How Starting a Blog is A Lot Like the Job Search

Having been on the job market twice now during the last year (and trust me, the first go-around took awhile), I've noticed some similarities between the job search and my own newbie blogging endeavors.  In no particular order, here are my thoughts on the subject: 

At first, you rely on your inner circle
Asking for people to follow you is sort of like asking people to help you with your job search.  It's a little uncomfortable, and you sort of wonder if you're just being a pain in their you know what.  So naturally, you start with your loved ones first.  It's no surprise that my current (8) followers are comprised of my mother, grandmother, boyfriend, best friends, and their respective significant others.  And the fact that your best friend reports that her boyfriend really likes your blog (thanks Chandra!) is just as awesome as the fact that he's more than happy to introduce you to a colleague or tell you what it's like to be a [fill in the blank]. 

Networking is still the name of the game 
During your job search you try every method of announcing your on the job search.  You update the headline on your LinkedIn profile, you incorporate the words "job" and "seeker" into your twitter bio, and your gchat status links to your resume (okay, maybe not that last one).  Same thing goes for your blog.  And, yes, in this case I really did link my gchat status to my blog.  And, yes, I still have only 8 followers.

You spend way too much time thinking about how you come across to others
How many times did you edit that four sentence bio that appears just under your name?  And how many times did you tweak your resume?  Sending out job applications just seems to take way too much time and effort, as does crafting blog posts, tweets, and returning to the internal debate over whether you should or should not post your blog on Facebook.

It becomes a total chore
Enough said.

You delight in the small successes
A phone interview? A re-tweet? The weekly e-mail from your mom confirming that she still loves your writing and thinks your blog is truly profound?  All are worth celebrating!