“Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart.” —William Wordsworth
Over the course of my life, I’ve embraced a number of different hobbies: baseball cards, video games, tennis, art, just to name a few. But none of them have changed my life or brought me as much satisfaction as blogging. In almost too many ways to count, it has changed me and the way I live my life.
In fact, so much so, it has become a hobby I regularly recommend to others. I started blogging as a personal tool to journal the changes we were making as we began minimizing our possessions. But somewhere along the line, it became less about me writing the story and more about the story changing me.
And while there are many articles written about why you should blog to grow your business or become an expert or make a whole bunch of money—the best recommendations are still found in the personal realization that blogging changes you, the writer.
15 Thoughts on How Blogging Impacts Life
1. You’ll become a better writer. At its core, writing is communication. It is about recording thoughts on paper and compelling others to agree with them. To that end, writing (just like every other form of communication that has ever existed) improves with practice. Blogging will not force you to become a better writer, it’ll just happen as you do it. And becoming a better writer holds important benefits for the rest of your life—whether you are creating a book, a presentation, a résumé, or an anniversary card for your spouse.
2. You’ll become a better thinker. Because the process of writing includes recording thoughts on paper, the blogging process encourages you to stop and think deeper. You will delve deeper into the matters of your life and the worldview that shapes them. Unfortunately, at this point, many will choose not to blog (or write at all) based on the faulty reasoning that they “have nothing to say.” But to that line of thinking I always respond the same way, maybe you just haven’t discovered yet what you have to say.
3. You’ll live a more intentional life. Once you start writing about your life and the thoughts that shape it, you’ll begin thinking more intentionally about who you are, who you are becoming, and whether you like what you see or not. And that just may be reason enough to get started.
4. You’ll develop an eye for meaningful things. By necessity, blogging requires a filter. It’s simply not possible to write about every event, every thought, and every happening in your life. Instead, blogging is a never-ending process of choosing to articulate the most meaningful events and the most important thoughts. This process of choice helps you develop an eye for meaningful things. And remember that sometimes the most meaningful things appear in the most mundane—but you’ll see what I mean once you get started.
5. It’ll lead to healthier life habits. Blogging requires time, devotion, commitment, and discipline. And just to be clear, those are all good things to embrace – they will help you get the most out of your days and life. Since beginning to blog, I have become an early riser, a runner, and can now properly identify my favorite drink at Starbuck’s (Caramel Macchiato). And even if those three habits don’t personally appeal to you, blogging will provide opportunity for new life habits to emerge in yours.
6. You’ll meet new people. Whether it be through comments, e-mails, or social media, you may be surprised at how quickly you meet people on-line. And by meet people, I mean legitimately form relationships that seek to serve one another. The blogging community is friendly, encouraging, and genuinely cheering for you to succeed—the only thing missing is you.
7. You’ll make some money. You don’t need to make money to enjoy blogging. In fact, sometimes making money from your blog can actually start to distract you from the joy that you found in the first place. That being said, whether you make $20/year or $20,000/year, it’s still pretty nice to have a hobby that actually pays you back.
8. You’ll inspire others. Blogging not only changes your life, it also changes the life of the reader. And because blogs are free for the audience and open to the public, on many levels, it is an act of giving. It is a selfless act of service to invest your time, energy, and worldview into a piece of writing and then offer it free to anybody who wants to read it. Others will find inspiration in your writing… and that’s a wonderful feeling.
9. You’ll become more well-rounded in your mindset. After all, blogging is an exercise in give-and-take. One of the greatest differences between blogging and traditional publishing is the opportunity for readers to offer input. As the blog’s writer, you introduce a topic that you feel is significant and meaningful. You take time to lay out a subject in the minds of your readers and offer your thoughts on the topic. Then, the readers get to respond. And often times, their responses in the comment section challenge us to take a new, fresh look at the very topic we thought was so important in the first place.
10. It’s free. Your blog can begin today without spending a single penny now (or ever). I use WordPress and highly recommend it. With an initial investment of $0, why not give it a shot? Or for just a few dollars/month, you can use your very own domain name. I use and recommend Bluehost.
11. You’ll become more comfortable being known. Blogging introduces yourself to the world. It causes you to articulate the life you live and the worldview behind the decisions that you make. Whether you have 1 reader or 10,000, the blogging process opens up your life to those on the outside. It is a good exercise in human-existence to be known by others. Over time, you’ll reveal more and more of yourself to the outside world… and you’ll be excited to find a world that relates to you and enjoys hearing your story.
