Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Attacking your sucky excuses for not blogging

blog.asmartbear.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

11–19 of 19 posts

Re: Attacking your sucky excuses for not blogging

#11

Post by tomjen3 »

wladimir wrote: post #9
tomjen3 wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nah, just trying to make a cheap star trek joke, since I am tired of being told that I must do this and that when I just want to write software. Do you really think I keep a blog because I like writing? I don't, but I have seen too many posts saying you must have a blog that I can't disagree with. Doesn't mean I should like it, nor do I intend to keep doing it for long, just until I have a couple hundred articles the…

But to be honest, "seriously, nobody reads on the internet anyway" on a site that is built around reading and discussing articles is a bit strange. Was that meant as ironic too?

No. Nobody reads on the Internet is what everyone here is told the moment they make their first landing page.

Hn is so far of the chart for what is normal.

Re: Attacking your sucky excuses for not blogging

#12

Post by wladimir »

tomjen3 wrote: post #11
wladimir wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But to be honest, "seriously, nobody reads on the internet anyway" on a site that is built around reading and discussing articles is a bit strange. Was that meant as ironic too?

No. Nobody reads on the Internet is what everyone here is told the moment they make their first landing page. Hn is so far of the chart for what is normal.

HN likes to feel so special :)

Sure, most people (even HNers) don't like landing pages with a lot of text, as it looks scammish. However, blogs are not landing pages. People read blogs because they are interested in the subject, instead of, like a landing page, as a sales talk.

And there is no need to take it into hyperbole, which rings as true as "There are no girlzz in the interwebzz!".

Re: Attacking your sucky excuses for not blogging

#13

Post by bruce511 »

philwelch wrote: post #5
brianwillis wrote: post #4

You already know that nowadays you’re invisible without some sort of social media presence. You know, some of us kind of like it that way. Anonymity has its virtues.

Unfortunately, being anonymous and unheard of isn't helpful if you're building a business, which was the point of the OP.

I suppose it depends on your definition of "social media". The other day i heard someone say "if you're not on facebook, no-one will find your product." I suppose that depends on your market. If you're buying wide-body jets for national airlines for long-haul service, I suspect Facebook is not your first port of call. That's not an isolated example, I suspect most B2B type sales are not affected by Facebook.

On the other hand if your product is social, or the latest hip thingy, or relies on some sort of "fashion" driver (fashion in the broad sense, not necessarily related to clothing) then obviously facebook, twitter, blogging - anything at all - is good. If you're starting out, and no-one has ever heard of you then social media helps spread the word, but it'll take more than that to build something of substance.Fashion, by definition, is fleeting.Lots and lots of stuff is "famous for a day" and then sinks without trace.

Of course the author of the article is writing a blog post about blogging - to people who (by definition) read blog posts. Blogging is important for "really small businesses" to build at least some sort of profile, but it's by no means the best, or only, way to build that audience.

Those of us who "do" tech all day, every day, assume that tech is the way to solve all problems. Sometimes that's true, but in many cases not.

Re: Attacking your sucky excuses for not blogging

#14

Post by linker3000 »

tomjen3 wrote: post #10
kaib wrote: post #6

There is a second really important reason to blog, if you write software (and are any good at it). Blogging is a great way to improve your writing and the more senior you become the more you will find that your challenge is not just grokking things yourself but helping other people grok them. Almost all of the really stellar software engineers I worked with, like the senior people at Google, were excellent writers an…

The thing is that while I do blog, I don't really want to become a communicator, I, and I guess plenty of other people, am plenty happy being a software developer. I will much rather spend a weekend playing with node.js than write. I do believe many people feel the same way, but obviously the viewpoint isn't blogged about so often.

I'm an IT Manager and communicate with my peers and friends in real time. Anything of merit goes into a helpdesk ticket or our knowledge base.

When I am not doing my job, I have a life with friends and family and don't plan to spend it writing up all the things I did or experienced while I was working.

Re: Attacking your sucky excuses for not blogging

#15

Post by Tyrannosaurs »

linker3000 wrote: post #14
tomjen3 wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The thing is that while I do blog, I don't really want to become a communicator, I, and I guess plenty of other people, am plenty happy being a software developer. I will much rather spend a weekend playing with node.js than write. I do believe many people feel the same way, but obviously the viewpoint isn't blogged about so often.

I'm an IT Manager and communicate with my peers and friends in real time. Anything of merit goes into a helpdesk ticket or our knowledge base. When I am not doing my job, I have a life with friends and family and don't plan to spend it writing up all the things I did or experienced while I was working.

Ditto.

This all comes from the perspective that maximising your work related potential is the ultimate goal in life which simply isn't the case for me.

