This is a guest post by the one and only Jennifer Kane. I asked her to write this post because of her straightforward way of writing and our mutal affection for the word “douche”. Jennifer is a great person to get to know on Twitter and in real life. I’m lucky that she thinks some of the things I say are funny.
Recently someone asked me if I was going to be at the mega-conference, Blogworld, and my first thought was, “Why would I? I’m not really a blogger.”
Don’t get me wrong. I have a blog. And I blog on this blog.
But a BLOGGER?
That sounds terribly official and professional, something reserved for those who have a passion for the form, whether it is their hobby or profession.
You see, I pretty much hate blogging.
A lot.
So, when Joey asked me if I wanted to guest post on his blog, of course my first response was…”Sure!”
(I have a really bad habit of going with the immediate affirmative answer.)
My second response was to say to myself, “Woman! What the hell are you thinking?”
You see, like flossing and liking Oprah, blogging is one of those things that you know you’re supposed to do, but isn’t really something you have to do.
Even if you have the time and capabilities to do it, it’s still pretty easy to avoid blogging, especially if any distractions pop up, (like say, a funny Star Wars mashup video on YouTube. Anything with Chewbacca in it is a winner in my books.)
But I said “yes” to this guest post anyway for one simple reason…although I don’t like blogging, I need to do it.
Know what? I think you need to do it too.
Blogging probably won’t make you famous, (And, if you start a blog because of reading this post and become famous while I continue to toil in obscurity, it will seriously bum me out. Just sayin’.) but it can help you in other ways.
Here are my top five:
1. It will force you to take a stand.
There are whole swarms of people out there whose only function each day is to simply pass along other people’s junk.
Armed with a Google-able library of warm-hearted Dr. Seuss quotes, smarmy retweets from miscellaneous “experts” and the moxie of a mouse, rather than saying anything smart, they just relay smart-sounding things.
Essentially, they aggregate a personality for themselves.
Don’t be that person.
No one wants to read another “Top 5 Reasons Why Twitter Rocks!” post…or, even worse, your interpretation of someone else’s “Top 5 Reasons Why Twitter Rocks!” post (also referred to as “plagiarism.”)
People want to hear something fresh and unexpected…the something that you’ve got bottled up inside of you.
So let it out and let your blog force you to think your own thoughts.
Think of your blog as that teacher you had in high school, who was a total pain in the ass and gave you a lot of homework, but whom you later looked back on fondly since they were the only person who actually TAUGHT you anything.
2. It will improve your writing.
My first blog post was pretty sucky. Yours probably will be, too.
Remember those dorky stories you wrote as a child in school — the ones that your parents horded away in boxes, which they will dump on your doorstep when they downsize and move to a hot urban loft filled with other unfettered Boomers?
Those stories weren’t very good either. And, you probably “speled stuff rily bad” in them, too.
Good writing takes practice. Period.
Sure, some people are born with a gift for it. And their blog posts are like little works of art that we preserve behind plexi glass and lasers in an effort protect their preciousness (also referred to as “bookmarking”).
But you know what? Once upon a time, those writers sucked, too (none of us pop out of the womb knowing the difference between “your” and “you’re”).
To be great, you first have to be good.
To be good, you first have to be adequate.
To be adequate, you first have to try.
Make the time to try.
3. It will open your world.
Blogs are a “social” communication tool, just like Twitter or Facebook.
Ideally, you’re not just going to barf out a post and then walk away from it.
If you’re doing it right, you’re going to ask questions, share ideas and take stances that people are going to want to talk about.
You don’t have to have a huge subscriber base to create a community and conversation. A handful of regular readers (also referred to as “your friends” and “Mom and Dad”) at the start will suffice.
Just be sure to talk to people and not AT them and leave cracks in the door for the curious world to peek in at you.
(I’m really bad at this. Did you see how, just here in that last sentence, I was being all bossy and telling you what to do? Bad Jen, BAD.)
4. It will be good for search.
Blogs are like search catnip.
Blogs provide oodles and oodles of keywords all smushed into one place. People like to quote ‘em, share ‘em and spread them around like butter on a corncob, (also referred to as “viral activity”).
