7 Lessons Golf can Teach you About Blogging
After a 21 day long stream of fresh content, every single day, I took a little regroup time to finish some non-blogging related things. Today, getting back into things, I present with with seven lessons the sport Golf can teach you about blogging.
Be the Authority
Know more than anyone else in your niche. Be the go-to blogger for questions and answer them in posts. Make it known that people should be reading your blog because it is the best in the field. The authority of Golf is obviously Tiger Woods, and everybody knows it. He’s a household name and known among those who have no clue what Golf is.
Be the Tiger Woods of your niche. Write the best content and be #1 in the minds of all.
Be Confident
You have to have more than faith in your content and your design. You better know damn well you’re doing things right, or at least think you do. A solid, to the point, confident post will do more for the reader and get your point into their head much better than a wishy-washy one, even if you’re speaking shenanigans.
Don’t get Phased
For the readers who have Golfed before, or play on a regular basis, you know it’s possibly one of the most frustrating things in the world. Maybe you duff your tee shot, miss the green or over shoot. The same goes for writing a post that doesn’t get comments, receives negative criticism and an over all uninspired post. Don’t let these events get the best of you. Same goes for your stats. Bloggers like stats. Bloggers also take stats too seriously (one of them right here), but don’t let them dictate your mood.
One Little Thing Makes all the Difference
There are some Golf highlights, on in particular that comes to mind, that can turn the world around, either way, for the golfer. Watch this YouTube video, as it is possibly the most memorable golf shot of all time. Tiger Woods chipped in with ridiculous suspense and went on to win the 2005 Masters (the Holy Grail of Golf Tournaments).
Things also work the other way. Jean van de Velde holds the most memorable collapse as Tiger holds the opposite. Another video, this time documenting the wrong way to about things. If one thing goes wrong, make sure the next thing doesn’t.
Deal with the Hecklers
GET IN THE HOLE!!1 The saying that took televised Golf tournaments by storm is the equivalent of spam comments, and more specifically those deserving the “douche” tag. Letting these comments and emails go unreplied and undefended can reflect negatively on you. The plugin linked above will let every one know what kind of person they are, but you still have to deal with them.
Look The Part
A quick touch on design- it matters. If you don’t think it does, then the best advice I can give is to keep using the MistyLook theme, because chances are you’re already using it. I’m not saying pay thousands of dollars for a design, but at least make the effort to pick out a good free theme. You never see Tiger Woods wearing something that is the same as another golfer, or something that looks bad.
If there are similarities, it’s the other golfers copying him. That’s the authority effect 
When It Comes Down to it, The Best Prevail
All things aside, the best content always wins. You don’t get to number one on poor content (you can, but… don’t worry about that). The golf money list ranks players by the amount of money they make (over a two year rolling period or something) and is looked at as a measure of skill. Potential gets you nowhere unless you use it.
Leave a comment
Henry
August 29th, 2007 at 6:19 PM
The youtube you showed is ok.. but watch this:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=zKcBTaTed0Q
an insane shot, one of the best you will ever see.
Connor Wilson
August 29th, 2007 at 6:46 PM
I remember that, but it’s not nearly as memorable as the one I posted. It’s because it was Tiger Woods at the Masters, and he won
Adam Mckerlie
August 29th, 2007 at 8:11 PM
Wow, Another great post Connor. Such a unique topic. I have to agree with everything you’ve said
Connor Wilson
August 29th, 2007 at 9:24 PM
Digg link:
http://digg.com/tech_news/7_Lessons_Golf_can_Teach_you_About_Blogging
Don’t be afraid to stumble, either!
Ryan
August 29th, 2007 at 11:44 PM
I stumbled. I’m pretty sure I did once before too.
Daniel Johnson
August 31st, 2007 at 2:29 AM
Cute idea. ^_^
I think that you should have mentioned more about patience as well. Because many new bloggers assume that they will instantly have lots of readers. When infact it takes a lot of time and patience much like Golf.
Deron Sizemore
August 31st, 2007 at 3:12 PM
Nice post Connor! I didn’t know you were a golfer. I’m probably more addicted to golf than I am publishing websites.
I have been planning a similar article about golf and what it can teach you about blogging, but have been having some hosting issues or I would have already wrote it.
Terinea Weblog
September 9th, 2007 at 7:04 PM
Excellent advice, don’t play golf but I’m sure many will be able to relate to it.
Patience is a good one.
Jamie
Thomas Sinfield
September 16th, 2007 at 9:40 PM
Being confident is so important. If you post confidently then you don’t have to be a guru to be seen as one!
Marketing
August 19th, 2008 at 4:05 PM
Brilliant article, I love your writing style. You definitely play the game so well.
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