Blogging = Pedicure

Blogging is like the process of a guy getting a pedicure for the first time. Initially, he’s a skeptic and thinks it extremely “metro.” But after doing it, he feels great. The only thing is, half your friends won’t understand it; the other half will laugh at you.

Maybe it’s not that extreme; regardless, a guy getting a pedicure for the first time is hilarious (Yes… I’ve done it).

I come across many blogs that have a specific theme or topic (i.e “Brand Yourself!” “Get Happy” “Technology Guru” “Apple Luvr”)

It seems everyone’s advice is “find a niche, and then become the expert in that niche.” This advice is contingent upon your goal. Do you want to pose as an expert or write about whatever you want? I guarantee that the former is more fulfilling.

Broad vs. Focus: Why Diversification is Better in the long run

I’ve argued before, and hold the firm stance today that you should go as broad as possible, and blog about whatever you want to. Select five or six topics (diversified topics), and stick to it.

If you’re blogging because you want to be seen as the “guru” in your space, your readers will quickly notice. They’ll notice you’re trying to “brand” yourself. In fact, this becomes harder and harder as your blog grows. Oftentimes blog authors get stressed and give up because they want to post a topic that interests their readers. They want to “cultivate” and build a community on their blog.

What ends up happening is that the blog posts become watered-down because the author fears ticking off one of their readers with a strong stance on an issue. The author ends up blogging for their readers instead of blogging for their passion.

I suggest blogging as if you have no readers. You did in the beginning, right? And that’s how you got all those readers. Now, all of the sudden you have regular readers, and you don’t want to offend any of them. Obviously, it’s better to write passionately and with a strong voice, than simply reporting on a topic and taking a neutral position.

If you think something sucks, say it. Don’t indicate it.

Last point: the final reason to go as broad as possible is because your interests and passions change. Let’s say you start your career in the “social media” space, and then transfer over to an art career. It’s going to be harder to switch over if your blog is called, “web20socialmedia.com.” If your blog is broad, like “WorldJourneysWithMatt.com” simply add another category to it.

Reason to Blog:

Will the internet ever cease to exist? I doubt it.

In 500 years I’m positive that we’ll still have the Internet in some form, or another. It’s an intrinsic need for the world to be connected.

This is the number one reason why I blog.

My children’s, children’s, children’s, children’s, children’s will be able to pour through my blog and read my thoughts/feelings/ideas at different stages in my life. Additionally, when I’m old and feeble, I’ll be able to review what I was thinking at a specific time and date in my life. It will give me something to do when I’m older (other than drool on myself and play bingo).

Bottom line: Get a pedicure.