
Attacking your sucky excuses for not blogging - duck
http://blog.asmartbear.com/start-blogging.html
======
kaib
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 and constantly working hard to improve their
writing.

A side note, if English is your second language don't despair. It's easier to
rise above the mean than you think and all the good native speakers have
achieved their skills by working really hard on it. You might not have enough
lifespan to hit the literary top but more than enough to become a really
efficient communicator.

~~~
tomjen3
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.

~~~
linker3000
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.

~~~
Tyrannosaurs
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).

~~~
adriand
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.

~~~
Tyrannosaurs
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.

------
brianwillis
_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.

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

~~~
bruce511
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.

~~~
Tyrannosaurs
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.

------
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.

------
tomjen3
Dammit Bear man, I am a software developer, not a writer.

But more seriously, he is dead wrong, except for seo purposes. Nobody reads on
the Internet anyway so steal a page from the Danish entrepreneur Martin
Thorborg and blog in video form directly from your iphone.

~~~
AngryParsley
Uhh... according to your HN user page, you blog at www.tomjen.net, which you
just started 12 days ago. That's a pretty short time in which to do a 180.

~~~
tomjen3
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 then I hope that will be enough to
point to if anybody asks.

~~~
wladimir
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?

~~~
tomjen3
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.

~~~
wladimir
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!".

