Once there was an artist who was brimming with many ideas and as an extension of his personality he used to paint his creations using the empty canvas as a vent to his thoughts. He painted without a care in the world filling one canvas after the other and always found himself a little more content and a little anxious after every painting, content with what he had achieved and anxious about what facet of life his next painting would reflect. Somewhere along the line some friends of his noticed his work and told him that it was criminal to keep such creations to himself and they goaded him to show his work to the world. He received more acclaim for his work as he put it out for public display but somewhere down the line he found himself getting more and more affected by people’s reactions. He would float with every praise and felt his soul deflated by every critical remark. So he started painting stuff that would please all…..except his own self. Gradually goaded by his support group he started selling his paintings to public and he found himself evaluating his creations by the price they managed to eke out from selling them. He found that painting was no longer fun just because he was no longer painting for his own joy but for materialistic pleasures that he gained from selling them.
By narrating that story I was trying to draw a parallel to most bloggers of the virtual world. As I state in my first few posts I started blogging in an attempt to capture my feelings, my reflections, my musings and practically anything else that came to my mind. But as I blogged on I noticed that people comments started affecting me and eventually I started evaluating my blogs by the number of hits and comments they got. Recently the topic of how to increase blog traffic also came up with people coming up with their own ingenious ideas. I suddenly realize that this was not the motive of blogging in the first place, it was meant to be my personal space where I spoke my mind. I should have welcomed ppl’s opinions and thoughts on my posts but they should never have been the motivation for my writing my blogs………what say u my fellow bloggers.
12 comments:
Excellent point.
We want you to write about what you think, not something that we want to listen. Also, blatant self promotion is something that I'm not quite comfortable with. I dont want to push my blog down peoples throat by using it as my email signature, as 0.5 suggested. But I disagree with you that peoples opinion about something cannot or should not be the motivation for blogging. Sometimes the comments can be a whole lot entertaining and insightful than the post itself. I myself visit numerous blogs where the post itself is just a line or a link, but the comments and the discussion that follows is what makes me go there again and again. Blogging for comments can totally be the sole reason to blog.
My take on Blog traffic:
Rohan, I think I differ with u in my approach to the blog. I have never seen it as my "personal" webspace. I always wanted to put some of my thoughts on the web and analyse how others feel about similar issue. Infact some of the comments I have received on certain posts, has really encouraged me to think in some ways I have never thought before.
I see blog as a colloboration of geographically separated minds and hence firmly believe that increasing traffic (even through shameless self-propogation) isn't a bad idea.
But all said and done, I totally agree that we must not tailor our posts to suit the audience...that would be the day when we should press "CNTRL+ALT+DEL" and unplug our Dell 600/700M.
happens...its just a phase...this too shallnpass:)
and almost every blogger blogs bout this too:)
"I see blog as a colloboration of geographically separated minds and hence firmly believe that increasing ......".
I can never come up with bullshit like that. :-D
I think once you have stayed with AID for long enough you can come with such serious statements. Firmly believe!!
I think your blog has diversified nicely man! Also, you get constructive criticism from some anonymous guys! Did the comment about your photo stir up something? :-))
My whole point for penning that blog was because I thought that while getting mired in the statistics of the number of comments and hits on the blog site I was losing focus of my real reasons for blogging. So the post was just an excuse to be a lil reminder for myself. It wasnt meant as a tirade against comments. I truly enjoy and appreciate them.
@Totti I noticed the post touched a chord in u coz u initially penned excellent post but recovered quickly enuff to post sarcastic comments abt my pic
@anarkist I so totally agree with the comments bit. They do add that extra bit of edge but only if it serves as a desert and not as a main course dish as someone commented b4.
@Pointy ur comments on the post truely 'encouraged me to think in some ways I have never thought before'
@Shub its somehow inanely consoling when others have been there done that
Rohan! Touching chords is true!
Human beings are very special. We are endowed with the power to reflect, upon ourselves.
"Goaded by his friends, he acquiesced to..." is merely only side of the coin.
"True to his heart, he unwaveringly..." is what the other facet of the coin looks like.
If you find your identity being effaced by your blog-demeanor, you can always choose to reverberate with your conscience and not get incarcerated by the pressures of the world around you.
Happy blogging :)
Keep it anonymous, keep it true...
There are two kinds - one that writes for oneself alone and other that has others also in mind. And the first kind probably writes in his diary while other blogs.
I feel there is an innate feeling in all of us to be heard. Even the queen of objectivism, Ayn Rand, did publish her works for all the world to read didn't she! :-)
@Handful of hell Point taken :)
@Anonymous Tumhara naam kya hai Basanti.....I mean Sean :)
@Janani I always thought that Ayn Rand had an innate desire to actually find out whether her thoughts were endorsed by anyone or if she was the only one who thought the way she did? In the process she connected at different levels and in different ways to a part within us.
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