Today I thought I’d share a behind-the-scenes photo of what’s going on at ProBlogger HQ—one that illustrates why I love blogging as an occupation.
The picture was taken at my local cafe and in it you can see my pride and joy. No, not the Macbook Air—my eldest son, “X,” who is home from kinder sick today. We spent the morning in our local cafe (where I normally work most mornings)—him coloring (he’s doing a whale in that picture) and me blogging.
Of course my quality of work may not have been quite as high as normal this morning, as there were a few distractions along the way—I needed to help him write descriptions on each of his pictures, like the “Alien Fish visiting an Octopus with a broken arm” (below). But one of the main reasons I first was attracted to the idea of blogging as a profession was about the flexibility it might give me to be more involved at home.
Challenges do come with working at home—balancing home and work life can be tricky, particularly when you have toddlers who don’t always understand that Daddy needs to get a post out. But ultimately for me it’s been a real privilege to be able to work at home and be involved in the day-to-day life of my family throughout the day (not to mention the flexibility of being able to work on the road, take a few extra family holidays, and so on).
That’s one of the things I love about blogging, and there are many others. What about you? What’s the attractiveness of blogging for you?
Very jealous! your are living the dream…… :)
Freelance writing (and blogging) can be a hard way to make a living. But it could be a dream come true for many. Personally, I wouldn’t mind the hard work. Writing’s my thing, I think.
Blogging is attractive to me because, like you, it allows me to do as I please. Right now I work full time as a Social Media Editor, and that came about from blogging. I feel very blessed.
Blogging has also allowed me to find my passion, and I’m so grateful for that.
I love how my blog is sort of a personal diary to me. Even though I’ve only been blogging consistantly since January 2011, I can already look back at it and see how much I’ve grown. It is very cool to see progress :)
Blogging gives not only the freedom of where and when to work but also the freedom of expression, to voice an opinion, to challenge, to help grow and expand your own knowledge as well as that of others. To blog well you need to read, you need to listen, to interpret, you need to experience life and take notice of the world around you.
For me Blogging is about “Living Out Loud”.
Blogging is a way for me to see that my poetry is actually pretty good. Other people on the web whom I totally do not know say, “I love it!” It’s not just my relatives and close friends saying it (and they’re biased). It’s a great feeling.
Hmm…the attractiveness of blogging for me? I guess I like hearing people’s opinions on my thoughts and believes, getting my voice out there, being my own boss, having my own schedule, doing what I love.
And of course, spending more time with my family, that you mentioned already.
I think that is enough. At least for me.
It’s days like the one you have described that makes blogging for me, and just sitting their with my daughters whilst the colour and I type is magical. Hope X gets well soon.
i, too, love that we can work from home -and take time out to kayak on our gorgeous lake, or create special meals with our daughter. it’s also such a joy that our family can travel when we like, for how long we like! also, our site is very fulfilling, personally. :)
hope X is feeling better! LOVE his drawings!
Great post and I understand totally. Excited to have just started along the same path! Awesome drawings too… at least the octopus has more arms!
I’m seriously considering becoming a pro-blogger and being able to be Mom and Working Mom at the same time definitely appeals. Your X is a much better artist than my G, btw! Cute octopus.
Flexibility is definitely one benefit but the thing that satisfies me the most about blogging is the ability to help someone. A piece of information that was in your head and could have only helped a couple of folks around you can help a huge community if it is available online and accessible via eg Google search. That is something I could not have imagined if blogging was not there.
Darren,
Great article with great points about blogging. Flexibility is so important to me. I tend to be a night owl. So sometimes I’m working on my blog or a post at 1, 2 or 3 AM in the morning. Not having to get up the next day at 5 or 6 AM in the morning like when I taught high school web design is a blessing. You can go to bed at 3 AM, wake up at 10 AM and still get 7 good hours of sleep. Then when you wake up you still have lots of daylight ahead of you interact with the rest of the world, get work done, take care of personal business, etc.
I also love to learn to teach. Blogging allows me to do both on my own schedule! It’s the best! — Jupiter Jim
Its good to see a professional blogger take time to help his child complete drawing the pictures. there are some things much more important than blogging. If you ask me the reason why I blog, it is simple- just to express my feelings when no one around in real life to share them.
-Ranjith
That’s one of the reasons I want to get into blogging. I could choose my own hours and wouldn’t have to be committed to a schedule. Unfortunately, I’m still starting out and have to spend a lot of my current time studying for classes.
Those photos make me smile :) I think blogging pulled me in for 2 reasons:
(1) As a writer I love getting feedback on my work. I used to solely write grants or articles for academic publications, but the time between writing the piece and hearing from anyone can be years! The content was also rather dry, so there was little to no creativity involved in the process but more or less putting sentences into a template.
(2) It makes me think outside the box. Blogging requires you to stay on top of your game unlike most other professions. You have to be actively involved, researching, reading, watching trends, all while listening to your readers. The quick pace has made me feel alive again in a way I never experienced before.
All in all I feel lucky I found this creative outlet in my life.
