Ah, complexity, and the formula of because I said so.
Every now and then, somewhat less often than the frequency with which I receive spam comments regarding SEO, but more frequently than the advertisements for who knows what that come in the comments, I will get an email or a comment asking me to do a guest blog post.
I once read that you should ask bloggers to guest blog for you because they are all ego and fluff, and will probably say yes. Ok, the article probably didn’t say fluff, but it mentioned the ego. And it’s probably true. That said, I’ve been asked to do a number of guest posts, and the equation determining whether or not I will say yes looks something like this.
(desire to write about topic X number of hours slept)/ (interestingness of blog – time of day) + how many cups of coffee drunk so far/ desire for exposure – 2x laziness quotient.
If that is equal to or greater than the total number of legs my friend’s four cats have (hint, not 16) times my favorite number minus the number of times I’ve been called “preciosa” that day, then I will certainly write. If not, it’s more or a crapshoot. Or it depends on my need for ego. Or fluff.
This ramble brought to you by Everthenomad’s owner and blogger extraordinare, Anja who lives in Brooklyn, which ups her cool quotient and also slightly affects the above forumla, but only on Fridays during which I have drunk diet coke during a spinning class. She asked me to write a piece, and here it is. I talk about dogs. And there are pictures, lots of pictures.
Aha! The formula revealed – though without the cat's paw coefficient, forever a mystery.
(runs off to read the dog post 🙂
I guest posted for Anja too, I think that's a case where it's totally worth it.
Richard, I'm ever a mystery. I wonder how many 3-legged cats you will see on your cape to cairo? They're not as rare as you might think.
Flygirl, the truth is, it's all about whether I think the person "deserves" my blatherings. Which is a whole nother post about what my blatherings are actually worth. Clearly the quality of the company I am keeping is a major motivating factor, and basically, if you were jumping off a bridge, I'd jump, too. Please let the bridge not be that high and the water not be that cold, ok?
thanks for commenting, both of you!
Yes, this is oddly similar to the formula I choose for saying "yes" or "no" to blog posts, readings, writings, freelance assignments and various other things.
Somewhere in my equation I also have + proximity to due date
as I'm much more likely to say yes to something that's due six months from now or six hours from now, but not six days from now. I have no idea what the logic is behind that. At all.
Love the photos. I've just blogged about Guapo, my local resident street dog in Santiago. They're clearly an inspiring bunch!