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When it comes to our homes, we want somewhere where we feel inspired, relaxed, and warm. We want a space where we can be ourselves and feel at home. However, over time our homes lose their charm. What was once a place of serenity now causes stress and anxiety. Unfortunately, a lot of people do not find the solace in their homes that they should. Time has faded things and made everything cluttered and stuck in the past. Everywhere you look, there are issues and problems that you try and ignore but can’t. This is a real shame. Every home should be a place where problems are left at the front door. If your home is making you feel depressed and saddened, then maybe it is time you upgraded it. Let’s have a look at some great upgrades. 

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Create Open Plan Rooms

Open plans are very popular designs. People want an open floor plan where the old dining room, or family room is in the same space as the kitchen. Dining rooms are no longer the in thing, so creating being a vast open space with the kitchen is a far more modern approach to living. Knocking down a wall and creating one room where there were too has many benefits. First, you get that vast open space. This definitely appears larger than the two rooms do individually. It makes the home lighter as the light flows more easily. It makes the home airier too. If you want the space to appear even larger, consider painting the walls a light color and hanging mirrors in strategic places. Also, consider getting rid of large furnishing or playing with the space you have. If you need to knock down a wall, remember to get professional help. It may be a load-bearing wall, and you don’t want the whole house falling apart around you. So, be safe and get professional help.

New Lighting To Your Home

If you feel your rooms have lost their spirit, why not try adding new lighting to your home? Dark and dingy lighting makes a room appear small even when it isn’t. Light is so important. There are various ways you can add new light to your home. Why not change all the ceiling lights and fixtures with something lighter and brighter, and more modern? Other ways to brighten a room are to buy a range of lamps. You can choose from tables lamps, or tall standing lamps. You can place some in the darker corners of a room to add more depth and warmth to the room. If you are clever, you may be able to use morros to help the effect. Layering lighting can have a wonderful effect on the home. 

Upgrade Fixtures 

If you want a quick and easy way to upgrade your kitchen and bathroom without huge expense, then why not update some of the fixtures? You can easily go out and get new faucets instead of new sinks and a bath. You could try changing all the worn-out, dirty, and old-fashioned handle pulls and knobs. Update all your door and cabinet handles too. It really is quite a simple job and can make a world of difference. There is such a huge range of choices these days that you are bound to find something that suits your tastes. You can even mix and match styles to make something unique that highlights your personality.    

Paint

Paint is a wonder material. It can completely change the look and feel of a room as well as hiding any stains and other nasties that may have appeared over time. When it comes to painting a room, consider the color. The color can have a drastic effect on your mood. If you want a room that is for relaxing, think yellows and pastel greens. If you have a home office and want a color that helps you be more productive, think red or purple. You can paint walls, ceilings, and doors. You can even paint floors. If you want to go a little wilder, then think about a wall mural or some decals. You can try painting walls in the same room with different colors, perhaps. It may be worth doing some research and finding what colors suit others and how this looks scaled up to the size of a room. Paint is a very simple and effective easy for reinvigorating a room. Kt is also relatively cheap, and you can do it yourself.

Solar Panels

Solar panels are a great upgrade that can, in the long run, save you a lot of money. With the cost of electricity rising, having solar panels installed will help you keep the running costs of the house down. If you get the right type of meter, when your solar panels are producing a lot of electricity, you may even have the scope to sell some electricity back to the grid as a micro-generator. In a world where systematic blackouts may become a thing, a little extra electricity being generated is vital. There are many different types of solar panels, so take a look at some information like www.waynesolar.com to discover the types of solar panels you need.

Make an Outdoor Room

An outdoor room is a room that you create that enables you to appreciate, well, the outdoors. Whether that be your garden or another amazing outside scene. If you live by the sea or in the countryside and don’t have an outdoor room, you really are missing a trick. It is a room you can get that inspiration back that you have been missing. If your home does not have a large porch or a conservatory, you may need to be a little more inventive. Perhaps start with an outdoor rug to help you define a particular room. You then need a couple of chairs facing towards the scene. Use cushions and throws; you could have a fire pit too, and some lighting. You can use an awning if this space is actually outside and possibly start building up the sides. 

