We’ve all seen them. The same old, tired lists of regurgitated tips on how to blog better. They’re so common, you could probably name most of them in your sleep. I don’t know about you, but I’m tired of them. I want to know what really works.

I’ve been blogging since 2006 and have personally helped hundreds of people learn how to blog better. Still, there are days when I feel like a newbie.

I’ve been blogging and reading blogs since Al Gore invented the Internet — or at least for the past several years, anyway.

When blogging began, I thought the social web (along with the word “blog”) was a pretty silly concept. Now, I’ve come to love it for a lot of reasons, one of which is how it connects you to the world. However, it’s not all rainbows and sunshine. There is a darker side to blogging.

Tom Petty was wrong. The waiting isn’t the hardest part. Getting started is. At least, when it comes to blogging it is.

You have a voice, an idea, and some level of ability — that is really all you need to start a blog. But instead, you wait. You have a number of excuses, but really, you are just scared to start.

I know I was.

I’m not going to lie to you: Blogging is hard. Sure, the first few months are fun. That’s when your passion sustains you, when you’re unbeatable.

But eventually, you start to get discouraged. Your content grows stagnant, and writing may begin to feel flat. You wonder if you’re ever going to reach the audience you want.

This, I believe, is the most important time for an online writer. It’s what Seth Godin calls the “dip” — the point where you decide to stick with something or quit.

If you feel “stuck” but know this is what you’re supposed to be doing, I have good news for you: there’s hope.

Are you wanting to get better at blogging, but not sure where to start? Sign up for my free course: Intentional Blogging.

I put together 12 of the most important lessons I know and put them into easy-to-read, weekly emails — all about blogging, all for free.

I recently stopped being an ordinary blogger. Because ordinary wasn’t good enough.

I have been blogging for nearly three years and had what most would consider a successful blog. I had more visitors than I ever could have imagined and each day the comments were pouring in.

But it still wasn’t enough for me. I still felt ordinary.

It should be no surprise by now that I think blogging is important for the modern writer. In fact, it’s essential to building a platform and creating an engaged audience. It can help you land a publishing contract, get speaking gigs, and even make money.

When I started this blog less than a year ago, I did a few things that really set me up for success. And you can, too. If you want.

Here’s a quick request that will help both of us, if you do it today:

Today is the last day of the Top 10 Blogs for Writers contest on Write to Done — would you consider voting for goinswriter.com (if you haven’t already done so)?