It’s hard to top your reason, Darren! I have been blessed in that a second income was not essential for our family to enjoy the necessities (and a few extras) of life as we were raising our family. I actually never envisioned myself being a “stay-at-home” mom due to the fact that I love being with people, learning new things and receive so much “energy” from the different gifts and talents of the people I meet.
I chose to stay home with my children to guide and direct and be as much a part of their young lives as possible. But, babies don’t leave much time (or energy!) for social relationships. I fulfilled my love of people by volunteering at our small private school and other community opportunities.
“Homemaking” wasn’t my area of giftedness and didn’t fulfill all that I would have enjoyed during that time of my life, but I trusted that one day I would pursue my own passion when the time was right.
It has been a challenge of patience at times trying to figure out what greatest passion lay within me, but this newfound venture in blogging has brought so much joy and contentment. That’s reason enough for this time and place. I hope that it continues to grow and bloom to its greatest potential.
Thanks to you and your wonderfully informative blog I’ve got a great place to hang out and to “learn the ropes”! Thanks, Darren!
I know where you are coming from….I have manged to work around my kids since they were born…and it was such a trill to know that I was always around for them…My career was not only blogging ..it evolved in different aspects of life, bu blogging is becoming great part of it now…and although my kids have left the nest now…I am working on my blogging for future years to come …who know what it can develop into :)
Really like what Sean Clarke said, that blogging gives freedom of expression
Flexibility is why I love doing this. Our son is almost two, and we’ve worked from home for four years. You are right when you say there are many distractions, but I’ve found that because we work from home, and my partner and I take turns looking after our boy while the other blogs/works, (we think) it has helped his personal development and created a stronger bond between us all.
Wow….. Nice.. I like blogging because I Don’t like to be with more people. And blogging can be done in my home as you stated above. And you have a nice little boy :-) !
There are many reasons why I blog. Originally is because I wanted to get into photojournalism/writing so I thought I’d better start learning how to write and practice. This was about 6 or so months ago.
Now I blog because want to share my life with my families and friends whom I rarely see because of the schedule of my work. They are asleep when I work and I am asleep when they do. And I have no weekends. So in a way this my way of communicating with the loved ones and sharing to them what is happening in my side of the world. It also helps when my wife (rather future wife) is still overseas and I have no way of getting her here in ozland!
But there’s a blog I read right here just before this blog (commenter gone rogue) regarding blogging and sharing more intimate information and that got me thinking to should I or shouldn’t I.
anywyz.. 2cents from a pinoy living in oz!
Magnificent post. I’m always happy to see people living their dream and it working within their lifestyle. How many jobs have we had that we thought would be our dream job only for it to not leave time for much of anything else? I’m new to blogging, but, just like Sean said, I really enjoy the freedom to express myself through my blog. Perhaps one day it can help put food on the table or gas in the car.
Hi Eddie,
I am also just about to start blogging and hoping to supplement my income like you. Not sure how to start though. Been going through blogs most of the day.
Good Luck.
Marinda
i like blogging because i can share with many people, actually i am very happy when visitors leave a comment in my blog. because, if many people leave a comments and share my article to the social bookmark or social network. it will give me a happines. :)
I couldn’t agree with you more. I usually get up around 5 am to start working so I know I can get a few things done before my 2 year old gets up and starts wanting to play. Although there are some morning I have to let him know that “Daddy has to work” I love being able to do this stuff at home with him around.
Hey Darren,
My husband and I have worked from home for the past twenty-five years. It was challenging back then – working while the kids napped, taking turns with the morning baths, etc. but I wouldn’t change a minute of it.
I’ve just started blogging lately and the kids are both away in university. I miss them like crazy but in a strange way the blog provides yet another way to stay connected with them (not counting Face Time on my iPod!). It’s a precious time you’re in right now – you can still reach out and hug your kids and that’s a fair trade-off for any challenges that come out of working from home.
It’s nice to meet you Darren!
Lori
Blogging is the recipe for my cake of interests.
I can surf the net for hours – going deeper and deeper into the web of words. I love taking photo’s, I can spend all weekend messing about in photoshop, and I love learning about the Bodrum Peninsula area of Turkey. Before blogging these were my interests, but they were disjointed and time consuming, with no tangible output or direction — they were just random ingredients, without a recipe.
Blogging brings all of my interests together – and allows me to produce something tangible and real. I’m on month three of my blogging journey – and it’s very satisfying.
So sweet. I love the drawings, especially the octopus with the broken arm!
I love blogging because it allows me to share my work and experience with others. Sure, there might not be millions or even hundreds of people following me yet but soon someday I will be able to build a descent website with a great reputation where I can get more followers.
Of course, I dont have the privelege of working from home as I do have a full-time job that requires most of my time but I do believe that family is first and the most important to me.
Thanks for sharing your story!
It is posts like this, Darren, that make your blog a real blog. To me at least, anyway. Because you have not lost that personal connection with both your audience and with the best aspects of our lifestyle as online people. Or perhaps that should read: potential lifestyle/life balance. Because, it is so easy and tempting to get caught up in the financial side of life. But, people remembering the other parts of the equation; especially helpful when well read bloggers remember, i reckon; gives us a lot more that just financial security.
I just love blogging because it’s the only thing that filled me with lot of Patience, which is really helpful in every aspect of life and for me blogging is life