I have had my own personal blog for seven years – ever since I retired from track and field in 2006. I started this blog due to the fact that I felt it was the most natural progression and evolution of my online persona and presence at the time.
I had my personal website for more than ten years at the time, so I felt that it was a good move to take. It was one of the smartest moves I have made to establish not only my online presence, but also get opportunities I would have never dreamed of.
I think blogging is one of the most important things for young professionals today to have. There are so many benefits for students today to have their point of view come across when it comes to what they write about online. This is one of the main reasons why I have my students in my social media class this semester at UofL write and maintain their own personal blog.
But this is not the main reason why I am asking my students to have a blog. It’s a platform to create your own voice, share your interests and passions about life and your profession, and grow as an individual throughout the process and over the years. It is also an opportunity to see your writing improve over time – I can honestly say my writing is much different today than it was when I first started my blog seven years ago.
Why do I like blogging? There are so many things I love about it, but I will highlight some of the main points:
- You are able to share resources: This is something that I think is really great – we are all on the same team when it comes down to it, and blogging and sharing resources may help not only those you are trying to reach, but there may be others that come across your work and say – wow! This is very helpful! This is really rewarding for me to hear from other students, professors, and practitioners.
- You are connecting with wonderful people in the communities you are a part of: By sharing content relevant to certain interests, you get to reach out to people who are interested in the same topics. If you share this with Twitter, then the numbers increase as well.
- You get opportunities you would have never believed would be possible: From speaking engagements to consulting opportunities to research projects – you never know who is reading your blog. Over the years, I have been fortunate to have some of these opportunities, so I have been able to share these stories with my students and others.
As a professor, I feel it is also important to practice what I preach in the classroom by blogging the same number of posts, engage in the same topics, and share my point of view. Along with writing blog posts, I have shared some resources and tips with my students via Twitter and in class such as this post here. It is key to share insights from the pros when it comes to these resources and tips for how to get engaged in writing a blog as well as marketing it professionally.
In summary, a blog is a platform for everyone to share their point of view – whether you are a student or a professor. It’s an opportunity to share your own stories, experiences, perspectives, and resources with your community. Blogs serve as either the extension or hub of your online persona and reputation. They make take time to manage and maintain, but the rewards and benefits outweigh all of these components. While blogs are considered almost to be somewhat of a traditional form of social media, they still are powerful platforms and an essential tool for all audiences today.
Hope you all are having a wonderful day!
Best Wishes,
Karen
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