Thoughts On My First 100,000 Blog ViewS

I will say right off that this isn’t my normal type of post.  But my first 100,000 blog views is a milestone that deserves to be celebrated!  Would you like to celebrate with me?  Come meander through my ramblings.  Or just have a cupcake.  Maybe a slice of my lemon zucchini bread.  Something!!!  Because I’m crazy proud of myself right now!

Lessons From My First 100,000 Blog Views

First lesson.  As novice bloggers,  it’s easy to put ourselves down.  Do the comparison game.  And I’ve found myself doing that.  Saying “Well,  a real blogger wouldn’t think anything of 100,000 views”  Or “This post on Pinterest is viral to me,  but it’s nothing compared to what a real blogger would do.”  But my first 100,000 blog views is making me realize this fact.  I already am a real blogger.  And if you have a blog,  so are you.  It’s time to leave the negative thoughts behind,  buckle down,  and keep right on doing the work.

Deep Down,  I Thought I Couldn’t

Second lesson.  When I first started,  I thought I would fail.  Every time I’ve written a blog post,  I’ve pushed myself hard to land on Google page one.  I pressured myself to get really good.  But the whole time,  I didn’t really believe I could.  And I never really felt like what I did was “good enough.”  Even after going through blogging Bootcamp!  Then when I did hit Google page 1,  I promptly felt panicky and wanted to quit.  I felt panicky over almost every big milestone.  But then I consistently started seeing my posts show up on Google page one.  It became a massive adrenaline rush.  Now,  I’m at 100,000 blog views.  It’s helping me believe I can do this.  In fact,  I already am.  I don’t feel afraid anymore.

Blogging Is An Outlet For My Competitive Streak

I have five older brothers.   I grew up on competitiveness!  Fun was a foot race to the mailbox or some crazy dare.  Because my brothers expected me to,  I learned to pull straight A’s while getting the gym trophy,  then come home and learn to change the oil in my car.  My brothers constantly pushed me to be better.  To excel and learn new things.  I learned to be very competitive early on!

As an adult,  I need an outlet for the learned competitive streak that is a piece of me,  yet not.  I do like to win.  I just hate to compete against other people.  But blogging?  I’m competing against the Google machine,  It’s a stimulating challenge to beat the SEO and algorithms.  At the end of the day,  I’m maybe competing against myself.  But I’ve never felt,  I’m competing with other bloggers.  Honestly?  It’s a huge RELIEF to have an area I can absolutely shine.  While blogging,  I can excel without hurting someone else’s feelings when I win.  and win again.  Because seeing my blog post on Google page 1,  above the fold… That’s every bit the rush that winning feels like.  Here’s to my next 100,000 blog views.  Do you want to eat some cookies with me,  now?