Just writing a word like Zeal and Zest looks kinda funny as part of a blog title. At least I managed to come up with something other than ‘zzzz’ (which is really how I’m feeling after 26 posts for the A to Z challenge)
And most importantly, don’t ‘zeek out’ i.e. don’t lose control of yourself / don’t freak out ! Blogging is meant to be fun – so smile and just do it !
Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay !! The A to Z Challenge is finally complete !
p.s. I promise ‘zeek out’ is a real word in the dictionary !
Have you noticed how popular YouTube videos are these days ? Almost everyone I know has a YouTube account – even if it is to just ‘like’ other peoples uploads. Video content is one of the best methods of engaging readers on your blog. They have to hit play and discover what the video has to convey and most of the time readers will stick around right to the end.
I’ve used videos a few times in my posts – mainly for my #MusicMonday posts but sometimes when I find a really creative advert or something else that inspires me to write a post – I tend to share those.
There are blogs that I visit that use videos and these are the actual blog authors who are coming in front of the camera and recording messages to their readers or just simply showcasing ‘how to’ tutorials (which honestly is quicker to grasp than reading paragraphs of text). I haven’t made my own video content as yet – maybe one of these days I’ll get around to it.
If you have your own YouTube account – you can share and embed the links into your blogging platform; and hopefully also increase your subscription base to your YouTube channel. LiveWriter, Blogger & Wordpress allow you to upload videos quite easily.
The only drawback I find about watching videos on blogs is that sometimes it slows down the browsing experience if the videos are buffering; and sometimes content is not available in certain countries. Hmmm that’s only 2 reasons not to use videos versus 23 Reasons To Add Video To Your Blog.
What are your thoughts ? Do you use any sort of YouTube or other video content on your blog? Why (or why not)? What do you like and dislike about video on other people’s blogs?
In case you don’t know .. Xanadu is an idyllic, exotic, or luxurious place (according to the Webster dictionary) … and that’s what my blog is for me .. its my idyllic place, my haven to just let myself go !
You should be super eXcited about your blog – I know I am about mine and about the ones I read. I’m forever pimping out blogs of my favourite bloggers to anyone who wants new reading material and its always good to hear that other people I know are checking out my blog. I love connecting with new readers via their comments and feedback.
I often find that I lose myself in my blog … especially when I’m on a roll .. sometimes I can’t type my thoughts up fast enough because there is just so much going on. Do you find yourself in that mode ? Its a place where I can express myself without any reservations at all .. do you notice that on other social media platforms there’s a certain degree that we hold back when it comes to really saying what is on our mind ?
How Xanadu is your blog for you ?
Ever since I started my first blog challenge in Aug 2011, I have been on the look out for other blog challenges as well as trying to find new ways to come up with good content for my blog.
Just now it struck me – the only way your blogger voice is going to grow is when you actually try out different forms of writing ! I’ve never actually done an actual writing exercise (like proper writers do) so I can’t tell you what to do with that. But my perspective of it is that you should be open to writing about things you have never written about and something that is different to your usual content on your blog. Taking part in a blog challenge is a form of a writing exercise for me and I can’t tell you just how chuffed I am with myself for making it through the challenges !
Here are a few ‘writing exercises’ (or challenges or whatever writing prompts – whatever you want to call them) that you might find useful :
And if you want more check out these links :
I hope you find these useful and if you have any writing exercises or tips then please do share them in the comments.
Bottom line – write whatever it is that you want to write about as long it comes from the heart. Not all of us are professional writers; or can claim to have penned a book or two – but if you put your mind to it – anything is possible. Happy Blogging folks !
Have you ever thought about how your blog sounds to a reader ? What does the tone behind the words say about your blog and what you are trying to actually convey to readers ?
I read this other article ‘Does Your Blog Have a Personality’ by Heidi Cohen that tells you how to create your writers voice. Check it out when you have a chance.
Diva’s Tips on Finding Your Blogger Voice :
These are just a few tips for now. Have you found your blogger voice as yet ? Yes. No. Maybe. Somewhere in between perhaps ? Not that I’m an expert – but thought I’d put together a few words of wisdom to help you determine your status. After all – its Your Voice – Your Blog – Your Blogger Voice.
p.s if you aren’t afraid to do it – you can actually create actual voice recordings and upload to your blog (my friend @DragonBlogger does this with some of his poetry) or You Tube videos for your blog and that way people can put your face to your voice !
