Thank You | HiLife2B

Posts tagged with thank you

July 12, 2010

Comments: The Final Say

On Friday, I received this email:

“Saw your post at Brazen Careerist, and was immediately turned off when you stated you’re not going to reply to comments there. If I feel this way, I’m sure others do as well.

Take Care.”

At first, I didn’t mind much, seeing as I stated an alternative on Brazen Careerist (a well-known site for networking/connecting/working with employees, employers, or just nice people, online) to come to the site and leave a thought on the original post.

Eventually, I admitted to myself that the ‘comment thing’ has been picking at my conscience for some time.

I have addressed comment/response policies in passing on previous blog posts. When this blog was much younger, I even said that I would reply to every comment within 24 hours.

I’ve been wishy-washy throughout this blog’s entire life cycle with comments, just devouring articles on when to reply and when not reply, on whether to keep them up, or on whether to take them down, and loosely referring to how I’ll respond and how I’ll not respond.

It’s time to, finally and forever, squash this issue:

- First of all, I’d like to say that I enjoy reading what you guys have to say. Keep the comments coming.

- I read every single one. No joke. No one gets left behind, young or old, long or short, big or small.

- I don’t, however, respond to every single one. I simply can’t respond to every ‘thank you’ or ‘nice post’ that I get. It takes away too much from the time I spend learning new things and getting inspiration for what you guys comment on in the first place: the blog post.

- In fact, if you want to share something personal, you want to send me hate mail, or you just want to say hello, shoot me an e-mail. You’ll get a response within 2-3 days, usually.

- Comments are necessary for community. No matter how many or how little I get, I don’t plan on cutting them off.

- Bashing other commenters or just contributing to an overall negative atmosphere isn’t cool. Don’t do it.

- Just because I don’t reply, it doesn’t mean I don’t care.

At the end of the day, it’s the people that matter. This blog wouldn’t be where it is now without you. It’s come pretty far in just one year. Maybe not as far as other blogs (due to the initial lack of purpose) and maybe not as profitable (due to not shipping a product as early as I should have), but the progress is still astounding.

Rest assured that I’m grateful to you for making me feel that my voice can make some sort of impact and some sort of difference.

Comments or no comments, this movement matters.

photo credit: s h a r i :}

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16 comments

March 30, 2010

My Epiphany Moments: 100th Post Revelation

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” – Winston Churchill

Yep. This is my 100th complete post on the blog. Oh and it’s also been exactly one year since I’ve registered my domain on the world wide web. I had a lot of backlash for wanting to start this blog. And hey, maybe I deserved it. My reasons for wanting to have a blog showed that my mind was warped: it was money.

I thought that I could make money writing generic college advice. And for a while, I felt confident my “ingenious plan” (cue evil villain music) would work. For about the first couple of months, I wrote about where to hang out in college, how to get good study habits, and how to stand out of the crowd, among other things. I think it was in June 2009 that I started to write about subjects that I enjoyed (motivating people to think differently and inspire them to action) instead of college advice everyone else has heard a million times over.

My first epiphany moment

Then it hit me like a sack of potatoes. Why should I write about things that I don’t like when I can write about topics that I do? Around the beginning of summer vacation, I changed the blog’s tag line from “The story of my college life” to “Personal improvement for life”. After my first guest post, traffic increased by twenty times (as opposed to my usual traffic of 2 or 3 visitors) and I was ecstatic. I felt that personal development is what I should be writing about. I thought that everything would get better after this minor bump, but I was sadly mistaken.

An obvious bump that I couldn’t avoid

They say that it is when you feel the most invincible that you should be the most on guard for something bad to happen. And believe me, it happened and I didn’t even notice.

Even though I loved what I wrote, I began to fall into somewhat of a loop. The articles would be in the exact same format everytime. The routine was killing me. What started as a posting schedule of three posts a week became a mere 1-2 posts a week. This messed me up big time. Since no one had any complaints, I began to just write articles right before I was supposed to post; usually three hours before 12 am.

Unfortunately, it took me a lot longer to recognize this problem. For almost 9 months I drifted in and out of writing well and on time, to publishing utter crap (by my standards) and whenever I felt like it. Even guest posts were as random as my own posts. It was only until recently that I had my second epiphany.

The second one that occurred just last week

It was around this time that frustration, anticipation, and excitement were welling up inside me (an odd combination of feelings, really). My blog’s anniversary was coming up and I didn’t have much to show for it. I still had a small number of subscribers and it had already been a year. I had to take action fast. Then, all of a sudden, I happened upon a string of articles that were conveniently tweeted throughout the month of March:

The Most Important Blog Post You’ll Probably Never Read | ViperChill

How Went From 0 to 1012 Blog Subscribers in 101 Days | WakeUpCloud

The Law of Anti-Attraction | Remarkable Communication

I finally had realized why I hadn’t yet achieved my goals: I wasn’t giving value away. I kept it all, here on the blog. I hadn’t bothered to bring it out into the world much more than I already was.

I feel more powerful than ever

This information, inspiration, and motivation has given me more power than I’ve ever felt before. I can see the vision of my success even clearer now. And even though this year has gone by without much gained (besides wonderful new friends, new challenges, and stumbles, tweets, and comments), I couldn’t have asked for a better year of blogging.

I’ve become a freelance writer. I’ve taken another step in the direction for working for myself. I’ve challenged the minds and inspired the hearts of countless individuals. And best of all, I love what I do.

May another year of blogging and another hundred posts be bestowed upon you guys. I’m ready to do whatever it takes to continue giving value to the world. I may not have completely achieved my goals, but I haven’t given up yet. You can bet that this is the year that I achieve 1000 subscribers.

