Why Do You Blog? The Final Part!

Why do you blog? A simple question with millions of varying answers.

Upon finishing this series, I am saddened. It’s been a brilliant ride watching the answers stream in, publishing, promoting and sharing.

You all inspire me so much.

I’m proud to call you all friends. I could say so much more here in regards to the respect I have for you all, but I’ll save it for another time.

If you missed the other “parts” in the series, here they are once more.

With answers covering more than 3,000 words, this post is a real treat. I know you’ll enjoy all the answers featured. Be sure to connect with these bloggers, share their content, love, laugh, talk and listen. That’s what blogging is all about.

This isn’t the end friends. Stay tuned as I do my utmost best to deliver inspiring, usable content. If you have questions or comments, be sure to contact me. I’m always available.

Why do you blog?

Ruth Long of Shoestring With Style

I began blogging in 2004 as a way to share my thoughts on writing and to connect with other writers. I didn’t come to the medium of my own volition but at the vehement insistence of my younger sister. I was surprised to discover that it was a terrific conduit for my internal dialogues (read that as ‘heated discussions with my Creative Psyche’) and allowed me to meet and connect with other people in a very natural way. I continue to blog because at its very heart, blogging is about community and creative exchange. I would not be the human being or writer I am today were it not for the lessons learned and relationships made though blogging.

Steve Bloom of Do Something Cool

I still remember the conversations I had with my fiance about starting a blog. When she asked me why I wanted to start one, I gave her several reasons. I love to write, I have plenty of interesting things to say, ideas to discuss and my niche is relatively empty. But that was over one year ago and since then my primary motivation has changed.

If I had to pick just one reason I continue to blog, it would be because I get to help and inspire people. Each post I write is focused on getting people to make their lives better. Even when I write the occasional post about myself, I tailor it to be inspirational to others.

There’s something uniquely satisfying about helping others. Once in awhile I get an email from a random reader telling me how much my writing means to them. Some even ask for advice. But even if I didn’t get any response at all, I would continue.

Jessie Sanders of Stormy Night Publishing

My reasons for blogging are threefold, but are really three subheadings under one big header, which is: I want to share my love of reading and writing with others.

I write book reviews not only to sort out my feelings about the book but to help others find their next good read.
I write posts about the writing/editing process to show the life of a writer as well as to teach good editing/writing skills.
I share my journey as a writer as I will shortly be going through the indie publishing process. I hope to build a platform so that others will buy my novel and recognize me as a legitimate author.

Meg Neil of One Love Meg

I blog about what I love, if I love it then someone else is bound to love it too. I also like to hold myself accountable.

If the world can see it, then they can motivate me to follow my dreams and help inspire me to be a better person. Spreading love and positive energy is what makes me love blogging the most!

Dia Thabet of 2 Achieve Your Goals

I blog for various reasons: To help others plan, and achieve their goals and vision in life. To help ingrain what I learn into my subconscious mind.

The more I write articles, the more I keep that knowledge fresh in my mind. To have my own on-line business. To connect with like minded people.

David William of Almost Bohemian

I blog for accountability. My desire to live with enthusiasm and creativity draws me to resonate with others that feel the same way. Blogging lets me share my experiences and gain inspirations for future creative ideas.

My blog keeps me accountable that I will live a life worth living, remembering, and talking about so others will also live inspired.

Allyson Stewart of Dollar Templates and Fonts

Blogging gives me an avenue to share (hopefully) helpful tips with others who may need guidance with computer software or Web design. I also blog to participate with others and to build relationships. Thanks for the question.

Bud Hennekes of A Boundless World

A Boundless World began a little over two years ago after I witnessed my best friend die in a jet ski accident. I say that not to be dramatic, but to show how a single death can have such a tremendous impact on the people around you. My last words to my friend were ” see you tomorrow.” and to this day that phrase sticks with me. I blog because I know my time here on earth can end at any given second, and I feel obligated to share my lessons with the world. A Boundless World is about making the most out of your time here on earth as corny as that sounds. I blog because I love writing, I love sharing, and most of all I love helping people make the most of their lives. I’m not perfect nor do I have all the answers, but A Boundless World is a place where I help myself and the world to grow.

Nicole McPherson of Woman Seeks World

Blogging for me is about sharing my passions and goals with an audience and hopefully inspiring others who want to also follow the path of location independence and working for yourself, from anywhere in the world. I’ve lived in different countries and been fortunate enough to travel quite a lot in the last few years, so in my blog I want to get the word out about seeing the world and encouraging others who might be apprehensive about travel or solo travel to get out there and try it.

Hopefully when people visit my blog they will learn something, but more importantly, I hope they leave inspired and feeling empowered to reach for their goals.