Having a blog is like having a summer home or a co-op condo in Vegas where you can escape when you need an infusion of excitement and naked people.
It’s a place that complements your website (heck, maybe it IS your website), doubles your “social footprint” and keeps your company looking lively with all its’ fresh, sparkly and everchanging content.
So, don’t just slap up a blog and start typing away. Build that sucker with care. It’s going to need to carry a lot of weight for you.
5. It will encapsulate the history of your intellectual development.
Doesn’t that sound all smart and stuff?
Here’s what I mean in normal person-speak: your blog will capture snapshots of your wisdom over time, helping you (and your community) to track its growth and expansion.
Most of us don’t get dumber with age. (Insert Lindsay Lohan joke here).
I’m betting that you’re probably not even aware of how fast your brain is assimilating new information, forming new ideas and changing you into an (ideally) more highly evolved version of yourself (also referred to as “an old person”).
When I take a stroll down my “blogger lane,” I can see myself changing right there on the screen.
My blog is the diary I’ve never been able to start and an imprint on the world that I would have never remembered to leave behind.
Now, go forth and blog, peeps of the world!
So there you have it…five simple reasons and now, I’m done writing this post.
See? It really isn’t that hard to do.
I mean, it was no funny Chewbacca video, but I almost even enjoyed it.
Jennifer Kane is Principal of Kane Consulting, a Minneapolis-based social media firm that specializes in strategy, integration and measurement. You can find her on Twitter at @JenKaneCo.
Tags: blogging, Blogworld, Chewbacca, Kane Consulting, social media, writing
Hi Jen and welcome!
I enjoy blogging ~ writing is one of my dominant strengths, so I guess my affinity comes naturally. I follow the flow of my inspiration with it, which means I defy most of the Blogging Rules because they don't work for me. I like that your approach speaks to value the blogger him/herself can get from the process. I think that's of critical importance too.
For me, publishing posts allowed me to experience the fact that my viewpoint on certain things was not isolated or different ~ that people do exist who feel similarly on certain issues as I do. That was a real confidence builder - and translated positively into my 'real life world' as I practiced sharing more of my opinions and feelings out loud, knowing that if they weren't embraced or accepted - their value was not diminished as a result.
I enjoy posts that are infused with appropriate doses of humour ~ it's one of the reasons I'm a strawnja fan. Keep writing beyond the bounds of your comfort zone because those of us reading you truly appreciate your efforts!
Thanks for reading the post Sally. I envy your enjoyment of blogging. Glad that you found a medium that really connects with you ('cause ultimately that's the most "social" part about "social media" -- finding the place where you feel comfortable socializing.)
Ok I love to blog... but that may be because my definition of being a blogger is different than anyone else. I have a time capsule of my life for the last seven years on Livejournal that periodically I can go back and read. I suppose that is more of a journal than a blog, but I like to come up with things to write about, and spread my anxst across the world for everyone to read. Now that I am attempting to write for an audience it is markedly harder to know what to say.
This was a great post and I enjoyed reading it. I will share it right now on my Twitter just so more people can do exactly as you say...get out there and try it, write more and become better at saying what they mean and meaning what they say.
Thanks Susan for reading, sharing and commenting. Jen really hit it out of the park today, didn't she?
the experience to provide people with useful…
information…you’ll only get so far.here’s some advice on writing blog posts that get traffic:1. show your readers who you are when writing your blog posts. what you can do for them…and what type of information can they expects from your posts?…
later on a different project which i…
thought would be easier. things fell apart. not only did the work not pass copyscape, he felt it wasn’t possible to pass copyscape.that isn’t an issue with english, of course. yet, the subtle differences between what i meant and what he…
Great…
[...]please take a look at the websites we adhere to, such as this 1, because it represents our picks through the web[...]…
website address or another link to useful…
content.when writing your articles include line breaks, bolded subheadings and bullet points to make the work more visually appealing to the reader. this will transform big blocks into text into a more organised article which will be a lot more readabl…
Wika Water Heater…
I saw this really great post today….
team for professional writers who will be…
assisting you is writing posts.#12 blogging mistake- plagiarisms copying of other bloggers articles is called plagiarism. this act is illegal; it is an offense under the copyrights. some bloggers depend on copying and pasting instead of putting up thei…
Wika Water Heater…
I saw this really great post today….