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Salads are so good for us, but they aren’t always the most exciting option, which is why so many people tend to dodge them in favor of something tastier, and more interesting to eat.

The good news is, salads really don’t have to be boring! There are so many things you can do to turn an uninspiring salad into the best part of any meal, including the following…

1. Roast the veggies

Most of us, most of the time, will eat our salad veggies raw. This is fine, and raw veggies certainly contain a lot of important vitamins and minerals that will help us to stay healthy, but it is not always the tastiest way of serving them. 

If you want the flavors in your salad to really pop try slowly roasting those tomatoes, peppers, and zucchini in a little olive oil, salt, and pepper, before adding them to the dish for bolder, sweeter flavors and a more interesting texture too.

2. Add lots of textures

Speaking of texture, one surefire way to make any salad more interesting is to ensure that it includes a lot of different textures. From crisp salad leaves to the crunch of nuts and seeds to the pleasingly chewy texture of pasta – this easy recipe for Asian pasta salad is a delicious example – the more contrasts in texture you can pack into a salad, the more satisfying it will be to eat. Experiment and see just how many textures you can fit into your next salad.

3. Add fruit

Our people, when they think of salad, think of veggies, salad leaves, and oils, but actually, you can use fruit in your salads, and doing so gives them a sweeter, juicier more vibrant flavor. For example, berries, grapes, and mangoes go great in summer salads where freshness, and lightness are key, and oranges pears and apples are great in the winter months when you want your salad to be sweet and comforting. Again, experiment with adding fruits to your salads to see what does and does not work for you.

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4. Increase the herbs and spices

Some people simply dress their salads with a store-bought dressing and leave it up to that to do all of the work in the flavor stake. This is fine, but it does not always make for the most satisfying salads. If you want to really make the dish flavorsome, you need to think about adding a lot of herbs and spices, Some herbs, like cilantro, you can add whole to your salads like you would any leaf, for a more powerful flavor, while others can be turned into marinades for the protein elements of the dish, such as tofu and chicken. With salads, more is quite often more.

5. Noodles and pasta are an excellent addition

Sometimes, salads are just too light to be satisfying. If you are having your salad as your main meal instead of a side, then, it is a good idea to add some carbs. Noodles and pasta are great in salads as they bring an extra dimension in the form of texture, can take on the flavor of any dressing you use well, and will guarantee you feel satisfied once you put your fork down.

If pasta and noodles aren’t your thing, then breaking some good crusty bread into chunks and mixing them through your salad is an excellent alternative too.

6. Explore flavor profiles

You don’t always have to dress your salads with ranch, take inspiration from other countries, and give your salads a Mexican twist with lime juice and cilantro or an Indian flavor using cumin and curry powder to create a different dressing. Yes, the classics are great, but when it comes to spicing up your salad, looking at new and interesting flavor profiles to create interesting dressings is an excellent way of preventing salad boredom from setting in.

7. Serve it in an interesting way

Serving your salad in a mason jar instead of pitting it in a dish or having it “grow” out of a melon., for example, can make it look more visually interesting, and since part of what makes eating so satisfying is what we can see visually, this can make your salads all the sweeter.

As you can see, salad really doesn’t have to be the most insipid item on the menu, so if you want your and your family to eat more of them, to get all of the health benefits a good salad brings, be sure to try out some of the suggestions above.

Winter always seems to have a lot to throw at you, whether it’s dealing with extreme winds, regular downpours or freezing temperatures that can stop you from feeling comfortable and calm. 