You need to make sure your blog is Unique and is always Updated. I know it sounds ‘easy’ but it’s sometimes overwhelming to know that you have all these amazing blogs out there that just seem to have something special about them. And of course we all want our blogs to be one of those ‘go-to’ blogs ‘cos its got all the best content ever !
My suggestions to you to keep your blog unique would include mixing up your content; participate in various blog challenges; and invite your favourite bloggers to write guest posts for your blog to give a new voice to your blog.
Some of the ways you can keep your blog updated is by refreshing your blog design every few months or at least once a year. I’ve had about 4 different designs & layouts for my blog since I started blogging. You can also schedule your blog posts so that you have regular content being posted even when you are too busy to blog.
There is no right or wrong way to make your blog unique – what makes it really unique is the fact that’s its YOUR blogger voice that’s going to be heard and those who like it will stick around and those who don’t – oh well they’re just missing out.
I discovered it a while ago and honestly – its made life so much easier especially when I’m swamped with work and I don’t want to leave my social media platforms blank.
With Timely.is one can decided whether you want to auto-publish posts 3, 5, or 9 times a day from this one site directly to your Twitter profile. Since I don’t always have the time, I managed to post my tweets to my Facebook page for my business account and that way managed to always have my FB & Twitter page updated. The added bonus is that you get statistics on how many people have clicked any links you have shared; how many people have RT’d your tweets / posts and how many people have you ‘reached’ out to. Lastly, instead of you having to think about what time you should schedule your post to go up – the site tracks your tweets from the past and pre-determines what time is the best time for your new posts to go out at ! How cool is that ??!!
I personally think its a fab way of being able to pimp your blog without being too OTT. I use it to ‘tweet’ my old posts / most popular posts and of course other bloggers posts so that my Twitter timeline doesn’t look too deserted.
Have you ever used Timely.is before ? Do you use any other platform to schedule your tweets & posts ?
Diva’s Discovery
There’s another site called Dlvr.it which I also use and that automatically publishes your blog posts to your Twitter, FB & Linked In profiles when you put up a new post.
Just the other day, I wrote about Quality vs Quantity of posts and prior to that I’ve gone over how we must maintain original blog content.
Have you found that sometimes you are on a total blogging roll – everything seems to be inspiring
I’ve been there and guess what – sometimes I’ve forgotten that I have this awesome post sitting in the drafts and that post has gone unpublished for the longest time. That sucks especially if it is a post that was probably more relevant to have been published earlier (maybe ‘cos it related to another post you had / it was in time for a new movie release / had something to do with what has been going on in the news – you get my drift here)
During the course of the Ultimate Blog Challenge that took place in January this year – I discovered that ‘scheduling’ my posts was really a God-send ! Blogger & Wordpress both offer this service and if you use Windows Live Writer like I do – then that has it as well. The best part is being able to review & edit your posts prior to publishing (even though its technically already published)
Some of my posts for the A to Z Challenge were all written up on my free days and due to my ad-hoc work timings – I set up the posts to be scheduled to be published at different times each day so that I didn’t miss out on my posts.
What are your thoughts about scheduling posts ? Have you done that in the past ? Are you going to be scheduling any posts during the Ultimate Blog Challenge ? Have you figured out when is the best time to ‘schedule’ your posts for ?
Read, Read & Read Some More
Blogging isn’t just about writing your own blog and letting people find you in Blogosphere. It’s also about ‘reading’ other blogs ! Yup – you know all those other thousands of blogs that exist out there. You’ve got to read them (ok not all of them but you need to make the time and do some blog stalking).
Who knows what kind of blogging techniques you will discover just by visiting other blogs. Maybe you even ‘discover’ the next big blog that carries trends that people can’t wait to find out about. The more you read the more you tend to get inspired – and hey inspiration is something we all look out for ! Reading other blogs also gives you the chance to make some great blogger friends.
