The number one question I get asked is, “Should I have a blog?”
Hm.
I don’t know. I think you should floss every day. You should tell your kids you love them. You should have that mole checked. But my gut tells me you don’t need a blog. Here’s why.
- You feel like you have something to say but you’re not a strong writer. Um, yeah, you don’t need a blog. You need a twitter account.
- You can’t write every day. Good blogging means that you make an appointment with an audience — and you show up with flowers and chocolate. Blogging requires commitment. Unlike some of my ex-boyfriends, you can’t show up just when the mood strikes you.
- Not every opinion needs to be expressed online. You have a real job. Blogs get people fired.
- The minutia of your life is boring. Every time I think about blogging about my life or my cats, I realize that I blog because I’m trying to escape my life and my cats.
- Blogs don’t make any money. Don’t listen to anyone who tells you otherwise.
- Blogs aren’t a creative outlet. Need to do something to stimulate your life? Try needlepoint. Take a woodworking class. Enroll in Zumba.
- Blog traffic is overstated. People read CNN and MSNBC. They don’t read The Cynical Girl and they probably won’t read your blog.
- You will not sell products & services through a blog. Sure, you’ll build a brand. But there are easier ways to build a brand than blogging.
- You know who’s famous? Not bloggers. I once got recognized at the gym as the woman who has a blogging cat. Wow. Why, yes, that’s me. I am amazing. Uhm, no. Bloggers feel famous until the moment they meet a famous person. There’s real celebrity and then there’s everyone else.
- There are no original thoughts. Everything you say has been said before. I started writing this blog post and my good friend, Joel Cheesman, sent out a newsletter where he talked about the pros/cons of blogging. Now I look like a copycat. And some dude is thinking, “Hey, Joel just took my ideas.” Nobody is creative. Everybody is derivative.
After seven years of blogging on a near-daily basis, and with over 999+ unread blog posts in my google reader, I am sure you don’t need a blog.
If your dream is to blog, I’m right behind you — but I am shaking my head and hoping you’ll learn from my mistakes. And if you decide to start one — especially if it’s about your difficulties being a working mom, your wine hobby, or politics — let me know so I can pretend to read it.
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Laurie,
Great stuff! You give it such a twist on why not to!
Seriously, I did read your post…well…sorda of…
It’s okay. I barely read it.
Once again excellently executed post from you Laurie. I think I’ve learned things or two from it. For me blogging is nothing else than self reflection. As it happens sometimes it attracts others to make comments or at least read it and acknowledge you on tweetups. Thanks to my blog I am getting know myself better. And if it comes to google reader-don’t let me started. Anyway I am hoping to be more organised once I’ll have proper HR job. LOL (naive is my other name)
Peter
Good luck to you. That job will happen!!
“Nobody is creative. Everybody is derivative.”
Fanfuckingtastic!
I’m pretty sure I took that from someone else.
11. You don’t need the stress of competing with all us other attention starved bloggers.
Exactly.
Great list, Laurie.
I admit it: I fail miserably at #2.
But a blog is sorta like an Apple product for me. I’m sure I don’t need one, or utilize it as much as I should or in all the ways that I could. But I still want one!
Ya know, it’s okay to want a blog. And it’s okay to write a blog. But let’s not pretend that blogs are anything more than they really are…
Number 7? I am so confused!
I have no idea why you’re here.
Do you know how much I like this post!!!!? Bloggers including me should take off blinders….and blog anyway if they want! I would differ to say it could be a creative outlet….
Yes, blog if you wan’t… don’t expect to cure diseases with it or change the world.
I would agree that you can become more self-actualized through a blog — but it’s tough for the reader to watch. I once had a friend say, “I don’t read your (old) blog. I don’t want to be depressed.”
Yeah, I’m guilty of #2 now, although I do NaBloPoMo every November just to prove I could post every day if I wanted to.
I started blogging because I liked keeping a narrative record of parts of my life. I keep blogging because I like being part of the blogging community. That’s all I need from the experience.
And I know you & love you via your blog so it’s a worthwhile endeavor. But does anyone need to do this? I dunno.
I agree with about 30% of this but its been my life experience that nothing is impossible. I think it depends on your motivation for blogging. If you want to blog, then blog…Perez Hilton makes a lot of money blogging. He is not the only one. You are very prolific and thought provoking. I know this is a Cynical blog, but I’d like to hear your thoughts on the advantages of blogging.
This whole site and my entire life is a testament to the advantages of blogging.
I always want to vent and I know I am not a strong writer. I always find myself thinking “How can I make this funnier?” but it never turns out.
Welcome to my world.
I love reading your posts which “keep it real”. Few people do that these days.
I was very intrigued when I read #8 — “Sure, you’ll build a brand. But there are easier ways to build a brand than blogging.”
I thought blogging was the easiest, quickest, sure-fire way! No? What else? YouTube Channel? (but then I would always have to look amazing)
Or Write a book? (but that takes Way too long; and you have to have A Lot to say!)
Help me actualize #8
Hire me and we can talk.