Bing results…
While browsing a lot Bing and AOL I very much happily found this interesting page in the search results and I did think it would match…
… [Trackback]…
[...] Read More Infos here: joeystrawn.com/2010/09/29/blogging-sucks-but-here-are-five-reasons-you-should-do-it-anyway/ [...]…
or spelling mistakes. even a brilliantly written…
post loses its charm if there are any grammatical errors.you should read it once or twice to see if it is interesting or not as you are your best critic and if you find a need you should edit it. a…
and ideas aren’t good enough. they are….
please share your unique voice through your blog because your story needs to be told. other people want to hear it.7. reject rejectionsi’ve experienced having my writing rejected and learned how to bounce back from rejection. that’s probably one of t…
of (another celebrity) football star, david beckham,…
dvb style, a regularly-updated blog site that is a part of the official victoria beckham website. her blog page is more personal, with photos of mrs. beckham’s personal life, such as a photo shoot in whatever location she is, or anything…
… [Trackback] ……
[...] more information are at that place attainable [...]…
the most like the powerful wordpress. one…
of this tools greatest pluses is it’s ability to run multiple blogs after just one install. while still growing in uses it still remains a great source quite comparable to wordpress. to avoid total disaster by giving useless gifts on the…
success? blog advertising is letting general people…
blog about a certain product, review it honestly and get paid instead. it’s as simple as that! the latest trend in marketing industry is that customers prefer honest and simple reviews than catchy phrases and promises that signify nothing. thus, revie…
about your company. they should be a…
two-way conversation that allows readers to express themselves.unlike websites, which are typically straightforward and lack emotion, blogs allow companies to either be serious or not. southwest airlines has one of the best company blogs titled, “nuts…
The article…
Excellent read, I just passed this onto a colleague who was doing some research on that. And he actually bought me lunch since I found it for him smile Thus let me rephrase that: Thank you for lunch! “Remember It is 10 times harder to command the ear …
exercise is right for you outline your…
article as follows: 2-3 sentence paragraph overview of your topic different forms of exercise based on lifestyle such as walking, running, lifting weights, swimming, or yoga, and whether or not the reader is a single parent of very young children, stay…
Penny Auctions Free Bids…
[...] Great post I read today [...]…
Great…
[...]we prefer to honor a lot of other world-wide-web internet sites around the net, even when they aren’t linked to us, by linking to them. Under are some webpages worth checking out[...]…
Just reading…
Howdy very nice blog!! Man .. Beautiful .. Wonderful .. I will bookmark your blog and take the feeds additionally…I’m happy to search out so many useful info right here in the submit, we need work out more strategies on this regard, thanks for sharing…
News…
I was reading slowly the Reddit news and info and I saw this really super interesting and super fresh information…
jeremy oakum…
not very on topic but i stuck at the dumb bus station the only web site i can get on to is this one good read anyway…
Weebly article…
I saw a writer writing about this on Weebly and it linked to…
archiwizacja…
hey buddy, this can be a extremely fascinating article…
skład opału…
Thanks for every one of your efforts on this website. Kate delights in working on investigation and it is simple to grasp why. A number of us hear all relating to the lively manner you convey important strategies by means of the blog and increase parti…
Drzewko Bonsai…
My husband and i were really thrilled when Raymond managed to conclude his investigation from your ideas he was given through the weblog. It is now and again perplexing just to find yourself handing out tips and hints men and women could have been sell…
… [Trackback] ……
[...] Find out more addition here [...]…
serwis ploterów…
really excellent factors right here, just many thanks…
Trackback for this post…
[...] that’s the end of this informative article. Here you’ll find a number of sites that we think you’ll like, follow on the links over [...]…
Great…
[...]Here are a number of the web-sites we advise for our visitors[...]…
… [Trackback] ……
[...] Find out more here [...]…
health…
I was very happy to seek out this net-site.I wished to thanks to your time for this glorious read!! I positively enjoying every little little bit of it and I’ve you bookmarked to take a look at new stuff you weblog post….
great find…
If you only see on good article brand today….
credit cards…
very good put up, i definitely love this web site, keep on it…