React & Respond
So reading other blogs sounds easy right ? Errrrrrrrrm WRONG. If you read 20 blogs a day but don’t ‘react’ and ‘respond’ to them (i.e leave comments by de-lurking) then what’s the point of reading those 20 blogs ? How are those folks going to know you thought their post was absolutely fantastic and totally expressed your own perspective on the topic in ways you couldn’t do yourself ??
It’s quite an easy mantra. Read. React. Respond. (oh and feel free to pimp the blog that you react the most too – the blog author would love you for it) Now imagine if everyone was networking that way – how many new connections would we all make ?
How many blogs do you read on a daily basis ? Or do you keep your blog reading for the weekends ? Do you react with a response when you come across an interesting blog post ?
Some blogging tips suggest that one should post a minimum of a post a day; sometimes more if they want their blog to reach top ranking. After 3 years of blogging, there is no right or wrong way to blog ‘cos it really depends on you and what you want to achieve with your blog.
My belief is post quality over quantity. As long as you are putting up good quality content on your blog, that’s all that matters. The content should be relevant, informative, and intrigue your reader enough to want to leave you with interesting & interactive comments.
Make it your blogging goal to post quality over quantity. I rather have a handful of meaningful posts than 30 posts that lack any sort of depth. Others believe that Quantity matters too – check out what Jan Wong has to say in ‘Quality over Quantity, Really ?’
Questions
I noticed that when I started ending my blog posts with questions to my readers – the conversation on my blog increased. You can’t be shy at blogging – so why not come right out and ask your readers direct questions related to your post topic which will encourage them to respond and therefore also get some of your anonymous readers to de-lurk.
Do you question your readers directly or indirectly ? Which one works better for you ? Or do you sort of place the question between your post and hope someone responds to it ?
Quotes
Personally I find that quotes can be very inspirational and can always be linked into a blog post or used to create a brand new post. Do you use quotes at all ?
During the course of the A to Z Challenge, blogger Gillian of A Daft Scots Lass has been putting up some great ‘mottos’ (and some quirky quotes) for each letter of the alphabet. Make sure you check them out and follow her on Twitter whilst you’re at it @ADaftScot
On that note, I’ll leave you with 3 quotes I came across and thought were pretty apt for this post.
It is the quality of our work which will please God and not the quantity.
Mahatma Gandhi
Questions provide the key to unlocking our unlimited potential. Anthony Robbins
If you answered Yes to any of the above (very random questions) then my darling blogger friend, you better start pimping your blog ! And I don’t mean by standing in a dodgy alley and giving out your blog business card.
Social media is an amazing space and the most perfect place for you to pimp your blog without fear of being judged. To use social media effectively, you know ‘know your audience’. . Flowtown has a great infographic on social media demographics on their site.
6 Ways To Pimp Your Blog Diva Style
you aren’t already on it – make sure your twitter name is something people can associate with your blog (if you are an anonymous blogger)How do you pimp your blog over social media ? What works for you ? What other platforms have you used that aren’t mentioned ?
Feel free to leave your FB Fan Page; Twitter ID’s and Linked-In Profiles in the comments so others can share some bloggy love with you.
You are a unique person – there’s no one els
Your blog is a reflection of you and therefore all the content you post on your blog should ideally be original posts. This is where I always end up thinking ‘erm how original can my post be ?’
Technically there is no such thing as an original idea ‘cos all ideas are somewhat borrowed or based on ideas from the past (whether it was 10 years or 100 years or even 10 days ago). It’s a fact – so accept it. I have.
There’s no harm in taking titbits of a great news article or a featuring a YouTube video that you enjoy – but if you don’t add your own opinion / perspective to it – then it doesn’t really add value to your blog and loses its ‘originality’. Oh, and don’t forget to share the linky love so that your readers can go back to the original source of your inspiration.
See what I mean – it’s a bit tricky trying to be original but there are ways to do it. You just have to bring your opinions and perspectives to the post and voila – it’s as original as it can get. It’s all about expressing yourself at the end of the day. And if you’re lucky – someone else will be inspired by it and write about the same thing and so it goes on.
How do you come up with original content for your blog ? Do you list off potential topics and then just go with one or do you get that gut feeling that it’s going to be a good one ?
Further Reading :
Networking is a fab way to make friends in blogosphere. It’s also a really easy way for you to pick up on new ideas that you can use to create new content for your blog.
