Life throws up some surprises, doesn’t it? One minute, you’re flying – the next, everything changes. A promise broken, major mistake made or serious misjudgment can turn your entire world upside down.
We all rely on different methods to cope with stressful situations. For you, a brisk run, much-needed cry or decision to throw yourself into work may be the answer.
It’s not always as simple as that, though. Certain situations require you to draw deep from within in order to overcome whatever challenge life has decided to place before you. During such times, I think it pays to get creative – literally. In my case, I turn to my personal blog.
When stripped back, blogging is simply a form of journaling. Businesses use blogs to exhibit their knowledge of the industry they occupy, while hobbyists use this form of content as a way to detail their experiences of a particular topic. But, how about using a blog to help you overcome a stressful situation? It might sound daft, but people have journaled for this very reason for centuries.
If I’ve inspired you to put digital pen to web paper, here’s how you can approach a blog intended solely to help you de-stress:
1. Set Up A WordPress Site And Make It Private
Thankfully, you can create a personal blog in minutes by using a service like WordPress. Once you’ve followed their simple, step-by-step process, make it private. Why? Well, this will give you free reign to get used to blogging without fear that your writing will be seen by anything other than your own eyes. Once you’re happy and feel a little more confident, you can make it public, but don’t feel you have to – that’s not really the purpose here.
2. Start Writing About Anything
Now you’ve got your platform sorted, you can start the process of writing. Before you do, however, just remember that the topic can be anything – it doesn’t necessarily have to be related to the problem at hand.
This might sound odd, but for many people, the process of writing about something entirely different is the ideal tonic. The tone of your blog may be tainted by the stress you’re under, but that’s fine – if that’s the case, it’s doing its job as an outlet for your frustration. Alternatively, if you’d rather jump straight in and write about the stressful situation in which you’ve found yourself – go for it. It won’t be easy, but you’ll feel significantly better on the completion of each piece.
3. Get Into The Habit Of Posting Regularly
You can learn something from business blogging, here. Marketing departments rely on content calendars to ensure they have a plan for future content, and, while you don’t need to be quite as regimented as that, a posting calendar of your own will ensure you keep up with the writing.
Keep a notebook handy, too. As soon as an idea arrives, note it down or pop it into your calendar for the next post. If you fail to do this, you’ll simply lose the impetus to write at all.
Read Your Blogs Regularly
Ok, so your blog has an audience of one, and that audience member happens to be you, but that’s fine. In fact, this is a crucial step; reading your own work will give you a valuable insight into how you were feeling at the time – and it may surprise you.
If this has inspired you to start blogging through your troubles, I’ve done my job. Now, it’s over to you to find that inner author. Good luck!
