(Be sure to check out my 6 week and 3 month updates first to find out where I’m coming from.)
Six months in and it’s time for another update. I’ve got a boatload of screenshots and plenty to talk about.
When I first started, I mainly intended to write about health and fitness, with a little motivational stuff thrown in for good measure. But I quickly found that I preferred writing the motivation stuff.
So I went with it.
And from there it naturally morphed into a personal development blog. It made sense too, considering all the changes I had undergone in recent years (and am still undergoing). It didn’t take long before I realized that my message was a bit “darker” or more “in your face” than much of the material out there.
Raw and uncensored.
I figured it would probably turn off a lot of people, but I couldn’t (and didn’t want to) write in any other way. I had to keep true. So I kept pluggin’ away.
Lo and behold, people actually responded!
So now this site’s starting to gain a little traction. My numbers have shot up dramatically since my last update 3 months ago. I’m still small time, but I’m actually much further along than I thought I’d be at this point.
All’s good right?
But then I see the incredible progress made by guys like Vincent over at Self Stairway, and Tony at We Only Do This Once, and I wonder, “Shit, maybe I’m doing something wrong.”
Fortunately, those are usually just fleeting thoughts. I’m not typically one to compare myself to others. I’m doing far better than I thought I’d ever be doing, and so I’m thankful.
So How Am I Doing?
I think I’ll just let the screenshots do the talking . . .
First Month: 132 Unique Visitors
Nothing much to see here. The only highlight worth noting is the initial spike in traffic that I got after my good friend Craig Carey gave me a shout out on facebook. I saw 29 unique visitors from it. And didn’t reach that number again until over a month later. Most of this month was spent dwelling in single digits. It feels pretty weird writing as if thousands are going to read your post, when you know it’s really just going to be your little brother and a couple friends. Good times.
Second Month: 309 Unique Visitors
Pretty much the same as the first month, but the numbers were a bit higher. I actually managed to land unique visitors in the double digits more often than not. Lots and lots of commenting at Pick the Brain and others. The last day of December I finally surpassed that early spike I saw in my first month (by one). This came as a result of my screwed up New Year’ resolution post. It was my first “popular” post. And an early example of the “darker” style of writing I’m apparently known for. Oh, and it showcased my potty-mouth to a fine degree.
Third Month: 442 Unique Visitors
In January, I managed to stay in the teens and early twenties almost the entire month. I was quite happy with these numbers, though I remember desperately wanting to hit 30 unique visitors since I’d ended December with 29.
But I didn’t.
Still, it was actually an important month for me. I finally started getting some comments. My posts about the perfect exercise and the Kill It or Grow It Diet were the first that were ever linked to (outside of a blog carnival). I also wrote about my little red barnhouse (my first, and only, lighthearted post.)
And I started two important series that were responsible for much of my future growth: The Steak and Eggs Diet Challenge, and the Friday Night Kick in the Ass series. They may not have made a dent in January’s numbers, but they set the foundation upon which the rest of this blog has been built.
Fourth Month: 758 Unique Visitors
February was a real turning point for me. First, I made the decision to quit checking Google Analytics every day. It’s too damn easy to get wrapped up in the daily ups and downs. And wouldn’t you know it, the very first week of not checking my stats was when I finally hit 30+ unique visitors.
They say a watched pot never boils.
It was only a few days later that I surpassed 40 visitors. And then the real change . . . you’ll see it circled here: Tuesday, 19th. This is when I published the lessons in passion that I learned during my 10+ years as a bread baker. Easily my most shared post to date. I think it was so popular due to its inspirational, yet somewhat sad message. And because people are just plain fascinated by the art of bread baking.
This post provided a nice spike (up to 66 visitors), and the drop simply represented the start of a longer climb to much higher numbers. I knew this post was going to be a hit, but I felt it on a deeper level as well. Not to get all metaphysical/hippy on your ass, but I was actually in the middle of a three day fast when I published it. Because I felt like things were changing.
And so I let it be.
Fifth Month: 1456 Unique Visitors
March was solid. Straight up. With popular posts about how to wake up early, achieving anything you want, and developing the success mindset, I continued to see my traffic climb.
But it wasn’t all roses. One big notable fail was my short lived series featuring the artwork of my friend Nijaz. He’d already contributed comics to a few of my posts so I approached him about turning them into a regular series. But the series was abruptly cut short after we had a disagreement on what I would publish. I shoulda seen it coming. We’ve always butt heads. That’s just how it is.
Still love ya buddy. Even though you’re a prickly bastard.
Anyway, March also saw me taking a hard look at the personal development industry in my controversial post about common self-help myths. I may have stepped on a few toes, but the overall response was positive. I guess I’m not the only one sick of seeing the same ‘ol bullshit spread to and fro.
What’s really notable about this month was the swell in traffic I was starting to see. Like a rising tide. This was due to the fact that I was beginning to show up in search results. A few of my articles were making the rounds, but mostly it was from people searching for information about the steak and eggs diet. Though I’d wrapped up my diet at the beginning of the month . . .
. . . my rankings for this subject continued to rise.
And rise.
I’m currently sitting at number 2 for people searching the term “steak and eggs,” and I have decent rankings for many of its offshoots, including a first page ranking for the much more popular search term “the egg diet.”
I’ve never paid attention to SEO. I just don’t have the patience for that shit (or know-how). Still, this is when I began to realize the power of Google to make or break a blog. So I’m a bit torn. I like the increased traffic . . .
But what the fuck happens if Google decides to kill my ranking?
