5 years ago I found myself hunched over a toilet in Cusco, Peru, among the massive Andes mountain range.
For 12 hours.
Not a pleasant situation.
Bad potatoes.
Food poisoning.
Not good.
I did learn a critical blogging lesson though.
Watch the video as I explain:
Mindfulness Prospers (And a Lack of Mindfulness Leads to Dicey Situations)
I lacked mindfulness for a few seconds as I ate a potato that had obviously gone South.
In retrospect, these terrible taters sat in the fridge for too long. But I ate the taters mindlessly, suffering from food poisoning because I consumed bad potatoes that had spoiled.
I paid a steep price, being laid out in bed for 2 days with a severe case of food poisoning.
Mindlessness cost me. But if I had been mindful I would have tasted the bad food, spit it out and I would have avoided a nasty sickness.
Blogging is similar.
If you mindlessly plow through your day you will make fear-based, struggling-inducing, failure-producing results because fear-based actions lead to failing results.
But if you mindfully feel the fear behind blogging actions you can stop acting in such fashion to proceed in a more clear, calm, confident blogging campaign, leading to increasing success.
For many years I did mindless, silly, fear-based stuff that led to blogging struggles. Even when I had some success I still tried to plow my way through my blogging day, creating all types of resistance.
I eventually became mindful of my blogging actions. I stopped posting 60 times daily to 2 blogs because this strategy dripped with fear.
I mindfully created helpful content. I practiced my writing daily. I also began connecting with successful bloggers within my niche, patiently promoting these blogging big dawgs, which led to blogging success over the long haul.
The difference maker? Mindfulness.
Tips for Being a Mindful Blogger
I like meditating and doing yoga after I get up every day to expand my awareness. Expanding my awareness helped me to be a more mindful, present blogger.
Simply following your breathing a few times each hour grounds you in the present. This helps you become mindful as to why you are doing what you are doing, blogging-wise.
Slowing down your actions helps too. By patiently and calmly moving through your blogging day you become mindful of your blogging tasks.
Perhaps most of all, owning your blogging wins and losses expands your awareness dramatically. Being with your successes and struggles creates a cause and effect type situation around your blogging campaign so you become more mindful of not moving into fear-based, struggle-producing tasks and love-based, success-producing tasks.
The Ultimate Lesson
Most bloggers struggle terribly because they never embrace the ultimate blogging lesson; the energy behind your actions creates the effectiveness – or lack thereof – of your actions.
I spent today writing my Blogging From Paradise post for tomorrow. I also wrote a travel themed page for my blog. This is my 3rd guest post of the day. I co-hosted a live teleclass with my wife Kelli. I created 2 live broadcasts, 1 on Facebook and 1 on Periscope.
How did I do all this by 2:22 PM on a Sunday in NYC?
I am a largely mindful blogger, injecting love and fun into my blogging activities versus doing things from a place of fear and tension, as most bloggers do.
I had to become mindful of my blogging actions to make the shift from fear to love but it has been so worth it.
Your Turn
How are you being a mindful blogger? What can you do to become more mindful?
What tips can you add to this post?
Are you doing things predominantly from a place of fear or love with your blog?