How do you find inspiration for your blog posts?

This morning I read this question raised by Colin Welch on LinkedIn.  Colin referenced an article that gives bloggers tips for posting regularly and keeping your blog interesting.  Here's that article, Blog Post Ideas - 10 Tips for Blog Inspiration, by Heather Buckley.  Both Colin and Heather work for Silicon Beach Training.

Another reader, Andrew, responded to the discussion stating that bloggers who get "blocked" shouldn't be blogging.  My response is below...

"I have to disagree with Andrew about "bloggers block" indicating the person shouldn't be writing at all.  That thinking would have meant that many of our most famous novelists throughout time shouldn't have ever written.  Bloggers blog for a wide variety of reasons and not every blogger has a product or service to sell.

I know people who are quite good in their field and believe strongly in what they are doing.  But they cannot blog.  They have tried, but their personal characteristics interfere with their ability to say it and let it go.  So they spend weeks rewriting and crafting such a "perfect" article that will never get published because they'll never consider it "done."  They need to use a ghostwriter so their work gets published.  I know because I've been a ghostwriter on blogs and in print! 

Writing is a process.  Good writing takes time, patience, and persistence.  Many blogs are well written and some are not.  While content is what is important, and many people will forgive a poorly written blog that has good content, good writing makes good content easier to read and understand.  So a lot of people exercise good writing skills when writing their blogs.  That sometimes leads to a "block" because the writer, in trying to convey a message that is clearly understood with the writer's meaning, wants to ensure the quality of the article(s). 

Heather's article, Carl, is well written and a very good guide for bloggers.  Even when we really already know these things, it's good to get them in a guide that pinpoints what we already know.  And, it demonstrates what she is writing: use a list, ask for ideas, link to other posts, etc.

I've decided that this response merits a blog post, so it will be my post for today, with a brief intro on the topic you raised, Carl, and link to your public profile.  Thanks for raising the topic! "