Sixth Month: 2178 Unique Visitors
I find it amazing that my worst day in April saw 57 unique visitors. Considering it took 4 months to hit that coveted (for me) 30 visitor mark. I started the month with 80 visitors and ended it with 192.
What the hell happened there?
I’ll get to that shortly . . .
First, April was another solid month. I hovered between 80 to 90 visitors each day and even broke 100 for the first time ever, which I noted in my last post discussing the new theme.
I know these numbers mean nothing to the bigger bloggers out there, but to me they mean everything. Because for 4 months my traffic was next to nothing. I battled for each and every reader I saw. I may not have been fighting wisely, but it was a battle nonetheless. And so I appreciate every little bit of traffic I get.
This month also saw my final Kick in the Ass post. It was a kick in my own ass – a public declaration of intent. I felt exposed, but said “fuck it” and went ahead and hit publish anyway.
I’m glad I did.
It spurred the redesign of my site, and a commitment to upping my game.
But I had other memorable posts this month too. Once again, I hit up my bread baking past and wrote about bread as a metaphor for life. Folks just can’t get enough of the bread thing.
And I took a stab (pun soooo fucking intended) at some more of the overblown self-help myths that make the rounds in the personal development scene. I may actually have even been harsher. This one saw even more discussion than its predecessor. People have strong opinions on the subject. I like that.
Now what about that spike at the tail end of the month? Where the hell did that come from?
Though it looks nice in a screenshot, and seems a fitting way to end my sixth month, it’s still nothing more than a spike. My biggest ever, but a spike all the same.
What happened is that my steak and eggs diet protocol got linked to a couple times in a discussion thread over at Mark’s Daily Apple, an insanely popular blog about the paleo lifestyle. That site is huge, and that’s all it took to more than double my traffic.
It’ll fall back to its baseline in the next day or two. Since my blog is mostly a personal development site these days, I don’t expect the traffic to be sticky. Still, it’s kinda cool. I imagine that’s what it’s like after someone writes a guest post for a decent sized blog.
And I do like seeing my sixth month end on such a high note. I’d like to think it’s a sign of things to come.
Peaks and Valleys
Since we’re talking about traffic spikes here, I figured I’d give my opinion on the matter. I don’t judge success based on spikes. Don’t get me wrong, the peaks are great fun. They’re like a fling. A one-night stand.
But they never last.
I prefer to judge my progress by the valleys. I do the same in weight lifting, and most other things in life, now that I come to think about it. Peaks are temporary highs. Moments in time where you’ve surpassed even your best. They can’t be maintained.
That’s why it’s a peak.
But they do serve to raise your baseline. Your new norm. They set you up for performance at a higher level than before.
To me, the ultimate success is when your valleys are greater than your old peaks used to be. That’s when you know you’re making real progress. That’s when your results begin to stick.
And accumulate.
The day you first bench 60lb. dumbbells for 10 reps feels great. But when you bench the same weight for 12 reps — just as part of your warm-ups – it shows what you’ve truly accomplished.
So I’ve included a highly non-scientific screenshot analysis of my peaks and valleys. Just for shits and giggles . . .
The green lines look all snazzy and shit, but it’s the red lines that I take pride in. So long as they continue to rise, I know I’m doing well.
So What’s it all Mean?
Shit, I dunno. I’m just a newb after all.
Though I’m not the slowest growing blog out there, I’m pretty fuckin’ far from the fastest. As of writing, my Alexa rank is 911,196. Nothing special, but a tad better than the 22,000,000+ rank I was at when I first found out about these things.
Every reader I’ve found has come by trial. I’ve never written a guest post (something I intend to change soon) so I’ve never truly sipped of another blogs traffic. I bet it tastes sweet.
And though I’m not even a journeyman blogger yet, I have learned a few things during my time in the ring. But I can’t bring myself to do the usual “Top 3 Lessons I’ve Discovered” kinda thing.
I guess I just don’t see things the same as normal people . . .
My Top 3 “Fuck You” List
1. Fuck You Google – You’ve pretty much ignored me since I began. Ok, so maybe I don’t practice SEO. But you said yourself to write for people, not search engines. That’s what I’ve been doing. And I’ve no results to show for it.
Well, except for that steak and eggs thing. And I had to write 8 weeks worth of posts on the subject before you even took notice. Eight freakin’ weeks! You know how much effort that was? How much content I wrote? How in-depth I had to go?
Oh . . .
Damn.
2. Fuck You Jon Morrow – For being right, of course. I didn’t want to believe it. It just couldn’t be true. Please tell me you were lying. You were lying, right?
No, you weren’t.
Headlines matter.
Fuck.
So much for deep and profound. Nobody reads that shit. It’s just plain boring. We need pizzazz . . .
“How to Reach Inner Peace – The Ultimate Guide”
“5 Warning Signs That You’re about to Suffer a Mental Breakdown”
“9 Lies Self-Help Gurus Like to Tell”
Shit, I shoulda used that last one.
3. Fuck You Life – Who needs you anyway? Because once you dive into the deep end of blogging, you might as well give up having one. Forget about going out with friends. Forget about lazy weekends. Forget about prime time television (best to just get rid of that thing anyway).
And while you’re at it, forget about sleep. It takes up too many hours. Hours that could be better spent writing.
Nah, life is for pussies.
We’re bloggers. And we accept everything that goes with it. The late nights. The early mornings. The weekends spent writing in solitude.
We put ourselves out there for others to judge. Expose ourselves to the entire world. Down to the last fucking wart.
We accept it. All of it.
The hardships. The struggle. The pain.
We accept it all.
Because it’s worth it.
Cheers!
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