I’m going to go right ahead and say this. It’s not how much work you put into building your blogging business that matters, it’s how smart you work at it.

You must have heard the expression –  “Work smarter, not harder”, right?

Well, I’m a strong believer and advocate of the “work smarter” methodology, and you should be too.

When I first started blogging, of course, it was all about working super hard because the learning curve was steep.

But I think once you’re past the preliminary stage of learning the basics of blogging, moving forwards, it’s all about how smart you work towards your blogging goals.

Do you agree?

And, if you can do both, work smarter and harder, then you’ll be flying.

So, how do you work smarter as a blogger?

Here are some ideas and suggestions to sink your teeth into –

1. Have your blogging purpose firmly set in your mind. Know “why” you are blogging so that you don’t lose focus, ever.
2. Set Smart Measurable Actionable Relevant Time-bound blogging goals and work toward crushing them.
3. Always plan ahead, from your content creation to content marketing and promotion. Use a good blog planner, like this one.
4. Collect user-data, track, and measure your progress, but don’t get too caught up in vanity metrics.
5. Make growing your readership a number one priority.
6. Reward yourself each time you reach a new milestone with your blog.
7. Make use of smart tools, apps, services to help you blog smarter toward your goals.
8. Dedicate some time to learning something new that will help you improve your blogging or the services you provide. I recently did this myself.
9. Take time to engage and interact with your audience and blog readers.
10. Block out times to focus on your blogging activities. Try and make sure you stick to the same time each day or each week to help you maintain a routine.

So, you really don’t need to spend 10+ hours a day or night working on your blog tirelessly.

You can do, of course, it’s entirely up to you. However, beware that if you don’t have a plan or be smart about how you work, you’ll most likely burn yourself out and your progress will be measly.

I spend no more than 2 to 3 hours each day doing blogging activities, and in that time, I can get so much done just by blogging smarter.

I always work roughly the same time each day and over the years that has helped me to stay in a positive routine.

So remember, work smarter, not harder. And if you can do both, then rock on!

Need help with planning and creating a smart blogging strategy that works? Check out my Ultimate Blog Planner workbook.