Nice post, Laurie. While I agree on your point #2 as all others, I don’t necessarily buy the rest. I respectfully disagree.
You DON’T have to be a great writer to blog. If you’re 140-character-tweets are good enough to make people follow you, of course you can write a paragraph on your blog! The second most important thing is that NOT all blogs are about one’s life!! “Personal” blogs are just one category! You could definitely become famous as a blogger, as many others have!
What do you think, Laurie? You disagree??
I’m pretty sure this is the same comment as above. And for every famous blogger, there’s a real famous person out there who makes real money.
I love this post! I wanna be creatively derivitave but not tell anyone. BTW-Does HR have the highest percentage of blogs out there? Are there any stats on this? Do HR people need to get real jobs with deliverables and stuff?
When I started (after I outed myself) it was me, Kris Dunn, Suzanne Lucas, HR Wench, Lance Haun… then I found Frank Roche, Ann Bares, and a few more. Jennifer McClure. That’s about it.
Now? Every HR chick with five minutes to spare has a blog.
Guilty of #2. But, I write for me more than anyone else. At least my dad likes my blog.
Remind me again…who encouraged me to start blogging at SHRM Annual in New Orleans in 2009?
I encourage people to write. That’s what I do. But you don’t need to write.
Great post … all of it funny, and most of it true! But here’s where I respectfully disagree.
You don’t need to write every day; in fact, I’m grateful that some of my favorite bloggers don’t. It’s just too much to keep up with … even for their readers! I’d say twice a week is ideal. (I seldom manage that myself … but that’s another story.)
Not creative? Hmmm … if you mean “letting-it-all-hang-out” creative, then I guess it isn’t. But the process of selecting a topic and crafting an 800-word post around it is stimulating, demanding, and gets my juices flowing, plus it gives me something to be pleased with afterward … all the things I associate with creativity.
Subjects may not be original, but thoughts are. (Even Shakespeare borrowed a few well-worn plot twists!) If you’re worried about being original, you’re probably not going to be. I blog about midlife embrace of the new. Am I the only one? I doubt it. But it’s MY take … that of a professional writer whose mid-career job search is being illuminated by a whole bunch of new experiences.
By the way, judging from the entertaining, intelligent comments here, you’ve built a great following!
Ms. Rubinsky, you said it best. I’ve found when I was posting everyday, that it over whelmed my viewers. I notice now that 2-3 times a week works best. And your point about original thoughts, excellent!
All good but here’s what I’ve learned since 2004.
- You’ve got to ship on a regular schedule. OMFG I just quoted Seth Godin.
- No one reads an 800 word post. Statistics show 250-500 words are best.
- Your blog is probably not as interesting as you think it is. (That’s the collective you — not you, Jane.)
- No one cares about your creativity.
I’ve built a great following because I’ve built a community forum — not a blog. And I love and respect everyone here. I meticulously comb through the comments to remove offensive stuff. No one (except me) gets to insult anyone. And there is no other place on the internet like this blog. I’m wholly differentiated, baby. That’s not blogging. That’s marketing.
I will check out your blog, Jane!
I only write for my own amusement. That it amuses other people as well is a boon.
Also, every now and then I get free crap. Can’t beat free crap.
You need a free furminator!
I KNOW! I just spent $40 on anew one. I’d also like a Bissell Spotbot Pet for Miss Chibi the puking queen.
Boy do I know how to pick a day to start blogging
I loved this post – especially #10 – which is probably the biggest reason it took me so long to start. Totally true!! I finally decided that I still need to get some things off my chest… But I am under no false pretense that it will probably be not much more than muttering to myself under my breath — which I do a lot of by the way
It’s my perspective that will different though, right…yeah…that’s the ticket.
xoxoxo
I support your blog. This is the whole point. No one needs to do it. Just follow Chris’s lead and do it and shut up about it!
(& good luck!)
I almost got fired from blogging and i have had my CEO and other C suite give me a stern talking too…so is it worth it? not right now…maybe when i do my own thing one day (maybe sooner then later)…the more you make the more you put on the line…to bad…for now i will read your blog and chime in. the cost is much more reasonable…if i need to get it off my chest i will go to the gym or a local bar…drunk people listen but don’t remember much…athletes like earphones…
M
I’ll take your chimes, yo.
xo
Judging by the number of blogs that are dropping like flies from my Google reader because the authors have decided to “move on,” I’d say many people are discovering the truth of your 10 points listed above.
I think blogging is maturing into something else.
I’m not sure what, just yet.
I read your blog! (Not every day, but I try to catch up at least every week or so in between a real life that includes a job, a spouse, and a house that requires more work than the first two combined.) Anyway, I love your blog; you always have good points and interesting reasons that help me see things with a new perspective. Thank you!
THANK GOD YOU READ MY BLOG.
xox
Did you change your headline font?
I think something is goofy.
Dude, I live for the blog! Not my blog necessarily, but reading, commenting, and snickering at other people’s blogs are my mental break. I think the thing is you don’t ONLY need a blog. You need something to say, someone to listen, and a cute cat at a bare minimum. I think most people COULD write a blog, but lots of people shouldn’t. You have to dig it…not just sometimes…but all the times. Dig the good days, and pretend to dig the bad ones. Dig the love comments, and super dig the hate mail. If you don’t, then it’s just one more item on your to-do list…like laundry and scooping the kitty litter…stuff you’d hire someone else to do.
