{"id":531,"date":"2012-11-13T21:58:22","date_gmt":"2012-11-14T02:58:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wordsfromthehomefront.com\/?p=531"},"modified":"2016-11-02T22:00:12","modified_gmt":"2016-11-03T03:00:12","slug":"flopportunities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wordsfromthehomefront.com\/index.php\/2012\/11\/13\/flopportunities\/","title":{"rendered":"Flopportunities"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt; font-family: verdana, geneva;\">\u00a0The blogging conference, Allume, was held recently in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Over 400 Christian women attended, each one representing a blog presence on the internet. Each one came to learn more about blogging.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt; font-family: verdana, geneva;\">One of the speakers was well known blogger \u201cThe Nester\u201d. Her blog reveals this about her: \u201cThe Nester, who writes anonymously, is a home stager, re-designer and design school drop-out. \u00a0She\u2019s one of the lucky few who has stumbled into her dream job working from home {writing a blog of all things?!} and encouraging women to create their own meaningful home at Nesting Place where the motto is:<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt; font-family: verdana, geneva;\">\u201cIt Doesn\u2019t Have to be Perfect to be Beautiful\u201d.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: 'Noteworthy Light';\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/span><strong style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">Flopportunities and how I learned to blog with purpose<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt; font-family: verdana, geneva;\"><strong>(four things I&#8217;ve learned from blogging all wrong)<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: center;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">Nester<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: center;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\"><span style=\"text-align: justify;\">1.\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Purpose\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"text-align: justify;\">&#8211; for yourself and for your readers<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 22pt;\">Get specific, sit down with paper and pen and ask yourself questions:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">What do you believe?\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">How do you want readers to feel when they leave your blog?\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">What do you want them to do differently when they leave your blog?\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">What do you want them to turn to your site first for?\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">What are you\u00a0obsessed with?\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">What do you know?\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">What are you an expert in?\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">What feels like drudgery when you write? (<strong>STOP<\/strong>\u00a0writing about it!!)\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">Which post gets the most comments that means something to you?<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"margin-bottom: 12pt; line-height: 22pt; text-align: justify;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt; font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;\"><strong><em>&#8220;A successful blog is one that reaches its intended audience.&#8221;\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>&#8211; Rachel M.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: 22pt; text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt; font-family: verdana, geneva;\">2.<span style=\"line-height: normal;\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Time\u00a0<\/span>&#8211; use time wisely and\u00a0fiercely\u00a0protect time.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 12pt; font-family: verdana, geneva;\"><em>Create.<\/em>\u00a0Do not consume when you are most creative. Use that time of day to create when you are most creative. Don&#8217;t sit on Facebook, read blogs or do busy work.<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 12pt; line-height: 22pt; font-family: verdana, geneva; text-align: justify; text-indent: -0.5in;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: 22pt; text-align: justify;\"><em style=\"line-height: 22pt; text-indent: -0.5in; font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">Protect<\/em><span style=\"line-height: 22pt; text-indent: -0.5in; font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">. Figure out how much time you have available and protect it.<\/span><\/p>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">&#8220;Being busy is a form of laziness\u2026&#8221;\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">&#8221; Being overwhelmed is almost\u00a0as unproductive as\u2026\u00a0&#8221;\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">\u201cWhen everything is of equal importance then nothing is important.\u201d<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><em style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">Say No<\/em><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">.\u00a0 Don\u2019t find yourself saying yes because it\u2019s scary to say no; or because you are afraid of missing an opportunity.\u00a0<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Most things are\u00a0<\/em><\/span><\/span><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">flopportunities<\/span><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0not opportunities.\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: 22pt; text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt; font-family: verdana, geneva;\">3.<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Create White Space\u00a0<\/span>&#8211;\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 22pt; text-indent: -0.5in;\">Give yourself time\/space<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: 'Noteworthy Light';\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt; font-family: verdana, geneva;\">What do I bring in? Is it a battle taking stuff out that does not belong? Is it hard to protect my time, my writing, my creativity? Leaving something out can be as important as putting something in. When decorating, empty white space is just as important as the space that is filled. Empty blocks of time are important. The problem with doing everything is\u00a0that\u00a0you have no time for doing nothing. Overloading squelches creativity and joy.<\/span>\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height: normal; text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">God did not create hurry. Slowing down to rest in the midst of the undone (the dishes and the laundry will still be there) creates white space in your life.\u00a0It can be hard to give yourself permission to stop and rest. Some use rest as a reward: I\u2019ll rest when I\u2019m finished.