Brian Ellis of Anocial

Why do I blog? Well, I started blogging a couple of years ago not really knowing what I was doing. It was a feel good insight retrospective kinda blog called GUI Life. It was fun but there really wasn’t anything to set it apart from anyone else’s blog. I had a site that did well for a while that I ran with a couple of friends. It was justusleeg.com. It did very well but had no business model and died out after a while. I now have Anocial. It is for my business, social media consulting, but I also incorporate personal and fun posts, along with my views on social media. It is a business blogging model that I am trying out, and seems to be working well. We are in a time where people want a certain amount of transparency. Putting the personal stuff in with my business stuff is an attempt to put a real human behind the professional business avatar.

Patricia Millman of Lavender Uses

I initially began blogging because I wanted to set up a home-based business. As I enjoy writing I thought this would combine what I enjoy with the dream of having my own business.

So my blog is a platform for my fledgling lavender business. And the plus is that being part of a blogging community I also get to network. From networking I have met some amazing people and they in turn encourage and cheer me on with this blog.

I also blog to inform my readers of all aspects of the lovely lavenders many uses. This in turn means that people can make informed choices when choosing products.

Sal Greco of Surfer Lifestyle Design

I just believe that there are certain people out there who’s opinions, feelings, beliefs, mission (whatever you want to call it) is SO strong in them, that they just HAVE to get it out.

I feel that I am one of those people.

Also, a desire to have other people “see through your eyes” and then perhaps they will “get it”. Receiving value from my blog and most importantly taking ACTION on it is the necessary goal. Bloggers are influencers the second they publish a piece… We want to make an influential impact, the blog is the vehicle.

At Surfer Lifestyle, my goal is to help people that enjoy things “like” surfing, and find ways for them to do it more often. Mostly by establishing a business for themselves, especially one online that lets people live without a location, time, and income constraint… People are happier when they do what they love, so if I can help people do what they love more often… Then I am making happy people!

Surfs up!

jkthehustler Why Do You Blog? The Final Part! Jk Allen of The Hustlers Notebook

I blog to serve others. For me it’s a matter of providing value by sharing my life experiences, good and bad, with the hope of impacting others lives in a positive way. The reason I use this venue to serve is because of the potential to impact such a large audience. I believe we all have unique experiences that make us leaders in our own right. This being the case, we all have a powerful voice worth being heard and that provides an element of value to others.

Vitaly Tennant of My Time Matters Blog

Blogging is an outlet for me to release information that I find interesting. I’ll be the first one to tell you that I started blogging with money in sight as I was helping and informing people one way or another. I had a hard time picking a niche that I wanted to blog about; as my interests are all over the place. First I started to blog on self help, then how to start your own online ventures, humor and the list goes on and on. I just couldn’t stick to one niche, I knew that it wasn’t logical and might not work … but somehow I still get tons of readership. Content is the king. I see great potential in blogging, as it is a gateway to many ventures online and offline.

It has been a great journey so far, which has opened up my eyes to a whole new level of income as well as meeting like minded individuals.

Kevin Douglass of The Smart Income Blog

I initially got started blogging because I thought I could make money from it. It was a naive point of view, but I think a lot of new bloggers have had the same visions of thousands of dollars flowing into their bank accounts. Now, my reasons for blogging are two-fold. I blog because I want to share things that I learn with others who can benefits from my experiences. And, I also blog because I like interacting with the small, niche community of friends and readers I’ve met over the last couple years.

Caleb Wojcik of Pocket Changed

Deep down, I blog to help other people to avoid the same mistakes I made with bad money habits and choosing a career based on salary. I want people to learn how to effectively build a living around what they enjoy, pay down large amounts of debt, and live a much simpler life.

I write specifically to twenty-somethings because at 21 I finally woke up from all my poor spending habits and unfulfilling life plan after graduating college. I was stuck working a job I wasn’t passionate about to pay off my debt. Without the help and guidance from personal finance bloggers and books I came across starting in 2008 I would probably still be paying off my car and student loans.

I think the main problems with how people handle their money are all psychological and can be changed. My passion is to help people look at money differently and I blog to guide others towards their own financial independence.

Rob Adelphia of Today has Power

The reason I blog is to share a piece of myself in the hopes that my story will inspire others. My life has been interesting and challenging in many ways. I believe that I have learned some hard lessons that can shorten the learning curves of others, encourage others, and bless others. If I am able to do that, even in the smallest of ways, I will know that a part of my purpose has been served.

Frank Jennings of A Spark Starts

When I first started blogging my only purpose was to build a readership and create a means for subsequent income. Now in my blogging journey I have turned a full 180 degrees and my focus is on helping inspire and motivate others. I was the guy who came on the scene with unrealistic expectations thinking I would become an overnight celebrity. I wanted to do what was right for me, to propel me into a position where I could work from home and brag about my accomplishments. After about a 3 months of blogging I could see that real blogging required a lot more effort, focus, and is executed better with purpose. When I aimed to inspire and change the lives of the people my words touched then my engagement and fulfillment skyrocketed. So, the simple answer to your question is, I blog to serve the people who need to read the content I produce. I want to change lives. Nothing more, nothing less.

