A few months ago, I started my own blog. This is a long overdue bucket list item I had been putting . Despite my experience as an in-depth reporter a in Peru and US I was lost in the blogging world.

I committed to writing one enterprise article a month, but the stakes were too high. I realized that doing all the formal work of finding a topic, interviewing, taking and editing pictures, then writing, proofing, and publishing meant that my blog would not update every month. Worst of all, because my blog remained dormant for weeks on end, I didn’t have an audience – which meant all my hard work was for naught. I lost initiative and started to procrastinate.

Despite all my efforts of organizing my work load and write schedule, time tables and reminders, I couldn't get my blog to take off successfully on social media. After a long period of time thinking about all the mistakes I could possibly have made, I realized that blogging just didn’t have the same formal process as reporting. I was overdoing it: I overplanned, edited too much, re-read too long, and double-checked the sources exhaustively.

I needed to loosen up, so I developed some new guidelines for a more relaxed approach to blogging:

Create a timeline (with deadlines): If your Type A personality can’t blog on the fly, create a timeline by which you will have your post corrected and proofread so that you can upload it on time.

I just use my calendar, but there are a lot of fancy apps out there you can download that do the same thing.

Proof in sprints: Pouring over your post for hours on end will not make it perfect. Write it. Take a break. Proof it. Take a break. Proof it again. Don’t over think it.

Seek inspiration: If you spend all your time on your work, you’ll very quickly develop a pair of blinders. Read other blogs and get to know other bloggers. You’ll learn new ways to engage your audience and possibly make some new blogger friends!

Have fun: Blogging should be fun. Tell your inner perfectionist to take a backseat. No one is perfect anyway, the important thing is that your audience finds you relatable. The more fun you have, the more popular your blog will be. I promise.

Repeat after me: done is better than perfect. Done is better than perfect. Done is better than perfect. Your audience want to read the posts you promise. Don’t let them down!

I never imagined that blogging would change not only the way I write, but the way I approach life. Gone are the days of rigid perfectionism; today I’m much more loose and expressive – and I love it. If you’re a Type A personality who can’t get your blog off the ground, I recommend taping these guidelines to the wall above your desk and embracing the imperfections. It might just change your life!

This is a post from a member of the Freelancers Union community. If you’re interested in sharing your expertise, your story, or some advice you think will help a fellow freelancer out, feel free to send your blog post to us here.