Mark my words: I will achieve my dream.
photo credit: The Wandering Angel

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26 comments

January 25, 2010

The Laundry List of False Motivations

I once tried to use money as a motivator. It could not help me.

I once tried to use power as a motivator. It could not help me.

I once tried to use fear as a motivator. It helped to control me.

I once tried to use hatred as a motivator. It only served to make me bitter.

I once tried to use women as a motivator. It could not help me.

I once tried to use my parents’ happiness as a motivator. I could not agree with their methods to achieve success.

I once tried to use numbers/statistics as a motivator. I reached my goals, but I never knew what those numbers meant.

I once tried to use indifference as a motivator – in effect, I wouldn’t care about the outcome. I always hit the mark, but you can guess about how I felt afterward.

Now something more powerful than all of these combined motivates me. It’s a culmination of my ultimate vision, my desires, my achievements, my family, my friends, my rivalries, my happiness, my pain, my struggles, my inspirations, my favorite stories, my mentors, my stubbornness, my will, and my faith.

I use passion for the goodness of my life as a motivator. I haven’t regretted anything since.

P.S. For those of you wrote comments, sent me tweets, and wrote me mail…thank you. It helped me.
photo credit: purpleslog

9 comments

December 31, 2009

Not Another New Year’s Post?!

Don’t worry. No end of the year tips or “anti-New Year’s resolution” banter for you all. Just unplug for a while. Turn off the computer tonight. Get some rest. Relax. Celebrate! A new year will soon be upon us.

I really can’t help but be happy. It’s the end of 2009! It’s been such a wonderful experience making so many new friends both with the blog and without. So many memories are rushing through my mind. When I really started writing about what I loved (I think it was May or so), I met so many people, who I still talk with today, who’ve been pushing me forward. They’ve been with me since the beginning. To them, I am ever grateful.

Without my friends and family, I won’t be writing this post. Without them, I don’t know where I’d be. Without them… I’d be a completely different person.

Thank you, all of you, for reading , commenting, tweeting, responding, learning, loving, growing, inspiring, engaging, rising, and DOING because of the blog. I can’t express my gratitude enough .

A little housekeeping before I go

Here are some end of the year guest posts for you guys as a late holiday gift:

Love Yourself: Be the Underdog at Tess’s blog, The Bold Life

How to Master the “Art of Apathy” at Jay’s blog, Dumb Little Man

And as a special bonus, here’s a wonderful poem I found to ring in the new year! Take it away, William:

“Another fresh new year is here . . .
Another year to live!
To banish worry, doubt, and fear,
To love and laugh and give!

This bright new year is given me
To live each day with zest . . .
To daily grow and try to be
My highest and my best!

I have the opportunity
Once more to right some wrongs,
To pray for peace, to plant a tree,
And sing more joyful songs!”

- William Arthur Ward

Happy New Years everyone! See you in the new year. Let all of us be ready for the future that lies ahead…

John at HiLife2B

photo credit: Photomish Dan

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17 comments

November 19, 2009

It’s Almost Thanksgiving: What Are You Thankful For?

Ah, yes, Thanksgiving Day; the event that the media mostly glosses over because it’s not as profitable as Christmas, but is just as important. It’s the day on which we reflect on the past, present, and future to think about what we’re grateful and thankful for.

Do you realize that a week from today, it will be Thanksgiving?

I suppose that it may not be a big deal, but in all honesty, it encompasses the togetherness that I’ve been missing a lot while away at college. I miss being home. I miss just relaxing with my family, pissing my younger sisters off, and playing my Playstation (I’ll always be a kid ).

So instead of badgering you guys with the “morals” of Thanksgiving Day and what it should mean to you, I’d much rather share with you what I find worthy enough to be thankful for.

What I’m thankful for

I’m thankful for my mom who has pushed me farther than anyone else could ever hope to push me. I’m thankful for her patience and the wisdom she has instilled in me.

I’m thankful for the tight-knit community I’ve garnered here on my humble blog. I’m thankful for the friendships I’ve made because of it.

I’m thankful for all of the failures I’ve accrued up to this point. I realize now that if I had never failed, I never would have succeeded.

I’m thankful for the Internet – without which none of this would be possible.

I’m thankful for the friends that encourage me and the friends that laugh at my ambitions. I wouldn’t be where I am today if I hadn’t been spurred onwards by your encouragement, and hadn’t been stubborn towards your mockery.

I’m thankful for all of the memories I had as a child, both the good times and the bad. When times got hard, I’ve looked to them multiple times and realized things always seemed to work out for me in the end.

I’m thankful for the word “underdog” because that’s who I usually tend to be. Seriously, being underestimated by a lot of people is pretty exhilarating.

Most of all, I’m thankful for the life I have now. I hope to keep on living for many more years to come.

What are you thankful for? Are you grateful for the life you live now? Where will you be on Thanksgiving? Share your story.

photo credit: Ingrid!

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16 comments

November 5, 2009

Thank You!

I’d just like to say thanks to my nearly 200 subscribers. Some of you have been with me since I started this blog as a personal development/motivational hangout. For that, I am truly humbled.

I’m so happy to have a great community where I can express myself. I feel like I can let everything out of my system, yell at the top of my lungs, and dream the highest dreams when I write on my blog!

I’m very grateful to have made so many relationships in such a short time. You guys have no idea how you’ve positively affected my life. Because of you, I’m going to keep moving forward towards my dreams, no matter how hard it gets.

So, once again, I am proud to say thank you.

THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!

“Celebrate the happiness that friends are always giving, make every day a holiday and celebrate just living!” – Amanda Bradley

P.S. Introduce yourself (if you haven’t already) so I can personally thank you in the comments section .
photo credit: B Rosen

Comments: The Final Say