I started blogging for enjoyment long before the word entered the popular lexicon. That never made a ton of money directly (though it did make some) but it did indirectly help me land a book deal and start a couple related businesses that made a lot of money.
It also gave me a chance to figure out how to write and communicate well, which I think is why we got into Y Combinator. I'd say that writing is probably the second most valuable life skill (behind understanding the concept of expected value) that I've picked up to date, and I was abysmal at it before I started that first Movable Type blog.
So in a roundabout way, blogging has made me a fortune, though I never could have anticipated it. When I started nobody had made much off of it.
Agreed. 90% of the accomplishments on my resume are thanks to writing good essays in applications and receiving fellowships, internships, and admission to Stanford. I'd say I'm a competent engineer but nothing extraordinary. Writing made all the difference.
It also gave me a chance to figure out how to write and communicate well, which I think is why we got into Y Combinator. I'd say that writing is probably the second most valuable life skill (behind understanding the concept of expected value) that I've picked up to date, and I was abysmal at it before I started that first Movable Type blog.
So in a roundabout way, blogging has made me a fortune, though I never could have anticipated it. When I started nobody had made much off of it.