Everyone has their own reasons for blogging. Some do it for fun while others do it to make a living (still having fun, hopefully). You can come up with your own reasons I’m sure. But why is blogging truly important to each one of us?
Only you can answer that question and here are some of my reasons why blogging is important to me.
- Basics
Blogs are like personal online journals where we share how we feel and what we did today, yesterday or what we’re going to do tomorrow. They help keep others informed of hobbies we might have and are useful for sharing tips and ideas to people who are interested in similar topics.
Blogs allows you to quickly and easily find what you’re looking for by date, category, title, and more. And blogs are updated a lot more often than the typical website. If you have a website, great! If you have a blog, even better!
What if you just want to post information and update it once in a while? A blog really isn’t required for this kind of website and it’s fine not to have a blog. However, the beauty of a very well known patform called WordPress allows you to have an entire website with one page as a blog. How cool is that?!
I could surely add more here. I’m positive you can add your own thoughts and ideas as well. But the basics are just that, basics. Blogs are personal frequently updated pages where useful and quick information can be found on any topic out there.
- Intermediate
If you’ve gotten past the basics and want to build a readership and a relationship of some sort then you’re going to need ways of doing just that. WordPress and I’m sure other platforms allow you to add personal widgets and plugins that make it stupid simple to interact easily with your readers and allow them to share what they find useful with more people across the internet. Have an idea about building computers that someone just posted on a blog and you just saw someone ask if anyone knew anything about the topic, simply retweet it and hopefully your friend will see it and click the link.
Going on a trip for a few days and won’t be anywhere near a computer? You can easily setup WordPress to schedule a post date and time for articles you’ve written a week ago to post while you’re away. I just had to add this in here because it’s what I am using right now. I’m actually writing this on Tuesday January 12 at 2:01 PM right now. It’s not going to be posted for over a week. I like how that works because it allows me to keep up with things and not be in such a hurry in case I’ve got nothing on my mind to blog about. You might feel different about it and that’s fine.
- Advanced
Ah, the advanced stage of blogging. Where Basic meets Intermediate and adds a touch of style to things. Here is where the real fun is of course everyone, as always, has their own take on this. At this point you should be looking at a decent design for your blog and should have some good content already in place. Ask around and discover what real people really want to know more about. Give it to them and let them know what you have and where they can find it. You have plugins to work with and you have WordPress to make it incredibly easy to do all this with. Pick a good premium theme or even better, Thesis theme your own stuff and make it yours.
There’s not much to this level. In fact, this is all I have to say about it because the basics are always fun because you’re testing the water and have so much to learn. Intermediate is just the next step to things and this level just combines the two.
Bottom line is this. Create a blog with purpose. Something you love and find others who share that love for that idea. Write what you know and send them over to check out what you said and ask them what they think. Then interact. Create something that looks nice, functions well, is useful and interesting to read and and gives them options to work with. From here just keep learning and keep doing.
Here are some interesting blogs I’ve come across that I visit daily and they’ve opened my mind to new things and I believe you should check them out.
The InfoPreneur – A blog from a guy by the name of James who kicks ass every day and is fun to talk to and works hard to help other people and share what he learns. He even linked to this blog; how nice is that! 
WakeUpCloud – I’m not even sure where to start. Henri is full of passion and loves to help people find theirs. He explains things in such a way that reading what he says makes you stop and think and wonder if what you’re doing is what you SHOULD be doing in your life. Of course, he’s not about controlling your life, he’s about showing you ways to help improve your life and reach your dreams.
BeginnerBlogger – Sarge is working hard to help people become better bloggers at the beginning stages. He strives to show people how and why they can and should blog. You should check this one out as well.
SiteSketch101 – Nicholas created SiteSketch101 to teach people how to blog and do it creatively and add personal style to their masterpiece. He has a very unique name (kinda like BluePop13 lol) and is now doing some videos blogs as well.
FreeBlogHelp – Gabe shows you some very creative ways to improve your blog and how you can reach out to others faster using The Value-Driven Commenting System. He always has something fun and interesting to check out.
EscapingThe9to5 – Maren Kate talks about how she escaped the 9to5 routine and is now becoming successful as a blogger, entrepreneur and writer and her blog will show you how you can do just the same thing. Follow her and see what she has to say.
These are just naming a few of the blogs I check out on a daily basis and a little about what value they add to my life.
As you can see every one of these blogs has to do with similar ideas about blogging and quitting your day job and how to live a better life. They are all great blogs and if you work at it you can join the community and create something of value as well.
Why is blogging important to you and what blogs do you visit that improve your life? How do they improve your life?
Leave your comments; I always love reading them!
COMMENTS
18 Comments
TheInfoPreneur
January 20th, 2010 04:34 AM
Hey man thanks for the mention,
You are totally right what ever your reason for telling the world what you are thinking about, then do it with passion and fire!
TheInfoPreneur´s last blog ..Now It’s Even Easier For You
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BluePop13 Reply:
January 20th, 2010 at 4:47 am
Of course!
Passion is the color that comes out on our blogs when what we talk about goes above and beyond our expectations.
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Henri Junttila
January 20th, 2010 05:10 AM
Mention thanks!
