Really.
I don't like to fail AT ALL!
I don't like to be told I did something wrong.
I don't like knowing that everything I do is not amazingly brilliant.
I am equally driven to perfection and afraid to try something unfamiliar. Some people might be surprised to hear that. I think all of us are insecure in one way or another. I recently heard a great analogy about this.
On a scale of 1-10 we all have an average score of 5. We might be 8's or even 10's in some areas but only a 1 or 2 in others. (I am definitely a 2 when it comes to mechanical stuff!)
If I score everything I do and average those scores together I will be a 5.
So will you.
And everybody else.
Someone else might be a 10 at mechanics but a 1 at putting words together. The trick is to avoid comparing my 2's and 3's to someone else's 9's and 10's.
Isn't that great?! It isn't like I haven't heard this before, it just sticks better when put in this simple framework.
That being said, I am now going to ask you to do something completely opposite to what I have just told you. I am asking you to critique my blog. I have joined "Critique My Blog Blogfest" over at A Writer's Journey.
Here are some areas to consider:
a. Appearance: Does it appeal to you? Is it too busy, or too plain?
b. Layout: Is it difficult to navigate? Is it cluttered, or sparse?
c. Frequency: Does the blogger post too often? Not often enough?
d. Content: Are the posts interesting? Unique? Are they focused, or all over the place?
e. Quality: Are the individual posts too long, too short, too sloppy, or too generic?
I am most interested in Content and Quality. I will welcome all constructive critique. Please be honest but respectful. You may post critiques in the comments section for others to see. If you are new to this site, I suggest exploring the tabs, especially "Favorites" and My Secret Identity" to get a feel for what I am doing here.
Oh, yeah, anyone can participate, whether you are in the blogfest or not!
9 comments:
Hi! Two columns is definitely the way to go as it's so much cleaner!
I like the title of your blog. Perhaps consider moving your network blog widget under join this site. I would like to see a bio and perhaps a statement of what your blog is about. I like that you are using LinkinWithin. I like the use of tabs at the top. I’m not big on videos on blogs (I rarely watch them), but that’s just my preference.
Wow, what a way to scare off the critiques! lol
Now I'm all scared that I'll hurt your feelings and we can't be friends. Which would be really sad.
Appearance - Two columns works well for what you have going on here. I don't understand why there's a giant earth as your background though and it's kinda distracting.
Layout - Yes. As stated above.
Frequency - It seems like you a fairly regular posting schedule going on. Keep it up!
Content - I'm not sure what you have going on here. I like your blogs subtitle but don't see how it relates to your posts. There seem to be a lot of youtube videos (which is blocked where I'm currently at) but no 'content' to go along with them... I'm not quite getting what the purpose of all the posts is. Some of them don't even have titles... Are they Ramblings? Maybe. Thoughts? Maybe. Can't really tell.
Quality - as stated above. It all ties together.
You. Are. Awesome!
PS - I personally hate the word verification thinger. It's annoying, and wastes my time as a commenter - especially when on a mobile device.
xoxo
Okay, so far I am not feeling too picked on. I am not sure how to tunr off the stupid word verification thing (which I also hate) so I am not taking that persoanlly.
In case any preveious commneters want a second look, try exploring the tabs, specifically "My Secret Identity" and "Favorites". I will add this suggestion to the post but your comments make we want to rethink some features.
Hi Amy,
Your writing voice has a lovely tone to it. It's warming to read your posts. Personally, I'm not religious, nor have I been brought up in a religious environment. My first difficulty with your site was that I didn't know what LDS meant. I couldn't make the connection and at first was getting really confused.
My second problem was in how do I follow you. Maybe you could try having a follow button towards the top of the left column so it's easy to click.
I love the concept of your site. The use of categories at the top is good (could you maybe have a home button?).
Why not have some sort of easily accesible introduction to what your religious beliefs actually are for people who don't understand the religious terminology?
Believe in yourself. I look forward to reading more.
Kate
happenence.wordpress.com
Thanks for participating in my blogfest!
1. I adore your background image. It makes me feel like I'm floating.
2. I love your relaxed, personal attitude. It's rare and wonderful. However, some of your post are veeeeery long. In this post, for example, you take a long time to get to the point. Instead of leading up to the fact that you're participating in a blogfest, you should mention the blogfest and then say why you're doing it.
3. I'm only skimming through, and I see quite a few typos. (Under Speaking a Foriegn Language, Baby, you wrote "waht you baby wants.")
4. I find your blog especially interesting because I'm LDS, but I also feel it's set up well for non-LDS members.
I hope some of this is helpful!
Not a writing blog as far as I can tell but your information is easily located.
Great photos. I like a blog that is personalized like yours.
Fonts and colors are easy on the eyes, a BIG plus :)
Not crazy about the word verification but that is a subjective crit.
Your feelings about getting critiqued definitely resonate. Nothing wrong with owning how hard it is.
I'm jealous of the way your Networked Blogs follower widget fits proportionally without a bunch of white space because I haven't been able to make mine do that and it bugs me every time I look at it.
I also think the tabs are cool, although I'm sometimes confused by the role of tabs in a blog. When I followed the tabs, I wasn't sure how to get back to the "home" post.
I, too, didn't know what LDS was at first, although I figured it out. I struggled a little to figure out the focus of your blog at first and, while the background photo is cool, I wasn't sure how it connected with your focus, though I think I get it now. I guess the question is whether a new visitor who is not participating in a critique would take the time to figure out the answers to some of these confusions.
I think you have a very human and accessible voice when writing about your faith. That can be hard to do. I love finding blogs and voices online that reflect a real and complex perspective on faith. Too much of what we see around us is oversimplified.
I agree that some of the posts seem long.
I'm not a big fan of videos (personal preference), but I notice that I am more likely to check out the video if there are a few sentences of text that tell me why the blogger chose that video, maybe summarize some of the content.
I too would like to see a bio, at least a mini one, at the top of your sidebar somewhere.
Your blog's appearance is really nice, and I love the planet image :) I've got a real thing for outer space! The colour scheme is easy on the eyes, which I appreciate!
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