“No one
in the publishing industry
takes a blog seriously,”
said the presenter
“until it has at least
ten thousand followers.”
I thought about my three hundred
loyal followers and sighed.
I would never manage that.
For six months I thought
about her words, knowing what
WordPress said to do,
and how I wasn’t doing it.
So one April, two weeks
before I gave a social media workshop,
I tested their theories.
In two weeks, 444 followers
became a thousand.
Hmm. I thought.
If I keep doing this,
I could have ten thousand
in a year or so.
So I visited other blogs,
commented, and liked their work.
Introducing myself, and noticing others.
It’s the old mantra
‘the only way to have a friend
is to be a friend.’
and here we are!
14 months later,
ten thousand people
see my posts, leave their comments,
share my words, welcome me into their world
laugh with me
offer suggestions,
and make every day
interesting.
I send ten thousand
thank yous to each of you.
I’m grateful you’ve joined my journey
that you share your lives and your time.
Thank you
Thank you
Thank you.
Shawn L. Bird 
I don’t know what I’d do with that many people reading my stuff. Probably get nervous and say something stupid.
I’m pretty sure I say something stupid or a regular basis, mostly because I DON’T get nervous, when I probably should! lol
10,000? Wow… I am in the 100’s!
Keep it up! 🙂
I will!
Congratulations! Thank you for sharing your work 🙂
Thank YOU for reading!
That’s awesome. I admire your work. Glad so many others do now too. Keep Inspiring
Thank you, I will!
I can relate to this so much! Thank you for posting 🙂
My pleasure. Thanks for commenting!
Good for you! I’m trying to do the same thing. Blessings to you, Shawn…
And you, Carol Ann!
wow!! i’ve only been blogging a couple months and want to quit, often. this is so inspiring. thank you!😊
Every day, connect with a few new internet friends! To be honest, the more followers, the easier it gets, because when there are only a few hundred you have that “well, nobody’s reading anyway, so who cares if I don’t post?” feeling. When you have few thousand people expecting to hear something from you every day, there is a pressure not to let them down, and it’s so interesting when they offer some interesting connection they’ve made, or share a link to something they’ve written in the same vein, etc. It’s all very rewarding.
thank you so much, shawn. thats super helpful and encouraging!!
wow! I know just how you feel, and my number of followers has hit 200 😉
We have to start somewhere! 🙂 That’s how I felt at 200, as well. But now it’s multiplied by 50.
And the real work begins and now its about connecting and reading blogs and learning about amazing people out there, but there is so much more to learn.
Always!
Reblogged this on By the Mighty Mumford and commented:
AND I’M GLAD SHE HAS JOINED MINE.
Thanks Jonathan!
THANKS, SHAWN!!!!!
AND THANK YOU FOR ENRICHING MY JOURNEY, TOO!!! 🙂
My pleasure.
It must have been an amazing workshop.
It was with Carol Tice. She blogs at http://www.caroltice.com or at http://www.makealivingwriting.com/ She earns 4 figures each month with her blog. I earn nothing each month with mine. lol Which is to say, I am definitely not following her money making principles! For me, it’s about connections, not money, though if the provincial government keeps fining the teachers this way, I may have to re-think this principle.
thanks for sharing the link – and goodluck to you. I am married to a teacher and have good friends who are teacher know how hard they work the world over. I think for me blogging and writing are about connecting, but how lovely it would be to make a living from it.
lol
Thanks. We are in quite a fight!
I’ve just started my blog recently and so badly want to be successful. This post really gives me so much hope and I would truly be lost on my journey without it. Thank YOU so much.
My pleasure, Alexandra. Just keep reading and writing!
wow! that’s so awesome. I’ve been blogging a year and still have very few followers. What would u recommend? Daily commenting on other peoples blogs? liking etc.
Just don’t know where to go from here.
Yup. That’s all I did, Johanna. Use the WordPress blog reader for suggestions.
Congratulations, that’s awesome!
Thank you, Catherine. I agree! lol It amazes me.
are you serious? you have that many followers, you send that many thank yous?
If you read, I include you in the message! Thank you! 🙂
🙂 lol, no apparently I don’t read, i only see what i imagine i see,
angel, what you do/have done, is amazing 🙂
X
Thank you for the compliment!
Congratulations! And I love your work! 😄
Thank you, Susan. I appreciate that a lot!
that’s awesome – congrats!!
Thank you!
Wow, that’s a lot of people, well done! Keep up the great content and many more of us will surely come 🙂
I will do my best, Chris!
Hopefully the publishing industry is taking you seriously now, if not, we love you here : )
Thank you. I appreciate you.
Thank you Shawn : )
10,000!!! Does this mean that bloggers may be “liking” haphazardly just to add numbers to their own blog???
