Saturday 23 May 2015

How Would you Like People To Think Of You ?

How would you like people to think about you?

Today we have a guest post from Jo Middleton. Read more from Jo over at her award-winning mummy blog, Slummy single mummy.


I am staring at a blank screen, wondering how to start. I want 400 words of wit and charm, something to make people think ‘I like this woman, I’m going to have a read of her blog after this.’

Writing your own blog is easy - you waffle on in the same way you always have, people know what to expect, and regular readers forgive you if you have an off day or are a little on the dull side. When you’re writing for someone else’s blog though it’s totally different. Suddenly you have the chance to make an impression.

It’s quite scary to be honest, a bit like a first date. You start to imagine yourself as the person you have always wanted to be - these readers don’t know you, you can be anybody! Should I tell everyone I’m a size ten with thick, blond hair, who gets up at 5am every morning to run a half marathon? Let’s not be silly. But still, it feels like an opportunity, albeit a small one, to reinvent yourself.

The question though, is who do you want to be?

A few months ago I went to a Q&A with David Mitchell (The Peep Show one, not the Cloud Atlas one.) I asked him a question, a question I ask myself a lot.

“Would you rather be clever or funny?”

“Funny,” he said, without even thinking about. “I’d definitely rather be funny. I spend my whole life trying to be funny. Plus, I think it’s actually really clever to be able to make someone laugh.”

I agreed.

Thinking about this post then, I wondered how much of an effort I should make to be funny. I could tell a joke maybe? But then I only know that one about the monkeys falling out of trees, and no one ever laughs when I tell it. Maybe not.

Should I try to be clever? I’m not sure how to get that across in a few hundred words. No one wants to hear about my degree prize do they?

And then I check my word count and I’m already approaching 400. Damn it. That’s my chance to impress people gone.


How would you like people to think of you?

16 comments:

  1. I love this post - I find guest posting so hard, so good to know someone else does too (and someone as fab as Jo as well)

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  2. A great post by Jo. I agree that I'd rather be funny; I think it tends to have a more lasting impression on people.

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  3. Haha great post! I don't really mind how people see mw!

    Helen X

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  4. I read Jo's blog - it's one of my favourites :D

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  5. I think I'm with David Mitchell, I would like people to read my blog and for it to make them smile in some way. I insert stuff which makes me laugh but I'm not sure whether it chimes with my readers. If anything I use my blog posts to make myself laugh and if it does that I'm happy. Stephen :o)

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  6. I hope people see me for who I am and accept that I tell it as it is rather than what you might want to hear x

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  7. Lovely post, I would hope people would see me as a great mum and a down to earth person. x

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  8. I'm the opposite, I'd rather be clever :) But then I am slightly odd in that I'd rather be sat in a lecture than on a night out. I like Jo's blog a lot and reading about her life x

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  9. Ha ha - I always feel like this when I'm guest posting too x x

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  10. I have have a very dry sense of humour that not many get (although thankfully my husband does). My attempts to impress never go well.

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  11. I have got to an age where I do not give a s%^& what people think of me, other than the people that I really love

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  12. I think most people appreciate honesty of character, so just be yourself. Or looking at it a different way, you can never please everyone so don't try!

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  13. Ha ha a great post! I dread to think how people view me...I would love to be funnier!!

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  14. it is very difficult to write for somebody else, when I do it I have higher expectations of myself than when I write my own blog, not that I dont write to ( I hope) a high standard anyway.
    Great post.
    Me...I would just like to be viewed as nice.....for people to like me......but if they dont then that is there loss not mine. I go to work to earn a pay not to make friends, if they are civilised that that suits me.

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  15. I love this post. Must be so hard to write a guest post so well done.

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  16. I great post - I haven't thought about this before - I just write! Kaz x

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