Can Blogging Kill You?

It may sound like an absurd question and so you may be surprised to learn that the answer is yes. Now don??™t let anyone exaggerate the truth of the matter. You cannot literally die from blogging, just as you can??™t die from surfing any website online. However, blogging can be linked to death, and can be identified as one of several causes for death or major injury. How is this possible?

The act of blogging is only dangerous in so much as it is such a time-consuming hobby that it can distract you from other important daily tasks. Years ago, people wrote letters for communication. Some effort was involved in doing that much personal handwriting and so it was very hard to become addicted to this activity. However, the Internet today is more comparable to watching an interactive television than it is curling up with a good book. There are millions of websites to distract us. Make that billions when you bring blogging into the picture.

Bloggers don??™t have to be famous to be interesting. Someone??™s writing voice, or the subject of their blog, may appeal to you. You can waste hours at a time keeping updated on the latest news, as locally interpreted. This is what is dangerous??”especially if you start neglecting your health. Spending hours at a time typing at a computer and looking at a bright screen can take its toll. To better care for your body, try and take a five-minute break every hour. Get up, walk around and stretch??”it will improve the quality of your life and your writing!

Another factor to consider is that bloggers (especially the type who work all day long at their computer) tend to neglect their physical exercise. Regular office jobs require some traveling and lifting. Blogging all day not only restricts movement but may also encourage excessive eating which is a major health no-no.

Last but not least, there is the stress factor. Hopefully, blogging is an activity you enjoy, one that gives you pleasure. However, if you find yourself stressing over blog comments left by strangers or if the research gets to be too much for you, then it??™s time to take a break.

Treat blogging like a job if you must, but be sure to give your body the attention that it deserves and that it would receive if you ventured outside the office. Never forsake a good night??™s sleep or a good meal for a more convenient blogging schedule. Blog about your life, don??™t make your life about the blog!

Customer Service is the Epicenter of the Universe

All businesses live or die based on their ability to deliver quality customer service. With a quality service customers will feel appreciated and will be more inclined to frequent your offers/service.

When customer service is poor then you will be driving customers away. Now, some associated bad customer service with overt rudeness or neglect.

While these are definitely examples of poor customer service even seemingly benign items can sink one’s customer service reputation. For example, does your business make the phone ring six times before answering?

Do you wait a week to return simple email requests? Do you make nickel and dime deductions on refund requests for “service fees”? While these may not seem like a big deal they resonate significantly with customers and they may end up harming your business.

Customers really do not have the time or patience to deal with a vendor or provider who seems disinterested with their business and an aloof attitude towards a customer may drive them away.

So, play it smart and play it polite. Always treat the customer with importance and respect and your business will be rewarded.

If this sounds simple, it’s because it is. If it sounds like a winning strategy, it’s because it is that, too!

An Interview With Blogging Evangelist Anil Dash

His predictions are coming true..He expected the blogging to become a billion dollar industry or more. It happened much faster than he imagined.

During the Blogworld Expo 2008. I had a rare chance of meeting Anil Dash, the evangelist blogger of Sixapart( the creators of blogging platforms such as MoveableType, Vox, TypePad). He believes blogging is all about freedom and expressions and he credits his company SixApart along with their fierce competitors wordpress & blogger for fostering this revolution.

As you listen to this interview you will see that Anil is at his best. Talking about media, Best Buy’s acquisition of Napster, Computers Google, Journalism in print etc & etc and on an on. He has some good points on why you should choose MovableTypes over WordPress or Blogger.

I was very hard on him about Six Apart’s strategy, mission and goals. He answers all my questions with absolute conviction and clarity. When I had difficulty choosing the right words to phrase my questions, Anil jumped in an helped with them.

We had tremendous synergy going all along the interview and overall we had fun doing this. I think this is one of my best interviews ever.

WordPress or Movetabletype? this is one of the burning questions of many bloggers. Anil answers this questions and provides an amazing analogy. Don’t forget to listen to that part.

I’m sure you will love this interview and if you do, by all means please do leave a comment for me here..