A lot of bloggers stopped writing because they burnt out. There are many reasons for burning out. There’s no time. No one notices. It takes too much effort to write. Spammers inundate the site with useless comments. Scrapers steal posts. It’s not profitable enough.
Essentially, blogging has lost it’s purpose. It’s no longer about telling a unique story.
So why am I still bothered to blog? For one thing, blogging is highly personal. My blog is about my curiosity. It’s about my opinion and commentary of the world around me. My blog is about me. It may be narcissistic, but it’s the only way for me to keep going.
The “A-List” bloggers have pointed out that blogging should be about their audience. If that was the case, I would write for a magazine, or guest writing on someone else’s blog.
I’m still here because I’m not out to gain millions of page views, or thousands of readers. I’m not blogging for notoriety, nor money.
I’m blogging to share my story. I’m blogging to inform. I’m also here to help, if people genuinely reach out to me. It’s about forming new friends and possibly a community.
But most of all, I think blogging is fun. I’m a geek and always fascinated with communication via the computer. I started with a 300 baud modems and got excited when people leave me a message on a BBS. Now, I’m connected to a bigger audience on a 1.5 Mbps connection, sharing audio, video, and fancy graphics. It’s the perfect medium for knowledge and expression.
Some say blogging is dead, or at least blogging has changed. But I say people have changed. I say bloggers need to re-check their intentions.
The New Year is coming, time to make new, but do-able, blogging resolutions. Most important: Keep blogging!
Photo Credit: Dalla*
Tags: resolution, share, writing
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hey Rudy,
I for one am glad you are “still blogging”. I think that is because, as you describe, you are doing it for the right reason… for yourself and because you enjoy it. I think a lot of people get into blogging because they think they’ll get rich or famous (or both). I think that’s like playing basketball because you think you’ll end up in the NBA…
Anyway, I’m starting to ramble, so I’ll just say “keep it up” (and I should write a post soon myself 🙂 )
Merry Christmas! Steve (a fellow geek)
Hey Steve,
I don’t want to be a pro-athlete, or I’ll end up with an affair with 11 women. 😉
I’m looking forward to your new post!
Merry Christmas!
Hi Rudy (and Steve),
It’s really sad when I hear a blogger say they’re burnt out or are thinking about quitting blogging. I’m glad you are sticking around and will still be blogging, despite the others who are choosing to give up.
I personally would like to know, Who decided who the “A listers” are? Who voted these peeps into the A-lister club, the all-knowing, the ya-gotta-imitate-these-guys or girls if you want to be a successful blogger?, and, what does being a successful blogger mean anyway? I would think that being a successful blogger means something different to each person who has and writes for a blog, and it’s up to each blogger to figure out what they’re ultimate goal for blogging is – and just do it.
Hi Lin,
“A List” blogger means he/she has an influence or has a big follower. You can tell when you see each of their posts getting hundreds of comments. I’m exaggerating, but you know what I mean.
For me, a successful blogger is the one that sticks with it, doing what he/she sets out to do. It’s a marathon, not a sprint. It’s a discipline.
So by the end of 2010, if I see still blogging, you’re successful, IMHO.
I also like to thank you for supporting my blog. Your insight is valuable to me!