The Top 3 Reasons Why Blogging Regularly Is So Incredibly Difficult

Publishing blog posts regularly is one of the best things you can do for your business.

The statistics are clear: B2B (business to business) companies that blog generate 67% more leads per month than those that don’t blog. Businesses that blog also have 434% more indexed pages (meaning, web pages that are noticed and indexed by Google and other search engines).

Long story short: When you blog, you get more traffic, social media shares, and customers.

So why is blogging consistently so hard to do?

Why does it feel like such a struggle to keep your blog updated on a regular basis?

Surprise, surprise! The blogging coach has consistency problems, too

I’ll confess: Blogging regularly is tough for me. In the past, I’ve had a hard time sticking to a regular publishing schedule, even though I teach blogging and I know exactly how important consistency is.

I even had one client mention my inconsistent blogging during a meeting. She said, “It makes you look bad that you haven’t updated your blog in months. You know that, right?”

Talk about a cringeworthy moment.

The good news is – since I struggle with blogging regularly, that means I understand the problem intimately. That insight means I can (hopefully) help you get past the roadblocks and figure out how to blog regularly, too.

Let’s take a closer look at some of the main reasons people don’t blog, and then talk about some ways you can get past these hurdles.

Reason #1: We don’t blog because we don’t know what to write about.

Depending on what niche or industry you’re in, it might be difficult to come up with content ideas for your blog. If you’re in a business that doesn’t lend itself well to how-to posts or useful articles, you might have trouble finding interesting post topics.

I get it. I’ve struggled with that in the past, too, especially when I’m in a writing slump.

Here are some ways of breaking through this blogging roadblock:

1. Start keeping a list of blog post ideas. You need a list of article ideas you can return to anytime you need to start a new piece. Use a word processing or text editor file, start a spreadsheet, keep a list on your phone, or write in a notebook. Just make sure your list is easy to access and add to.

As your list of blog post ideas grows, you can even separate your list into sections. You can create categories for paid writing gigs, guest posting opportunities, your podcast, and your own blog.

Add to your idea list on a regular basis. Once you get started with brainstorming and recording post topics, tons of ideas are going to come to you all the time. Write ‘em all down!

2. Keep a list of headline templates, and use them to brainstorm. One quick and easy way to plump up your list of blog posts ideas (if your list is getting low) is to use headline templates. You can look at a list of headline templates, and brainstorm a bunch of blog posts topics using those templates.

Need some templates to start with? Start with Copyblogger’s suggestions, then download Jon Morrow’s Headline Hacks report for more ideas.

3. Use timed writing practice. Years ago, when I first moved to Boulder, I was introduced to the work of writing teacher Natalie Goldberg. What a gift.

The foundation of Natalie’s writing advice is a simple practice. It’s called “timed writing.” The process is simple: Set the timer for 20 minutes and write. Do not overthink, do not edit, and do not stop writing until the timer goes off.

Timed writing sessions are very freeing – and they’re also fun! They really help you get past your doubts and fears, and get out of your own way as you write. If you’re having trouble getting the words out on paper, try a couple of timed writes – you’ll be amazed at how interesting and productive they can be.

Natalie’s books, Long Quiet Highway and Writing Down the Bones, are a wonderful and gentle introduction to creating an effective timed writing practice. I highly, highly recommend both of these books for any blogger or content creator.

Reason #2: We don’t blog because we don’t have time.

When I ask about their online marketing struggles, the #1 complaint I hear from my community members is “I don’t have enough time!”

Let’s be frank. Blogging is time consuming.

We’re all incredibly busy. Life keeps roaring forward, day by busy day, and our personal and professional responsibilities constantly chip away at our time. There never seems to be enough time to do everything we want (and need) to accomplish.

It takes time to write a post, craft the perfect headline, find an image to go with the post, queue up the post in our blogging tool, optimize the post for social media, proofread it, and finally, hit publish.

I’m usually lucky if I write and publish and entire piece, start to finish, in fewer than 5 hours. And that’s just to write and publish the post – it doesn’t include any post promotion (like sending it out to my list, or publishing the link on social media).

Because it’s time consuming, blogging will often get moved to the back burner – which means it often doesn’t get done at all, and your blog (and your marketing) will suffer the consequences.

Here’s are some suggestions for carving out time in your hectic schedule to complete your blogging tasks:

1. Schedule your blogging time. If you wait until you have some “spare time” to blog, it’s never going to happen. We rarely have big chunks of available time during our entrepreneurial days, so blocking off blogging time in advance is the best thing you can do for your marketing plan.

You also can’t wait until inspiration strikes. If you wait for the muse to show up and give you the perfect blog post idea, you might be waiting a very long time. Don’t wait for the muse to decide to visit – put your butt in the chair and start writing, and occasionally your muse will reward you by showing up and inspiring you.

The best solution for time-crunched bloggers is always to schedule your blogging time on the calendar. Then you must make sure to honor the commitment – no excuses!

