Whenever I'm visiting my mother, she invariably gets a phone call from someone asking “How's Carie doing?” – to which my mom replies: "My daughter is a blogger now – here's her link!” Apparently, one of my mom's friends thinks I'm a writer for a real estate publication. That's okay – until I started blogging last year, I didn't understand the difference between an article and a blog either. Nevertheless, I am absolutely delighted whenever I receive any feedback about my writing. At times, it comes in the form of a comment from one of my contemporaries. Other times, it’s in the form of an email or remark from a friend or family member. That being said, how thrilling is it when occasionally reminded that our blogging efforts are not going unnoticed anyway? As far as I'm concerned, it's all good ... even if the person reading thinks I write a column for a real estate publication.
Not only are my mother’s friends reading my blog – they’re reading your comments and blogs too! Recently, another one of my mom’s friends wrote: “I just finished spending a few hours reading your blog and the comments people made. I am most impressed. You write very well and you write just like you talk which I think is more impressive. Enjoyed reading some of your colleagues' blogs as well.” This comment was especially meaningful because when I first started blogging, I struggled with indentifying viable topics – specifically, what to write about and then how to write about them. Essentially, I made the conscious decision to simply write what I know – and write in a manner that reflects my personality. I've discovered a writing style that sounds like me – it's my voice and it feels good. Furthermore, this comment clearly reinforced what I already know. Collectively, we put out some great stuff here!
So what does this all mean? Blogging is not always an easy concept to grasp right away. I know because I used to be one of those people. Yet, I've learned several, valuable lessons. Stay committed, stay passionate, and write in consistent intervals. Write about what you know, write from your heart, and write as if you were speaking to a familiar person. Be true, be honest, and be yourself. Plus, we all recognize that getting noticed might likely come as a direct result of our writing efforts. Consequently, as long as we keep on writing … we just never know whose mother and whose mother’s friends will be reading our next blogs. Talk about expanding our spheres of influence!
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