Blogging manifesto
I have kept a tiny little space in cyberspace for quite a while now — more than a decade, to be honest. I started blogging in my teenage years, and my blog has taken different forms and has moved from different platforms.
Lately, though, I somehow feel lost. I’m stuck, and I’m trying to figure out which direction this tiny space is headed. Will this be a professional portfolio or an extension of my silly, weird, slightly neurotic self? Will it have a business-like approach or should I just stick with a more personal touch? What’s my brand? What’s my message? How do I effectively deliver my message?
Each question opens to even more questions, and I get more confused than ever. Then I realized, there are more important questions — why, what, and for whom do I blog?
In this post:
Why do I write?
I often hear about writing as a creative outlet. Most writers write to preserve memories, document feelings, or express their deepest thoughts.
But for me, I write because it’s part of how I process and learn things. I write to organize my otherwise cluttered thoughts. I write things down so I can untangle them, process accordingly, and move forward. Writing serves as my pause phase when I try to figure out my next step.
Yes, in the long run, it helps me preserve memories, document feelings, and perhaps express my deepest thoughts. But more importantly, it helps me in dealing with the now to get me to where I want to be in the future.
What do I blog about?
I remember during the Multiply and Friendster era, I wrote a lot. I freely shared my thoughts, dreams, feelings, and other random stuff I find on the Internet. I wrote in English, in Filipino, or in Bisaya. I express however I like. I wrote stories, essays, and even attempted a little poetry. I wrote about a word I learned, a conversation with a friend, a photo of a cute piggy. Completely random. No theme, no branding, no direction.
As one can possibly imagine, a huge chunk of it was purely rubbish and admittedly embarrassing (Yes, I was fluent in j3J3-sp3ak! Haha!). I deleted most of those gag-worthy posts, but there may be some remnant of teenage angst and/or drama buried deep in this blog. (Note to self: Skim through the blog and delete or hide posts as needed).
Eventually, the scope of the blog widened and included some academic articles, speeches, presentations, etc.
For whom do I blog?
Come to think of it, I write for my own benefit. I learn things faster when I write them down. Plus I am able to preserve memories and document events that I may have difficulty remembering a few years from now.
I am also able to track my own personal growth in terms of how I use words to express. Yes, I cringe at most of my old posts, but hey, let’s be a little more forgiving of the young, passionate blogger that I was. Haha!
I still view blogging as a diary / personal journal of sorts, but I am now aware that this tiny little space can be read by anyone with Internet access. And everything I put in here is my digital footprint. Even though I barely have any readers (if there are any, at all), I need to leave a positive trail and leave a message of personal growth, of hope, happiness, and love to whoever may be on the same learning path that I am in who will someday stumble upon this little blog.
Where is this blog headed?
It’s kind of funny how I started writing this post a little confused, and now as I end this, I have gained a little clarity. This is exactly what I meant when I said I write to process things. 😉
Anyhow, I have decided that this tiny space on the Internet shall remain as an extension of myself. I shall continue to write about new things I learn, my thoughts, adventures, and whatever else I feel like writing about. I shall continue to share stories of hope, happiness, love, and life in general, without worrying so much about branding or shares or clicks or tweets.
And whenever I find myself out of words, I will just review this post and remember Why, What, and For Whom Do I Blog.
