As I was helping my dad re-roof his house this past weekend, it made me realize how happy I was to NOT do manual labor for a living. When I woke up this morning I could barely move. Muscles I didn’t even know I had ached. I realized that the sunscreen I applied, really didn’t do a whole lot of good. With that in mind I started thinking about some of the great things about being a blogger. I might not do it for a living, but there are a wide variety of benefits to starting a blog of any kind. Lets take a look at some of the best reasons:
1) It is location independent. Unlike most professions or hobbies, you can do it from anywhere there is an internet connection. I can move to a beach in Thailand, and still update this same website. So if you are lucky enough to turn your blog into a paying gig, you can be making money from just about anywhere in the world.
2) Gives you a voice. Blogging can be the best venue for you to get your thoughts, opinions, or stories heard. In the past you pretty much had to be a published or professional writer to get your writing to a mass audience. These days, anyone can provide their content to the world.
3) Great way to become an “authority”. The more good content you provide, the more people will recognize that you know what you are talking about. This can lead to all sorts of opportunities ranging from book requests to job opportunities.
4) Allows you to meet a wide variety of interesting people. As I have introduced myself to, and gotten to know other bloggers in my niche, I have realized there are a ton of interesting people out there. The amazing part is, many are not only willing, but excited to help you! Whether you are looking to start a business, travel, or any number of other activities, there is someone out there who wants to provide encouragement and advice. As you build your blog, you also meet awesome readers who become part of your online community. It is a pretty cool feeling when the comments and emails start rolling in.
5) Helps you find interests you didn’t know you had. As you continue to write more, and meet more people, topics you might have never considered suddenly spark your interest. For instance, I had never had a desire to learn any kind of web or computer code. Now I am taking a course in html and CSS. Because of my blogging, I am building useful skills I had never thought I would acquire.
6) Provides accountability. We all have goals in life, but sometimes we can lose sight of what they really are and begin to make excuses for not achieving them. Writing about these goals in a blog can be one of the best ways to ensure that you actually accomplish the things that you have deemed important in your life. For some people this may be travel, others continuation of hobbies, for me, its my list.
7) Improve your writing. Nothing bad can come from brushing up on your writing skills.
8 ) It doesn’t involve manual labor. After a weekend of hanging out on the roof, it reminded me why I got out of the house painting business!
Do you have other great reasons for starting a blog? Tell us about them in the comments!
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Photo by websuccessdiva
Great Post, Sean.
I guess when you blog, you are in a way journaling, and that is a great way to self discovery.
>>So if you are lucky enough to turn your blog into a paying gig<<
Luck has nothing to do with it.
I agree about accountability wholeheartedly.
Rasheed
Thanks Rasheed. Maybe I should rephrase: “If you are a hard enough worker to turn your blog into a paying gig”- that seems a little more truthful!
hi Sean , u have ignited a lite in me to become a blogger.
With the advent of online newspapers, the Amazon Kindle, and various other electronic methods of relaying the written word I am shocked that blogging or online writing has not become a requirement for English composition majors.
I will probably be a girl who will die with my cold lifeless hands gripping my favorite yellowed book, but I recognize that I am one of a dying breed. For anyone who wants to pursue ANY type of writing as a career they will have to set themselves apart in the online medium.
Since I am working more and more on a freelance writing career, the blogging just makes sense. Make sense? 🙂
I absolutely think you are right. For me as a business major, I was shocked at the utter lack of writing I had to do in school; let alone writing for the internet. In the two shorts months I have been working on this blog, I am almost ashamed to say that word for word I have written more than at my four years in college. While that may be a bit of an exaggeration, it certainly isn’t much of one!
What I am really interested to see over the next few years is the result that the internet takes on newspapers. The daily paper in Seattle has already gone to web only, and I can only imagine there are many more close on its heels. There just comes a time when you cannot be profitable relying on old standards, as the internet will only continue to grow!
Thanks for your comment and congrats on your good fortune at the “meet market”!