It’s fair to say that winter can be a dangerous time for all, and one of the most enticing things can be to simply stay inside the comfort of your home. However, when you seek comfort from the terrible weather your home may not actually be able to provide you with the shelter you are searching for. There are many risks and dangers that can damage your property and its structure, and it’s vital that you can take the opportunity to get ready for the harsh conditions that winter is likely to throw at you. 

Fortunately, this guide contains some of the best steps that you can follow to prepare your property for the symptoms of a terrible winter in no time at all. It doesn’t have to be as difficult as you might expect to get your home ready for the cold and ice, no matter how weak and unprepared your property may currently be! 

There are a few key areas in which you can focus your efforts to make sure you can maintain a warm, cosy and secure home despite the wind, snow and ice. So, what are you waiting for? If you would like to learn more, then simple check below to uncover some of the best ideas and concepts that you can utilize today to protect your family home (and its contents) this winter. 

Image Source – Pexels 

Replace Or Upgrade Your Windows And Doors 

It has to be said that the areas that generally lose the largest amount of heat during the cold winter months are your windows and doors, as unlike the walls that make up the rest of your home’s exterior they do not contain any kind of insulation and are generally much thinner as a whole. Uncovering a few effective ways to combat this issue can really benefit the temperature inside your home. You’ll be able to keep the heat in whilst keeping the cold out at the same time, which is vital for the sake of your health and happiness during the winter!

If your home utilises single glazed windows, this should be your first priority – upgrading to a double glazed alternative will offer another layer of protection between you and the wind and rain outside, so it’s totally worth your time. To take this one step further, purchase some thick insulating curtains or blinds that you can use to keep the warmth in. This will make a noticeable difference, especially in the evening, yet they use no power and can be such an affordable solution. 

To add to this, recognising that your doorways, both internal and external, may suffer from gaps, cracks and many other similar issues is essential. Such problems can let an icy cold breeze waft around your property from room to room, making sure you feel the chill even with the heating on. Buying a few quality draught excluders can help you to tackle this problem without needing to purchase a whole new door, so it’s a great cost saving solution that will certainly benefit your home during the winter. 

Get Some Experts On Speed Dial

It has to be said that with more extreme weather comes more serious risk. You can encounter a variety of very dangerous issues inside your home that could prove catastrophic during the winter, such as having no hot water inside your home, or being unable to use your fireplace for warmth. 

As a result, it’s vital that you can take the time to get some experts on speed dial so that you can call up and gain help whenever you need it. Having a specialist on standby will help you seek out the most effective solution should you encounter an emergency at home, providing you ultimate peace of mind throughout the ice and snow. 

You need to keep your family safe and sound during the extreme weather that comes with winter, and admit that you don’t have the skills to do so in every situation is so important. You might need to call an air conditioning repair man, contact a flood team to help you resolve water damage, or even hire a team of plumbers to help you fix your pipe work after it’s ravaged by winter temperatures and conditions. 

Preparing your home for the harsh winter weather has never been so easy!

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Thanks to the growing popularity of self-made home improvements, many get excited at the thought of repairing and restoring their own home. It can be tempting to channel your inner handyman and fix some home repairs to save costs. It is ok to handle many minor home improvements, especially with a few essential DIY skills under your belt. But there are a few you should leave to the professionals, mainly for safety reasons and to prevent worsening an existing problem. Here are four home repairs you shouldn’t DIY. 

• Structural repairs 

It is best to avoid anything close to significant structural work when thinking about home repairs you can DIY. For instance, when completed poorly, major basement repairs could compromise the integrity of the entire structure. You might watch a few YouTube videos of someone doing it and assume you could too. Unfortunately, it doesn’t take long before the entire home collapses or notice the floor upstairs sags. Structural modifications are home repairs best left to the professionals. Some walls carry much weight from the top, so you need a professional who knows the safest methods to demolish and transfer the weight. 