Sure I want to be good at what I do and I want to know as much about it as I can but it's one thing in my life and there are massive time pressures. Simply put blogging is not an effective use of my time given the varying demands placed on it (primarily a 22 month old child and another one due in the next two weeks).

Re: Attacking your sucky excuses for not blogging

#16

Post by Tyrannosaurs »

bruce511 wrote: post #13
philwelch wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Unfortunately, being anonymous and unheard of isn't helpful if you're building a business, which was the point of the OP.

I suppose it depends on your definition of "social media". The other day i heard someone say "if you're not on facebook, no-one will find your product." I suppose that depends on your market. If you're buying wide-body jets for national airlines for long-haul service, I suspect Facebook is not your first port of call. That's not an isolated example, I suspect most B2B type sales are not affected by Facebook. On the o…

Yep, the company I work for is a market leader - no Facebook account, no Twitter account and unlikely ever to have one simply because we're B2B in a very specific market sector where face to face networking is everything.

Re: Attacking your sucky excuses for not blogging

#17

Post by adriand »

Tyrannosaurs wrote: post #15
linker3000 wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm an IT Manager and communicate with my peers and friends in real time. Anything of merit goes into a helpdesk ticket or our knowledge base. When I am not doing my job, I have a life with friends and family and don't plan to spend it writing up all the things I did or experienced while I was working.

Ditto. This all comes from the perspective that maximising your work related potential is the ultimate goal in life which simply isn't the case for me. Sure I want to be good at what I do and I want to know as much about it as I can but it's one thing in my life and there are massive time pressures. Simply put blogging is not an effective use of my time given the varying demands placed on it (primarily a 22 month old…

Congratulations. Your children will be about the same age difference as mine. It's a good age distance, although it has challenges along with the joys, the humour, and the memorable moments.

You may find yourself wanting to record those moments for the future. Photographs and video won't let you capture everything. You may want to start writing about them. Short essays about your kids and your family life, written in a poignant and/or humourous way, will both entertain your extended family and serve as an important record for years to come.

Rather than simply being about maximizing your "work related potential", the skills you learn in this process will lend themselves to all aspects of your life. When life calms down a bit, you can apply them to work if you wish.

Re: Attacking your sucky excuses for not blogging

#18

Post by Tyrannosaurs »

adriand wrote: post #17
Tyrannosaurs wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ditto. This all comes from the perspective that maximising your work related potential is the ultimate goal in life which simply isn't the case for me. Sure I want to be good at what I do and I want to know as much about it as I can but it's one thing in my life and there are massive time pressures. Simply put blogging is not an effective use of my time given the varying demands placed on it (primarily a 22 month old…

Congratulations. Your children will be about the same age difference as mine. It's a good age distance, although it has challenges along with the joys, the humour, and the memorable moments. You may find yourself wanting to record those moments for the future. Photographs and video won't let you capture everything. You may want to start writing about them. Short essays about your kids and your family life, written in…

Immodestly perhaps, I fancy I could actually be a fairly good blogger, it is just a matter of time.

I'd certainly love to have a personal diary of things (a permanent record of when exactly in the first few weeks my wife comes out with the line "I'm so tired I think I might die" as she did with the first one), I'm just realistic enough to know that between work and the two kids anything more than the notes we scribble down in a notebook is unrealistic.

Aside from the practical side of things, maybe part of it is the fact I'm from the UK and we tend to have a more reserved attitude towards putting personal stuff up on the internet. Certainly my wife (who in her job deals with the public) is very nervous about anything being made available in that way.

Work relate thoughts I could deal with (and I don't question the merit - I find writing a very good way to get things clear in your head - a variant of the old "how do I know what I think, I haven't had a chance to hear what I'm going to say yet"), it's just the personal stuff that troubles me.

Re: Attacking your sucky excuses for not blogging

#19

Post by michaelochurch »

Here's the most important one that is a concern for a lot of people: It might damage my career.

In technology, this isn't so much of a concern. In banking or law, however, you're best off not to have a blog. The cultures of those industries are secretive, conformist, and conservative. You wouldn't be fired for being the "office liberal" or being an out-of-the-closet gay in an investment bank, but it would prevent you from getting into the upper-management club. Being a blogger is in the same category: not something you'd get fired for, but something you just wouldn't do if you were serious about climbing the ladder.

My thoughts: networking and blogging are important, but people need to do those things when they're happy and able to make positive and professional impressions rather than beaten-down and bitter ones. A lot of people treat networking as a "foul-weather friend"-- something to do when in career trouble-- and this is a mistake, because then it's too late. You want to be visible when you are happy and things are going well; then, if you get into trouble, reach out to people who've seen you at your best.

Post reply on HN