We cannot actually write a post that perfect as mentioned here, so that nobody can appropriately comment anything valuable. Also, one of my readers recently commented the difference between the first person narrative and third person. Blogs should be first person, because only your opinion is there, while articles should be third person since they are based only on facts and not your opinions.

Thanks

Lenin

I had not considered writing a blog post in that way. My mindset was more ‘what would they see wrong with it?’ Perhaps it is a process where you eventually relax and have the focus on the reader and not yourself.

Many years ago I had the shocking experience of the boss popping by my desk and saying that from the next day I would be out with other staff on the counter in a benefits office and interviewing ‘Joe Public’. I was terrified. Too terrified and shy to say I could not do it. I was given training of course but it was still awful. Six months later i could do the job standing on my head. I’d stopped thinking about myself and was totally engaged with the person in front of me. So maybe the same can happen over time with the internet.

@Tracee – I feel your pain. It has to be hard to shift out of one writing style’s form and habit.

@L-Jay – you asked what it does to one’s credibility as an expert. Let me ask you: do experts know it ALL? If you answer yes, then I can’t help you. If you answer, “of course not,” then you see my point.

@everyone else- some very encouraging and inspiring responses here, and thank you for them. I’ll try to dip in and answer here and there. If I miss you, don’t hesitate to drop me an email: blog at chrisbrogan dot com . : )

Rather than crafting your post with ‘holes’ ask open-ended questions of your readers, ask about their experiences. This means readers are contributing because they want to rather than contributing because they feel obliged to correct you or point out what you have missed. There are other, more positive, ways to encourage a ‘natural’ comment – use ‘point of view’, throwing questions back to the readers, presenting a problem etc.

AGREE!

:D

I think it does inspire others to comment and I figure the worst cast scenario is I have more information I can use to blog about the topic again.

Sometimes I’ll still write a post that tries to be complete, but more often I’ll purposely skip a few things and let my readers say them instead.

http://www.marketingnavi.com

I certainly don’t know it all, and I rely on my few readers to fill in the gaps.

But, you might be right so I rewrote tomorrows post with the questions at the end instead of the beginning and left them hanging. We’ll see. . . I have heard this comment from some of my regular readers. They would enjoy participation – but how do I then maintain my position as Girl Empowerment authority?