When I talk about networking – I don’t mean just add someone to your blog roll / Twitter. I’m talking about actually connecting with other bloggers via all platforms available to you. When you discover a blog post that really leaves you gobsmacked or awestruck – make sure you de-lurk and let the blogger know that you appreciate what they have to say. If they have a Facebook page for their blog – then ‘like’ it and share it with your FB network. If they are on Twitter – then tweet with your favourite bloggers; RT their posts; interact via tweets with them – have an actual conversation outside of your blog (I’ve actually met a few of my Blogger & Twitter friends in real life as well)
I managed to get some great new content for my blog by asking my network if anyone wanted to write a guest post for me. The response was overwhelming and I have new content that is different to my regular style of writing – which in turn gained me a few new readers.
Do you network with your blogger peers ? What’s your preferred way of communicating with them ? Do you ever seek their help when you feel a creative stump ?
Diva’s Discovery
Networked Blogs is a simple and fun user generated blog directory that lets users gain more exposure for their blogs. Your blog gets it’s own page, a listing in the Networked Blogs directory and its easy syndicated to Facebook and Twitter (which means once you publish your post to your blog, it automatically gets posted to your FB and/or Twitter page as well).
Check out Michelle Shaeffers’ post ‘How To Add Your Blog To Networked Blogs’ – I’m sure you’ll find it useful.
Make The Time To Blog
When one first starts blogging, they tend to write / post whenever they feel like it. I’ve found that over the past few years; I’ve started to make the time for blogging even when I’m super busy 
Why ? Because I want my blog to grow (for myself). One of my blog goals is to post a minimum of 8 posts a month; and luckily for me in 2011 I averaged 17 posts a month (compared to 2009 / 2010 where I was averaging 10 posts a month).
My blog (or me) will probably never be a Top 10 blog across genres – but that doesn’t mean it can’t be. And the only way it will – is if I make time for my blog like all the other pro-bloggers out there. Just by committing to take part in the A to Z Challenge – I’ve made myself make time for blogging each day.
What about you – do you just blog as and when you like or do you set aside a particular time of the day to blog ? I tend to write the most late at night or early in the morning. Do you have any blog schedule that you follow ?
Mix It Up
I enjoy mixing up the content on my blog since I’m the type of person who gets bored quite easily. I love to read blogs with different content to mine – and if I learn something new from a blog post that’s a total plus point.
Memes are in essence pre-defined templates that bloggers can use to provide regular and interesting content to their blogs. They are particularly useful when you’re lacking inspiration or when your creative juices are drained out.
I do owe some of my blog posts to the memes that I participate in such as Music Monday; Wordless Wednesday; and a little meme I created on my own Sexy Saturday. The idea behind these memes is quite simple – every Monday I put up a post about a piece of music that I enjoy. Wordless Wednesday involves putting up a photograph / visual art – I’ve clubbed this by adding my thoughts to the picture and asking my readers what they think about it too. Sexy Saturday is all about eye-candy and I used it as a way to feature the actors / actresses that I (and the rest of you) drool over.
Do you participate in any popular memes or blog hops ? Would you consider participating in any of the ones I have mentioned ? Does your blog have a mix of topics or do you tend to stick to one type of content ?
Did You Know …
Richard Dawkins first introduced the word ‘meme’ in The Selfish Gene (1976) to discuss evolutionary principles in explaining the spread of ideas and cultural phenomena. He gave as examples melodies, catch-phrases, and beliefs (notably religious belief), clothing/fashion, and the technology of building arches.
A Back-Link is exactly what it sounds like – a link coming back to your own blog or website. It could be from another blog or website to your own; or an external link from someone else.
Diva’s Guide to Giving & Receiving Linky Love
What do you do to increase your back-links ? Do you use any of the suggested methods above ? Do you offer a link exchange feature on your blog ?