• Electrical repairs

Simple things like installing a ceiling fan or replacing a faulty light switch are ok so long as you turn off the power before beginning. However, it would be best if you took extreme caution regardless of how minor an electrical repair may be. It is better to call the professional for any electrical repairs that go beyond simple. Additionally, some electrical repairs require a permit to fix, and you can only get that from the pros. For instance, replacing or extending a circuit is serious business. You risk burning your entire home or injuring yourself if you attempt without knowing your way around it. 

• Plumbing 

To avoid paying for plumbing services, people sometimes turn a blind eye to a leaky tap hoping it mysteriously fixes itself. Replacing a worn-out valve washer or bending a slightly blocked drain are a few minor plumbing tasks most people can do. However, you should avoid any plumbing repairs that require extensive work. Your safest bet is to call the plumber. Anything else would put you at risk of injuring yourself or damaging your property which can significantly tax your pocket. What appears to be a minor leak can escalate to a flood and cost you a lot of money. It is particularly crucial to avoid major plumbing repairs that involve hot water pipes or sewage systems. You can visit sites like https://evolutionplumbingaz.com/ if you need pocket-friendly, professional plumbing services for your home. 

• Roofing repairs 

Roofing repairs aren’t recommended for experienced DIYers, and here is why. Repairing a few shingles isn’t near the world’s toughest jobs. However, it is easy to slip, and climbing and descending with your repair tools pose severe injury risks. Roof repairs can be exhausting, and when you are weary, you are more likely to make a potentially costly mistake. So calling an expert is the best way to go.

In our busy lives, taking the time to relax and reset ourselves can make all the difference in keeping us happy and healthy. For some people, this self-care might be taking a walk, going to the gym or reading a book. Others find joy in carving out small moments in their day to enjoy their favourite food or indulge in warm beverages like tea. 

Brewing a cup of tea is fast becoming a favourite wellness pastime, and for good reason. Here are some ways drinking tea can help refresh and reset your mind. 

H2: It gives you a (short) break from the daily grind

Taking the time to prepare and enjoy a cup of tea is the perfect opportunity to take a break – whether it’s from your desk at work, screen at home or your busy to-do list. It might seem simple, but giving yourself some time – even five minutes – can help provide a small respite in your busy day. 

There are many benefits that come with taking a break – from increasing your productivity to restoring your focus and preventing fatigue. Making a cup of tea doesn’t just provide you with a warm, delicious beverage to drink, it also provides you with an easy but focused activity to do during your break. This way you can have a productive break that doesn’t drain your energy further. 

H2: It can help you practice mindfulness or meditation

Mindfulness and meditation are becoming increasingly popular as people try to combat busy schedules and stress. Simple acts, like making and drinking a cup of tea, is one way to help you relax. By bringing awareness to the simple act, your mind is focusing on the now, rather than thinking about your to-do list. 

You can practice mindfulness or meditation step-by-step as you both make and drink your tea. 

1. Start by choosing what tea you’ll drink, based on your current mood. You might opt for a classic, like an Earl Grey, or match your mood with a stress reliever or energy-boosting tea.  
2. Take some slow, deep breaths as the water boils.
3. Carefully pour the water into the cup, watch it change colour, and then savour your sips. 
4. Whether you pair this by listening to a mindfulness or meditation app is up to you, but this step-by-step process is a great way to start making mindfulness or meditation a habit. 

H2: It may help reduce stress

While the act of drinking a hot or warm cup of tea in itself can be relaxing and a great opportunity to practice mindfulness and meditation, tea can reduce stress in other ways.

If you go with an herbal or floral tea, you can treat yourself to some quick and easy aromatherapy by breathing in the alluring fumes of peppermint, chamomile, or bergamot. If you’re thinking of using tea as a form of quick and easy aromatherapy, peppermint teas may help boost energy and digestion, whereas chamomile teas may help with relaxation, and bergamot teas may help reduce stress and ease symptoms of skin conditions. 

