Photo: Akeeris
If you don’t know me in person perhaps you look at my blog, my Facebook page or my Twitter stream and think “Wow Julie really has it together, she’s one FINE example of a sassy, capable woman….look how she juggles it all and manages to stay in touch online!”
Allow me a moment to relish in that thought would you?……
Ok so here’s the deal, I know this may shock you but…..
I’m not always online when it looks like I am.
GASP!
“But Julie you just sent out a Tweet that changed my life, you rocked my perspective…are you saying this was inauthentic?”
Well…cough….nope, not inauthentic but I wrote that Tweet at a different time then when it flew into my stream and you saw it.
I pre-schedule Tweets.
I pre-schedule Facebook updates.
I pre-schedule my blog posts.
Yes friends, I’ve taken advantage of the oh-so-simple tools available to me to assist with social media. Now some people will have an issue with this, they will think that I’m misleading them. They won’t like that it can take me days to respond to them and perhaps become even more irritated while they’re waiting for a response and see me updating a status.
Am I a sell out?
Possibly, but with good reason.
Photo: Michal Marcol
My life isn’t all happy, happy, joy, joy. (How much did you love Ren and Stimpy?)
Every day I wake up in pain; it’s become a constant companion which I’m still learning to live with. Dealing with chronic pain isn’t a simple task; there are coping skills to learn, different medications to try, each of which have side-effects to work out. My brain doesn’t seem to be what it once was, I can’t multi-task anymore, it drives me crazy that I can’t remember things which I should and it’s frustrating when a simple blog post can take me all day to write because I need breaks.
Thankfully my perspective is positive, that in itself was a process, and often I find the rug slipping out from under me and I have to work to get back the gratitude for the everyday gifts I’m granted.
Suffice it to say I have some challenges, but this post isn’t actually about that. This post is about me lying in bed, lazy-boy or on the couch, propped up with pillows typing away from my laptop or iPad. I would like to think you all imagine me looking strikingly glamorous, sitting at a desk while I write but I am afraid I’m popping the proverbial bubble with this blog entry.
Most days my hair isn’t done, I’m usually in yoga pants and a hoodie and filling up my cup of hope by reading blogs. Not only do I become inspired to write but it’s cathartic for my heart to write and read the amazing stories shared on the internet. On the days when I can’t get out of the house, the interaction here makes me feel somewhat human.
On average I get a few hours of “good” time in a day, the other hours are not so hot. These “good” hours are spent trying to get some light housework done, spending time with our children and engaging in rehab therapies. Then there are my “in-between” hours where the pain has increased, my mind is a bit dimmer, this is when I write. That’s awesome that my writing happens then…imagine what I could achieve on full-throttle! The other hours are spent resting, in a quite dark room where I don’t have to think or respond.
Blogging saved me when I was so low in the valley, it gave me an outlet to share some of myself to others and begin to feel purposeful again. By using the automated tools, I’ve been able to keep up interaction with my readers and friends at times when I couldn’t have otherwise.
Sometimes the pain takes over and I need to rest, that’s just a given.
There are bad days, days where I can’t be myself and on those days I grab a back-up blog post and with a simple click it goes live on my blog. During these times I also appreciate the fantastic guest-posts my friends have written for me, just last month I reached out to some blogger friends. I had a period where I was down, wayyyyy down and couldn’t write. These friends stepped up for me and kept my readers interested while showing me their love.
Things aren’t always what they seem.
My situation is just one example of this, I’ve found a way to appear “present” for my readers when in fact I’m not. This has been handy but on the down-side people have used it to the negative, it can appear that I’m a fully capable person which my ego loves but can lead to disappointment for those who expect more than I’m capable of.
My task is to provide full-disclosure. As always I’m open and am willing to share my limitations freely but to that person who recently said “You must be fine, you’re online all day!“….well to you my friend I have a few choice words but suffice it to say, you’re not as brilliant as you think!
I don’t have moves like Jagger but I have automation that helps me seem like Houdini!
To my blogger friends who have taught me about automating online interaction and provided guest-posts: thank you so much, I really appreciate it.
To my readers and friends, thank you for sticking it out with me when I’m not actually online. I do my best to read all comments and interactions but if I miss something please do forgive me, give me a prod by letting me know what I’ve missed and rest-assured I’ll get back to you asap….it could take a week but I promise I do my best!
Tools to automate:
Tweetdeck: you can automate Facebook and Twitter status and arrange feeds to help you respond in an organized fashion
Blogger/WordPress: instead of hitting Publish, hit the edit button and schedule the time for the update
There are so many other programs out there, just Google schedule update (whichever social media outlet you’re using).
How about you, my valued reader…..does it bother you that I automate?
I get flack all the time because people think I am online when I am not! Yes, and I feel guilty too when people say Oh I can’t believe you just took the time to write this, and I tell them I pre-scheduled that post from a month ago LOL
I am not in constant pain (although i know many bloggers who are, and this is a good source of income for those who can’t work a main stream job). I am a busy Mom of 3 boys, and I write in 5-10 minute increments.
I love my laptop b/c i can be outside, on the couch, or in my office and no one knows. I am usually in my jammies all day, in desperate need of a shower. I use tweetdeck, networked blogs, and tribber to have my posts look like they are going at all times of the day. Oh and I love that I can preschedule using blogger.
