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Why do we blog...hmmm...really

I have been giving this some thought lately.  Usually as I go through 200+ blogs to read every morning captured by Mr. Newsgator.  Which ones catch my attention and why?  Think about this for a few minutes.  Why do you blog and why do you read blogs?

In some respects, it seems like a lot of folks blogs to be heard and recognized.  Kind of a 'tooting their own horn'.  I personally think this is the majority. 

In some respects, it seems some folks blog because they truly want to share.  I think I fall into this category and these are the ones I like to read. 

In some respects, it seems some folks blog as a personal journal...something they can look back on.  I think I fall into this category too. 

In some respects, it seems some folks blog so others know what they are up to..colleagues, friends, family and the like.  I think I fall into this category too.

Have I missed any?

So, take a few minutes and REALLY think about it.  Why do you blog and why do you read blogs.  The more I thought of this, the less I found myself blogging and the more subscriptions I removed from my blog list.  

This is not a negative post.  Rather, one to make you think (which I love to ask people to do)  

Posted: May 21 2003, 08:05 AM by gregarobinson | with 8 comment(s)

Comments

Kenneth LeFebvre said:

The reason I blog is somewhat related to your reason #3, but more in the sense of capturing knowledge than necessarily journaling events.

A personal blog is one of the most flexible forms of content management for capturing knowledge, in my opinion. It's easy to post an idea without having to waste a lot of time organizing it.
# May 21, 2003 10:15 AM

Greg Robinson said:

Good point! A flexible way to capture knowledge in an unorganized fashion.
# May 21, 2003 11:07 AM

Damian said:

I started to blog ages ago because I wanted to improve my writing. The best way, I figured, was to try to write something every day.

What I found though, was it improved my critical thinking beyond belief. At first I might post a link with some smug "I agree" type comment. When that got tiring, I actually started to come up with good reasons for or against things, with alternatives. That helped carry over into all sorts of aspects of my professional and personal life. Instead of being "the programmer guy" in the company, I became a lot more actively involved in discussions.
# May 21, 2003 6:12 PM

Greg Robinson said:

As a point, this morning I was going through my blog feeds. Well over half were something to the effect "Look at me", "I just got this, I am that", "I just finished this certification, that class, etc". I do not understand why folks need to blog simply to receive recognition. Kinda, IMHO, defeats the purpose of a blog...2 more removed from my subscriptions today.

# May 22, 2003 5:26 AM

Damian said:

Well to be fair. The main idea of a weblog is a personal journal. It's not called a "Write stuff that benefit's Greg Log"
# May 22, 2003 6:30 AM

Greg Robinson said:

Agreed. I guess instead of writing "look at me, I did this, I have value"...if it was written more like, "today, I learned this, today, I learned that, learning this helped me, so maybe it can help you". Again, all this is just a personal opinion. Not flaming anyone.
# May 22, 2003 7:55 AM

Greg Robinson said:

Something else that prompted this post is when I see bloggers who talk about their site stats. "Look how many hits I got! I am popular..."..., well, that said, would you still blog if there were no readers?
# May 22, 2003 11:18 AM

TrackBack said:

In a past issue of Blogging 101 I provided some of the practical reasons that people blog. Simple. Free. Control. Community. Voice. The list is obviously incomplete but it gives a general glimpse of why blogging has become such an attactive publishing tool. However, aside from the practical reasons for blogging there are the all-important personal reasons for blogging. And there inevitably comes a time when every serious blogger must answer the question "Why Do I Blog?" Why Do We Blog? Why Do You Blog? Why Do I Blog? Such self-reflective questions certainly aren't unique to blogging but the answers often reveal a great deal about ourselves, our motivations and perspectives. I spent some time on Google searching for others who've tried to answer the "Why Do We Blog?" question. Here's some of what I found: Sandhill Trek: Why Do We Blog? "...Because doing cc: world was cooler and more...
# January 23, 2005 10:07 AM
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