To Blog or not to Blog?
by Kym on November 11, 2006
Don’t let the title of this post frighten you…I’m not about to quit blogging. I’ve just taken a few days off and spent some time thinking about why I blog. I was going to title this post “Why Do I Blog?”, but “To Blog or not to Blog?” sounded cooler.
I have a good friend who blogs on a daily business. About everything in her life. She has benefitted tremendously from this. The introspection that daily journalling gives, has enabled her to reflect about various aspects of herself, and in some cases, impose change.
I know others who blog almost daily and share wonderful advice, projects, recipes, book reviews. And the list goes on. Reading their blogs is a great learning experience for me. I get ideas and insights I never would have discovered on my own.
And my blog? Well…it’s a bit showy. I generally wait to post until I feel I have something funny or something profound to say. I blog for my audience. I watch the comments rack up with glee. The fact that people actually take the time to read my “Ramblings” is a major ego stroke.
Having realized that, I don’t know if I’m going to change this pattern. I feel like I ought to. I feel like there’s so much more I could be getting out of this experience. But I crave attention so much apparently, that the thought of giving up my haphazard and bizarre posts for something more ordinary almost apalls me.
To Blog for me or to Blog for my ego? That is the question.
8 comments
Heh.
I’ve been going through 2003/2004 in my blog and fixing tags and stuff and something I noticed is that I didn’t used to blog for me. I used to blog for the same reasons as you do.
Now…now you know my story, and quite frankly I think you’ll turn out the same way, so you may as well start doing it sooner than later ;)
by Nurse Pickles on November 11, 2006 at 10:56 am. #
Oh how I can relate to this soliloquy. I am wondering the same thing myself. It’s quite a thrill when I realize people are spending their most precious commodity — their time — to read what I have to say. But then the big “so what?” questions haunt me. I think the fact that I feel more confident lately because I have a creative outlet is a good thing. So maybe that applies to you as well. Plus I am on the lookout for more meaning and humor in my otherwise mundane and stressful life — a life that now seems more interesting because it’s bloggable. That’s a good thing too.
Thanks for being honest.
by Julie on November 11, 2006 at 6:14 pm. #
I go back and forth, blogging about things that I think people will find funny, etc. but it usually ends up being for me. I’ve kept a journal since 7th grade and know the value of it, but the blog is so much more satisfying, with the ability to get COMMENTS and connect with other people.
by Thoroughly Mormon Millie on November 11, 2006 at 6:40 pm. #
I have never liked journaling because it always seemed to turn into a shopping list. “I did this today, the same as yesterday and the day before.”
Blogging changes all that because other people are reading. It think that’s good because you don’t want to write a journal that is too boring to read, which frankly, too many people do!
So what if I’m obsessed with organizing right now. That’s me!!! In ten years I may be blogging politics (not really) and be completely embarrassed of my organizing days. Never!
I’m amazed by how I can sit down to write about something completely ordinary and end up writing something that I can laugh at. At least I’m laughing right? Even if no one else is! That’s a pretty big stretch for me who is not a writer like so many bloggers are.
I set a goal for myself to blog once a day even though I don’t always do it. That way I am pretty much forced to come up with something. You should try it!
by The Lazy Organizer on November 11, 2006 at 7:46 pm. #
Your posts have a tendency to make me introspective, so I’m going to take up space on your comments page talking about myself. :LOL:
I kept a blog for a long time that was only read by my husband and my brother. That was a valuable step for me because otherwise I think I would’ve gotten “stage fright” and wouldn’t have ever posted anything. It gave me the time to let my blog develop into something I was entirely pleased with — frequency, topics, etc.
I am braver now, and I have opened up my blog to a broader audience, which has proven to be part ego-booster (so yeah, I can relate to that) and part support-group (which has been downright necessary when I’ve had the guts to post the thoughts of my Innermost Soul). I keep my handwritten journal, too, which has a slightly different scope — more day-to-day thoughts and feelings, not just anecdotes.
Oh, and I’m glad that “To Blog or Not To Blog” didn’t mean that you were giving up blogging. I still get giddy to see new posts from you! I like hearing from you. :-)
by Bethanny on November 11, 2006 at 9:49 pm. #
I have felt the same way. I started my blog as a journal more or less, but then I realized I could actually get people to read and comment. I am all for the ego stroke as well. I too wait for the comments and love to know that people are reading about me. Boring old me. As of late though I have decided to add a little more journaling or something to it. Hence, Memory Monday and Gratitude Tuesday. I think these posts will be more for me. I am actually looking forward to it.
by Amanda on November 11, 2006 at 10:29 pm. #
I do the same thing, I like to blog to the audience lol, guess it’s my way of being more outgoing than I am in real life. But lately I’ve been doing it a bit more for me. I try to make myself think more now.
by Anonymous on November 12, 2006 at 9:09 pm. #
I’m not alone! ~gets all weepy~ ~lol~ Glad the world if full of egomaniacs just like me.
by Kimberly on November 14, 2006 at 5:31 pm. #