5 Time-Wasting Tasks You Should Kick To The Curb

As bloggers we’ve all done it, we’ve wasted time on those tasks that don’t help us grow. I know because I still find myself doing it on a regular basis. I thought I would share some of the 5 time-wasting tasks that can stop us from being as productive as possible.

There are many types of blogging tasks but I will be sharing about five of them.

Most new bloggers don’t have a full eight hours to work on their blog.

Most of us are just able to squeeze an hour here and there to get our blog tasks completed.

This means that when you sit down to work, you need to know what needs to be done.

It’s easy to get overwhelmed with all the tasks that need to be done.If you’re a new blogger, that means that you’re doing everything by yourself to grow your blog.

You’re taking care of the content writing, promotion, networking, and the list go on and on.

It’s so easy to lose focus and before you know you end up wasting all your time online.

However, as you start to learn how to grow a blog. You start realizing what’s working and what’s actually a waste of time.

At least I’m starting to figure it out. I thought I would share what I’ve learned while trying to grow my blog.

 

5 Time-Wasting Tasks I Kicked To The Curb

I’m NOT going to say that I still don’t waste time on my blog. However, in the past few months, I’ve managed to be more productive just by cutting out some of these activities.

 

1. Stop Reading Online Income Reports

If you ask most bloggers, most of them are hoping to achieve financial freedom so they can live life on their terms. Who wouldn’t want to live the Internet lifestyle?

Imagine putting in all the work now. Then when you look back in 3-4 years, you start to see the fruition of all your hard work.

I’m not saying that it will take 3-4 years to grow a profitable blog.

What I am saying is that it’s not going to happen overnight. You’re going to have to put in a lot of hard work.

If you spend time reading people’s income reports online, you might start thinking that you’re not having success quickly enough. Then you’ll start wondering if you’re doing the right things to grow.

Many of those income reports claim that you can make money in just weeks or months of starting a blog.

While it is possible to make some money online in a few months. That’s not always the case for every blogger.

I’ve stopped reading those income reports because it really doesn’t matter how long it takes to make money. All I know is that I will reach my blogging goals as long as I keep persisting each and every day.

 

2. Starting on A Free Platform

If you’re serious about creating a profitable blog, you’re wasting time starting on a free platform. Sure, you can start on a free platform but eventually, you’ll have to migrate to a self-hosted blog.

You might think that you’re saving time right now, but the truth is that you’re just wasting time.

New bloggers are drawn to BlogSpot and WordPress.com because they are free but imagine the time you’ll waste when you finally decide to migrate BlogSpot to a self-hosted WordPress blog.

Once you’re ready to monetize and want more control, you’ll need to learn how to move to a self-hosted blog. This means that you’ll have to spend time learning a brand new platform.

Save yourself some time and start with a self-hosted blog. Of course, I am a huge fan and recommend WordPress.org.

It doesn’t cost that much and it’s easy to learn the basics.

 

3. Trying to Be Everywhere

Out of the 5 time-wasting tasks, I would say that this was my biggest mistake. When I first started my blog, I heard so many people saying that you had to be on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, Quora and etc.

While it’s true that you need to have a social media presence. I quickly learned that it’s impossible to be everywhere.

Just because someone says that you need to be on this platform or that platform, doesn’t necessarily mean you need to do it.

Find out which platform is sending you the most traffic and work on that network.

There’s no reason to learn how to master a social media platform if it isn’t sending you traffic.

I’m not saying that you can’t eventually learn some of the other platforms. I’m just saying that you should master the one that shows the most potential for your blog’s growth.

Right now, I am focused on learning the ins and outs of Pinterest. That’s the platform that is showing the most promise for my blog.

 

4. Focusing on Monetization

As a new blogger, we tend to get so caught up in monetizing our blog. I know that you probably want to earn some money, otherwise, you wouldn’t be working so hard.

I’m not saying that you shouldn’t monetize your blog. I’m a firm believer that you should start monetizing from day one.

However, don’t put all your focus on monetization. When you’re just starting your blog, chances are you’re not going to make any money right away.

Your main focus should be on providing great content for your readers.

The more people you help, over time you’ll start to make money. If you need help understanding what type of content you should create, here’s a great article on 5 types of content you can create.

So, go ahead and add affiliate links or ads to your blog if you want. Just know that the monetization shouldn’t be your main focus when you’re brand new.

Stop checking your Google Adsense account or affiliate network commissions every day. Chances are you’re just wasting your time and you could be doing other tasks that will help you grow your blog.

 

5. Stop Checking Your Analytics Daily

It’s exciting to log into your Google Analytics dashboard and check the real-time stats. I work on a 27-inch iMac, and when I first started my blog I always had 2 browsers open side by side.

I’d have Google Analytics open in Firefox and I’d work on my blogging tasks in Chrome.

I’d get so excited when I saw real-time visitors on my blog. I’d quickly jump over to Firefox and see where the visitor came from.

However, what I’ve realized is that this is another huge time waster. Yes, I know that you want visitors on your blog and you’re working hard to grow it.

Checking your stats on a daily basis is a waste of time. Instead, set some time once a week or at the end of the month to check your analytics.

I’ve started checking mine at the end of the month. I do this because I like to see what’s actually growing my blog and which posts were popular from the previous month.

 

6. Focus on Growth

There’s always so much to do in with our blogs. If you’re still brand new and not getting a lot of visitors and traffic, chances are you’re not going to have anyone click on your affiliate links, ads or buy your products and services.

Your main goal should be on growing your blog. Focus on those weekly blogging duties that will help you grow. After all, you’ll never be able to create a profitable blog if you can’t find your loyal readers.

If you’re guilty of doing any of these 5 time-wasting activities, it’s okay.

We’ve all been guilty of wasting time. The important thing is to stop doing them and take all-out action to grow your blog.

 

Final Take Away

It’s your blog and you’re the only one who can take the necessary action to grow it. The great news is that all it takes is consistent daily action with a huge dose of persistence 🙂

Over the months and years of working on your blog, you’ll have built up your online confidence. Plus, you’ll have figured out which online activities are actually growing your blog.

Are you guilty of wasting time when you sit down to work on your blog? Share your techniques of what you do to get the most done for your blog on a daily basis.

Written by Susan Velez

Susan Velez is helping people start, grow and monetize their passions through blogging. She loves helping people with the techie side of blogging. Sign up for her free 7 Days WordPress Course at susanvelez.com. You can follow Susan on Twitter @SusanWPTutorial

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