Last December, I wrote a blog post here in Blogging Tips entitled “The Never list in Blogging” wherein I shared some of the things which bloggers should never do in their blogging career. This is the continuation (though its a bit late) to my previous blog post which focuses on its exact opposite: The “Always” list.
a. ALWAYS know what you are blogging about
b. ALWAYS acknowledge source/reference items
c. ALWAYS be prepared when blogging
d. ALWAYS do a little research before blogging
e. ALWAYS read other blogs (especially the same topics as yours)
f. ALWAYS be updated on the latest news and trends
g. ALWAYS double check
h. ALWAYS be respectful of other bloggers
i. ALWAYS leave a comment or two to other blogs
j. ALWAYS prioritize and communicate with readers
k. ALWAYS update your blog
m. ALWAYS blog while drinking coffee 
(well, that’s my personal always)
Do you have your personal “always list”? Feel free to share 
I’m no professional, but when blogging I feel like I must have my MSN contact list open so that I can get feedback on my drafts from friends before publishing them.
Another must is to write down any funny tidbits that I plan on including on a piece on pieces of paper, because I have a tendency to forget them when I’m up to my eyes in source articles.
Always:
Ask yourself…is this writing something of which I’ll be proud to acknowledge years from now?
Ask yourself…have I found at least three outbound links that support the content to give the readers extra knowledge?
And finally, of course…
Ask yourself…does my coffee need a refill? And if not, follow up with the action, better be prepared for the future (and start a new pot brewing).
Best wishes,
Barbara Ling
Great list, Elaine. You miht have a problem with the list ordering – I see “d-e-f” repeated.
I love the second point – always acknowledge sources. That was bored into my skull as a history student in college. Plagarism = fire and brimstone, etc.
A great list, thanks very much
:) – and i missed your article the first time round, so im glad you linked to it.
Well I don’t always know what I am blogging about on my MMO site but I try to learn things every day. I do know my hobbies and I blog about those. I know a little more about my hobbies.
I definitely have a coffee with each of my blog posts. I currently have about a dozen ongoing blogs and I am sure I have a coffee with every post.
I did have to switch to decaf though. I was getting a bit jittery.
I use Bloglines to follow the feeds of my favorite blogs. It saves me a ton of time every day.
I would add the importance of your blogs post titles.
It’s even more important today to write great post titles because so many bloggers are using feed readers to scan through hundreds of titles to find the one title that grabs their attention.