Why Do I Blog?
Posted: February 23, 2011 at 12:12 pmNumerous times, you all credit me with honesty. I have to come clean again with some thoughts I have experienced over the past few days. Writing gives me clarity and two posts I have recently written did just that. First, I wrote a guest post (check it out) for Chelsey’s blog. Then, I wrote yesterday’s post about 20 Things To Keep In Mind. Both of those had me questioning my current approach to blogging.
Before moving on, please note that I’m not segueing into an announcement of “I’m not blogging anymore”. Not by any means. I truly feel called to share myself in this crazy thing called blogging. I love blogging. I do not hesitate for a moment to call it a passion of mine. However, that passion can take a negative spin sometimes and I recently realized it had done so for me.
I will say it outright. I have goals for this blog. It provides a wonderful creative outlet and the flexibility to do something I love. It suits me perfectly right now as an adult outlet while staying at home and as a way to bring in a little extra side money for our family. I cannot deny my hopes that when the time comes for me to return to work in a few years, I can involve blogging in some way. By no means do I expect my blog to become my full-time income (& likely wouldn’t want it to). I still wouldn’t mind it working well alongside whatever other path I choose to take (personal training? wellness coaching? writing?).
However, in reaching that possible goal, I do not ever want to lose sight of why I blog. I fear I had started to do that. I emphasized developing my blog over the aspects of blogging that bring me true joy. I reflected. And reflected some more.
Why do I blog?
I feel an immense purpose in telling my story. With time, I knew the things I had experienced had some meaning. They weren’t simply to make me stronger or learn some important lessons. They did those things, most definitely. But I have no doubt in my mind that I lived through the depression, hurt, binges, self-hatred, tough relationships, and more to tell my story. God has a plan and something in my gut tells me this is part of it for me.
Nothing matters more than loving others. The innumerable connections and relationships possible through blogging matter to me. I don’t want to get so caught up in my own blog that I can’t make those true connections and friendships important in the blogging world.
I believe in being real. I share 100% openly and honestly about all things body image, balance, motherhood, fitness, weight loss, fears, etc because I think we too often put pressure on ourselves that is not realistic. Heck. It’s what I’m currently experiencing with blogging and something I believe not talked about nearly enough. I want to show the truth in all ways, so we can learn more to uplift one another in struggles and not hide behind false fronts.
And lastly, its fun! Its a great way to learn more about myself, share anecdotes of my family, capture life, and experience new things. I don’t want to lose the fun aspect!
Those are the reasons I blog and those are the things I do not want to forget. What does that mean? For myself personally, It means taking off the self-imposed pressure. It means keeping blogging a hobby and pleasurable pastime and trusting God to develop it as a part of my life in His own way.
And for FFF? The main difference you will notice is that I may blog less often (1x/day) so I can keep my focus on what I care about most in blogging. I hope I can more genuinely reflect why I blog, my mission and purpose in blogging, and who I am as a person – a busy mom/wife/friend working towards personal goals and loving life – in every post.
Who cares what it does to page views? Who cares if its not the standard for blogs trying to grow and develop? Who cares if it makes me slightly nervous as to how that will affect the styling of my posts and if they become too long for you to want to read? All I care about is that I stick to my reasons for blogging. I follow my gut. I do what I know is right. I continue to have fun so it remains a passion. Whatever path that ends up leading down…so be it. I will have blogged with purpose, dedication, and compassion. Yea…so be it.
With all of that being said, if you like what FFF stands for, I would be honored to have you nominate me for Women’s Health Magazines “Blogs We Love”. Pretty please?? 🙂 Just click HERE and take a short moment to enter my site.
Question of the Day – Why do you blog? Have you ever lost sight of that? What caused you to do so and how do you keep focused?
I find that when I get wrapped up in page views, my writing suffers. This actually happens to me all the time. My page views will be up and I’ll feel the need to post more so those new readers will become regular readers. But, I usually don’t have anything to say and write a boring or all over the place post.
