blogger has to find a balance for how much content they produce and how much time they take to do other things. It is important to step away from the computer and live a bit offline.So is reading. Some of best posts I have written are really because I have spent a fair amount of time reading and learning and was able to translate that into something my readers could benefit from.
- http://onlineincomestar.com/ Brankica
  
  thejoshuawilner I agree but seems when people start they just think they have to write a lot and when they do write a lot they think they need to write more. So unconsciously they bring themselves into this situation.
http://www.facebook.com/InklingMedia KenMueller

I’m so with you on this, Brankica. I post every day, but have taken a few breaks. In fact taking a bit of a break next week for a variety of reasons, but have guest bloggers filling in the gap. I get my best ideas from the “outside world”…reading, activities, shopping, etc.
- http://onlineincomestar.com/ Brankica
  
  KenMueller I have tried posting every day, 3 times a week, 2 times a week and now, I just post when I feel like it. making myself write never brings anything good so why do it
lindaw

Good evening, Branika.It seems like I’m doing everything backwards again. Whereas finding blog topics and writing poses no problem, it’s the other stuff I meet at the brick wall. The promotion side of things is what I dread. As for people making money with blogging – do they really? Or is it that their other lives make the money and the blogging tops it up? Somehow I can’t see mine making me a fortune!Kind regards,L
- lindaw
  
  Thank you for liking my comment, Mr Brown….. that’s the first time anyone has liked anything I’ve said… I think I’m going to be all emotional now
  - http://armentdietrich.com/ ginidietrich
    
    lindaw That made me LOL!
    - http://onlineincomestar.com/ Brankica
      
      ginidietrich lindaw lol at the liking actually, yes, you can make money from blogging and other online activities. I’ve been working from home since 2010. pretty much just running my online stuff. but that is probably the reason why I sometimes feel the burnout so I am turning more to offline stuff
    - lindaw
      
      ginidietrich lindaw Oh! I’ve got another person can hear me.. I must exist after all. I’m no longer a figment of my imagination!Ms Dietrich, thank you so much. I think I’ll adopt you… L xx
    - lindaw
      
      Brankica ginidietrich lindaw Branika, I feel reassured by your comments. One day maybe I’ll work out how to make it pay on-line. But so far I have to admit blogging has been life-changing for me in so many other ways. It’s truly a gift I’ve been given and one which brings so much enjoyment I’m more than happy with how things are going…. for now!Next week might be another matter L x
MSchechter

I definitely agree, feel a major difference in the quality of what I create since pulling back from five days a week to three. More thought, more work and more love goes into each piece. The two things that keep me going are the work of others (half of my posts start while reading, watching or listening to someone else) and capturing ideas. Every time I go to the well and the well is dry, I’ve got a ton of captured, yet unexpanded ideas to dive into.
- http://onlineincomestar.com/ Brankica
  
  MSchechter I have the same experience with reading others’s stuff, either I want to expand on what they wrote, or disagree or sometimes I just get a brand new idea that has nothing to do with what I am reading but at the same time came from it, lol
  - MSchechter
    
    Brankica I so relate, especially when listening to podcasts, sometimes the ideas that have been banging around in my brain settle into a coherent thought as I listen. Sometimes they’re relevant to what I was listening to, but more often than not it’s something totally unrelated.
http://www.CritterWisdom.com Carmelo

Polishing older posts? Now that’s an excellent idea … making it more “you.” Also, looks like I should look into that “evernote” idea as well.Of course, I’m in the mode of testing the waters here. I’ve got content but I’m not posting much now until I establish some relationships and do the marketing like you suggested Bran … gotta have visitors before you can decide on a posting regimen. But, I think i’ll be more like Danny … posting more from a “when I want to” frequency than an every day thing. And being sure that I put a lot into it.
- http://onlineincomestar.com/ Brankica
  
  Carmelo as far as polishing, it can be so useful, after a while your old posts will start ranking on Google and you will get more and more visitors to them and you don’t want them to read those unpolished ramblings. I have to go back to older ones from time to time, either to change some wording, make it less “wikipedia-like” or at least update the data if needed.
  - http://www.CritterWisdom.com Carmelo
    
    Brankica That makes sense. You learn and develop style as you go and I’d imagine you’d write things a lot differently now. And maybe it even alerts Google and other engines that there’s something new to look at even though it’s old. Oh, I have a question for you Bran. What about changing/improving the titles … I see that mine generally suck.
    - http://onlineincomestar.com/ Brankica
      
      Carmelo I do that too! You can write a title that attracts clicks and then change it into something more SEO friendly months later. Or not even that, you can just change it to something you think is better. Google loves seeing pages updates and the only thing you don’t want to change is the URL of the post, everything else is a fair game
    - http://dannybrown.me/ Danny Brown
      
      Carmelo Brankica This was a good post on titles and headlines from our own Joey Strawn http://bestbloggingtipsonline.com/death-metal-chipmunks-shelves-of-marshmallow-dreams/Gotta love death metal chipmunks in any blog title!
SLWrites

Burnout is always a danger in any field. I learned this the hard way. I agree 100% that it’s so important to have diverse activities outside of blogging, completely away from the computer, that involve physical movement of some sort and face-to-face, in-person, physical socialization. Oh, and lots of laughter!Thanks!
- http://onlineincomestar.com/ Brankica
  
  SLWrites agreed, bad experience here too, but the more offline I go, the better I feel when I have to write
http://www.wmwebdesign.co.uk/ wmwebdes

Thanks BranIt all makes perfect sense and I love the idea of promoting your blog when you don’t feel like writing.I’ve never revisited a post so maybe that is something I should try.
- http://onlineincomestar.com/ Brankica
  
  wmwebdes making small changes in the way you work on your blog can actually refresh you so much that you feel the new energy for writing more posts
bloghandsseo

The web is filled with so much content. I find when I’m having trouble coming up with blog topics it’s best to just go to my social networks and see what other people I’m connected to are upto or checking out sites like alltop.com to see what other similar blogs are writing about.
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