To Do or Not To Do Tuesday: Week 8 (sort of)

It has been weeks 8 since I’ve started this feature, but it’s only the 7th post because, well last week’s unwritten To or Not To Tuesday post could easily have been about whether or not to write a To or Not to Tuesday post that day, and we all know (or can easily find out) that such a post did not occur.

But hey, that’s the beauty of it. It can go either way, and last week I obviously needed a break. Everything sort of got lost in a blur of depression that I tried to largely overlook. But depression would have none of that. The good news is that the cloud lifted a bit (a few days later than I had hoped for), but that’s another story.

Anyway, I wasn’t sure what this week’s post would be other than I’ve been thinking a lot about my blog and what to do about it, but it’s not about To or Not To (Tuesday) continue blogging. However, Linda Hill posed a question in her latest post that ties in nicely.

For the past two years, Linda has hosted “Just Jot It January” (JusJoJan). According to the rather informal “rules,” you just write a blog post ever day in January, whether that post be 1000 words or just a few. She is trying to decide whether or not to run it this year and wants to find out how many people are interested with a virtual show of hands. The icing on the cake is that in addition to adding 31 posts to one’s blog, you get to meet a lot of great people through the pingbacks and visits.

So it would appear that my To or Not To Tuesday meshes perfectly. Especially since I did NOT participate in JusJoJan in either of those previously two years. So technically, I can’t say much. But Linda, in her awesome generosity, is letting every one vote. So my question for this To or Not To Tuesday is whether to join JustJoJan or not. And, by extension, whether to vote for the continuation of JustJoJan or not.

As I’ve mentioned in the past, usually by the time I post a question, it’s not really about making a decision but about clarifying what I already know at some level. Which is why Linda’s post jumped out at me. I’ve been thinking about how I’m going to approach my blog in the new year, but I don’t have specific clarity about any kind of approach, only that I want the blog to continue. How does JustJoJan help me move forward with that clarification?

First, by posting something each day in January, I can explore various kinds of posts and determine a possible direction for the future. Such a platform can become a playground for me to experiment, have fun, and see where the road takes me.

Second, I have found in the past that these month-long posting challenges do keep me motivated. And many of the posts I write because “it’s time” are things I never would have written if I just sat here and made plans for posts. The surprise element is intriguing. And, as Linda points out, there’s the element of meeting new people and building community.

Over the last couple of months, I’ve had a few thoughts about a possible direction for my blog, but nothing has really grabbed me yet. So if I joined in JustJoJan as a playground experiment, I could try a little of everything–both the ideas drifting around in my head now and the ones that will emerge because of the scheduled aspect — all 31 days of it.

So now that I’ve totally talked myself into joining JustJoJan as a result of this week’s To Do or Not To Do Tuesday, I am going to hope that Linda will decide to continue hosting. I definitely want to be part of it.

What about you? Will you join in JustJoJan? Do you have a To Do or Not to Do Tuesday question of your own? Feel free to join in for either one.