Matt’s Outlook for the Future

I was leafing through the Psychology Today publication (a great non WoW blog, mind you) and I ran into an article about George Carlin’s outlook on life. It was an interview he did for PT. There’s a few lessons I want to impart. I liked the post format a lot that I wanted to try!

Except in my case, I won’t be looking back. I’ll be looking forward.

On Wrath. Lots of fun. I can’t wait for it. It’ll be out in a little over a month with new zones, new things to do and I’ve eased off the beta for a while. I only leveled to 73 on my Character copy Priest. I guess I just got tired. I was more interested in raiding anyway.

On blogging neighbors. Blogging’s changed since I first started. A lot of old time faces I knew have retired from the game and have moved on. There’s a lot more new faces and strong bloggers out there. Once Wrath arrives, I suspect we’ll see a surge of quality stuff as new posts get written by people who want to get their thoughts down.

On marketing and promotion. I’ve seen bloggers who state their adamant position that they’re writing for themselves and that’s it. Later on I come back finding these same bloggers concerned about their lack of traffic. Sorry guys! Can’t have one without the other! If you want to see an increase in traffic, you have to write for yourself and for your audience! There’s a lot of excellent writers out there who are bright people. But here’s the trick: You have to learn about marketing and promotion. Draw attention to yourself. Link outwards. EMail other bloggers asking for a link (you can do it subtly, too. Just don’t play this card every post, only on the epic ones). I miss good posts all the time and by the time I think about linking to it, its out of date. Use Twitter. Use Facebook. Use Curse.com. Email WoW Insider. We’re always looking for stories and if its well written and newsworthy, we’ll put it up. Put the URL in your forum signature. Ask for subscriptions. I could go on and give a lecture about this.

On reading. Will Smith said it best. There isn’t a problem on Earth that someone hasn’t already solved and hasn’t already written about. Don’t stop learning, don’t stop absorbing information, and always ask questions. Because to put it bluntly, if you don’t ask, you won’t get an answer. But reading is very important. Try to catch 15 minutes a day with a magazine or a blog. Try reading a Non-WoW blog.

On creativity. The thing I miss the most about being a kid was being foolish and having an imagination. I just can’t seem to do it anymore. I know as I grow older its only going to get worse. There’s no such thing as a bad idea. What may not work for one person could work for you. Be creative! Try something new! Do something no one’s done before. I really want to try Slidecasting and I do have an idea in place to see if I can pull it off. Yeah it’ll take a lot of work, but I view it as a different way to express myself.

On special occasions. Happy birthday Aylii! They should be recognized. Even a gentle reminder would be nice. Guys are just bad at remembering dates (actually, it might just be me).

On modus operandi. It’s a term in law known as mode of operation. It describes characteristic patterns and their style of action. I’m a Priest at heart who loves the job of healing and who loves the job of writing. My style has always been straight and to the point (most of the time). But I’ll express posts in different formats and I won’t hesitate to borrow other formats and apply it to WoW.

On Blizzcon. I wish I could go. I’d love to attend but school keeps me away. I won’t be able to go next year if it falls at the same time again. It ends up usually around Mid term time for me. Have fun, all of you that are going! I look forward to reading about your stories and seeing photos!

On the joy of writing and being read. Its a tremendous feeling and it offers a heck of a high to wake up to in the morning after checking stats and reading other reactions. Its nice to be recognized for the effort that’s being put into the work I do. A lot of people don’t understand that blogging at a high level is hard work. So why do I do it? Because I love writing! If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be here and its always been that simple. I rest easier knowing that I’ve helped a player out there improve themselves or teaching someone how to do something. Its not a feeling that can be placed into words. Some people like to entertain, some like to rant or rage, but I just like teaching.

On laughter. We need more of it in this world.

What about you? Not necessarily on the above topics I chose, but pick 10 random topics or lessons and write down how you feel or what you think about them.