Another great post! I blog because I love the ability to be creative, which I might not otherwise get to express in my full-time job. I blog because I love sharing knowledge and experiences related to things I’m passionate about. And I blog because I love the community that is created. I wouldn’t have “met” you if I hadn’t started! 🙂
Great reasons to blog…your honesty is a huge one for me and why I love to read. I will definitely vote for you 🙂
That black and white photo of you is absolutely gorgeous!
i agree! stunning!
The short answer? I blog because it keeps me honest on the road to weight loss … or gain. Blogging about the journey and the struggles makes me want to make healthier choices.
That being said, I’ve just started to realize my blog is kind of all over the place (like my weight). Aargh.
BTW, I voted for you last night.I hope you make the cut!
Tina,
I mentioned this on CHelsey’s blog and i will say it again. Your posts speaks VOLUME to a lot of us. It full of what I like to call “realistic encouragement.” Its the reason why I read it. Blogging has a purpose and you have the passion. Thank you for sharing with us how to balance between the two.
p.s.
Please keep us updated on your mom. Praying for her!
Great post, Tina! I went through a similar transition myself, and am not going to lie – have goals for my own blog, too. I want someday to make enough money that I can use it to supplement some other passions of mine for income, rather than having a full time day job like I have now.
That said, I went from blogging 3x a day, to 2x a day, to 1x a day, and I’ve found it to be a great transition. The posts seem more meaningful and inspired, in my opinion, and less forced. I think it’s important to, like you say, live your life so you have something to blog about, rather than blog to live.
I know I have too much on my plate to blog more than once a day (and sometimes even less than that)
I LOVE making connections with people and I try to make just as much time for developing relationships as posting my own.
I blog to document my life and to eventually tell my story and inspire others to live a life full of love and optimism with definite touches of reality. Plus…blogging is FUN. I try not to get wrapped up in page views and comment numbers. I’m going to keep doing ME and hopefully loving it. I’m with you though…I’d love to see it serve a bigger purpose and hopefully someday I can transition another job into sidelining with blogging. Right now I’m VERY fortunate to have a job that allows me enough free time to read other blogs and sometimes even prep my own.
This is why I love your blog — you give us the day-to-day stuff, but you also take time every once in awhile to reflect! I love that – please keep doing it!
I know our blogs aren’t very similar in content, but I think, like you, my blog is a creative outlet for me. And yes, at times I lose sight of why I do it, and it becomes a bit overwhelming (i.e., having way too many desserts around because of the blog!).
I started my blog as a way to document my races because I am not patient enough to scrapbook. As people actually started visiting, I never wanted to lose sight of that intention. I love how I have everything organized and documented so I can remember how I spent my time in the future. Plus, I love sharing and helping people make decisions by giving them the 411 on stuff I’ve tried (must be the psychologist in me).
After nearly 4.5 years, I have only just started making money off of my blog, though really, it has not changed anything at all. I still refuse to get a domain until I have to — I always believed that blogging was awesome because it’s a free way to express yourself. I really don’t care about whether other people I would otherwise never talk to in real life would accept me into their gatherings. I know this isn’t the best view, but I have always blogged for me.
So true Tina – I agree that blogging should be as much (if not more) for YOU than for your followers. It completely takes the fun and therapeutic effects away when you’re blogging because you think you “have to” or “should”. I would love for my blog to grow, and i know that more frequent posts would help, but I just can’t handle making myself post every day or multiple times a day. Then it becomes a chore – and honestly, I don’t think I have enough interesting stuff to say to fill up a post a day! Maybe someday I’ll be a once a day blogger, but for now, a couple times a week works for me. I don’t ever want my blog to become a chore – I want it to stay fun!
p.s. I haven’t told you yet that I love your new theme/layout! The colors are pretty & I like that it’s simple!
I love your reasons!