12. It’ll serve as a personal journal. Blogging serves many of the same roles as a personal journal. It trains us to be observant and gives weight to the personal growth that we are experiencing. It trains our minds to track life and articulate the changes we are experiencing. Your blog becomes a digital record of your life that is saved “in the cloud.” As a result, it can never be lost, stolen, or destroyed in a fire.
13. You’ll become more confident. Blogging will help you discover more confidence in your life. You will quickly realize that you do live an important life with a unique view and have something to offer others.
14. You’ll find a platform to recommend. We all love to recommend something we have found enjoyable or beneficial—whether it be a nice restaurant, a good book, or a new outlook on life. The fullness of joy is not experienced until we have shared that joy with others. A blog provides an opportunity to do that very thing. It provides a platform to share the joy we have experienced and recommend good things we have discovered to others.
15. It’s quite a rush with every positive comment. There’s a certain little rush that accompanies the immediate positive feedback that you receive every time a reader posts a comment, shares your writing on Facebook, or tweets it out to their Twitter followers. While walking the fine line between finding encouragement in that feedback and obsessing over it may take some time to get used to, it’s far better to find that line than to never seek it out in the first place.
Remember, you don’t need to blog as a means to get rich or as a means to gather a huge following. You don’t even need to blog as a means to change the Internet… the change that a blog will cause in your life is reason enough.
Thank you for making this one of the most popular posts on the Internet today about the benefits of blogging. In response, I have written a helpful guide to getting started, “A Simple, Helpful Guide to Start Your Own Blog.” If you are interested in starting a blog, you will find the information to be both practical and inspirational.
Note: I am a Bluehost affiliate which means they offer me a commission every time someone signs up via one of my links. But this does not influence my recommendation. I have used Bluehost from the very beginning and continue to do so today.
Hi to all,
Because the process of writing includes recording thoughts on paper, the blogging process encourages you to stop and think deeper.
Cheers
Masha
Very good post for any blogger. The post covered things that I never thought of before. Found the post to be inspiring, so much so that I wrote a WHY I Blog post that is currently published on my blog. Thanks sharing this post. Enjoyed read it !
Great post. I particularly agree with becoming a better writer. I’ve always LOVED writing but found the ability was slowly stamped out of me with my corporate finance job. Once I started blogging (as a means to cope with how horrible by life had become), I slowly started rediscovering a passion I’d once loved. Then, eventually I left the corporate world and my passion of writing has gone from strength to strength since. Blogging has literally changed my life!
Amber, what you have just shared is so inspiring to me. I want nothing more than to discover what my career is. Blogging is such a great escape for me. I find myself discovering my true desires more and more as I write on my blog.
Yeah, I have been doing lots of mistakes, and I am learning from these errors. To get successful, you have to do it, when you do it you face problems, and then you get to know ways to conquer these problems, and you learn and win.
I think we should never fail to try because if we don’t try it, then we are 100% failure but if we try it, we have 1% chance of success.
thankyou for your insights
Thank you so much. And with those thoughts, I am beginning my blog today! Thanks for the inspiration. I needed it. Good thoughts.
So apt reasons. Thats exactly why I started blogging recently.
There are still other reasons why you should start blogging and one of the reason why i started blogging is because i need some pass time and also it helps me to be productive giving me the chance to make money while doing my hobby
I hope that blogging allows me to become a better husband, father and person. As i mature i see so many ways to improve on myself. As long as we’re always updating ourselves it’s a plus.
Starting a blog is easy but driving traffic is not easy, After reading and writing so many blog posts, I found out that guest blogging can be a very powerful strategy to increase blog traffic.
I have written for many popular blogs and it is one of the best way to build relationships, increase traffic and find ew clients.
This is the real staff lm eager to know…
I got to realize that there is more to blogging…
I’m sure that the more we interact with others so is the increase in traffic.
This article inspired me to blog more passionately, and it changed my life! Thank you!
K?
Do we have beef? Filet Mignon? New York Strip? Ground beef?
all im looking for is some average poultry
It’s official internet, Scott and I have average poultry.
This blog is the best thing that has ever happened to me!! I hope to incorporate this into everything that I do.
Certainly, blogging is a must for everyone as you need to share your knowledge with the outside world. Others have a right to seek your advise.
Thank you for such an informative blogging platform.
I gives me the basic commencement of my blogging methodologies.
Hi there outstanding website! Does running a blog such as this require a massive amount work?
I’ve very little knowledge of programming however
I had been hoping to start my own blog in the near future.
Anyhow, if you have any suggestions or techniques for new blog owners please share.
