How to be safe with your blog on the internet
People often wonder how to be safe with a blog on the internet. Surely the internet is a bad and scary place? You may have thought of starting a blog but stopped because you watched the evening news.
Certainly lots of dreadful things happen. And because communication is so efficient, cheap and instant via the internet we hear about the part it plays.
This is the modern day equivalent of the messenger being punished for bringing bad news to the ruler.
Social media is the place to be
I am sure you have heard this advice many times. Get your updates on to social media and you will have great success. Whether it is twitter, facebook, Linked In or YouTube, Pinterest instagram – the big six – this is where the action is now.
Apps and mobile phones have made social media so much more accessible. And all modern phones have amazing cameras so updating information has never been easier. As each year goes by more and more people have smartphones .. in fact I heard that there are now more smartphones than people on earth!
It is not safe having all your communications on social media sites.
- These sites are not owned by you. So if they change their rules you have to adapt. There are stories of people whose pages have been taken down and sometimes it was difficult to find out why.
- The sites may cease to exist. Who is using Blab Friendster or Myspace now? All your hard-earned viewers could disappear.
The major issue is that social media sites are not a final destination. You want to get people on to your own territory. Nobody buys on a social media site they have to come to your website.
Your short witty eye-catching social media posts will catch the eye and the interest, but to develop further you need a site. Rather than sending people to a sales page or a funnel you can send them to a blog post. Then they can get to know you and your viewpoint and discover if you are who they are looking for..
A blog is a safe place for you to develop your ideas
Another way that a blog can be a safe place is when it operates as an online journal. The fact that it can be seen by others helps you to pull your ideas together, and the simple act of writing often brings clarity.
The idea for a blog post can be sparked by a conversation
Have you ever found yourself saying something that surprised you? You are having a conversation and you are broadly in agreement with the other person or people.
Suddenly you say something that is absolutely true for you. Yet you haven’t said it quite in that way before. It is a wonderful feeling. You may be slightly astonished by your brilliance and by the fact that what you said really resonates with you.
You may want to follow it up further with more ideas, or just to stop the conversation there and think some more.
In a perfect world you might get a response that builds on your thought. An extra something that helps you think further. You have found somebody interested in your viewpoint which gives you confidence to follow up with your own thought.
It makes you feel safe. On the other hand someone might respond with a completely opposing view. This can be difficult especially if they have a strong opinion. Because your idea was not fully formed you find it hard to develop it. Often the conversation veers off on to another topic. The focus changes. Later you try to recapture the idea but discover that it seems to have disappeared. Your creative energy is wasted.
Say it with a blog
When you have a blog you have a place where your ideas can be developed and expressed. It can be a safe container.
When you know your idea will have a home it will have more life. You remember it better. You don’t depend on a response to keep it alive.
Random conversations become more interesting. Your response to a television programme, books, music, film, travel will have more relevance. You start to treat yourself as someone worth listening to.
When you notice scraps of ideas they have more weight. You know you can do something with them. Ideas may still take time to develop, but you are more likely to follow through.
If you have been thinking about starting a blog but have done nothing so far it could be because you want to be authentic. You may have heard the advice that you need to be continually posting information as updates are what get noticed by Google.
But if you are writing thoughtful pieces you don’t want to be continually writing. It may not seem right, and is likely to be a quick path to burnout.
The internet should not “make” you do anything … it is a servant not a master. You can use it to suit you.
“Don’t die with the music still in you”
This quote is often attributed to Wayne Dyer but I think it was originally from Goethe. You don’t have to be on the point of death for this to be relevant, and your music may have nothing to do with music.
If you tend to think about others first the chances are that your music – your thoughts – may still be in you.
Midlife and older women have a vast knowledge of life. But modern western society tends to favour the young and it can be easy for us to slip into relative obscurity.
When you have a blog you can stand up for what you believe in without having to wave a placard. You don’t have to go to jail. No shouting is involved, and you don’t make anything up, you just write it down.
Your views and your angle on life
Having a safe place where your views can be seen helps to underpin your identity and your angle on life.
Publishing ideas in a blog means you don’t have to ask permission from anyone, nor wait and fit in with anyone’s timetable. Additionally the technology is easy and can even be done for free.
You can learn how to start a blog easily with our short course “Kickstart your First Blog.”
You can be as creative as you wish with the images you use on your blog, as well as using your posts to deepen what you say on social media. If you prefer to speak not write you can put the recording on your blog page or use technology to turn speech to text. This can be found on up to date computers now so is much easier than it used to be.
Your blog can take you to exciting new places and find you new friends. There is a real joy to be found in connecting with people who share your interests and values.
If you find yourself wanting to change things or caring about something a blog will be your ally.
Listen to yourself in your conversations. What are you talking about? What matters to you?
A blog is the safe place to develop your views.