Diva’s Discovery
A while ago I came across ‘Comment Luv’ – it’s a plugin that can be used with Wordpress and Blogger blogs which allows the person commenting to choose to display not only their name, but any one of their last 10 blog posts. Now that’s an easy way to create and increase links to and from your blog. Check out this nifty video to get a better idea about it.
p.s. if you use Intense Debate as a commenting system like I do – you just have to go to your dashboard and activate CommentLuv
p.p.s the ‘Love’ part of this post was inspired by @MystiqueWanderr and @Mate1
Yup you read that right, and after you watch this video for ‘Clean & Dry Intimate Wash’ you’ll agree that someone needs to shoot the entire creative team behind this ridiculously retarded advert that is now trying to tell Indian women that not only does your skin have to be fair for you to be a perfect partner; but now your freaking vagina has to be fair too !!
Like WTF is wrong with society ??? Who cares what colour any ones’ vagina is ? I’m pretty sure that no guy thinks ‘ooooh she’s hot, I hope her vagina is fair & lovely’ or ‘Hmm she looks like she might have a dark vagina, I shouldn’t ask her out’
As you can see the couple in the video are quite ‘fair’. They are sitting there having a coffee whilst the woman is looking like she’s about to burst into tears (I wonder why). The guy goes about his coffee without even glancing up at her. She’s still looking like someone has died (or has an upset tummy) and voila – she has a solution. It’s off to the showers for her were she uses a magically whitening and lightening intimate wash so that her vajayjay can become all shiny so as to attract the attention of her husband !! Before you can even blink at the absurdity of it all, she’s out prancing about on the sofas so that the her newly white vag is in her hubbys’ face aaaaaaaaaaaaaaand the best part is that she is now comfortable enough to stick the keys into her shorts just so her hubby can reach in and unlock the new magical white vag !
It’s bad enough that the Indian society is full of stereotypes – the biggest being that one has to be fair to be accepted and appreciated by members of the opposite sex; and that women particularly must maintain their radiant white skin tones (how many ‘white’ Indians have you come across recently ??). But to come up with this ridiculous product to ‘lighten and whiten your vagina’ – it’s just too much !!
Women as a whole are always under pressure to look the part, dress the part, act the part – to be that perfect woman that all guys want – and now to tell them that their most intimate body parts are ‘too dark & ugly’ and needs fixing is just too much !! I can
Oh and now the Indian male chauvinist pig who enjoys putting his woman / woman around him down – after seeing this commercial – will think it’s his God given right to tell a woman ‘sorry, your pussy is too dark so I can’t go down on you – that just means more blowjobs for me’ aaaaaaaaaaaaaargghhh !!!! I swear to you this is the new line a man could/would use to avoid going down on a woman. If a man EVER told me that my coochie was too dark and needed lightening, I would just decline & deprive him of pussy privileges and throw his sorry ass out !!
The unfortunate thing is that this ridiculous product can capitalize on the fact that people within the Indian societies have inferiority complexes and hence will actually buy the product !! I just hope to God that none of the Bollywood celebrities actually try to endorse this product – ‘cos then the herd mentality will commence !
What are your thoughts on the subject ? Do you believe that celebrities should endorse products that somehow impose an inferiority complex on the population ? Don’t we have other things to worry about in an already very complex world ?
Guys – seriously – have you ever thought about the shades of vaginas that you are interested in ? Does it even matter to you ? I would hope that you would dissuade any woman from ever using such a product. In fact, since it’s Cake & Cunnilingus day tomorrow – show her that a real man wants to eat his pussy au naturel !
Disclaimer : I’m aware that there are fairness products available in the US / Europe for the same thing – but it’s not something that is endorsed the way it is in India.
Further Reading
When I first heard about key words – I was a bit confused. I mean it sounded simple enough but every other website was talking about how important it was, and how it should be used and how it affects search rankings .. a bit over my head to be honest.
Basically keywords are those specific words which are searched in a search engine. If you open Google now and type in ‘Blogging’, you will get a few options of ‘key words’ that people use when searching for topics related to blogging.
If you use your keywords correctly – search engines can provide you with a free source of targeted traffic to your website or your blog.
Do you consciously use key words when writing your blog posts ? Now that you know about it – do you think you might have subconsciously done it ?
Please do share any tips or insights based on your experience on how one can incorporate key words into their blog posts.
Before I started the A to Z Challenge, I knew I was going to face
I sent out a plea tweet yesterday as I still didn’t have any topic to write about and then one of my favourite bloggers @TheHopefulRom came to my rescue with the suggestion for today’s post ‘Just Do It’ ‘
TheHopefulRom thought it would be apt ‘For anyone who's spent ages thinking about blogging but has been too afraid’ – Just Do It.