I blog because it’s a creative outlet for me. I enjoy writing and as long as people keep reading, I’ll keep going… 🙂
I started blogging because I wanted to share my experiences and motivation on a healthy lifestyle but to also connect with others that have the same interests.
I sometimes feel my writing isn’t good or that people may think its stupid but overall I am basically doing it because I enjoy writing about my experiences and connecting with others….but I will be honest it does feel good to get a compliment here or there!
1. I nominated your blog for the blogs we love thing this morning, because I DO love your blog.
2. You inspire me every day, I swear. You make me feel better about myself, better about my blog, my body, my life and on and on. If you only blog once per day, so be it! Also, it couldn’t possibly be too long of a post!
I just wanted to say that I really appreciate this post and your guest post at CEC. Your words are really so down to earth and true. Reminds me of why I blog, for enjoyment and for fun and the community, not to impress or live up to someone else’s blogs expectations. Great posts, Tina!
I think it’s great to take a step back every now and then and re-evaluate the direction of your blog. I recently did that myself, and realized that many of my posts were lacking the passion that I’d once started with– passion about FOOD! I’m trying to put more of that back into my blog now.
Good for you for being honest with yourself and your readers about what you hope and dream for your blog!
Yep! I have obviously been re-evaluating lots recently. 😉
In your last photo, you look like M so much! I know who she takes after now! 🙂 These are great reasons to blog and that’s why your blog is so great!
I have been struggling with why I blog for a while now. I definitely have the same self-imposed pressure you are talking about and I often felt like I was doing things or trying new things for the purpose of blogging and not just for me. I love that quote you shared too.
Thanks for sharing!
I blog because I think it’s fun to share my life with my friends and family that I don’t get to see very often. Plus, it helps keep me on my toes with training and such! I’ve learned to just not look at the stats anymore – it’s not a priority of mine. I blog for fun, not to make money. 🙂
Keep up the great work!
I am 100% certain that any changes to your blog – which are coming from your instinct – will only make it better. 🙂
I think that you are amazing. I give you so much credit for blogging so much and taking care of a family. WHatever you choose to do for your blog is perfectly fine. We will stick by you because we LOVE you!
You are so inspirational Tina. You brighten my day when I come to your blog. It’s different from the others and you definitely have a knack for writing and helping others.
I love to blog. I love to document my life, let my creative juices flow, and be part of the wonderful and supportive blog community. Like you, I don’t hesitate to say that it is one of my passions. I don’t feel it’s a task, It is my comfort.
I personally prefer blogs that only update once per day. I have a hard time keeping up when it’s more than that and then feel disconnected from the author, making it less enjoyable for me to read. I also think some blogs (not yours :-)) end up with watered-down content when there are multiple posts a day.
I blog for many of the same reasons as you. Mainly, though, I want to inspire other moms to feed their families well. I do have goals to grow my blog and make income for my family as well. I wouldn’t do it if it wasn’t fun for me though. 🙂
And thats where I feared going – watered down bec I was distracted by other things. I like that point of feeling more connected too. So true and I didnt even think of that. Thanks!
I started blogging because I was ready to change careers and I knew I wanted to work in something to do with food but I didn’t know quite what. The blog was originally intended to just help me work through that, but now I do have some goals for my blog and I’m hoping that if nothing else it can serve as a living resume for something in the future.
I blog to share my experiences in a life with food restrictions due to allergies and intolerances. I have always lived a healthy lifestyle, but when I had to cut dairy out everything I saw to replace it was unhealthy. I wanted to learn more from others in my situation and share how I live a healthy happy life without feeling deprived with my restrictions.
And you do such an excellent job! You inspire me. 🙂
PS – Cannot wait to see you in a few weeks!
I love this post!!