H2: It may put your mind at ease about your overall health

As well as helping reduce stress and maintain optimal mental health, tea is known for the many benefits it may provide with maintaining your physical health. The antioxidants and amino acid, L-Theanine, present in teas may help with reducing the risks of heart disease, boosting the immune system, reducing inflammation, and may even help with controlling weight, blood pressure, and blood sugar.

While your daily cup of tea may help you with maintaining optimal physical health both in the short and long term, it should also be paired with a balanced diet and regular exercise. 

H2: It can help you connect with others

While most of us make and drink a cup of tea by ourselves, that doesn’t mean you can’t be social with your tea drinking. Whether it’s a daily tea break with your workmates, a weekly tea session with your friends, or a virtual tea party with loved ones who live elsewhere, making your tea habit a bit more social not only provides you with the benefits you already reap from regularly drinking tea, you also get the mental and physical benefits of socialising.

As well as reducing stress and enabling some much-needed time for fun, socialising over tea can also decrease the risk of depression, increase confidence and self-esteem, and may even decrease the risk of developing degenerative diseases, like dementia.

Not only that, but you may even get some suggestions for new teas to try. 

These are just some of the ways that drinking tea can help refresh and reset your mind on those busy days. By giving you the chance to take a short break or meditate, reducing your stress levels, helping you on your journey to optimal health, and letting you connect with loved ones, tea isn’t just a hot beverage, it’s a little slice of heaven for your body and soul, as well as your mind.

When it comes to cosmetic surgery recovery, what’s going on inside your body is as important as what’s going on outside. To give your body the tools it needs for an optimal recovery, a healthy diet and plenty of fluids is going to be key.

Whether you’re trimming down with a tummy tuck, or adding in some curves with a Brazilian Butt Lift, your body is going to need nourishment to help you heal. A good way to guarantee a balanced diet is by preparing your meals in advance – this is often referred to as ‘meal prepping’.

Here’s a few tips on meal prepping for your recovery:

1. Lists are your Friend – Plan each week carefully in list/table form. This will take mealtimes off your mind and give you the time and freedom to relax when you need it most. Have Monday to Sunday set out and ready to go – breakfast, lunch and dinner.
2. Keep Things Balanced –  Make sure that each meal has a healthy balance of everything you need. You need the right quantity of carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins and minerals. Try not to overdo things – moderation is key.
3. Use your Freezer Wisely – When planning food for a week, finding foods that you can freeze is a good way to make sure your food keeps all the way through to Sunday. You can cook certain things from frozen and mix them in with fresh to maximize nutrition while remaining practical.
4. Plenty of Fruit and Veg – Set out a good portion of fruit and vegetables with every meal as they will give your body the vitamins it needs to help decrease swelling and aid with the healing process. Dark leafy greens, apples and pineapples are all excellent choices.
5. Omega-3 Fats – Beneficial fats like Omega-3 will work to reduce inflammation. The best source of these fats are fish, like salmon and mackerel, but you can also find these fats in walnuts and flaxseed.
6. Lean Protein – It’s important to avoid sources of protein that can be fatty and generally unhealthy like fried or fatty meat. Lena proteins, such as chicken, turkey, or pulses are a much better way to provide your body with the proteins it needs.
7. Avoid Sugar – As blood sugar levels can rise after surgery, it is best to avoid any foods that use refined sugar; sweetened drinks, cakes and chocolate are all foods to steer clear of.

In the end, meal prep is a fantastic way to take a load off your mind while your body is working hard to get you back into shape. Your recovery period should be sacred and you should be able to relax, safe in the knowledge that your nutrition is covered and all you have to do is focus on taking good care of yourself.

If you take into account the tips above and plan ahead, there is no reason that your downtime after your cosmetic treatment needs to be stressful. A good, balanced diet, planned in advance, can set you onto a more comfortable path to recovery.