It’s perfect and makes for a great post. So I’ve come up with a few scenarios where the motto ‘Just Do It’ will get you motivated enough to keep you going.
Here’s the Deal. You’re new to the blogging world, and you want to get your blog noticed. What do you do ? Blog, Blog and Blog on ! Just do it ‘cos if you don’t, no one will know you’re out there.
Here’s the Deal. You want to experiment with your blog content to show off your witty sense of humour but aren’t sure if your readers will like it. Just do it – ‘cos someone out there in blogosphere is going to enjoy your post.
Here’s the Deal. You’ve been reading about blog challenges but don’t know if you will be able to complete it. Don’t be afraid. Just do it – how else will you know if you can or can’t complete it.
Here’s the Deal. Are you afraid of leaving comments on other blogs ? Just do it and de-lurk ! Trust me – you won’t regret it.
Here’s the Deal. You want to write about a potentially controversial topic / you are infuriated by something but afraid to blog about it / you’ve been inspired by an idea that could just turn the heat up on your blog .. but you hold yourself back. Just do it – blogs are meant to be an outlet for you to express yourself; it’s your blog after-all.
Here’s the Deal. You’ve made your blogger friends that you follow them on FB and/or Twitter and you would love for them to Guest Post on your blog but afraid / embarrassed to ask. Just do it – not only will the other blogger be flattered they would also appreciate that you think highly of them.
Just Do It. 3 very powerful words. So whether you are a newbie or a native in blogosphere, whenever you find yourself in doubt (in similar situations to above; not for when you’re thinking about raiding a bank or jumping off a cliff) – just do it ! What’s the worst thing that could happen ?
Disclaimer : Neither TheHopefulRom or myself are promoting Nike or blogging on their behalf. This thought can be traced back to the Tweets between THR & myself on 10th April 2012.
(I’m trying to be funny – is it working ?)
Ideas & Inspiration
All blog posts stem from an idea or a thought which our fingers tap out into posts via the keyboard.
Do you ‘think’ about what your blog posts are going to be about or do you just let your creativity take over ? Or do you get an ‘ah ha’ moment and you know that’s what your next post is going to be about.
Sometimes I get inspired by other blogs I read – and I feel that I could definitely add another perspective to the general idea & thought behind that post. I started participating in
I love the idea behind the A to Z Challenge because you’ve basically been given an outline of what you have to do – and now the world is your oyster and you can choose to write about anything. I’ve come across blogs that are using the theme to list the best movies; favourite music artists; give writing advice; introducing characters from a fiction novel; and even relationships. It’s fantastic.
Where do you get your blog ideas from ? What inspires you the most ? What inspired the theme behind your A to Z challenge posts ? Do check out my posts 712 Topics You Can Write About and Never Run Out of Blog Ideas Again
Infographics
I’m sure you’ve seen them floating around cyber space – I find them pretty cool. Did you know that cave paintings are considered to be the first infographics ? How cool is that ?
I quite admire anyone who is able to create an infographic – especially for complex information that needs to be easily understood. I tried doing a basic one just for myself and gave up half way ‘cos it was getting too detailed (and really I am quite useless at using advanced Photoshop or any other creative software)
Do you use any infographics in your blog posts ? Have you tried to create one before ? If you are the creative designer type and use various software for designs then you should check out Inkscape.
Diva’s Discovery
I personally really liked ‘Visual.ly’ for creating infographics because the interface is simple and easy to use. Have you ever used it before or heard of the site ? Here’s a funky infographic I made with the help of the ‘create’ feature on the site (they also have templates to guide you from)
Headings
Have you ever found yourself clicking a link to an article just because the headline / heading caught your attention ? We’ve all done it – I know I definitely do it. Sometimes the articles are worth it – and sometimes I think ‘erm why am I here again ?’
More often than not – people will read an article based on the heading alone. It doesn’t matter how much you pimp your new blog posts via Social Media – if the title doesn’t strike peoples’ interest it’s unlikely they will read the whole post.
