This question was posed over the weekend in one of the private groups I’m in. I couldn’t give a definitive answer at the time and thought to answer it later. The question didn’t come to mind again until today when I was out grabbing lunch.
As I’m on the highway driving and eating, I know, not good, this question popped in my head. All I could do was laugh because Lord knows I could use a ready list of inspiration for my own blog post. Then, the answer popped into my head.
There’s inspiration all over the place for your blog, you just have to know it when you see it.
How do you identify it?
The best way to identify a possible post is based on your response to something. Just like when the idea for this blog post came to mind. I could barely get to a safe spot to write. Ideas were just flowing like crazy.
Where do you look?
How about when watching television or a movie and they say something relative to what you do or that would be of interest to those who follow you?
For example, I went to see “Jumping the Broom” over the weekend. In the movie the couple is discussing how they’ll maintain a long distance relationship. She says to him: “We can SKYPE?”
Can you remember when SKYPE became the buzz word for calling someone?
What about when someone is looking for something and your response is: Google it.
Can you remember when Google became the buzz word for searching online?
It’s been so long we just know what they are and don’t think about it. This topic could easily become a blog post listing other words that we’ve come to accept as part of our vernacular.
If you spend a fair amount of time online reading other blog posts, or keeping up with social media statuses, you can find material to work from, not just from your followers and friends, but others’ followers and friends as well.
By “liking” Facebook pages relative to your topic, you can spy and read what other people are saying. Find out what they’re struggling with, what their challenges are, or how they’d like it to be resolved.
I remember reading someone’s Facebook wall and one of the posts was a lady describing her business. She said it was just a small business and she had a little website.
Words are powerful and that encouraged me to speak life into my business and realize an at home business does not mean small. And if you work online, you travel more during your day than someone else who works with only local clients. Small should only be used when describing how you tackle big goals, by breaking it into small chunks.
Think about comedians. Where do they get their material? A lot of them use real life experiences because people, places, and things can be really funny.
Keep your eyes and ears open everywhere you go. You never know when your inspiration could be walking towards you.
I’m writing this from a local park and a guy is walking with his radio blasting Eminem and playing a frisbee game. Let me rephrase that, he’s got his strut on as the music plays. There’s something about a baseline that adds a little umph to a walk. Anyway, get out, there’s lots of material waiting for you.
Now it’s your turn. Where do you find inspiration for your blog post?
This post was inspired by Carol Giambri who asked this question in the first place.
Hey Tiffany! Love your blog post. I find inspiration for a lot of my posts from devotionals, a scripture I’ve read, my Pastor’s sermon, the 2nd graders I teach at church, a topic that might have come up while chatting with girlfriends and more. Just life, basically.
Hi Leslie! Glad you enjoyed the article! Thanks so much for stopping by and sharing where you get inspiration for your blog posts.
I just love your site, and the help that you offer someone like me who is just starting out and trying hard not to fail. After being laid off July 2011 I sat around moaning and groaning thinking why me again. I’m tired of putting my future and the future of my family in someone else hands other than God. Although I’ve monetized very little, I can still see my future is bright, and I have to stay at it. Just want to say thank you for helping us. Blessings
Thanks so much Tasha! This just warms my heart. I’m truly grateful for you. Sometimes God has to force us out of a situation in order to point us on the path that He has for us.
Tiffany~ What a time worthy post! Inspiration is all around us and it is so easy we can miss it. I know when a thought pops up to write a blog post it’s always where I can’t write it down š Just being more sensitive to our surroundings and our thoughts, we probably have more ideas than we know. Thanks for the tips!
Fantastic! Yes, it’s amazing how you start doing something completely unrelated to your blog or work and ideas and solutions just come.
So true Tiffany, sometimes I just can’t think of what to write, and then in the middle of a show on TV or more often than not, in the middle of the night, I get tons of ideas. I am going to have to start getting up and writing them down, because often by morning I forgot what it was… HUGS š
Yes, definitely. I’ve tried to remember things from my sleep and can’t remember a thing by morning. Writing down makes it so much easier and you can get some sleep:)
I use many things. What helps me best is to have more than one subject in my mind. I don’t want to get to the point that I don’t have anything in me to write. AND!! I put on some nice music on, smooth jazz is my preference!
Thanks Olga! I love smooth jazz, I’ll have to try that.