\u00a0<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>If the only down time is late at night then you don&#8217;t have enough down time.<\/em><\/span>\u00a0\u00a0We were created to need and use rest.\u00a0<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>True rest is trust in the Lord<\/em>.<\/span>\u00a0Give yourself permission just to say: \u201cNo, I can&#8217;t do it.\u201d without an explanation.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-bottom: 12pt; line-height: 22pt; text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt; font-family: verdana, geneva;\"><span style=\"font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;\"><strong><em>&#8220;A man is rich in\u00a0proportion to the number\u00a0of things he can afford to let alone.\u201d &#8211;\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/span>Thoreau\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt; font-family: verdana, geneva;\">4.<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">The Secret Art of Saying No<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt; font-family: verdana, geneva;\">The more visible you are online, the more requests you will get.\u00a0<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Don&#8217;t say \u2018yes\u2019 to stranger and \u2018no\u2019 to family; but fully embrace your &#8216;Yes&#8217;<\/em><\/span>&#8211; the thing you will always say yes to. There are people\/subjects\/opportunities I will always say yes to, there are some that my husband and I talk about before I say yes or no and there are some that I have determined that I will always say no to. Constant evaluation of\u00a0whether\u00a0or not to say yes to\u00a0something\u00a0is necessary to maintain control over your time and creativity.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-left: 13.5pt; text-indent: -13.5pt; line-height: 22pt; text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt; line-height: 22pt; font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;\"><strong><em>&#8220;A big part of doing your work is\u00a0defending your\u00a0time and your attention so you can do your work&#8221; &#8211;\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 22pt;\">Seth Godin<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt; font-family: verdana, geneva;\">To sum up Nester\u2019s points in her own words: \u201cFiercely protect the true goal for your blog.\u00a0 Doing Less and being more isn\u2019t just a nice clich\u00e9\u2019 it\u2019s a real choice and the secret to getting there will allow you to become laser focused on growing your passion, your art, your hobby, your business, your blog.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 12pt; font-family: verdana, geneva;\">Quick Tips from The Nester<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">Know why you blog<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">Write what you know<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">Create something meaningful and share it<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">Don&#8217;t fall for distractions: focus<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">Decide\u00a0you\u00a0much time you can\u00a0commit<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">Under-schedule\u00a0and\u00a0prioritize rest\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">Determine your time, if you are overwhelmed you are too busy<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">If you have no room, you are\u00a0over scheduled<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">Sometimes you learn the right by doing the wrong<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">Stop and evaluate<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">My {Big}take-away(s) from The Nester<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">Her comments about creating when I&#8217;m most creative- It&#8217;s easy to get caught up in FB all day or reading from blog-to-blog. Keeping up is important but not as important as using the &#8220;little grey cells&#8221; when they are all firing at once and I can get it down instead of losing it to the black hole that is my brain most of the day. I think determining when my &#8220;most creative time&#8221; is &#8211;\u00a0<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong><em>is<\/em><\/strong><\/span>\u00a0the challenge.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">The other intriguing thought she brought up was &#8220;white-space&#8221;. I&#8217;m cluttered. My home. My brain. My life. Some of it is self-imposed, some is from external influences. I don&#8217;t know that my blog will ever get to the point that I have to create white space because of it. But the whole idea struck a nerve. \u00a0I can&#8217;t control all of the clutter, but deliberately designing white space in my life can and will reflect in my writing. &#8220;<em>Overloading squelches creativity and joy&#8221;<\/em>\u00a0will be the phrase I repeat to myself until I have enough white space in my life.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva; font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u00a0The blogging conference, Allume, was held recently in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Over 400 Christian women attended, each one representing a blog presence on the internet. Each one came to learn more about blogging. One of the speakers was well known blogger \u201cThe Nester\u201d. Her blog reveals this about her: \u201cThe Nester, who writes anonymously, is a &#8230; <a title=\"Flopportunities\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/wordsfromthehomefront.com\/index.php\/2012\/11\/13\/flopportunities\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about Flopportunities\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[267,266,269,268],"class_list":["post-531","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog","tag-allume-conference","tag-blogging","tag-myquillin-smith","tag-the-nester"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordsfromthehomefront.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/531","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordsfromthehomefront.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordsfromthehomefront.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordsfromthehomefront.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordsfromthehomefront.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=531"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/wordsfromthehomefront.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/531\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":532,"href":"https:\/\/wordsfromthehomefront.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/531\/revisions\/532"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordsfromthehomefront.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=531"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordsfromthehomefront.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=531"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordsfromthehomefront.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=531"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}