10 Ways to Keep Perspective in This Blog Eat Blog World

I’m just going to be real honest today. There are many days, I want to stop blogging. I wonder why I continue to throw myself out there day after day – and put my already insecure self through the daily routine of rejection vs affirmation.

If you are a writer, blogger, author, speaker or any human that shares from their heart to influence others – the following might encourage you.

This post is really for me. I have to stop and remind myself almost daily about perspective. Or, the lack of comments, comparison, mind swirling… will eat me alive.

10 Ways to Keep Perspective in This Blog Eat Blog World

1. Mission Clarity

I have found it extremely helpful to have a mission statement and continue to ask God to confirm this blog. And, have truly open hands – like ready and willing to stop at anytime. Thankfully, my purpose for this blog is not for income for our family.  Although, doors have opened through it for sure. So, I could literally delete tomorrow and be great. I believe it is critical to be clear and why are you doing it and the purpose for YOU personally or the comparisons will eat you alive.

2. Focus on Getting Better, Not Bigger:

This one comes straight from the leadership at Chick-fil-A. Critical lesson. That company has always focused on getting better before bigger. Do you know they could open SO MANY MORE restaurants every year? But they don’t. They focus on improving and slowly growing. My boss used to say, “If we focus on getting better, the customer will demand we get bigger.” I think about this often. I don’t  need to worry about bigger ever. I need to go back to mission and do my best at what God has called me to do. And, I REALLY trust – opportunities will come. And, they have so many times.

3. Set Your Boundaries

Do you know when I start feeling crummy about myself? When I’m online too long. Wasting time. This might be different for you. I think for each of you – we have to listen to those cues and set boundaries. Delete my blog if you need to! Is there one or some that defeat you? Is it all blogs? Is it Facebook? Pinterest? This isn’t from God. He’s there to comfort and lead you to walk confidently in the center of His will. He’s not in the game of taking you down into a world of self doubt every day. So, start putting up boundaries or deleting. It’s freedom. And, hard.

4. What’s the Measure of a Man?

Well, I’m pretty sure the measure of a man will never be in likes or comments. I pray that I will never ever see on someone’s tombstone – she had x,000 followers on social media. Seriously? Who cares. I pray the measure of the man or woman is how well we loved and if we shared the gospel of Jesus. And, did we care for our own priorities first before telling others what to do with their lives?

5. When It Really Hurts

Good grief I know it hurts. I know when your very best friends or husband or family don’t ever read or comment. Let me push you and me a bit. Are you busy? and crazy? Do you have time for the 100 blogs of your friends? You aren’t reading those or every commenting – so why do we expect our friends to make time for our blogs? It’s a little silly – that in the silence, we assume the worst. The silence doesn’t mean they think we are dumb. It means they are living their lives and trying to get food on the table and not lose their brains. Unfortunately, not being on someone’s radar isn’t mean – it’s just reality. And that is OK! I have to toughen up and believe what I pray for – Lord, just let one post impact one person each time. Whoever your want it to reach.

Lysa TerKeurst put this up yesterday. Loved it!

6. Does Your Heart Match the Output?

This is a tough one. If you scroll through your Twitter feed and Facebook feed, it’s a good indication of what you’re trying to accomplish. My heart is that you will follow Jesus and not follow Me through my blog. My heart is that you will learn practical and fun ways to bring faith to live in your home. My heart is to love and encourage moms. If I look through what I had going “out” – does that match up? Similar to our bank accounts and calendars – they really show what we love right now. So, scroll through and see if your heart and mission is lining up with the output. If not, blog eat blog world might have sucked you into some practices that you didn’t intend to do from the start.

7. Don’t Let It Rule You

Did I mention all of these are tips for me? Many folks make a living from blogging (I do not – just haven’t ever accepted ads – too frazzled, not against it). That is awesome. I have a product and certainly do marketing and push folks to buy it. Is that wrong? I do not think so. The danger is when the entire thing consumes your life. The hard part is that we often do this from home so it all blends together. I think sometimes our friends and our husbands want us to PUT THE COMPUTER AND THE PHONE DOWN CRAZY LADY. Or, they are afraid to come in our presence with dirty hair because they might get instragrammed. Or, if they say something, it’s going to get put on twitter in seconds. I’ve got to learn to have some boundaries and not let this world consume me.

8. Be a Great Steward

So, if you have more than 1 follower or reader – I believe we have to be a great steward of those people. God has very clear instructions on those that teach. And just because we have a blog, doesn’t make us any smarter or wiser than those reading. I am so sad to think about the number of blog posts I just wrote through emotion and just “published” without praying through and REALLY thinking about each word or how it might impact others. I have just realized there are young people reading my blog. Oh, how my heart yearns to put a positive spin on motherhood. It’s so amazing. I want my girls to YEARN for the days of motherhood not dread it.

“Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.” James 3:-1

9. Do You Worship the Work

My friend had the courage to send this me one day. It stung a bit – because it rang so true. It’s a daily struggle. Those in ministry or doing anything from God can easily get off track. Read this. Whoah.

10. Be encouraged.

I will tell you this. I haven’t quit. Do you know why? God is in this. And it sounds silly but He’s confirmed it enough times. It isn’t the blog posts that go crazy or shared bunches of times that keep me going. It’s the emails from the moms. It’s the hugs and tears from women that read something and took action. They had the courage to do something different in their life. It’s conversations about God I am having with friends I have prayed for – MY WHOLE LIFE. I’d do it all again or a handful of these moments. I believe God can work through all of us – blog or no blog. Be encouraged, if you have no comments (maybe turn them off if it’s bugging you) or no “likes” – if He has called you to write it, He will use it.