There’s a popular saying that is typically attributed to Abraham Lincoln and it goes a little something like this:

“If I had 4 hours to chop down a tree I’d spend the first two hours sharpening the axe.” – Abraham Lincoln

Now, there is a lot of muddiness around this quote and many question whether Lincoln even said it. There are also varying degrees of time involved with the task of cutting down the tree depending on the quote you find.

But, whoever it was that said it, they had the right idea.

Planning is crucial to success.

Without a well thought out plan, you are doomed to disarray and chaos.

This is especially true if you want to be a blogger. And even more so if you ultimately have visions of your blogging turning into an online business.

The Problem With Blogging

Whether you are just starting out or have been blogging for a couple of years, blogging is difficult. Not only is the orchestration and the process hard but staying abreast of all the current trends and platforms can be mind-numbing.

Don’t let people get away with lying to you and telling you blogging is easy. It’s not.

Your senses are constantly assaulted with information.

You read other people’s blogs. You read news and articles about your particular niche. You read stories about the latest social media platform. You read and watch tutorials and subscribe to courses.

It’s a never-ending onslaught of information and too often you feel overwhelmed.

At the same time, you are expected to be outputting just as much, if not more, than what you are receiving. So for all of the content you consume, you need to be churning out your own content at the same time.

It can be frustrating and disheartening.

I’m not going to sugarcoat it.

I’m going to keep it real with you because that’s only fair for those struggling to find their way as they settle into their blogging adventure.

Now, even though I say it can be difficult, that doesn’t mean it can’t be hella fun!

So, what can you do to help alleviate some of the pain?

Sharpen the Axe

In order to survive the wicked storm of information overload and requisite need to produce content, you need to have a plan.

Even if you are one who typically flies by the seat of your pants, you still need to have a general idea of what you want to do and how you want to do it.

Here are a few ways you can start to organize yourself and get your blogging in order.

Document Where You Are Now

In order for you to make any sort of progress, you have to do a digital inventory of what the hell is going on with your current online platform.

Most of us are wayyyyy too promiscuous when it comes to social media. We randomly join every hot new platform, post sporadically, and forget which website we were on yesterday.

In my Ready to Blog course, I dig into exactly how to blueprint your current online platform so you can not only understand where you are in your journey but to also track your progress going forward.

Think of it as the blueprints to your own personal computer system. If something is broken or neglected you at least know where to look.

The important thing is you have to really truly understand the scale of your current environment. Only then you can determine which parts to foster and which to sever.

Figure Out Where You Want to Go

Now that you know where you are, you can more easily figure out where you want to go and how to get there.

This doesn’t have to be set in stone either. It’s more of an analysis of your current platform and a general idea of where you can take it next.

Identify the outposts of your online platform that you want to build up. Mark areas that you want to kill off.

When you do this you will then be able to move to the next step.

Set Goals

Once you have the current situation understood and a loose framework for how you want to proceed, you can start to put some meat on the bone and lay down some actual goals.

I’m not a huge goal person but writing down things actually does help.

It holds you accountable and serves as an inventory of items to work toward and hopefully complete.

Start with near-term goals within the next 3 months. Then look at 6 months and then a year.

Anything after a year is really up in the air. Who really knows what they will be doing in a year. Let’s focus on the here and now and start to position your blog for sustained growth.

Establish a Publishing Schedule

Once you have the goals documented, even if they are high level, you are now in the position to tactically set yourself up for the day to day operations.

The most important aspect is having a consistent schedule. This not only helps your sanity but it also helps your readers and their expectations surrounding your content delivery.

Don’t overextend yourself here either. You should probably start off with posting at least once a week. Pick a day that you typically have extra time and try that out. If it works, great. If not, pick another day until you settle into what’s “right” for you.

You could even break up your weekly schedule into particular parts of the blog post process.

For instance, you could do research on Monday. Outline and write on Tuesday. Do the editing and formatting, as well as graphics, on Wednesday. Then publish on Thursday.

Or you could do it all in a few hours on one day.

Figure out what fits your hectic schedule and try to stay as consistent as possible with it moving forward.

Your Takeaways

Just because blogging is hard doesn’t mean it can’t be fulfilling – spiritually and financially.

The only way you can really handle the amount of work, information, and effort is to have a framework in place to help structure, organize, and chop down the tasks ahead of you.

Not only will this framework help you move forward effectively but it also allows you to be proactive and handle issues as they arise.

Another one of my favorite quotes is from Mike Tyson. He said, “Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.”

Make sure you have everything in place so when you do get punched in the face, you can recover.

If you are struggling to find your rhythm with your blog, or just starting out, you should seriously consider joining my Ready to Blog course as I dig deeper into each of these areas and provide instructions on exactly how to blueprint your online platform.

I also provide the strategies and tactics you’ll need in your hip pocket to move forward.

If you are ready to set up your own framework and solid approach to blogging, I’d love to have you check out the Ready to Blog Course.