2. Spend less time in your email inbox. This is a really tough one for me, and has been for years. I’ll admit it – I am addicted to email.

Nothing breaks my writing momentum more quickly than seeing that little red circle on AppleMail that indicates I’ve got a new email message. I will click on the icon within seconds, no matter what I am working on.

It’s like getting a treat every time I click on it – like a little pat on the head that says, “Someone is paying attention to you! YAY!” Feels good – right?

But email is a creativity and productivity killer – so try shutting down your email inbox during your blogging sessions.

Long term, you might want to try getting in the habit of only checking email 2 or 3 times a day. Yes, I know this is hard – I’m still working on it, myself – but every baby step you take will be helpful to your blog and your overall marketing efforts.

3. Minimize your time on Facebook. Imagine an entire day without Facebook. How much could you get done?

There are tools you can use (like Freedom and Anti-Social) to limit the amount of time you spend on time-sucking social sites like Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter.

Set limits with these tools, and you may find you’ve opened up huge chunks of time for content creation.

4. Stop watching so much television. This might not be an issue for you, but it is for a lot of people.

If you have two hours (or more) every night to sit in front of the television, you can definitely make room in your schedule to blog.

It is so easy to binge watch entire seasons of television shows (Downton Abby and The Walking Dead – I’m looking at you) that we really need to learn how to self-regulate when it comes to television. And that’s not easy task.

If you think watching too much television might be issue for you, try tracking the amount of time you are spending on television and movies – then see if you can cut time down by half. Then make sure you’re using that saved time productively. It’s a great time to blog!

If you’re not willing to give up your TV time in order to get some writing done, then you might actually have a different problem: Maybe you don’t actually WANT to write. Keep reading to see how to tackle that problem.

Reason #3: We don’t blog because we just don’t want to.

Some days, you just don’t feel like writing. And it can be so easy to say, “Ehh, I’ll do it tomorrow.” It’s highly tempting to put blogging on the back burner if you’re not in the mood, not feeling well, or just don’t feel inspired.

Here are some methods for summoning your blogging motivation:

1. Try declaring your intentions (and a deadline) publicly. Tell someone (or tell lots of people!) that you’re going to complete a blogging project or publish new blog posts on a certain schedule. You’ll be a lot less likely to bail on a commitment if you know other people are watching.

I use this technique to create all kinds of content, from webinars to online classes to blog posts. Read this post to find out more about how I use this technique to create content, webinars and products, click here.

2. Remember your motivation and cultivate discipline. If you’re having trouble motivating yourself to publish, ask yourself why you want to blog. Are you building a platform to get a book deal? Are trying to get more email subscribers, make more sales, or establish yourself as an expert in your field?

Remembering your ultimate goal will make it easier to create content even when you don’t feel like it.

Over time, you’ll be able to stay motivated by relying on discipline, too – blogging will become an ingrained habit, and it won’t be such a fight to stay motivated. My high school band director, Rich Miller, once told us:

“Discipline is doing what you have to do, when you have to do it, as well as you can, all the time.”

I struggle with motivation and staying on track just as much as everyone else. But on my really, really bad days, I remember that quote (and why I blog) and I can often pull myself back on track.

3. Make a game of it. I decided to challenge myself to write every day during the month of August, and that month I wrote 34,000 words. Making a game out of your blogging tasks makes writing and publishing a lot more fun.

You could try giving yourself little rewards if you create a certain number of blog posts or write a certain amount of words. Writer Joanna Penn actually uses a calendar and sticker system when she hits her word goals, which I think is awesome. Is there a simple and fun way for you to turn writing into a game?

4. Create content in a different way. If writing isn’t fun or interesting for you, consider a different kind of content creation. Podcasting is gaining popularity these days, and there’s always a need for useful tutorial videos.

If you have more fun creating audio or video content, it’s 100% okay to do that, instead of writing blog posts.

5. If all else fails, hire a ghostwriter. If you have to force yourself to write every month, and motivating yourself to blog isn’t getting any easier, you can outsource your content creation.

Lacy Boggs is a very talented ghostwriter, and there may be other experts in your field who could write for your site. Be prepared to pay decent rates for good posts, though, and don’t skimp and hire bad writers.

And remember: It’s still better to publish good quality posts less often, rather than publishing badly-written articles that are too short and don’t contribute anything new to your industry’s online conversation. Keep that in mind when you’re shopping for ghostbloggers.

Use these tips to blast through your own blogging roadblocks

Blogging is the absolute best way to establish yourself as an expert in your field, build an author platform, or sell more products and services online. And if you’re going to build a popular blog, you must publish top-notch content on a regular basis.

So you must schedule enough time to write, maintain a ready-made list of post ideas, and do your best to keep yourself motivated and enthusiastic about blogging consistently.

Use these tips to keep your blogging engine chugging along.

Tell me in the comments – Do you find it difficult to blog on a regular basis? If so, why? And how to do you get past those roadblocks?