thinking

Christina Faith | December 1, 2014 | 14 Comments

Is There A Cure To Singleness? – Christina Faith

I have been single 30 years of my life. I’ve been married for 1 year. I personally tend to speak more about singleness because I understand the hurt, desire, healing, lack of compassion and social awkwardness that comes from being single. In our culture being single is seen as a disease.

Singleness is scary. We have gone from getting married at 18 to dating sites to our generation barely wanting to get married at all. We are the first generation to get married after the age of 30 as the standard, but deep down, all of us want to be loved. I know I did. The main reason I stepped back from dating was that I didn’t know who I was outside of chasing guys and being chased.

I was hurt and honestly I needed some time time to heal. When you come out of a relationship you need time. However, taking that time is extremely hard. Commercially, we are told we need to be in a relationship. If you watch television, get on christianmingle.com, match.com or any other dating site, they all will tell you how to find companionship. There are apps, friends and instagram feeds of relationship pictures telling you that you aren’t complete.

As a now married woman, I am here to tell you that marriage will not complete you. Dating will not make you happy inside. I know that isn’t what you wanted to hear, but it is what you need to hear. Your singleness is an amazing time for you to explore you and the Lord. It is a time when you can make mistakes and grow from them without harming another person. It is a time that you can hang out with your friends until whenever you want to because you don’t have a spouse to be home to at a specific time. It’s a time when you learn how to turn to the Lord for those deep areas of healing that only He knows about.

Singleness isn’t a disease, it’s a cure. It is a time of freedom. Freedom to live and learn. The cure of singleness is found in wrestling with your anxieties, frustrations, and heartbreaks. It is found in spending countless minutes of the day speaking to the Lord in your head, on your knees, or in a journal. Your singleness doesn’t need to be fixed. You are perfect with or without a mate. I know it is shocking to hear from a married woman, but I believe singles need to consistently hear it. I loved being single. I learned to be content. I learned to not allow the anxiety to overtake me.

Let me tell you a secret most married people are afraid to admit. Marriage doesn’t remove insecurity, loneliness, habits, lust, brokenness, trust issues, or anything else. Instead, it exposes those things all the more to sanctify you. I am hoping that we can grow together based on being human beings and not just our relationship status.

I look forward to writing and sharing my heart concerning relationships of all kinds. What are your concerns about relationships? What topics should I cover concerning relationships?

Courtney Gordner | October 18, 2013 | 3 Comments

How to Write Content for People and Search Engines

These days, content writers have to write for two audiences: the people who read it and the search engines that index it. As SEO took off, however, new writers were trained to create content for one, but in the process forgot how to write for the other.

These writers added the right keywords in the right places and linked to relevant sites. The search engines responded to this, but the readers didn’t because the end result was uninteresting, irrelevant or so bad, it was unreadable. The point I want to make with this is that you cannot have good SEO writing without good writing, so follow these steps to write content that attracts people and search engines.

Pick a Meaningful Topic

What do potential readers care about? Are they looking for Maxwell Systems web based software or a cocktail dress for New Year’s Eve? Scan the web to find out what people want to know and write content around it.

Present valuable information in an easy-to-follow format, like a how-to guide or a product list. Also, choose a title that is unique, but matches the queries people use to find information. “How to Lose 20 pounds in 20 Days,” for instance, addresses a popular topic but promises a specific result. The title should also follow the next important step.

Choose and Place Popular Keywords

You knew this one would come up – SEO marketing started with keywords and still relies heavily on it. However, content can fail if the writer relies too heavily on them. Instead of focusing on keyword quantity, concentrate on quality.

Choose 1-2 of the most searched terms for your topic and place them in your blog. Don’t add them over and over, though – you’ll diminish the quality and turn off the search engines. Instead, place keywords where they fit naturally in the text, as well as in high-value places like the title, URL and subheadings.

Link to Other Content

Content marketers spend a lot of time trying to build links to their websites. If you have written a great blog with high-value keywords, you are already attracting readers. Add links to other content so they see more of your site.

If you are a retailer, link to one of your product pages – to make it less “sales-like”, use a generic keyword instead of the product name. Link to an earlier post on a similar topic or an entry from a guest blogger. These links will introduce new readers to the rest of your website and keep them on your site a little longer.

Edit and Proofread

Search engines don’t always pay attention to poor grammar and typos, but readers almost always do. You will lose credibility if words are missing from sentences or you confuse “you’re” with “your.” Protect your reputation – and readership – by proofing before posting.

Read your post and check for awkward phrasing. If something is confusing, rewrite it to improve the clarity. Check the spelling of proper names, and run a spell check on other words. You can use first-person, second-person or third-person narrative, but keep it consistent throughout. Finally, use proper punctuation for better readability.

Some writers know how to appeal to readers, while others know how to improve search engine rankings. If you want to stand out, however, your writing has to do both.

How do you write for search engines and people at the same time? Leave your tips in the comments below!

Photo credit: waferboard

Adam Smith | January 11, 2012 | 2 Comments

You Are Just Down One Step: The Idea

Creative Commons Photo Credit by pascalbovet

Ideas come and they go.

Some of those ideas that come are bad, some are good and then some are those great ones in life.

Forget about the bad ideas once you recognize which ones those are. There is no use in spending mental capacity on ideas that aren’t going anywhere.

As for the good ideas, write those down somewhere where you can come back to them later. You may need to spend extra time thinking about how you can make those good ideas even better. With some strategic planning, those will most likely become great later on.

Great ideas are the game changers. Those are the ones that are bigger than you. Those are the ones that you will need help in making happen. Those are the ones that will impact others the most. Those are the ones you will want to spend time on to craft very carefully in order to make them succeed in the way they were intended to. Those are the ideas that are ready to be seen.

So, You Are Just Down One Step: The Idea

Frankly, all you need is one golden idea to kickstart the process, but wouldn’t it be great if you had so many great ideas that you had options on which one to move on first? When options happen, you don’t settle for just another good idea. The creative juices begin to flow and greatness begins to form.

The idea is to increase the frequency of great ideas. So, how do you do that?

Here are a few ways to put yourself in the way of more great ideas: