A definition of fatigue

Fatigue really is lack of enthusiasm, tiredness, weariness.  Athletes suffer from muscle fatigue often. Dictionary.com describes fatigue as:

• weariness from bodily or mental exertion. 
• a cause of weariness; slow ordeal; exertion: the fatigue of driving for many hours.  
• Physiology. temporary diminution of the irritability or functioning of organs, tissues, or cells after excessive exertion or stimulation. 
• Civil Engineering. the weakening or breakdown of material subjected to stress, esp. a repeated series of stresses. 
• Also called fatigue duty. Military.
  
  • labor of a generally nonmilitary kind done by soldiers, such as cleaning up an area, digging drainage ditches, or raking leaves. 
  • the state of being engaged in such labor: on fatigue.

Some synonyms for fatigue are: fatigue; weariness; yawning, drowsiness; lassitude, tiredness, exhaustion; shortness of breath; faintness; collapse, droop, sink, flag; lose breath, lose wind; gasp, pant, puff,  overtired, overspent, overfatigued; unrefreshed, unrestored, worn, worn out; battered, shattered.

So are you worn out, tired about blogging, exhausted, shattered? How can we get over that and combat blog fatigue.

Change your blog look and feel.

It might be that you have grown tired of your blog theme or colour scheme. Perhaps it does not reflect the ever changing you. Change your blog theme, add a widget, and change the colours. Perhaps it will only take just adding a new photo or banner, maybe update your about page. Maybe you need to be as drastic as a complete blog makeover.

Pick a different topic to write about.

Don't constrain yourself. Don't limit yourself to much. Stay within your niche, but approach it from a different angle. It is time to think out the box. Add a new category. Do some mind mapping.

Remember over time your interests and skills change, and so do those of your readers. The world is an ever changing place. New things come onto the market, old things pass away. Don't be stuck in a rut.

Read other blogs.

Athletes suffer a lot from muscle fatigue. The way they get over that is to train their muscles and body to supply energy  faster and use that energy more efficiently.

You need to train your mind to come up with new ideas quickly and use less energy to get those ideas into posts. Reading other blogs and comments is a great way of doing just that.

Create an ideas list from these blogs and comments that you read and jot them down. Write any idea that comes into your head. You can sort through them latter; highlight the better ones, turning them into blog posts.

Find new blogs to read.

Sometimes if we only read blogs in our own niche our own writing may become stale, the same stories and memes go round and round and you run out of fresh ideas and wonder whether you’ve reached the end of the road. Try adding a few blogs that are in a completely different niche, they give you lots of new ideas for posts that you may not have thought of.

Don't be afraid to branch out. Don't be afraid of reading your competition.

Take a break and do something else.

Driver fatigue often results form long stretches of driving over long distances. The best way to combat driver fatigue is to stop. Get out and take a brisk walk. Relax, do something else other than driving.

The same applies to bloggers and blogs. Take a break from what you're doing and do something else. Perhaps do some web surfing. Help out a fellow blogger. Read a magazine or a newspaper. Watch some TV or go to a movie. It's amazing how taking time of to do something else stirs the creative juices.

Take time off.

Similar to the previous point, one of the biggest causes of fatigue is over doing it. Not taking time to rest and replenish your energy reserves. Athletes certainly do that. In fact professional athletes are commanded to rest.

Take time off from your blog. Take a day or a week off. Do something relaxing. Vegetate for a day on the couch. Go out and get pampered, have your hair done. Do some shopping or even window shopping. Get a massage.

There are a ton of things you can do that are not blog or internet or work related.

Find a blog partner.

Often you just don't have the energy, but the show must go on. The best way to combat pilot fatigue is to take a rest and get away from flying. But who will fly the plane? Today pilots have co-pilots and auto-pilots to stand in for them.

Find your self a blog partner that will be able to fill in for you every now and then. Get some guest posts lined up. Keep them in store for that time when you need to take a rest.

Read over your older posts.

You need to be reminded why you started blogging. Reading over some older posts can help encourage you again. Even perhaps give you an idea to write a follow on post, expand an older post, revisit an old topic. 

Conclusion

We all get tired and weary some times. It's how you deal with that and overcome it that matters. Hopefully this post will give you some ideas, encourage you and give you that boost that you need. Has it been helpful? Leave us a comment with your thoughts.

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