One of the reasons I cough up for not blogging frequently enough is that I don’t like to repeat myself. As I’ve been blogging for SIXTEEN YEARS, I’ve said a . lot . of . stuff about business blogging. But it turns out that repeating yourself is a good thing when you have a longterm blog.
Instructions: unpack your topic slowly
Basically, it works like this. Your blog should have a focus. Mine is the evolving ways in which companies and organizations use – and think about – blogging and social media for marketing and communications. You unpack your topic very slowly. You turn each small insight this way and that. You look for a new facet, just as you do with a diamond ring.
There’s always something new, of course. If your take on your topic isn’t entirely fresh, it will still be slightly different. Things change. There’s something in the news that catches your eye. Something in the statusphere that pings. A snowstorm or other natural phenomenon alters your perspective.
As for why blogging is back
Blogging never really went anywhere. It’s just that the excitement about it has been drowned out by the din of enthusiasm (silliness?) over Facebook and Twitter. Blogs and blogging continue to be the single best way to lay down your digital footprint. Each blog post has a permanent URL. Each post is searchable and findable (unlike ephemeral Tweets and threaded Facebook discussions). The blogging is dead meme pops up with regularity. But the best thinkers dismiss it. Read what Anil Dash and others are saying about the importance of longform writing.
Your thoughts?
Photo by Sydney Stokoe