Why Do We Do It?

Just scanned this article about Bloggers not getting rich off their blogs. I was kinda shocked that anyone found this newsworthy. There are a LOT of bloggers out there -- some better than others, some just better informed, some just really lucky. I don't know of anyone who is trying to do this for a living. If they are, I feel sorry for them.

So if it's not to make a living, why do it? Why spend the time? Why spend the money?

I can only speak for myself. I KNOW it isn't about money. I used to be a marketing major, and now I'm in seminary, so I'm not even doing my REAL job for the money. It's not even really about the fame (though it would be neat to be walking down the street and have someone say "Hey! You're that View from the Pew guy, aren't you?").

I discovered blogging through an article I read online -- I don't even remember where. I started scanning blogs, and found Christians in the blogosphere. Christians with attitude. Christians with a message that they were getting out. And I thought "I want in on that!"

I had been hosting my own web site for a while. Had some articles that I had written up, but nobody was really reading them. It wasn't enough for me to just write this stuff -- I wanted someone to read what I was writing. I had something to say, and there were people who would listen -- I was sure of it.

I was also sure that I didn't want to spend a bunch of money. I was dumping over a hundred a year into my wkelly.org site, and had no results to speak of. I also wanted to make sure I'd stick with this blogging thing. So I headed over to BlogSpot, and signed up. I haven't shut up since :-)

And people read this stuff, too! I can remember getting my first comment (thanks, Rebecca). I watched my stats like a man obsessed (still do), and saw the number of hits I was getting. Not many, compared to most blogs. But a lot more than my "real" site. People subscribed to my feed. I got compliments posted on other sites.

And now, I'm hooked. If I don't post something, I get mad at myself -- I feel like I'm letting people down. Whenever I read something interesting, the first thing I think of is "I can blog that." My blog has given me a forum that I'd never had before. And sometimes, I think that I can make an impact. Somewhere. Somehow.

And I think that's why many people blog. To make an impact. Maybe not the teenagers who post things like "OMG hez such a QT!! 2 much 4 me!!" are trying to change the world. But there are folks out there trying to make a difference, and they, in the long run, are the future of this thing we all call the blogosphere. I'm just hoping to be part of that second group.