When Technology Says “No”: A Small Error, A Big Learning

 

Running your own website teaches you something new almost every day. Some days you learn about growth, sales, or content. Other days, you learn patience.

                                       

Recently, while publishing a blog post on my own website, I faced an unexpected error:

“Publishing failed. The response is not a valid JSON response.”

At first, it felt confusing and frustrating. Everything was written, formatted, and ready to go — yet the post simply refused to publish.

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The Problem (In Simple Words)

WordPress needs to “talk” properly with the website server when we click Publish.
This communication happens using something called JSON (a technical format).

In my case:

• WordPress sent the publishing request

• The server replied with an incorrect or broken response

• WordPress could not understand it

• Result: the post failed to publish

The issue was not the content, but something happening quietly in the background.

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What Can Cause This Error?

I learned that this error usually appears due to:

• Plugin conflicts

• Website URL mismatch (http vs https)

• Security or cache plugins blocking access

• Server or hosting firewall restrictions

• Theme compatibility issues

In short, even a small technical mismatch can stop a simple action like publishing a post.

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The Solution (Step-by-Step Learning)

Here’s what helped solve and understand the issue:

1. Checked website URLs
   Made sure both WordPress Address and Site Address were the same (https, no mismatch).

2. Refreshed permalink settings
   Just saving permalinks again fixed hidden routing issues.

3. Disabled plugins temporarily
   One plugin at a time was checked to find conflicts.

4. Reviewed site health status
   WordPress gives helpful clues if something is blocking its system.

5. Contacted hosting support (if needed)
   Hosting teams can quickly identify server-side blocks.

Once these were addressed, publishing worked normally again.

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The Real Learning

This small error reminded me of something important:

Not every obstacle is a failure — some are lessons in disguise.

When you manage your own website or business, technical issues are part of the journey. Each problem teaches you how your system actually works.

Today it was a JSON error. Tomorrow, it might be something else.
But every time, the confidence grows.

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Final Thought

If you ever see an error message that feels overwhelming, pause.
Most problems have simple solutions once you break them down.

This was just another learning point in my journey, and I’m grateful for it.