Let’s start this journey! - Photo by
Álvaro Serrano on Unsplash
It is kind of ironic, I always made fun of bloggers and influencers thinking that they should get a real job.
Now I’ve decided to become one myself!
Let me explain
Due to encountering the right people at the right time, I have always been an out-of-the-box thinker.
I recently noticed that I have collected some valuable and unconventional knowledge over the years.
I regularly share ideas and new experiences with friends but through blogging, many more people can profit from me openly sharing ideas, thought processes, and being resourceful.
These can be found in my upcoming blog posts.
Challenges ahead
Since I am specialized as a programmer, it will be a challenge to dive into a variety of new topics and skills necessary to acquire when writing a blog like:
- promoting myself and building a network
- writing posts that can reach audiences of different cultures & backgrounds
- getting discovered through good content marketing and SEO
Learning these skills is one part where I am afraid I might fail as I don’t have much experience in these topics, but I am also looking forward to achieving them.
After quitting my last job, it gave me the chance to re-think my goals and how to invest my time most efficiently.
When you suddenly have more time on your hands, it can either drag you down into being lazy or it can be a time to reflect, try out new things, and make goals for the future.
As I am a naturally motivated person, this allowed me to start this blog and I hope that you can benefit from the topics that I will cover.
The rest of this article will explain my reasons for starting it.
1) Write articles about a wide array of topics
In contrast to blogs which focus on a single topic, I want to cover these and potential more topics:
-
Programming
- JavaScript Frameworks e.g. React or Svelte
- Code quality tools like ESLint or Prettier
- UI Framework comparison
- My coding setup
-
Productivity
- Chrome extensions & bookmarks workflow
- Efficiency with Google Calendar
- Inbox zero
- Saving articles on the go
-
Life hacks
- Ice swimming and exposure to cold
- Barefoot shoes
- My morning routine
- Shampoo alternatives
-
Software recommendations
- Rambox
- Gravit Designer
- Spark Mail
- Boostnote
2) Share knowledge about more underground topics
Soap nuts?
Gomad milk diet?
Robin foods?
You have probably never heard about any of these terms.
I don’t want to spoil too much, but there will be plenty of posts coming up about underground topics.
Through the avid reading of articles and newsletters every day, I gather knowledge that I am happy to share with you at any time.
3) Write posts with clear and highly detailed instructions
Oftentimes, I read through posts about programming tricks, framework documentation, or even cooking recipes and there is information missing that I would need to proceed.
Especially for life hacks, I will be very detailed about “how many minutes of this”, “mix 2 tbsp with that”, etc.
I think we have all experienced, that sometimes it takes much more research effort on a topic just because there is a tiny but essential detail missing.
I will be writing my posts with great detail so that you don’t have to go through that extensive research process to find the correct answer that you are looking for.
4) Document my thoughts and processes within a certain time frame
It will always be fun to look back and see what I wrote e.g. 5 years ago and how I developed as a person.
Who knows where the road will lead to?
For me, the bottom line will always be: Produce rather than consume.
What I mean by that is to stop wasting endless hours on social media or TV shows where you will have forgotten most of what happened in a short amount of time anyways.
Instead, live on the other end:
- write a blog
- make a movie
- code a website
- start painting
Whatever your pursuit is, content creation will leave you more satisfied in the long term than content consumption and you can (hopefully) be proud of what you created from scratch.
5) Generate potential side income with own ideas
No matter how much you earn, diversifying your income is key.
This blog enables me to potentially generate some money with my ideas and with created content about topics that I choose myself and enjoy writing about.
The blood, sweat, and tears that I will put into the content will not be inherited by a company that I work for.
Every written article could still generate income in a few years through affiliate links or ad revenue, without any extra effort.
Today, as the web is such an important medium, the access to an almost infinite stream of information is available and many people have found smart ways of making money apart from the classic 9-5 job.
Generating a side income through blogging is part of the work smarter, not harder mantra that I follow and I recommend you to watch The 4 Hour Work Week by Tim Ferriss for inspiration.
It is all about finding income sources that can grow exponentially compared to a fixed salary in a job with limited leverage.
6) Become a brand name
After deciding that I want to become a freelancer in the area of web development, I also realized that I would need a website to be able to market myself better.
So when I already have to set up a website, why not just have a blog as well?
There is a beautiful synergy that could emerge between doing contract work, attracting and generating new clients through the website and convincing them to seal the deal through well-written blog posts on interesting topics, so let’s do exactly that!
Now what do you think?
Did this post inspire you to start a blog too?
Cool, contact me about it, and let’s start a discussion!
Are there any topics that you want me to cover in the upcoming posts?
You can leave a comment below or contact me through email or my socials.