Why Blog? 20 Reasons to Start Blogging Now
[Image of a Blog]It’s easy to see why people who are already successful bloggers continue to pursue this activity: They’re comfortably ensconced in the field and don’t necessarily have to rock the boat or make drastic changes to continue achieving their goals. It can be more difficult to understand why someone would want to start a blog in the first place when there’s no guarantee that it will turn out to be a useful endeavor. I’ve compiled a list of 20 reasons why starting a blog may be one of the best moves you could make.
[Image of a book]1. Gain New Knowledge
Even if you already know quite a bit about the subjects you write about, you’ll undoubtedly encounter new facts and information while conducting research for your blog posts. From accurate, up-to-date statistics to obscure documents that you hadn’t read before, there are countless resources that you’ll come across that you had no idea about. Your investigations will undoubtedly lead you into fascinating side avenues that are only tangentially related to what you had intended to explore. Even as you aim to educate your readers, you’ll be learning more yourself.
2. No Technical Skills Needed
In the old days, bloggers had to really know the ins and outs of the platforms they were using, but this isn’t the case anymore. Today’s popular blogging software packages contain many features and are easy to use. Most of them come with free templates that you can deploy onto your site, and you can customize them according to your wishes. No coding experience is necessary. It’s possible to get started in minutes. Read this comparison of WordPress and Blogger for more info on two of today’s most popular blogging solutions.
[Image of a dollar sign]3. Money-making Potential
You can secure a decent income for yourself through blogging. Now, every blog doesn’t draw in millions of readers right away, and you’ll probably have to put in some hard work for months or years before you begin to see the results you’re hoping for. Once you do establish a solid viewership, though, there’s plenty of revenue to be made from affiliate links and advertising. It might even be possible to sell your blog at some point for a nice payday. Check out my guide on monetizing your blog for further ideas.
4. Update Your Skills
Besides just writing your posts, there’s a lot that goes into managing a blog. Crafting compelling page layouts, engaging in SEO best practices and sharing content via social media are just a few of the tasks that will facilitate the honing of your skills. They’re relevant in a lot of other enterprises besides just blogs, so you’ll be adding to your personal toolkit and marketability for future projects too.
5. Low Upfront Costs
There are a few free blogging platforms, and even if you decide that they’re too limited for your tastes, you can sign up for inexpensive web hosting and domain name registration for well under $100 per year. If your blog should grow in the future such that your hosting solution is no longer adequate, it will probably be a breeze to upgrade at that point or move your blog to another host. I’ve compiled a list of the top WordPress web hosts for your enlightenment.
[Image of a person’s head, maybe with a lightbulb or gears inside]6. Clarify Your Thinking
As you’re composing your blog entries, you may have to think hard about things you believed you had already settled in your mind. This is because the process of transferring your internal ideas into words on a page leaves little room for ambivalence or inaccuracy. You may find yourself revisiting important concepts and enhancing your own understanding even if you had not set out specifically to do so. Comments left by your visitors may provide further food for thought.
[Image of a hand and pen]7. Improve Your Writing
This may seem obvious, but writing requires constant practice just like any other skill. You’ll get as much practice as you can handle when you commit to regularly adding content to your blog. This will help you in many areas of life from communicating through emails and other correspondence to composing clear and convincing business-related proposals. Of course, your blog itself will also get better as you learn to wield words effectively.
8. Build Your Confidence
Blogging opens you up to interact with all kinds of people in a safe and friendly environment. You’ll most likely be discussing things you’re passionate about, so this should be a fun pastime for you. As you evaluate feedback, both negative and positive, and incorporate it into your work, you’ll be able to add to your competencies. This will make you feel more confident and secure. Needless to say, self-confidence is one of the keys to a satisfying and productive life.
9. Develop Winning Work Habits
When you have a blog that you’re serious about, you can’t slack off and ignore it for weeks at a time. You’ll be trying to generate interesting pieces in a timely way: perhaps even every single day. This will motivate you to avoid procrastination, to be punctual and to respect deadlines. You’ll be cultivating habits within yourself that will serve you well no matter what other targets you pursue going forward.
