Hands Up and Step Slowly Away from the Keyboard: Why Good Executives Often Make Bad Bloggers

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By now, most people have seen or at least heard about the TV show “Intervention,” in which family members and friends conspire to lure a troubled loved one into getting essential treatment for a longstanding, life-threatening addiction. Sometimes it works. Sometimes it doesn’t.

Well, today we’re going to hold a different kind of intervention: a virtual one to reach out to the many executives out there populating the modern workplace, and who are good or even great at their jobs, yet make the mistake of assuming that their competence extends into the blog writing space. No, this delusion is (obviously) not life threatening. But it does indeed damage a business’s brand, reputation and in the big picture, the bottom line. That leads to budget cuts and job losses. 

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Are You Making These Common Legal Mistakes on Your Blog?

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Editor’s Note: This post was written by Aaron George, an entrepreneur focused on changing the legal industry. His startup called LawKick makes it easier than ever to find affordable, qualified legal help for free.

People blog for different reasons. Some just do it for fun. Some use it as a marketing tool for other products and services. Some do it full-time and make a living by serving up ad impressions. No matter what your reason is, it’s a good idea to be aware of the key legal considerations of operating a blog.

Depending on your blog strategy and your reason for blogging in the first place, there are different legal obligations you must meet.

Blogger typing on laptopPhoto credit: Anonymous Collective via Flickr

For the casual blogger just writing for the thrill of self-expression, you won’t have more than a few minor legal concerns to think about. But if blogging is your primary source of income, there are more serious legal issues that come into play, and you should definitely address them before it’s too late.

This post highlights three of the most common legal mistakes made by bloggers, along with some tips on what you can do to avoid them. [Read more…]

5 Common Blogging Disasters to Avoid

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Blogging is a fun and creative way to express your interest in a particular subject.  Of course, if you plan accordingly, learn everything you can about SEO, and put in a lot of time and effort, you can also monetize your blog in order to turn your passion to profession.  Unfortunately, you’re bound to hit a few bumps along the road.  Even if you claim to be a writer, blogging is a whole different ball game.  Imagine writing a book that’s infinitely long and you only add a page a day; that’s a difficult proposition, but it’s blogging in a nutshell.  So if you’re interested in ramping up your blog, here are a few common pitfalls to avoid.

1.       Burnout. Writing posts on the same subject, day in and day out, can prove harrying for the blogger without a strong constitution.  Not only will you run out of topic ideas, you may also find yourself losing enthusiasm for a subject that you were once passionate about.  Plus, if you are trying to monetize your blog, you are likely working another job in the meantime and devoting every spare moment to your blog, turning what started as a fun and exciting project into an increasingly hefty monkey on your back.  [Read more…]