Have you considered including a blog?
…I don’t want a blog.
Just curious, why not?
…I don’t have the time to add something else to my plate.
-Conversation I’ve had, way too many times…
While you might not have time to blog (verb), having a blog (noun) takes no time.
A blog (noun) is not an obligation. It’s just a type of website that makes it easy to update, share, comment and follow. It’s about as easy to setup as an email account and just having one can provide you with some really great benefits.
In this post I give you four reasons why you should create a blog of your own, even if you have no desire to update it on a regular basis.
One quick update
Before I get into the reasons…
You know that book I was writing, the handbook for the digital age. Well, it’s evolved.
It’s no longer a book, it’s a workshop. But it’s not the kind of workshop you’re used to attending. This one won’t happen over a day or two in a conference room. Instead, it’s going to be continuous, online, and participant directed.
More information upcoming, hop on the email list to make sure you get the latest. Now on to the post…
1. You have a stage you control.
Would you like to publish something on a very specific topic that probably only ten people in the world would care about?
Go for it.
The only person who can stop you from presenting is you.
2. Show your humanity.
I know you’re human. I mean, at least I think you’re human. It’s kind of hard to tell.
Google your name sometime. How do you come across to the person who just digitally met you? Do you seem like some kind of professional robot?
Is that the way you want to appear? No sense of humor, no engaging smile, no empathy, no interests.
Is this a person you would like to connect with? Add a blog to your site, tell a few stories, and show your personality.
3. Build a following and keep in touch.
I know a lot of really smart people who don’t blog (a lot of you read this blog). Please start one. I’d follow you even if you posted just once a year.
Instead, you make me search conference programs hoping to randomly stumble into your name at a time when I’m available to attend your session. It’s really inefficient.
You have great things to offer, let me follow you.
4. Support your offline presentations.
When did we get the idea that just uploading our slides to a conference directory is a sufficient way to support our offline presentations in the online world? My slides are too visual to stand on their own, it’s like sharing the illustrations without the story. Not to mention the annoyance of having to download something (that’s right, not only are we easily distracted, we’re also easily annoyed).
Now if you had a blog, you could share your key points and links without requiring a download.
And here’s a tip, write the post before your session. Then when you’re standing in front of your audience, hand out the link.
As a bonus, you can use the comments section of this post to continue discussion following the presentation. Just be sure to let your audience know that you will be answering questions posted by comment after the conference.
I like your book’s evolving into an online workshop. I look forward to it!
Thanks Kathy 🙂
I love the cartoons in this post! Made me laugh out loud. I’m looking froward to the workshop as well. Will it be synchronous asynchronous, or a combination? I’ve experimented with a professor and students co-constructed university course (a face-to-face course) with mixed results. We found that it takes a delicate balance between providing structure and letting go to allow for the opportunity to let students define the direction. It’s also highly dependent on the background and experience of the particular students and how they work with one another. It will be interesting to see what emerges!
Thanks Sheila 🙂
It will be a combo. Likely to involve live Q&A sessions monthly, but mostly asynchronous.
I look forward to reading more of yourideas!
Thanks Andrea 🙂
..because Chris said I should 🙂
That is a really good reason 🙂