I understand this is off subject however I simply had to ask.
Thanks a lot!
The fact that it allowed me to meet others and understand that it’s a community and not a competition has been very satisfying. Read more about that here. https://bossinthemiddle.com/2016/12/23/thank-you-the-best-part-of-blogging-is-discovering-other-bloggers/
Thanks for this post, Joshua. I have been blogging for nearly 3 months and I can identify with so much of what you have said. Even though I would like to see some material reward for my writing in the long term, the experience of blogging has given me have been rewarding in so many non material ways.
Very helpful. Thank you for writing this.
I’m somewhat interested in blogging, but I like my privacy–it makes me feel safe. It seems weird to me for strangers to know what I’m doing or thinking. (I even stopped using social media a couple years ago.) I also worry that something bad will come of it, like getting stalked or attacked. Any advice on this?
Hmm it’s very important things and helpful for everyone. Thanks for writing.
Hi am a new blogger. Can i translate this post to Mongolian and post on my blog?
Thanks Joshua,
This is a great, refreshing post that offers some really thoughtful insights about the benefits of blogging.
Best,
Leesh
I am also a new blogger, i am blogging now about 6 months.
Really good and helpful information, this kind of posts help me get further and gives me motivation.
At first i started just writing about everything, in two weeks i started telling myself everyday, tomorrow i will write. I began to hate it. After i red a good article about blogging like this one. I realized i have to write about things i love and write with love.
Now i started writing with love i cant wait to write the next Blog!
Cheers and thanks for the information you published.
Awesome post. I’ve been blogging for about a year, and I’ve experienced a lot of what you mention here: better writing, comfortable being known, etc.
This is a great list. Thanks for sharing.
I think the best thing about writing things down in diary or blog is when you look back at the writings and thoughts after years, suddenly you realize that you have become such a better person than you were years before. That is so rewarding. Or if you feel you have drifted away from your plan, you can go back to your old writings and remind yourself to stick to your plan to become a better you.
I love those reasons! I write my little blog every week and it gives me a great rush.
Wow very interesting reason share with us. I have website and i try to share some better experience with others. Your reason very informative info and help me the right way. This is a great list and thank for sharing.
Nice post!
I’m a new blogger and hopefully i can start inspiring others.
Great article Joshua. I think everyone should have a blog. Just my opinion! ;-)
If you wish for to grow your experience just
keep visiting this website and be updated with the hottest gossip posted here.
I actually enjoyed this post. It helped me a lot and inspired me so much that I am currently writing a draft of a blog post on my blog called ‘Reasons Why We Should Blog’.
Thanks for the inspirational post.
I enjoyed this post. I like that it explains good reasons why instead of just giving the how.
I have been collecting information and thinking about starting a blog for about a year now. This post has made me realize that it’s time to stop dreaming and start doing! Thank you!
Your post is very useful. These days every new blogger think about blogging for income only. Nobody is thinking about other benefits of blogging as you mentioned. But after reading your post I realise that blogging is useful for personality development and for income is secondry
I don’t want to make a dime (would mess up our taxes and don’t want to deal with it) but I am writing to leave a legacy to the children. No one writes letters anymore, and this is the best I can do. However, I agree with every other one of your reasons.
Great article. I’ve just launched my blog site, so this was a timely, inspiring read. When you’re a deep thinker, blogging is a great channel for sharing thoughts and new ideas.
I love blogging as a way to articulate my thoughts. Writing defines all those unfathomable thoughts spinning round in my head into solid, clearly-defined concepts.
I definitely agree that it helps you become a better writer and thinker.
I just started a personal diary style vlog and I think this has the same effect because, as you say, whether it’s typing or speaking into a camera, it’s all communication.
Started a blog recently and I think the best part about it is a place to call your own.
Every human being is entitled to this in my opinion, a psychological corner that is open to the public.
Not to mention, the art of linguistics. Doesn’t get practiced enough in today’s rush rush world. Also really challenges your creativity in establishing a design.
hii
I definitely can now think of starting with writing my own blogs majorly to inspire other and of course the monetary part of it.
Protect this video https://youtu.be/GVJVjYprVHA roughly something a shot scribble literary works service.
If you need most qualified have a go labour in your life… appreciated, friends
Great blog! Do you have any recommendations for aspiring writers?
I’m hoping to start my own website soon but I’m
a little lost on everything. Would you recommend starting with a free platform like WordPress or go
for a paid option? There are so many choices out there that
I’m completely overwhelmed .. Any tips? Thanks!