Blogging is fun and for most of us a past time that we love. However, it is also easy to forget that and end up concentrating more on the blog and blog development..forgettig about the more important things. Not to mention, blogging can take up some time. Add in more than one post a day to the mix and it’s easy to see how one can tetter away from the real reasons s/he blogs. I commend you for this post and your actions to follow. Your true, loyal followers and readers will not care how many times you post or how long of a post. They will always be here! Have a great day sweetie! xoxo
Love your posts Tina! I love sharing my recipes and thoughts with people and getting feedback. Just today by hubby said his coworker loved my blog and couldn’t wait to try out one of my recipes. Makes me feel warm & fuzzy, hehe.
I have absolutely cut back on blogging so that I could focus more on living. When my blog started to take up ALL of my free time, and my friends and relatives had to read my blog to get an update on my life, that’s when I knew it was a problem.
These days, I blog when I have something to say. I don’t feel REQUIRED to write at least one post a day. I try to focus on quality rather than quantity these days.
beautifully said! this is the exact reason I no longer blog every single day. I used to ware myself out thinking what to post what topic to write about, taking pictures of EVERYTHING, then I realized I wasn’t enjoying any food or anything I was doing ebcause I was just always attached to my camera and documenting it. I blog when i feel like it and try to blog what I am passionate about. If I lose followers for that reason, so be it, but I love what I do with my blog and thats what matters to me!
I love your blog, its real, just like you and that is exactly how you come across
OH and I love the new layout!!
Thanks, Naomi! And even though I don’t always have time to comment – you have a permanent follower in me. I love your blog and YOU so much. 🙂
Tina, I know I haven’t been following your blog long, but these last couple of months I have really enjoyed getting to know you. I appreciate your honesty and sincerity in this post specifically, but in general as well. Thanks for being true to who you are. 🙂
What a wonderful post! I recently started my own blog and my intention is to enjoy every minute I spend on it so I can share my passions and tidbits of my life with my friends, family & followers. I love the reasons why you blog. I need to keep them in mind as I continue to develop and improve my blog. Thank you for sharing.
your blog is great and readers recognize that. posting one vs. two times a day won’t turn us away! your passion is always evident, and if you’re doing what’s best for you, then you’re doing what’s best for your blog.
I really enjoyed this post. It really hit home for me about blogging. I was discussing with my husband last night about doing 2 posts a day to get more page views. It’s going to be tough not having an income after the baby is born, and trying to grow the blog a little to get something else in would be ideal. However, I need to keep it fun for me, or else it will get too stressful. I don’t want blogging to become stressful
I just sent out this contest for The Fitness Dish to all my friends yesterday about getting nominated! I will def go on and nominate you too today! Good Luck! FFF is amazing 🙂
I will certainly nominate you as well. You’re awesome!
great post, girl!
i hate feeling like i’m missing out on things just so i can capture them on my camera to write about them. i think it’s important for me to keep focus on living by just taking weekends off and enjoying them. if i get stuff on camera, great, but if not, i don’t fret anymore 🙂
xo.
Great post. I have had many thoughts like that myself lately. Because of that, I didn’t blog for over a week or so. But I have to realize that I want to continue it for many of the reasons that you listed. But when I get caught up in page views, then my blog suffers and my enjoyment of it suffers as well.
By the way, I LOVE your new header and logo. So cute!
Thanks for writing such an honest, open post. I often struggle with that too. I bounce between wanting to increase my readership and change my blogging style to just trying to be me and not worrying about the rest of it. I hope to make my blog into what you’ve described above. Thanks again for writing this!
i nominated you tina… for all the reasons you stated above about why you love to blog. 🙂 you’re amazing and i look forward to each and every one of your posts!
You were the first person I nominated. 🙂 I love everything about you and your blog. Can’t wait to hook up for lunch this summer. And with the way I’m loving running…we may very well be running that half together in November. Well – you’ll run it way ahead of me, but I’ll be there completing it too. LOL
Oh honey…I can totally relate. I hardly ever blog anymore, and sometimes I just want to shut it down and start over in a few years when I’m done with school. The only reason I don’t is my few readers (like, literally 5) and my family reads my blog and I feel like I’d disappoint them. I struggle with how honest to be with what’s going on in my life…
I think you will find that your new schedule will work for you. You have developed quite the network and following and I think you won’t lose any readers. You’ll probably gain some, because people don’t like getting flooded with posts.
