Why start a blog

Draft after draft after draft.

And so begins my journey on the well beaten path to become a blogger. The strife at the keyboard are indicative of my efforts toward writing my first blog post: a colossal milestone. And yet they are (and will remain) invisible to the eyes of my future audience. How does someone begin as a blogger? What if you simply aren’t the “blog-ish” type? Maybe it’s like writing some have it and some don’t. However, there’s always the optimistic camp, which I’ve graciously placed myself in, that says everyone has a story to tell.

How can that be with so many blogs written on so many different topics? While there are a limitless number of blogs out there, you have a unique story to tell. And while we could be talking about the same exact topic, there is always another way to look at the world no matter how well documented. And so, this begs the question for me: why start a blog? I believe the reasons should be something personal and something that resonates with an individual’s values. For myself, it’s a matter of consistency.

Why exactly? Well, I’m a visionary. I love big ideas. I love thinking about abstract themes with limitless potential. They are puzzles to be solved without heed of the practicality or maintenance of such plans. I like to set goals, but I (like many others) dislike following the day to day tasks to completion. That’s not to say I haven’t been successful in life so far, but that success can become more difficult to achieve when there is less immediate reward.

Naturally, I like to oversee. But as part of my New Year’s resolution, I’ll be stepping down from my quirky, ivory tower and into the trenches of practicality. I plan to consistently work at a blog simply to strengthen my ability to create new habits and better achieve my long term goals. Consistency in one area may also help in others, because it helps to practice self-control, which I believe everyone can improve upon. It also cannot hurt my writing skills and reading level as I search for material to write about.

So here’s the plan:

1. Write every single day: Whether this writing is good or not is irrelevant. While the very best possible effort should always be put forward, the final method of measurement is truly not how good but how consistently quality work can be produced. A post need not be perfect to have an impact, but if you wait for perfection, the nothing will ever get published.
   
2. Identify the Greats, then Learn from Them: This second step is actually two in one. The first step is to identify who the greats are. And by “greats” I mean someone who’s blog or writing you admire and aspire to be just as good as or surpass. This vast population of readers need not agree with your top ten list just as long as you believe in it.
3. Find Buddies to Share your Adventures: Blogging is an adventure. Trying anything new is an adventure. So, why not make it fun by finding support through the community surrounding you? Just like achieving any long term goal (i.e. losing weight or quitting smoking) having a buddy who is also going through the same struggles will help motivate you.

Whether good or bad, I begin my journey to write a blog. If you’re so inclined to join me post a comment.  🙂