Why I'm Keeping Thinkjoust Tuesday and What I'm Changing About It

For the very last Thinkjoust of 2016, I asked you, as my readers, to let me know which features of Change and Cherish you appreciate the most. I let this poll run for two weeks straight, a full week longer than usual.

Here were the results.

These results taught me some things.

For starters, it's true only 9 people voted on the poll, even though my daily readership is above 30 people on a bad day. One of the primary reasons I started writing this blog was so I could create a community. The lack of votes suggests we're still far away from that.

Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday are all 'feature' days. On each of these days during this week, I will be commenting on their futures as features. For features without specific hosting days, I have prepared a short commentary below.

Why I'm Keeping [insert feature here] and What I'm Changing About It

Poetry

I was surprised to see this at the top. Very few of my poems receive above thirty views, and while no poems made the Top 10 list this year, one of my poems made the very bottom of the Bottom 10 list. As it is, I have decided to write more poems, but also try to include discussion questions at their end.

Slice of Life

Even though this was a tie for second, pageviews fluctuate for these depending on the topic. Slice of life posts made both the Top and Bottom 10 lists of 2015. I know some of my more vocal fans hate these sorts of posts, but because Slice of Life posts are an integral part of the blog, I don't see them leaving anytime soon. I do want to make their content more relevant, however.

Videos

Again, like poetry, videos don't see a lot of love here. I don't make very many videos as it is, seeing as how they require about ten times more work than your average post. However, I will continue to make videos when the fancy strikes me.

Reviews

There are probably fewer review posts out there than there are any other type of post. Regardless, I was surprised they got so little love, seeing as how they all average pretty high views on average. I don't know that I'll stop writing reviews altogether, but I definitely will not be as eager to jump into one.

And, finally, the one you've been waiting for ...

Thinkjoust Tuesdays

One of the big problems with these posts is that the topics discussed are generally of no significant relevance to anyone. The most popular Thinkjousts revolved around dating and pets, but others, like those about weather or operating programs, barely received more than a 'Meh' from you as a collective audience.

I've pondered how to improve this, and I've decided several things.

First, I'm going to stop posting polls, at least on a regular basis. People interested in engaging in the content should use the comments section found at the bottom of every post.

Second, I'm going to start discussing heavier topics, likely revolving around current events.

I'm scared to do this because I don't want Change and Cherish to become volatile and unwelcome as people come in and express their opinions. However, I do believe that every opinion has the right to be heard, and that this sort of discussion naturally builds community. So I guess we'll see where it goes!

Thank you for your support and love. I'll see you tomorrow!