This is why I love you.
I started a blog, as Nuke Laloosh said in Bull Durham “I want to announce my prescence with authority.” Wish I had read this first.
LOL I love that line.
I hate blogs. I like my media fact-checked and mainstream. New York Times every day. I kept quoting things from blogs and people kept calling bullshit. They were right most of the time. I like books, too. Guess I’m old.
The New York Times doesn’t do such a great job of fact-checking anymore. Have you noticed how many corrections run after most articles online? (And heaven help those who are reading it in print and don’t get the corrections!)
When the NY Times reported on the wall collapse at Castle Village in Washington Heights six years ago (where I used to live), I discovered how many facts they get wrong … and I started to wonder how many mistakes they make on subjects I’m not knowledgeable enough to catch.
Two weeks ago, I nearly went to a meeting on the wrong day because I checked the Times rather than going back to look in my calendar!
Time to start learning an important lesson: the mainstream media lies.
You don’t hate blogs, liar.
You’re right. I like blogs. But I can barely read so what do I know.
Entering in late…So you are tired of Twitter and blogging is unnecessary. Wonder what new thing is on the horizon for the Cynical Girl?
Cattle ranching. That’s next.
And nuance and complexity are lost on some audiences. Not mine. But some audiences wouldn’t get that I’m trying to poke & prod & cajole people into having a reaction where they defend blogging, and thus, stop ASKING me if they need a blog and just get to fucking writing — regardless of the personal branding and the money and the faux celebrity.
Writers write.
Bloggers blog.
Word. Or should I say picture, being an artist and all?
Still yet, I can’t help but think that you are on the verge of the next great thing to hit the techie/business world. The new is now old. I figure you will have the pulse on what comes next.
But then, you are likely like me, realizing that nothing is new. We just keep reinventing new ways to do old things. It’s all a part of the adventure.
Cattle ranching? Really? I don’t think you’d have the heart to take the critters to slaughter…
I would have guessed professional cat herder – but I guess you’re already there.
Blogging for me is an opportunity to write something outside of what I’ve been doing professionally for the past 17 years – so yes, it is my creative outlet.
It’s also a way to talk about things that are important to me in greater depth than I can on twitter or facebook. I’m talking to basically the same people – but that’s okay. I don’t need to be a celebrity.
And sometimes writers blog. (But sometimes bloggers even write!)
I think, and know, many blogs are personal on-line diaries- but not all.
Yours is unique.
I equate blogs to the real estate market- when it was a boom market, people left and right were quitting their jobs to be a real estate agent- hoping to sell “just one million dollar house in a year!” and make a bundle. A friend of mine, who is a serious and long time dedicate real estate agent, not too long ago told me, during the market boom, that she didn’t even bother trying to remember the newbee’s names during the boom, because it was such a revolving door with people swooping in and out. They thought it would be easy and a quick solution to fill a void. They didn’t try. They regurgitated everything they were told and no original thoughts of their own. They weren’t dedicated.
“Everybody is derivative.” Ya, no shit. For the most part.
However, I think you, dear Cynical Girl, has the influence and support of many, to turn HR around- to get it back to its roots and stop the madness.
There’s a lot of companies, small medium and large, that need help- never mind a little guidance.
Great post. I’ve been swirling around in the question of “To Blog or Not To Blog” for a while. Have one and do post to it but because my audience is busy working women let’s be honest..do they really have time to read my posts? So I make them quick and relevant and for the time being that’s just enough. Thanks for keeping it real.
“some audiences wouldn’t get that I’m trying to poke & prod & cajole people into having a reaction”. Now THAT is a reason to blog (it’s mine at least).
For me: 509 days. 509 posts. Schedules are for other people.
So True. They need to leave the hard work to the big girls.
Thanks for inspiring me to take down my blog… it was crap! I will start a new one when I actually know what I’m talking about… it’ll probably be a male version of yours… a derivative with BIGGER social buttons.
Do you really need to show up and write every day? Renegade HR was a moderately successful endeavor for me and I typically posted just twice a week.
Write when you have something say… as long as that’s at least once every week or two.
I actually stopped reading one of my formerly favorite blogs because they started posting every day just post every day, and the content was crap. At twice a week it had been gold.
I also think that if you suck at writing, blogging is a great way to get better. I’m serious. I wouldn’t say I was bad writer, but blogging has definitely made me stronger, more concise, and more reflective.
I am a Zumba enthusiast AND do embroidery (ok, cross-stitch) and have found blogging about cats to be the most creatively fulfilling experience of my life. So, there.
Nice look at why not to blog. We did a similar post from a business perspective recently … and we love our office cats too. Maybe we should build a blog for them.
I rather just do Facebook and yahoo Answers I get cyber bullied all the time It is up to me when I want to write a blog. It is best for me just to do face book to have communication with People I know like friends and family.
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