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Yesterday I wrote briefly about my experiences with the amount of attention that can come your way if you make a theme or template that proves to be popular and how difficult it can be to manage your time in such circumstances.

I’ve been thinking about this as many people could find themselves in a similar position so I though I would share my thoughts on the subject.

When you start a blog or another project on the web it often feels like you are alone and doing it for yourself or talking to yourself and it can be difficult to get it all in perspective and see the big picture.

There’s no doubt that cyberspace can seem a lonely place and efforts to gain exposure almost seem in vain in the early days and lull us into a feeling that nobody will ever be interested in what we are doing. In reality, if you are doing something of value, you only have to persevere and be patient and the visitors will come.

The web is such a vast entity that even a half successful venture can give a huge exposure that many won’t be prepared for. There are opportunities as well so it should necessarily be seen as a bad thing but it can be difficult to know how to move your ideas forward in a productive way.

The upside is that it is a good feeling to get positive feedback and see people using what you have had a hand in creating. I think all people who blog or create things to give away crave some form of attention or exposure, whether it is for a feeling of happiness or to get yourself noticed for commercial reasons. When it comes it is a great feeling.

The downside is coping with the attention and emotions that this can create. Personally I feel guilty if I don’t respond to every email or comment and it can be difficult enough balancing having a life and work, never mind adding another dimension on the web.

I think that anybody who contributes anything to the web should at least be prepared for what might happen. A lot has been written about how to gain popularity but there seems to be a lack of advice about coping with the popularity. Just look at Ghyslain Raza for an example of what can happen even though he wasn’t looking for it.

I wonder if Andy Warhol had any idea about the Internet and the way that some people have been thrust into the limelight when he said, “In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes”?

This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 14th, 2006 at 11:58 pm and is filed under Blogging, Opinion. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.