I suppose it could.
It’s kind of like working a room at a cocktail party. Do you meet everyone? Do you take an interest in what they’re doing making small talk? When someone has shown interest in you, do you show interest back? Would you call that haphazard? It may be shallow, but do you feel encouraged? Do you come across some people that you want to know better because you’ve made an effort to talk to everyone, even the quiet ones, hiding in the corners, who are too shy to get out and talk to anyone themselves? Of course, you do.
Sound advice for a beginner such as myself….i look forward to more words of wisdom and whimsy(really, i do)….
lol
Anyone who has a Han Solo gravatar is already doing very well in the whimsy department. 😉
Well then, 100 points to me I guess (0.o)
Thank you for this insightful post. Perfect words for what I am wrestling with.
Glad to oblige
Congratulations! And this is very inspirational as I’m in the 300-odd follower mark despite blogging for a year. Will try to put your good advice to practice. =)
All the best to you!
That’s so awesome that you have achieved such a success. I am so thankful that you would follow my blog, yourself and I love your writing.
Thanks Evan. It’s my pleasure!
Very intriguing … I do notice you are very active with your work here, and people are responding to you. Thanks for the direction and always delightful work. And thanks for being one of the early followers of my blogs.
You’re welcome, Thommy. I am definitely active here, both in posting and interacting with those who are gracious enough comment on my posts. It’s quite wonderful. 🙂
Congratulations. I guess I’m too much a sluggardly…. 😦
Slow and steady gets there eventually!
Congratulations on reaching your milestone. You inspire me.
I’m glad. Keep up your good work!
Congratulations! That is a fantastic accomplishment.
Thank you, Michelle.
I’m so glad you have been able to build up your blog as you wished to. I may start a conscious effort to build my blog numbers in a few months, when I expect a major shift in my schedule. Meanwhle, I am getting used to posting so I have some confidence in my ability to give readers something to interact with.
I had two years of posts before I felt that confidence. You have to do it as it feels right. Good luck!
Thanks! I would never expect to get to 10,000, but maybe 1,000 eventually…
Little by little!
Reblogged this on Bring Back the Poetry and commented:
Bird just set the bar! Here goes!
Good luck! 🙂
Thanks!
You are such a great example, Shawn! Thank you for working so hard!
My pleasure, Jason.
The world is vast
with hate as past
only friends cast
our shadow so fast.
Lovely!
I clicked “like” in response to this post… but continued to think about what you wrote for a good part of last night. Not only are you a talented writer, but you are taking the time to educate and guide your peers and I think that is just wonderful. You have 10,000 followers for a reason. Thank you!
Thanks, Jenna. I appreciate you coming by!
wow…amazing…! congrats…ty for d tips 🙂 keep reading & posting good wishes
Thanks & you’re welcome.
I was wondering how others got so much attention…mazal bueno on your success.
Thanks, Samuel.
Perhaps, you can direct me to one of those workshops, I’m certainly interested.
There are some links at http://www.shawnbird.com/writing
I was once at a conference which stated that 92% of blogs are only seen by one person: the blogger.
I’ve been blogging for a year and I’ve ended up with almost 100 followers and over 4,000 views from around 50 counties.
I find it so endearing to know people like what you have to offer.
I love that map that shows where visitors come from. One Russian and one Canadian fills half the world! It looks very impressive! lol Still waiting for someone from Greenland.
I think the phenomenon you mention is why 10,000 is a number to aim for. Apparently (from what I see here) it takes about 10,000 followers in order to see approximately 100 likes per post, with several hundred blog views each day.
Hi Shawn..thank you for visiting my page. I can only hope to have 100 people one day. I have browsed through your blog and I can see why you have followers by the masses…great work!
You’re welcome. Thank you! Glad to have you visit!
Thank you for noticing my work, I know I am a fresh new blogger but I am pumped up that one day I will publish my work and can proudly say, It all started with one like! thank you so much for supporting me through the start of my new journey 🙂
My pleasure. Every worthwhile project has to start somewhere. Best wishes on your journey.
I am honored you take the time to read and like my poetry blog. I admire your work and your energy. Thanks for sharing yourself.
My pleasure, Phyllis, and thank you for visiting here!
You are truly amazing! Your post plus your responses to comments above are priceless. I can see you have a huge work/play ethic. You also have a huge heart. If I had to go back to school–which I absolutely DO NOT need to do again!–I’d love to have you as my teacher. Thanks for this encouragement, realistic challenge, and hope-filled cheer! I’m going right back to my Reader right now to find three more strangers who’d like to be encouraged.
Elouise
‘Going back to find 3 strangers to encourage’ is the best compliment. Spread the love. 🙂
Thanks Elouise.
I just did!