To blog or not to blog?

Over the last few months I’ve had a number of people say lovely things to me about my website and blog posts. It always makes my day when somebody responds to what I’ve written but whilst I really enjoy blogging, I know that it’s not for everyone.

So, for those of you who are thinking of starting up a blog, here’s a few things to bear in mind.

A blog will…

• Provide you with a voice – Blogging is a fantastic way of letting people know about your thoughts, your experiences or more simply, you. If you’re the sort of person who writes or used to write a diary, you’ll probably love it. Just remember… it’s not private, so be careful what you write!

• Help you develop your writing – When it comes to blogging, it’s all about the words. The key to success? – keep it simple. Be yourself, be honest (again, just bear in mind that your words will be public) and finally, be friendly. Blogging is a great way of tweaking and developing your writing style so go for it!

• Give you a web presence – Obvious I know, but a blog is an easy and effective way of achieving an online presence. Cheaper and more intimate than a website, it gets you out there into the big world wide web. Just remember to tell people where they can find it, otherwise you may find yourself deserted in cyber space. Think Facebook, think Twitter and tell everyone you know.

• Hopefully do you some good! – It’s been well documented that expressive writing has a number of psychological and physiological benefits. Keeping a blog is the perfect way of making sure you stick to expressive writing on a regular basis. So you could say, the more blogging you do, the happier and healthier you may become!

A blog won’t…

• Write itself – The key to a good blog is writing and posting on a regular basis. If you think you won’t have the time or inclination to do this, then perhaps a blog isn’t for you. If it is, but you don’t like writing much, add in some media like a video or podcast. But whatever you do, keep doing it. Once a week (which is the minimum I try to stick to ) or once a fortnight is ok, once a month or once in a blue moon, isn’t.

• Necessarily make you any money –  There are bloggers out there who earn money for their efforts but the truth is, most of us don’t. If you only want to blog because you’ll think you’ll earn megabucks, you will be disappointed. Sometimes worth isn’t all about the dollar. You may not earn any cash, but a blog can help you to promote your business or skills, enable you to express yourself and even help you improve your communication skills. All ‘worthy’ reasons for having a go anyway so think of money as just a potential bonus.

• Necessarily make you famous – Again… yes, there are bloggers who have become famous for sharing their innermost thoughts – I’m thinking Belle de Jour and Perez Hilton here in particular….but the reality, is that most bloggers blog in relative obscurity.  Blog because you want to express, create and share something with your audience. Whether you have 3 readers or 3 million, blog because you want to, not because you seek fame.

• Shield you from people’s opinions -When you write something and put it ‘out there’, you’re inviting people to read your work and comment on it. So it’s worth bearing in mind that sometimes, especially if you’ve written something controversial, you may not always like the response you receive. Blog readers can sometimes be cruel and whilst personally, I haven’t (as yet!) received anything other than positive feedback, I’m aware that one day somebody somewhere may say something that I don’t like very much! Putting yourself and your opinions out there is a brave thing to do, so be bold and proud! Say what you want to say, enjoy it, revel in the praise and just try to take any negative flack on the chin.

Good luck! x

P.S The pic for this post is a Wordle that I created with some of the lovely comments I’ve received about my blog / site :)