I always picture you like in your photos, completely put together LOL
Thanks so much for sharing your angle Shair, I love that you picture me that way lol. I don’t make $$ from my blog, to make a decent income I’d need thousands more readers in a day….but I love it.
I love it when people ask how I’m online all day! Um…I’m not. Sorry to burst the bubble folks!
(Good thing too…not sure how happy my kids would be if I was online ALL DAY!)
HA! You’d be in trouble then
I totally hear what you are saying here – blogging is a great hobby/job because it is so flexible. Using automated scheduling and prescheduled posts is so helpful! I am the exact same way – when I am having a good moment/day, I do a bunch of work so that it makes up for the days that are crazy or I don’t feel up to it. I’m so sorry that you have such bad days :( That really sucks! I’m glad that you have this blog! You are definitely not the only one who fully takes advantage of the flexibility of blogging (in a good way!).
Blogging has become exercise for me in a way, it stretches my brain to keep working and makes me feel like I’m interacting with people on a level that I can. I wish I could do more of an information based blog but I just can’t seem to do it…
Doesn’t bother me at all. Scheduling is a great way to take advantage of times we are able to write, while keeping fresh content flowing at the times our readers are looking to read.
I do the same, try to grab a few hours on the weekend to write multiple posts, then schedule them through-out the week. I wonder if anyone has noticed I always “post” at 10:00am on the dot??? lol..
I’m so happy you wrote this, 7 months ago I nearly died from a pulmonary embolism. While I was down for a little while, I was able to tweet, schedule posts and so on through automation. A lot of my writing was done from my couch or in bed when I suffered this ordeal. Even though you may look like you are online, a large percentage of that time is spent offline. That is the benefit of “working” from home or on your blog. You can use tools to aid you and on days you simply can’t work, you don’t. Or have people step in to help you out, good luck doing that at a 9-5 or “regular” job.
whether your online or its automated the reads are great. Keep em coming Julie!!! :)
Doesn’t bother me at all! You’re always a joy to read and tweet with . If it takes you awhile to get back to me because you happen to be not online at that moment, no biggie.
Julie – Technology is amazing, isn’t it? Scheduling tweets and posts to share your writing with others isn’t a bad thing. Especially on twitter because not everyone always logs on at the same time. And if these little scheduling techniques allow you to blog, tweet and use Facebook, then use them how ever you need to.
No one should look badly at you for doing so. I’m glad that you have a blog and can share your thoughts and feelings. Your blog reaches out and touches so many people; so many who can relate to your experiences.
If it wasn’t for your blog, we wouldn’t have met. Your friendship is invaluable.
I have had my own mother, who happens to read my blog, think that I must be online ALL DAY and what do the kids do when I’m online ALL DAY….really mom, really?! Little does she know, and I have tried to teach her, that these automated programs are a bloggers savior. I use HootSuite, TweetDeck, NetworkedBlogs, and have Feedburner setup to auto email my subscribers every time my blog is updates with “scheduled posts” I can maybe count on one hand (and that would be a stretch) how many times I have actually sat down, written a post and published all in one sitting in the 2 years that I have had my blog. It’s a hobby and a therapeutic one at that. Other people have offline hobbies, reading, stained glass or other various at home hobbies; I’m not sure why all the assumptions about bloggers.
I get to my readers and commenters when I can; I am a busy mom of 4 so like Shari, I write in 5-10 minute increments. My readers know me well enough to know that I do my best to get back to them when I can and if I somehow miss them, they know to send me a friendly nudge. I do not suffer from chronic pain to add to my hectic day and I’m sorry you do; hopefully people will realize that with computers comes technology and programs to help automate our lives as bloggers or otherwise. *hugs*
What a great post! Nice to share your story and give other people living with pain encouragement. I think you are awesome – doing the very best considering the pain you are in.
Why would it bother me? Once the awesome content keeps coming :P I mean I NEVER do this :D
Hahahaaa…sorry couldn’t keep a straight face.
I schedule tweets like a crazy person, and right now, thanks to some awesome guest bloggers have more blogs than I normally would for my trip in April! Thank God for scheduling – not sure what I’d do without it – so I definitely don’t mind!
<3 Julie and I hope you're having a low-pain day today <3
I think this is where those people who allude to mom bloggers not taking care of their children get the idea from. They think we are online all day so therefore we don’t pay attention to our kids. I use automation too and am working on getting more organized by automating more so I have more time for other things too.
I have NO problem with that and even if you WERE online all day, it wouldn’t necessarily mean you are capable of standing on your feet all day or something. Like you said, we can blog in our PJS laying in bed!
Good for you for being honest and keep up the good blog!
I’d be lost if I could not schedule my posts. I have had the flu the past few days and was SO THANKFUL that I had some posts scheduled!
Great post, hope you get better with each day :)
There are so many things that i have running through my head on this post..one is that you’re amazing. My mom has chronic pain and well she wasn’t such a good mom, so i just want to give you a big hug for *trying* so hard to rock!. I basically grew up by myself from age 12, and my mom and I have a horrible relationship now..i don’t think she ever ‘tried’ :(
Do i care that you automate? hellz no. we ALL do it!!
I’ve had so many people ask me why i’m up at 3 or 4 am tweeting..umm no dude, i’m very much asleep, i auto-tweet!!
So glad you shared this post! (((hugs)))
not at all – i automate to some degree myself – HootSuite works well for me….. :D