Try to use a headline that makes people sit up and 
Humour
Humour is very important in a blog (or at least that’s what I think). I try to incorporate ‘me’ in my posts and that sometimes involves a bit of sarcasm and a few funnies. Anyone with a sarcastic streak will catch the undertones in my posts but its not meant to be evil – it’s just my way of being kinda funny.
I reckon any reader – irrespective of age, gender, race, & geographic location – can appreciate humour in a blog. And there are some wickedly funny blogs out in Blogosphere.
Do you tend to appreciate most types of humour ? If you had to pick your top 10 blogs from your blog roll – how would you rate them on average on the humour front ?
What happens when you win the lottery and you are in a relationship?
A lottery win could give people everything they had ever dreamed of if their numbers come in - but for many people this massive sum of cash can raise issues about a spouse or partner.
Seek Financial Advice
The first thing an individual or couple - whether married or not - should do when they realize they now have a million (or more) in the bank is seek the expertise of a financial adviser.
Such a professional can help them put together a plan of action for their money and may help those who disagree about such matters with their partner.
For instance, if a household is run by one individual who likes to shop and indulge in nice meals and day trips, while the other is a stickler for thrift and saving, a financial adviser can help them reach an agreement over how best to use the money, allowing both parties to put the money where they want it.
Furthermore, these professionals can help couples invest their winnings in such a way that it safeguards their future together.
Dating does not equal Dollars
Hopefully, the vast majority of lucky lotto fans will be able to share their money with a loving other half, allowing them to fulfil their ambitions and aspirations together - but what about when the garden is not so rosy?
According to a case in Florida, a judge ruled that a spurned lover was not entitled to any of his ex-girlfriend's $1 million Florida Lottery prize, even though they had lived together for a number of years.
Judge Alan Dickey stated that an agreement would have to be put in writing between both parties if they were to share the fortune in the event one of them struck lucky.
For richer, for poorer
And even wedlock cannot guarantee a jackpot is split between estranged spouses, because a case in Scotland - which has a different legal system to England and Wales - resulted in one man being told he was not entitled to half of his wife's £35 million after he moved out.
However, the individual was lucky, as his ex decided to share her money with him in spite of their split.
Author Bio:
He is a content and blog writer for theLotter, and online lottery website. He hasn’t won a big lottery jackpot yet, but loves his wife, so plans on closely following his own relationship advice if he ever does!
Follow him on Facebook or Twitter and check out the YouTube channel
Main Picture Source: Thinkstock via Adfero library
Goals
We all have semi pre-defined goals in mind when we decide to do something. That’s why we are doing whatever it is we are doing right ? Blogging is no different. Think about why you blog and what you want to achieve out of it and your goals will be right in front of you.
Scenario 1
Goals are meant to be short, concise and a perfect combo of not too general and not too narrow. Take one main goal with a subsidiary goal and you’ll be fine. Once those are defined you’ll even be able to pin-point the kind of ideal reader that you want coming to your blog.
Every year, my blog goal is to write more than I did the year before which I have managed to do and its a great kick when I cross a certain post threshold ! (This post is #566). What’s your blogging goal ?
Guest Posts
Scenario 2
When I first started blogging – I would come across all these blogs and see guest posts written and think ‘damn, I wonder if I will ever get to write a guest post for someone’ …Aaaaaaand I did ! I lost my guest post cherry in March 2011 and since have even invited other blogg
It was all a bit overwhelming at first but then I realized it’s because of my interactions with the other bloggers, did I get the invite to do a guest post. These were bloggers whose blogs I always left comments on; we were always tweeting together on topics non-blog related and encouraging each other as well.
So if you are thinking about guest posting for another blog – don’t fear. Just drop the blog author an email, tell them how much you enjoy their blog and that you’d love to guest post for them if they are interested; leave a link for your blog and hit that send button. Then make sure you send that blogger a quick tweet to let them know they have mail :)
Have you ever written a guest post for another blog ? What was your experience like ? How did you feel ? Do you invite guest posts from others on your blog ?
Diva’s Discovery
There’s a great site I discovered called MyBlogGuest.com where you can register and find thousands of readily available guest posts across various subjects that are available for your blog. All you have to do is inform the blog author you want to feature a post that catches your attention; if the author agrees – then there is a time frame within which you must publish the post. I’ve gotten some great guest posts out of this site.