This makes so much sense – the quote above is so true. If you’re so busy worrying about the blog, the page views, the number of posts, you don’t have time to live your life (and your life is what you blog about!) So absolutely, if posting once a day works for you, that is the best possible thing for you and your readers 🙂 So important to step back and think about “why am I doing this?”, not just with blogging but with all hobbies/sports/activities.
Such a great post! I love the quote. And you.
I love how real, open and honest you are with every single post you write! It’s so inspiring!
Wonderful post Tina!
I blog because I love being a mom & and an RD and want to inspire others to feed their family in a healthy way 🙂
I’ve tried posting 2x per day and find it exhausting. I was wondering (and admiring) how you’re do it being the mom of a toddler & a newborn. I found I was getting too wrapped up in posting and paying less attention to what matters most to me (my family). Posting once per day fits my life perfectly right now 🙂
I would write one in the morning before anyone woke up and then one during nap time. It worked with my schedule but still felt pressured. And there were days I didn’t want to crank out a post but would rather sleep. Now I pre-write during naptime only for the next day’s post. Its working great so far and much less stressful.
I really just blog because I love it and it’s healed me. I don’t get much revenue at all from it and don’t have that many readers but the ones I do have are amazing and I love it. Even though sometimes I feel like it’s crap, the thought of not blogging makes me incredibly sad. So I keep doing it!
I’ll definitely read your one post a day. Love you!
Love you too Kacy! I think I need to find a reason to visit Ohio to see you and Lisa. But wait – that won’t work since you won’t be there. 🙁 One day we will cross paths!
And you hit the nail on the head – when I think about not blogging, it makes me sad. ‘Nough said to tell me to keep on keeping on.
I’m so impressed that you are adjusting your blogging to suit why you blog instead of the pressure you put on yourself to do it a certain way.
Loving what you do and blog about makes it so much more fun as a reader.
great post! i know this is a big step for you and i’m proud that you’re able to take this step back and realize that while blogging is great, life is more important 🙂 good luck!
You were one of the very first blogs I started reading and of course one of the first ones I nominated. Keep up the amazing work!
This seems to be a very popular topic this week! I blog because it’s my outlet. I don’t have a lot of people in my day to day life where I can just ramble about what I’m interested in. Their interests are different from mine and in this section of the blogging world, I have found people I relate to. 😀
I love to read your blog because of your honesty, openness and purpose. 🙂
I like your new (?) blog look too 🙂
Yep, its new. I started it this past Friday. 🙂
Great post! I think it’s fine to have goals for a blog but your little poster up at the top, blog about life but not live to blog, really says it all.
I for one will be really glad if you post just once a day: I almost never get to two posts a day from a single blogger, and I feel like I miss things.
I have hopes and goals for my blog too, partly for the same reason that you cited, that I must have been through all that I have been through in order to share something meaningful with the world. But I don’t even blog every day: it’s just not feasible with everything else that I have to do.
love
Ela
You certainly have a lot to share and you do so beautifully. I know I can’t comment often but I’m reading as regularly as possible and your insights when you reflect on certain topics (like struggles with different manners of eating) always speak to me.
I dig this. So much. I’ve been feeling very much that way in the past few months – that I’d become so tied to posting on a daily basis (I have no idea how you’ve been posting more than that!!) that it was stressful, it was losing its fun, my writing was no longer feeling spontaneous and I was not being present. And THAT was what got me. I was so caught up in blogging and being a good blog friend to others (blog friends are so important to me too, totally agree with you there) that I was losing out on the little nuances of everyday life by not being as present as I could be. So I applaud you for recognizing you were getting caught up. Good for you. Go, be present. 🙂