[Image of an auditorium]10. Build an Audience
A popular blog will put your name out in front of millions of eyeballs. Your devoted patrons will tune in not just to your blog posts but also to whatever other material you create. When calculating the impact your blog is having on the size of your following, you must bear in mind that any other online presence that you maintain will reap the rewards of your efforts. Find out more with my 15 recommended steps for achieving blogging success.
11. High Degree of Freedom
You can blog from wherever you happen to be as long as you have an internet connection. There’s no set schedule that you must follow, so you can tailor your working hours according to your own preferences and other outside obligations. You’ll have no boss telling you what to do, and the fruits of your labor will depend on nobody other than yourself. Since there are virtually no geographic requirements for being a blogger, you can travel the world while you work.
12. A Stepping Stone to Publication
Demonstrating that you have what it takes to write in an engaging and fascinating manner may lead to book deals. Blogging can open doors for you that would otherwise remain closed to a first-time author. If you blog for a while and find that publishers still aren’t interested, you can self-publish. Your existing blog posts can be repurposed to form a book so that you won’t have to start from scratch. With a completed book under your belt, editors may reevaluate their impressions of you.
[Image of a document]13. Round out Your Resume
There’s only so much that a listing of your educational attainments and previous employment can do when it comes to applying for jobs. A creative, independent undertaking like a blog shows that you can plan ahead, take risks and supervise yourself. It’s also a way of differentiating yourself from the crowd. In some cases, employers who have read your output may even contact you with enviable opportunities.
14. Springboard Into Other Roles
A widely read blog indicates that you know what you’re talking about, and people are bound to notice. You may pick up guest speaker gigs, freelance writing assignments and, perhaps most lucrative of all, consulting engagements. If you find your services in especially high demand, you might even be able to charge thousands of dollars per hour and still have clients lining up to book appointments with you.
15. Market for Your Offline Business
If you have a brick-and-mortar retail establishment, then you can use a blog to acquire new customers and thereby improve your sales numbers. Most people check online when they’re looking to make purchases, and so your blog will serve as a form of marketing and advertising. This may be just the edge you’re looking for to triumph over your competitors, and it’s certainly a lot less expensive than purchasing TV spots or radio airtime.
16. Get Creative
A blog is basically a wide-open canvas that you’ll be filling as you see fit. It enables you to tap into your inner creativity and bring it to the fore. Besides the words and phrases you’ll deploy to paint a written picture, there are font selections, color schemes and graphics to consider. What you can accomplish is really limited only by your imagination. As you begin to let your creative juices flow, you’ll find countless ideas popping into your head, giving you further inspiration.
[Image of a smiley face]17. Happiness
On top of the positive feelings that are a consequence of doing something well, blogs provide other reasons for being happy. As an authority in the topics that you cover, you’ll be in a good position to assist others who are looking for advice and honest guidance. You’ll get to experience the joy that comes from making a difference in other people’s lives.
18. Networking
With a respected blog as part of your portfolio, you’ll be able to get in touch with others who share the same passions that you do. Whether you’re looking for a mentor, coaching, aid in advancing your career or some other kind of relationship entirely, blogging is an excellent way to find allies. Let’s not forget about the millions of warm friendships that exist between bloggers in different countries with different occupations.
19. Document Your Life
With the passage of time, you might begin to forget events and moments that you would like to cherish. By putting them in your blog, you can document them and tell your stories as they happen to you. Many people hold on to mementos from their pasts, and your blog can serve an identical function for you. You won’t have to sit there and tax your brain trying to remember details, because they’ll all be in your blog. In your more mature years, you’ll be able to look back at occasions from the past with fondness.
[Image of an hourglass]20. Attain a Kind of Immortality
Long after you’re gone, your words will live on but only if you publish them. Through your blog writings, you’ll be broadcasting to generations yet unborn and will be able to impart any wisdom you’ve collected to them. This might seem like a small thing, but it’s a lot better than nothing. In the past, it was mostly the extremely talented or wealthy who could aspire to this form of deathlessness, but with blogging, it’s available to all.
All of these reasons for launching a blog probably don’t apply to you, but if even a few of them seem attractive, then blogging might be right for you. There’s no time like the present to start, and once you get into the swing of things, you’ll wonder why you didn’t begin a long time ago. Read my step-by-step instructions on starting up a blog when you’re ready to begin.
