9 Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Become A Blogger
Are you considering starting a blog? Here are nine reasons why it might not be your cup of tea. Many people who start blogs should have read this before they started!
Statistics show that 80% of blogs fail within 18 months and it is because blogging requires more time, dedication and sacrifice than many people recognize before jumping into it.
While many find it to be a fulfilling venture, it’s really not everyone’s cup of tea. In this article, I’ll explore nine compelling reasons why becoming a blogger might not be the right fit for you.
1. Lack of Time
Blogging demands time and consistency. If your schedule is already brimming with commitments, adding the responsibilities of regular content creation, promotion, and engagement might lead to burnout.
Therefore, managing time effectively is essential for any blogger; otherwise, you’ll lag behind the competition. If you cannot do that, then it’ll be so much more difficult and take so much more time to see success as a blogger.
Running a successful blog involves a combination of regular tasks to maintain and grow your site. It includes daily or at least weekly tasks like checking and responding to emails, social media engagement, content creation, content promotion, checking and responding to comments, checking and analyzing analytics, SEO maintenance, networking, email marketing, checking and updating plugins and software, monitoring website security, checking affiliate partnerships, researching trends, checking and updating internal and external links, image optimization, monitoring competitors, planning, and more.
Therefore, if you do not have at least 1-2 hours per day to dedicate to the blog (and I personally prefer to dedicate 3–4 hours a day at least in the beginning), you won’t be able to do many of the things on this list. This will lead you to grow slower than your competition. You might even give up after months of little to no results due to time constraints.
If you want to start a blog, be honest with yourself about the number of hours you can realistically dedicate to this new side hustle.
2. Lack of Money (or a Really Tight Budget)
Contrary to some perceptions, not all blogs are cash cows…at least not early on. If you’re expecting immediate financial returns or a quick fix to your monetary problems, the time it can take for a blog to start cash flowing positively might leave you disappointed.
This means that if you cannot sustain the blog for 6 months to a year without earning anything from it, then you may want to consider not becoming a blogger. Most people don’t know this, but it is normal to go six months to a year or even more without earning any significant income from a blog.
Therefore, going into it with the expectation that the blog will pay for itself in a month or two is not realistic.
Also, while blogging can be a fun and creative outlet, it’s important to recognize that it can also be a financial investment. Blogging expenses such as domain registration, hosting fees, and website design costs or a theme for your blog can quickly add up, especially if you don’t start off with a great deal that saves you money.
That being said, there are ways to manage and minimize these financial challenges. It’s essential to research and compare different hosting and website design options to find the most cost-effective solutions. I have a great deal for starting a blog for just $2.99 per month (paid in advance for a year) if you’re interested.
This is one of the cheapest ways to get started. You pay $35.88 for hosting and $20 for your domain name upfront, install a free theme, and get to work.
3. Lack of Enthusiasm
Blogging is often fueled by passion. If your interest in your chosen niche wanes or isn’t consistently strong, maintaining a blog can quickly turn from a creative outlet into a tedious task.
Passion is one of the driving forces that motivates bloggers to create quality content and engage with their audience. Without a genuine interest in and enthusiasm for the topic, blogging can quickly become a tedious and draining task. Writer’s block and burnout are common issues that bloggers face when they lack the passion and inspiration needed to create fresh and exciting content.
4. Lack of Patience
Building a successful blog takes time—often more time than one might anticipate. If you’re seeking instant results or rapid success, the gradual growth of a blog might test your patience.
One of the biggest challenges of becoming a blogger is the timeline for success. Building a successful blog takes time, effort, and persistence. It’s not uncommon for bloggers to work tirelessly for months or even years before seeing any significant growth.
I’ve had four different blogs that have generated significant income for me. Each of them took at least 6 months to a year to start earning me any real money. For example, I spent six whole months working on my food blog before I earned my first $100 in a month!
It’s important to remember that slow growth doesn’t necessarily mean failure. The key is to remain patient and persistent, continuing to create valuable content and engage with readers even during periods of slow growth.
Blogging is a marathon, not a sprint. Success often comes to those who are willing to put in the time and effort required to see their blog grow and thrive over time.
5. Fear of Public Exposure
Blogging often involves sharing personal experiences and opinions. If the idea of public exposure or potential criticism makes you uneasy, the blogging journey may prove stressful.
6. Lack of Knowledge in the Niche
A successful blog often requires a deep understanding of the chosen niche. If you lack knowledge or interest in your blogging subject, creating compelling content may become a significant challenge.
Therefore, if you’re not willing to keep learning, staying up-to-date with industry trends, delving deeper into your niche, and expanding your knowledge through reading, attending events, and connecting with other experts in the field to produce informative and well-researched blog posts, then blogging might not be the best use of your time.
The more you know, the more you can offer your readers.
7. Perfectionism
While quality is crucial in blogging, perfectionism can be a stumbling block. If the pursuit of flawless content hinders your ability to publish regularly, your blog’s growth might suffer.
Striving for excellence in content creation and presentation is vital, but it’s imperative to avoid the trap of excessive self-criticism that can hinder productivity and progress.
If you’re like this, blogging might not be for you!
8. Unwillingness to Research and Learn
Blogging is a continual learning process. If you’re unwilling to invest time in researching industry trends, staying updated on SEO practices, and learning new skills, your blog may struggle to stay relevant.
Research skills are also vital for bloggers. Conducting thorough research helps you to provide accurate and well-informed content that resonates with your audience. It also helps you to identify gaps in your niche and create unique content that sets you apart from your competitors.
If you cannot do that, then your content will be like all the other content out there…boring, unhelpful, and generic. Some people can pull that off, but most see little to no success doing this.
9. Looking for a Get Rich Quick Scheme
If your primary motivation for blogging is to get rich quickly, you might want to reconsider. Successful blogging requires dedication, hard work, and a strategic approach rather than a shortcut to wealth.
One of the significant misconceptions about blogging is that it can be a quick and easy way to make a lot of money. Unfortunately, this is not the case, and those who start blogging with unrealistic expectations often end up disappointed. While some bloggers do make a substantial income, it typically takes a lot of time and effort to build up the readership and reputation necessary to monetize a blog successfully.
If you’re looking to make a quick buck, blogging is not the right career path for you. While it is possible to earn money from a blog, it takes a long-term commitment and a willingness to put in the work required to build up a significant readership to sign up for premium advertising networks or attract sponsors or collaborators that make you money.
From my own personal experience, a blog can take anywhere from 7 months to a year before you can earn $1000 per month. Many people aren’t patient enough to stick to blogging due to this type of timeline. What’s worst is that sometimes it take more time to get there if you’re not knowledgeable about how to attract readers when you start out.
Blogging can be a rewarding side gig (or full time gig) for many, but it’s not without its challenges.
Assessing your time, passion, and expectations is crucial before embarking on this journey. Remember, blogging is about the long game, continuous learning, and a genuine love for your niche. If these aspects don’t align with your goals, perhaps exploring alternative creative outlets would be a better fit for you.
Having said all this, blogging is a great way to make money online and share valuable knowledge with a wider audience. But, in order to make it work, you must have the time to invest, you must have patience, you must be willing to research and provide your potential readers with value, and you must understand that this is not a get-rich-quick scheme.
If you understand all this and still want to start a blog, then you should go ahead and check out my step-by-step guide to starting your own blog right now.
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