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If you are trying for a baby, or you are going to be doing so soon, and you are keen to try and keep your chances as high as possible, there are many approaches that you can take to this. As it happens, it might be easier than you think to increase your chances of conceiving, and it’s the kind of thing that is always possible to focus on. In this post, we are going to take a look at some of the best ways to make it more likely that you will conceive. You will find all of the following well worth trying out and being aware of at least.

Check Your Health

First of all, it’s well worth taking a look at your general health to see whether your body is currently in the best possible condition to host a baby. If it is not, it might be harder to actually conceive at all. It’s a good idea to get the likes of Willow Women’s Health Obstetrician-Gynecologists to check you out and see whether there are any issues that you don’t know about – you never know, and it’s better to be safe than sorry. This way, you can ensure you are at least aware of what’s going on in your body.

Speak With Your Partner About Their Health

At the same time, it’s also important to make sure that your partner is as healthy as possible too, because that is going to make it so much easier and more likely that you will conceive if you are both healthy. It’s a good idea to speak with them about this and to make sure that they, too, get a general check-up. This can help to save a lot of confusion later on, so it’s the kind of simple thing that is well worth remembering. If nothing else, it should mean that you can fix problems right away.

Take A Look At Your Lifestyle

There are all sorts of lifestyle issues and behaviors that might be working against you when you are trying to conceive, and it’s really important that you are doing all you can to be aware of these if you are keen for that to happen. It might be that just by changing a few simple things around, you can actually make a huge improvement to your chances, so that is certainly something that you are going to want to think about at least.

Manage Stress

One of the things that works against you the most is stress – and this can lead to a catch-22, because it can be stressful to try for a baby and you are much more likely to therefore keep on being stressed. You need to try and find a way to manage your stress, individually and as a couple, so that you can increase your chances but also make the whole experience considerably more fun too. That is something that is therefore always worth thinking about if you want that to happen.

There are tons of workers’ unions out there that exist to protect employee rights and ensure workers of all classes are seen and heard. Whether you work at a grocery store or a private medical practice, you’ll find a union readily available and waiting to handle all your employment concerns. 

A grocery store union can protect you from instances of unfair dismissal, unpaid wages, and various other employment-related matters. The same applies to all different kinds of workers’ unions. 

With this, if you’re enduring some hardships at work and wondering whether it’s stim to start searching for a new job or join a union, we’ve listed five definitive reasons all employees should join a union. 

Better Wages And Better Benefits

Employees who are part of unions earn more than those who are not union members. The collective power of unions ensures their members receive fair salaries and essential employee benefits. 

These benefits don’t just refer to health insurance and sick pay but also leave entitlements, overtime pay, pension funds, and much more. 

Personal Protection

As an un-unionized employee, you’ll find it challenging to fight any sort of employment-related conflict. Otherwise, you’ll spend a small fortune in legal fees to have a lawyer handle these situations for you. 

But if you join a union, you’ll pay a small monthly fee to receive complete personal protection. You won’t need to face employment-related conflicts alone anymore, as your union will always have your back. 

Equality

Unions make a point of insisting on equal rights for all. Not only will your union handle situations like refusal of leave entitlements, unpaid wages, and lack of essential benefits, but they will also fight for you in cases of workplace discrimination. 

Whether you are facing gender discrimination, racism, or even ableism, your union will ensure your employer tends to the unfair treatment on your behalf. 

Improved Health And Safety

In companies where unions are present, employers are far more willing to ensure employees are provided with a work environment that meets health and safety standards. Your union will ensure you won’t ever need to put your health or safety at risk for your employment. 

Solidarity

Unions all have an incredibly solid network that spans the globe. Whichever union you join concerning your line of work, you can be confident that it’s not only your union standing behind you and providing employment protection but also the entire network of unions across the globe. 

With this, global unions have the power to raise serious issues that smaller corporations are overlooking. With the joint influence of unions, you can rest assured you will be improving the work environment for all employees across the globe. 

