Back in March, I started an interview section on my blog where each week I featured men and women bloggers in the spotlight. I never realized how much fun it would be showcasing other bloggers and introducing you to people who have affected my blog experience. I wanted to start this section up again and start this week off with Ben Barden from QuickBlogTips.com.

Please introduce yourself and tell us about your blog?

I’m Ben Barden, a 32-year-old guy from the UK. My main blog is “Quick Blog Tips“, where I share blogging tips I’ve tried found useful.

What most influenced you to launch your business?

Quick Blog Tips isn’t a business, but I’ll answer anyway I started QBT having set up several previous “blogs about blogging”. I had grown tired of saying the same stuff as everyone else. So I set out to write short posts that would be easy to pick up and, hopefully, useful to bloggers of any skill level.

I also wanted to publish a mixture of “no-nonsense” tips alongside truly original ideas I’d come up with myself. From the outset, standing out was my goal – both in the way I wrote my posts, and in helping other bloggers to stand out.

What is the biggest challenge you have faced so far with your blog?

Finding the energy for blogging along side a full-time job. I’ve worked in London since July 2009, and sometimes I feel I’m running on empty. Weekends are precious and become my time to recharge. Evenings are short, due to long hours and a not insignificant commute. Through the week, I get up at 6:20am, and I’m never home before 7:00pm. I’m sure others have busy lives too, particularly if you have children (which I do not). But I have very little free time during the week, and it means I have to cram in a lot at the weekend.

What role does social media play in your blogging life?

Social media is basically my international water cooler. I use Twitter to find new blog posts to read and share, to interact with others (not just bloggers), to meet people, and sometimes, to just sit and watch the world go by. I can hop on for a few minutes, then go away for a bit. I recently rejoined Triberr after a few months away, to simplify the sharing of posts from blogs I read regularly. I do read things on Facebook but don’t really post there much except on the page I created for QBT.

How has blogging affected your career?

Although I don’t blog for a living, colleagues are well aware of my blogging habits. A few people have asked for advice on starting their own blog, or have read some of my posts. I’ve also played a part in the company’s social strategy, but it’s less necessary now that we have an awesome social media person. I did build the blogging platform for my current job – it’s a custom engine.

What advice would you give to aspiring bloggers?

Blogging is writing. If you don’t like the sound of that, perhaps in time, you could learn to love writing. But I’m not going to dress that up and say you’ll find a way if writing is something you simply don’t enjoy to do. Beyond that, you need to find something to write about that you actually enjoy. Do it because you enjoy it, not to make money or because other people are doing it. Find your point of view and find a way to stand out. Don’t be like everyone else.

What would you say is the single biggest reason for your success?

The short answer is that I hope people enjoy my short posts, my direct writing style, and my blog in general. I hope they find it useful.

To the question though, I’ve never really thought about my blog being a success. It’s not so much that it’s a failure, but to me, “success” suggests that you have accomplished what you set out to do – and therefore it’s time to move on to the next thing. Blogging is tough for the simple reason that it’s a constant, ongoing, endless battle to put out post after post and be the best. It’s great to be ambitious, but if you just keep on and on, I think most people will stop eventually. If you can relate to that, I’d love for you to read the following post on my blog.

If you could step back in time to when you were just starting out, what advice would you give yourself knowing what you know now?

Honestly, I wouldn’t change anything at all. Everything I’ve learned has been worth learning, and the way I like to learn is through trying things out for myself. “No regrets” and all that

Do you have any big projects in the works?

I do have an eBook planned, where I will compile a lot of the older posts from QBT that are no longer online. They will be refreshed and updated so they are still relevant. I also have a new site where I will be posting all of my technical tutorials – Online Relish.

What websites to you visit most?

Probably Facebook and Twitter. When I want to read new blog posts, I either check Twitter or I jump into Google Reader for a bit.

What is the best way for our readers to learn more about you or contact you for more information?

I use www.benbarden.com as a splash page, a kind of portal to all the things I do online. It’s a good place to start. I’m on Twitter as @benbarden, @quickblogtips and @onlinerelish depending what you’re interested in

Thank You Ben for being apart of this series!