Passion is such a vital ingredient in anything you do. The unfortunate thing is that you only realize it when you realize it and then you go “why didn’t I realize this sooner”, but that’s how it is I guess
Henri Junttila´s last blog ..How to Be Successful Online: Eliminate and Discriminate
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BluePop13 Reply:
January 20th, 2010 at 2:56 pm
Henri,
You’re absolutely right. I’ve had so many times in my life when I realised I was truly passionate about something only later to realise I could have been doing what I was doing so much sooner. It usually happens that way too. The important thing is to finally discover it and take it for the long hall and really make something of it. That’s the beauty that can come about.
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Mick Morris
January 20th, 2010 06:17 AM
Thanks for pointers to a few extra worthwhile blogs…. more to digest on the learning curve..
Cheers
Mick Morris´s last blog ..Win part of your ultimate reading list.
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BluePop13 Reply:
January 20th, 2010 at 2:59 pm
Mick,
Thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoy reading any of those blogs, or all, they’re all very worth your time or I wouldn’t have mentioned a one of them.
And yeah it’s a lot to digest when you have a large amount of blogs to read but well worth it for all the great content they provide on a regular basis.
Take care and stop by any time!
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Gabe | freebloghelp.com
January 20th, 2010 08:51 AM
Eric, nice way to break down the various blogging levels. I think in the early stages, bloggers don’t realize what they’re really getting into.
To take a blog to the next level, it requires a lot more than just slapping some posts together and randomly ranting about whatever the chosen niche is.
And BTW, thanks for the plug!
Gabe | freebloghelp.com´s last blog ..Stop struggling — 54 article ideas for ANY niche
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BluePop13 Reply:
January 20th, 2010 at 3:04 pm
Gabe,
I think a lot of bloggers just see it as a personal journal to talk about whatever comes to mind, whenever. They don’t see how much work it takes and feel all the pleasure of what a blog can bring to their life until they really dig in deep and by that point, too many of them just quit blogging.
I’m a daily reader of your blog because you add value to my life and it’s always interesting to read what you have to say. I give credit to those who I feel deserve it and you’re one of the ones who do in my opinion.
Thanks for stopping by!
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Eleanor Edwards
January 20th, 2010 04:54 PM
Hi Eric,
Interesting piece, gave me lots to think about. I suspect that blogging has changed from what it used to be. People still create blogs for the purpose of an online journal but unless they put a lot of hard work in, 99% of these will never be seen by any one other than family and friends. There’s nothing wrong with that because that’s who they were written for in the first place.
I remember when I first heard of blogs, several years ago obviously, but back then the idea of a company blog was foreign. With the exception of starting my own version of an online journal as discussed above, I did nothing with blogging until very recently. When I found out that people come on the web with the sole intention of writig a blog to quit their day job, I was stunned
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BluePop13 Reply:
January 21st, 2010 at 1:56 am
Eleanor,
Yes it’s still interesting to me that blogs are what they are today. What was a journal to share your thoughts with the world is now a complete way of doing business if you can make it work. Amazing what technology and all has given to us.
I love helping people and talking to people through mine and through their own and will be looking into making money later on down the road. Not worried so much about that part right now.
Thanks for sharing!
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Tech Maish
January 21st, 2010 01:38 PM
The article is very very informative and useful. Thanks for this great post.
Tech Maish´s last blog ..25 Popular Google Wave Robots
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BluePop13 Reply:
January 21st, 2010 at 11:54 pm
Tech,
I’m glad you found this information useful and all. My intention with every post is for at least one person who reads it to take something away that they can use and make work in their own life.
Thanks!
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Rose
January 24th, 2010 10:44 AM
A great explanation article on why you should have a blog.
Rose´s last blog ..How to Use Google Wonder Wheel
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BluePop13 Reply:
January 24th, 2010 at 4:08 pm
Rose,
Thanks! I truly hope my readers get something out of every article I publish.
Stop by any time!
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Karen
January 24th, 2010 02:09 PM
Hi Eric,
Great article about blogging. You hit on the head when you wrote: “Create a blog with purpose”. This is very important, particularly if you want to be treated seriously and have readers return to your site. The other thing that I would recommend is to Just Do It. Get off the fence if you have been thinking of blogging. There’s so much to gain and so little to lose.
I’m pretty technologically-savy, but I’m still amazing myself with everything that I’ve been learning about blogging since I started my site. There’s still so much to learn and that’s exciting to me.
Karen
Karen´s last blog ..Just For Today Challenge, Day 24: Plan Your Meals
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BluePop13 Reply:
January 24th, 2010 at 4:09 pm
Hey Karen,
Blogging with a purpose is so very important and it is truly easy to start a blog. There’s really nothing to it. Technology makes it easier every day and to share what you like to talk about with a huge online community through your very own blog/website should be a great experience for anyone.
Thanks!
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Ralph
February 1st, 2010 04:02 PM
I used your scan the comments technique on this post. Your take is methodical to describe the step by which bloggers cna develop over time while the comments are more personal reflecting where they are in the process. What strikes me is that you don’t appear the answer you question – why blogging is important. It is more about what can happen to you if you happen to get caught in this crazy activity. I ask myself from time to time, Am I doing something important or is it just an ego trip?
Ralph´s last blog ..The Top Ten Reasons for NOT Posting Daily
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BluePop13 Reply:
February 1st, 2010 at 11:56 pm
Hey Ralph,
Blogging is definitely something important for everyone whether it’s just a way to express how you’re feeling that day to whomever may come by or whether you’re teaching something how to do something. Sticking with it is key but only if it truly makes you happy.
I didn’t realise I hadn’t answered the question there. Thanks for pointing that out. I hope this reply helps a bit to answer that question, however.
Thanks for the comment!
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