I got an in-game achievement when playing a game recently - a small pop-up, a flashy badge, and that familiar burst of satisfaction. Last week when writing for Blaugust it struck my mind that we can make something similar for our own blogs.

A personal blog doesn't have to be just some posts on a page - it can be a game in itself, with milestones and badges for them milestones. That tiny bit of gamification can turn routine writing and site maintenance into a playful (yet capturing) quest.

I came up with some ideas along those lines, some are one-off while some have tiers to them. I have even designed progression badges for one of them.

Writing & Publishing

• First Steps: Publish first entry
  • Writer: First blog post
  • Reader: First book review
  • Watcher: First movie review
  • Player: First game review
• Wordsmith: Wrote "x" words in total (the badges shown at the start were designed for this)
  • Bronze: 8,192 words
  • Silver: 32,768 words
  • Gold: 1,31,072 words
  • Amethyst: 5,24,288 words (so what if the fires are low, the ambers amethysts are still aglow :P)
• Centenarian: Publish 100 blog posts
• Speed Demon: Publish 5 posts in a week
• Scroll Roller: Write a post longer than 5000 words
• Series Samurai: Complete a multi-part blog series (3+ posts)
  • Bronze: First series
  • Silver: Three series
  • Gold: Seven series
  • Amethyst: 29 series

Technical/Site Building

• Phoenix Rising: Finish a complete redesign
• Tinker Tailor: Add a new feature yourself
• Bug Basher: Fixed issues spotted by readers
  • Bronze: First issue fixed
  • Silver: Three issues fixed
  • Gold: Seven issues fixed
  • Amethyst: 15 issues fixed
• Mobile Master: Optimize site for a useful mobile experience
• The Real OG: Incorporate appropriate open-graph tags for better previews

Creativity & Exploration

• Warrior: Write about a workout you like
• Chef: Publish the recipe of a dish you enjoy
• Maker Meta: Share a behind-the-scenes post of your workflow/workspace
• Challenge Accepted: Complete a writing challenge (NaNoWriMo, Blaugust, etc)
• Deep Diver: Write a detailed analysis piece

Process & Discipline

• Early Bird: Publish a post before 7 am
• Night Owl: Publish a post after 11 pm
• Weekly Warrior: Publish a post every week.
  • Bronze: 4 weeks
  • Silver: 8 weeks
  • Gold: 16 weeks
  • Amethyst: 64 weeks (so what if the fires are low, the ambers amethysts are still aglow :P)
• Time Traveller: Schedule posts in advance
  • Bronze: One post
  • Silver: Two posts
  • Gold: Four posts
  • Amethyst: 16 posts
• Editor's Eye: Updated or revised an old post