I have my own personal blog, aside from Zen College Life. I haven’t really done much with it to date, but I have big plans. I really think it is important for everyone to have an online presence. Some people use linkedin, facebook, myspace, etc. But if your name is something of a brand, as I’m hoping mine to one day be, you really should own your own domain, and it definitely makes things easy if it is your name, as mine is, Ibrahim Husain.com.
Your blog is your face online. It is what anyone who looks for you will find. When people google your name, what is first to come up? Your ebay buyer/seller list? Your name listed on some team page from your high school? Your mugshot on the most wanted list (hahaha)? Research shows that employers and boards of admissions use the internet to find out about applicants, especially when faced with a decision between more than one applicant. Your online presence could be the difference between you getting the job/ getting in, or not. Do you really want that drunk St. Patty’s party pic to be the first thing they see?
So here it is.
Top reasons to have your own personal blog
1. It’s much more expressive of your uniqueness than myspace or facebook.
2. There is no limit to what you can do with it.
3. It is your own intellectual property, like your own published work.
4. It’s the first thing people will find about you online.
5. It will keep you accountable (think diet or fitness journaling).
6. It could make you famous (Steve Pavlina and polyphasic sleep).
7. The things you do/say could be inspiring (I did a 3 day juice diet, wrote about it daily, and other people find it and decide to try it…)
8. It’s a great conversation starter.
9. It can make you look professional.
10. You can make money off of it.
11. It can keep you disciplined. (I write at least 4 times a week, and sometimes its hard, but when I complete the week, I feel successful).
12. It keeps you on top of things (You stay much more attentive to the world, always looking for inspiration).
13. It’s a great way for friends to keep up with you, know what’s going on in your life.
14. It helps you find yourself (Throughout the course of writing for this blog, I’ve found that I believe some very different things than I initially thought. I’ve changed career ideas twice since starting this blog. The world is much bigger than I imagined, and the opportunities are endless).
15. You will meet new people who share your similar interests.
16. It’s easy, cheap, and fun. It will humble, exhilarate, and connect you to the world.
17. It’s your mark on the world, a record that you were here, and your voice was important enough to be heard.
18. It gives you credibility.
19. It gives you an edge on the competition.
20. It will make you a much better writer, editor, formatter, etc.
21. It will help you grow.
22. It will help track your personal progress.
23. Because of negative comments. Negative comments make you realize that your words have an effect on other people, and that is a very interesting experience.
24. Sharpen your strengths, improve on your weaknesses.
25. It allows you to demonstrate your passion.
26. It can be a showcase for your accomplishments and awards.
27. Build an online network.
28. You don’t need to know any web development languages, you pretty much only need to know how to type.
29. It allows you to strike an online conversation
30. It connects you to a network of 100s of millions of people.
31. Your knowledge benefits the community.
32. Because a year from now you will wish you started a year ago.
33. There are so many other good reasons to do it, but most of them you can’t understand until you do it.
So there we have it. You need a blog. And to prove just how important it is, I will be designing a contest in the next few days to give away a custom designed blog with 1 year of free hosting. All you would have to do is help define what kind of layout you want, and start blogging.
What kind of contest should it be? I’d love you hear your ideas. Leave a comment and help me decide!
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I love this list!!! I also just found your blog through student universe and I’m already a big time fan especially bc your a Texas kid and I’m from Oklahoma.
Mallory, awesome. I’m so glad you are enjoying the site. Oklahoma, huh? Well hello there northern neighbor!
Hello Ibrahim,
Awesome post. I would never would think anyone would write or come up with 22 reason why someone should own a blog, but YOU did it. Impressive
. You have a really cool blog and I do like what I see. Keep the good work, buddy.
Thanks for this list. I think #18 is really important if you plan to operate a truly successful blog.
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