Tooting My Own Horn

Something I don't do well is self promotion. When it comes to this blog, I don't even try. I began writing this blog in January 2009. It's actually hard to believe I've kept it going this long. I'm a computer geek and started posting on the internet several years earlier on a server I built in my spare bedroom. I began with hosting websites and running my own FTP server but one day the server blew up and I never fixed it. Probably one of the many reasons I didn't launch my own multi-billion dollar IPO this week.

One of my favorite ventures on that old server was a Wordpress based blog I used as a little diary of the things I did around South Florida. Many of which my friends or family had never heard of. Actually I just got tired of telling people what I did the past weekend so I would simply say check my blog. If I got 10 hits a month I was pretty happy. Once the server was gone along with the hundreds of hours I put into building and playing with it, I found a free product from Google called Blogger and continued my postings. All the fun - none of the pain. Oh and the title. I always meant to change it but I never really thought of anything better.

About a year ago, the South Florida Daily Blog picked up on my little efforts. Getting 100 hits in one day was a really big tip off. Since then, I've stepped up my game a bit. Not only do I have a couple of regular fans, I have real, professional bloggers watching. I didn't realize how closely till this week.

I was in the running for the post of the week and not for the first time. If you would like to see the other nice things SFDB said about my blog this past year, click here. So what's the big deal? Well I started the year with a total of about 2,000 all time views. Because of a few recent postings, I now get that many hits a month. I'm astounded my hit counter says over 22,000. I have made a lot of new friends in real life this year and have been invited to events I never thought I would ever partake in. The ones I've really enjoyed, I've posted about. My other hobby is photography and I've met some of the best who's work I've followed on Flickr but never thought I would meet in person. The little effort I actually put into this blog has opened numerous doors for me this year. I'm often asked if I make any money or get any free stuff. That would be a big fat no. If I had about a hundred thousand visitors a day I might make enough in my Google ads for a Starbucks run. I write what I want, when I want, and I do it for the pure enjoyment of my friends asking to join me on my many adventures around South Florida. So what's the point of this posting?

Blogger is easy! I set mine up in an hour. There are a lot of people out there with something to say. If you are one of those people, you can be up and running tonight with your very own publication. I've met several bloggers in person and many more online. My two biggest fans don't even live in this country. You will have an instant world wide community and audience. There are thousands of like minded blogs out there. Post a few comments on them and if your blog is half decent you will quickly build a fan base. It's a great way to meet people in real life as well. I don't even try and I can hardly avoid it. Even if you never intend to write your own, check out what others are writing. You will be amazed about the variety of content out there. And if someone, somewhere thinks enough of your writing to enter you into their contest, you will feel pretty damn good about the world.