Joining a union is also straightforward. Moreover, the cost of being a union member is exceptionally affordable and often calculated by income affordability. 

Instead of facing employment-related conflicts and frustrations on your own, it’s wise to join a union and enjoy the many real-world benefits of being a union member. 

Brain Games: Experiments(ages 8-12, paperback) – Based on the hit National Geographic TV show Brain Games!

Featuring more than 200 extraordinary illustrations and photographs, detailed diagrams and infographics and a winning combination of comprehensive articles that do a deep dive into outer space research, fast facts and first-hand accounts from experts, Can’t Get Enough Space Stuff is the ultimate book for space enthusiasts.  This book covers it all — get the scoop on space food, space junk, space volcanoes and NASA’s future plans for reaching Mars and Europa.  Learn about how scientists are looking for life on other planets, cutting edge space technology, mind-blowing black holes and the International Space Station.  Hands-on activities you can try at home are a terrific resource for STEM studies and science fair projects.

Break Down: Explosions, Implosions, Crashes, Crunches, Cracks, and More … a How Things Work Look at How Things Break (ages 8-12, hardcover)

This book explores how things break down, crack, explode, crumple, and shatter. This fun, unique take on a how-things-work book explores the world through the lens of what it takes for things to, well, not work. In these vibrantly illustrated pages, you’ll peer through the smoke and rubble of controlled demolitions to discover the properties of building materials. Then get a glimpse of the inner workings of a cracked cell phone screen, peek carefully at mega-avalanches and sinkholes, and hold on tight as wrecking balls swing and car crushers crunch metal. Buckle up with crash-test dummies and travel back in time to explore the world’s most famous failures (looking at you, Leaning Tower of Pisa).  Featuring hands-on activities that walk kids through their own experiments in destruction, Break Down! will change the way you look at the world.

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It’s not just about the skills it takes to be a great blogger, but about realizing that blogging is not an exact science. If you want to learn how to be a great blogger here are a few things that you need to bear in mind. 

Use SEO (but Don’t Lean on It)

It’s important to understand the ins and outs of the Google SEO algorithm, but the reality is that if you want to write an effective blog, you should not be constantly looking for the right keywords to put into your content. The Google algorithm boils down to creating useful content first and foremost. As long as you are focused on creating content that serves its audience effectively, you are not going far wrong. There are things that you can do to boost your rankings, such as link building, however, these are all secondary to creating great content. When it comes to creating a fantastic blog, you need to gather information from your audience. Asking for feedback from your readers can give you greater insight into the things that can craft that perfect blog.

Building Your Email List

Creating a great blog is one thing, but getting people to read it is what drives traffic. You need to recognize that an email list is the best way to have people engage with your content. Even if you don’t sell anything, an email list means you can promote your content to the audience without being concerned about rankings in your search engine or if enough people are reading it. Email marketing is still an important component that makes a big difference in how you promote yourself and you should not underestimate it.

Use Social Media Correctly 

Social media can drive a lot of traffic to your website. Rather than using social media as a publishing platform, you need to use social media as a networking tool. When you start to realize that social media is not the end goal, but the implement that will drive more engagement, you can start to use it more effectively, perhaps creating different types of content that suit the audience on Facebook or Twitter. 

The Right Formatting

People seldom read blogs word-for-word anymore. We skim, and therefore, we need to format our posts in the right ways. For example, using great images is the best way to stimulate initial attention, but after that, you need to use subheaders, bulleted lists, italicize key points, and use short paragraphs. Formats are fundamental.

Understanding Who You’re Writing For

It sounds incredibly simple, but if you don’t understand the people you are writing for, you’re not going to get high levels of engagement. You may be writing posts about improving your productivity or working better, but if you are not testing your blogs with the right segment of your audience, it’s not going to resonate.

Delivering great blogs is a fine art. So if you want to be a great blogger, you’ve got to make sure that, while content is king, the other subtle levels should be catered for as well.