Do you want to start a blog or get your writing going this year? In a recent webinar I interviewed serial entrepreneur Salil Dhawan to find out how people can start blogging. He explained that it’s so easy but people lack the confidence because they think it requires a lot of complicated set up. It’s never been easier to get blogging, all you need is a topic you feel passionate about and a desire to write about it.
I’ve been blogging for about 7 years; I love writing and I write about academic studies, Agile, innovation, leadership and much more. A blog is informal writing about a topic that is usually published on a website for other people who are interested in that topic. The 4th industrial revolution has seen the rise of self publishing. Previously only established, industry authors and publishers could produce written content that would be consumed publicly.
The internet changed all of that and now we can all write and publish content. Whether it’s a social media post, an online course or a short article on a topic which is a blog. I blog mainly because I enjoy writing but also because it means I can share my opinions with people in a structured way. I can write it once and easily share it with many people. As I build up a portfolio of blog articles it means I can establish authority and credibility on a topic.
I’ve spent much of my career coaching and mentoring other people and I’ve found that blog articles are an excellent way of capturing my thoughts on a topic in a structured way so that I can easily pass them on to one of the people I am coaching or mentoring. Blogging means my insights are captured and categorized in one place for people to read, so that I don’t have to repeat the content of the article, they can read that beforehand and we can focus our time on their specific requirements. Blogging has made my professional networking a lot more efficient.
There are 2 important lessons and insights for you to think about as you get started with your blog.
Firstly, you must want to write. Writing must be something you enjoy doing, or something you are willing to put the effort in to become good at and comfortable doing. Without writing there is no blogging. Even if you outsource your blogging, you still need to write the ideas and the structure of the article.
Secondly, it has to be easy to do. If you are worried about how to do it or struggling with the technicalities of it then the chances are you won’t sit down and write and you won’t get your blog out there.
That’s mainly why Salil and I have created an online course to help you get blogging – it will give you the confidence and practical tools and techniques to make blogging and writing easy, enjoyable and beneficial for you. Join us in the course here as well as many other students who are taking action to achieve their goal of creating a blog.