Janet Callaway of The Natural Networker

Thought provoking question, Christian. Why I blog now is not the same as it was when I started.

My blogging focus and style evolved as I engaged with readers and other bloggers. Today I blog because I love connecting with people and getting to know them through writing about my thoughts, observations and receiving theirs in reply. Through blogging, my blog as well as reading and commenting on other blogs, I meet people I would never otherwise meet. The relationships that have developed, like mine with you, Christian, enrich my life and broaden my perspectives.

One of my greatest pleasures in life is learning new things and sharing that information with others. Not only does a blog give me that opportunity, it gives the readers an opportunity to share their thoughts and comments as well. Oftentimes comments sections could well be another post because of the depth, breadth and diversity of knowledge shared by readers.

It’s liberating to write down my thoughts; it’s soul satisfying to meet and to engage with all the amazing people in the blogosphere. Yes! I love blogging.

Shaan Haider of Geeky Stuffs

I blog because I love to share things with others and to help them somehow. I started blogging with a music blog when few of my underground musician friends asked me to promote their music. Soon, I realized that blogging is a great way of sharing and later I started my tech blog to share some useful and interesting thing with all. I do make some money out of blogging but the pleasure of getting a “Thank You” from some tips from a user is much greater than getting some bucks to me.

Franziska San Pedro of Flavor Designs

My blog is a tool to connect with other creative minds and share my knowledge and ideas. Interaction has become very important to me and I love to have an exchange of new thoughts and aspects. I have gotten to know some of my commenters on a very personal level and I have even met several in person. With my blog, I can share my expertise, have others learn more about art, I can communicate directly, reach millions of people and connect with like-minded. Also, I stay on my toes and expand my knowledge while I try to always keep it interesting. Maybe I can even help others by sharing. And on top of that it is very low cost, means it’s a great marketing strategy!

Without the internet I wouldn’t be the person I am today, I wouldn’t have met all the amazing people; some of whom I call best friends (and I am married to one of them, lol).

Samantha Bangayan of What Little Things?

Blogging is a tool for me to reflect on life. I find life so much more enriching when I am encouraged to dig deeper as I constantly contemplate what else I can get from an experience and how I can express it best in words.

In conversing with others through the comments, my reflections then transform and develop into more full-flavored ideas.

Courtney Cantrell of Court Can Write

I blog for three main reasons. I need a platform from which I can launch my fiction novels. Twitter is great for spreading the word, but my readers need a place where they can read about my books and my writing — and maybe get a little info about me, too, if they want it. ; ) My blog gives readers the chance to get to know me and my writing better than they can in just 140-character tweets.

Blogging makes me a better writer. Every time I sit down to write a blog post, I hone my skills: I think about audience needs, I pay attention to word choice and sentence structure, I play with words until they sound and feel right. Blogging lets me practice without putting pressure on myself (as I sometimes do when crafting a novel).

My blog is a great place for me to capture and share thoughts that I don’t get to talk about elsewhere. Sometimes, this is writing and creativity stuff; other times, it’s “off-topic” thoughts (such as philosophical ruminations, random lists of questions, my woes in moving from apartment to house, etc.). I feel enriched every time I bounce ideas off others and receive the honest thoughts of their hearts in return.

Lori Taylor of Social Caffeine

To blog or not to blog – well that’s a crazy question! Considered a newbie, although I’ve been guest posting for a while, I started focusing my attention on blogging in January 2011 and love every minute of it.

Always an avid reader of blogs, I took the “bass-ackwards” approach to connecting online by using Twitter and LinkedIn “blog-less”. I used quicker social media methods of communication as a way to share all the goodies I’ve find every day.

And while I adore the speed of Twitter (the lazy gal’s blog) what I enjoy most is adding my secret sauce to the mix to do some good with the sharing of ideas to help others. To me, blogging is a great way to pay it forward by cutting corners for my passionate peers in the online wild west by sharing tips I’ve learned the hard way. Social Media ROI may be a myth, but done right and tied to other marketing channels it can be a grand slam for gaining traction.

Using my blog to help others who can’t afford an agency approach makes me happy. I enjoy giving you a front row seat to how the big boys (my clients) do it . Moreover, I’m always grateful for those who take the time to leave a comment or even hi-five me with a re-tweet, like or any other thousand ways they could say “good job” or “thank you” for the help.

I love, love, love brainstorming and answering questions. If you can ask in 140 characters – I can answer – and that’s my personal guarantee.