I’m really loving my ‘listicle’-type posts recently! This is the first time I’ve tried out such a ‘click-baity’ title though…
Anyway, on with the post…
It used to be that blogging was a slightly geeky hobby, but it is now becoming more mainstream and a great opportunity to develop or showcase your skills.
Here are five ways blogging makes you better.
1) You can blog about anything
An avid reader of scientific journals? Blog about it.
Learning a language? Blog about it.
Enjoy watching movies? Blog about it.
A self-taught expert in any field? Blog about it.
Okay, so in school/ university you studied A, your current job is in B, but there’s nothing to stop you blogging about C, D and E or even Z. Blogging can provide you with a way to explore a hobby, interest or skill, logging your journey or collecting useful resources. For example, writing about new learning can help it to ‘stick’ whilst also providing a sense of accountability to keep you going.
My multilingual flashcards started when I was looking for a similar resource and couldn’t find it – so I decided to make them myself! They also serve as a way to make me more accountable for actually doing some language learning!
2) Improve your writing, editing and proof-reading skills
The only way to get better at writing is to do it.
Even if your plan is to write a novel or you don’t have any plans to write a book, writing skills are used every day in your work and personal life so improving them is always beneficial.
You will become quicker at stringing sentences together, improve your vocabulary and grammar and practise rereading, editing and checking several times before clicking ‘publish’. We’re only human so the odd mistake may still slip through, but you will get better at spotting errors with practise. (I, of course, always spot the typo just after the post or tweet has gone live…)
3) Develop photography skills ( and perhaps image editing and manipulation)
Honestly, I am still pretty terrible at this, but I have learned SO MUCH since starting blogging. I have picked up tips from looking at wonderful photos by other people, read up about light levels and image manipulation and started to explore using complicated software to improve my photos and images more in the future. We are a very visual species so having photography or image editing skills is always a bonus and could come in handy in both a personal and professional capacity! (I even heard one blogger saying that she ended up doing some semi-professional shots for her work because she had so many bookstagram props!)
4) Become part of community and read more widely
I mean this in more than one sense. On one hand, I have met so many generous and interesting bloggers since joining the community that I honestly feel as if I have found my ‘niche’ in this wide and wonderful world!
Yet blogging has also expanded my horizons. I have picked up books that I might otherwise have never heard of, found new favourites and learned about myself as a reader more in the time that I’ve been blogging than at any other point in my life.
I enjoy reading other blogs and have learned so much from self-taught experts and enthusiasts. I will also never defeat my to-be-read pile thanks to the bookworms/ bookdragons of Twitter who are always telling me about upcoming titles!
5) Develop social media and marketing skills
It used to be that a paper CV was the main piece of information recruiters used to make decisions about you. Now social media is a big part of that picture. You don’t want the only information about you online to be photos from university socials or the myspace you made when you were 14 -instead, having a curated online presence can allow you to highlight your skills and assets.
Even if you’re not particularly active online, having taken the time to create profiles on social media sites shows that you have an understanding of social media, which is increasingly a form of advertising and revenue. Not having an account at all could run the risk of you looking irrelevant.
Blogging can help you develop skills in a wide variety of areas, allows you to explore hobbies, become part of a community and even become more employable.
What are you waiting for?
Get blogging today!
Why did you start blogging?
How has your blog evolved and grown since you first started?
What is your favourite thing about blogging?
Let me know in the comments!
See some reasons why I love blogging, some advice for new bloggers, learn about the Secret Life of a Book Blogger or see my Blog Stats for last year.
Find me on Twitter , Goodreads or Instagram
Thanks for reading!
Chrikaru Reads 
I totally agree that blogging is an amazing way to develop all of these skills, as well as others. It was actually part of why I started, because I knew I could use it for my university personal statement (which I wrote this year, and very definitely did…)
Amy x
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What a great idea! I hope that it helped you write your personal statement and I think it’s becoming more and more important for people to be aware of their online personas, etc. Good luck with the university applications!
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I honestly agree with all that you’ve mentioned here! And blogging makes you bolder as I never would have dreamt interviewing authors before!!!
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That’s very true! Blogging has pushed me out of my comfort zone in the books I read, events I attend and things I have done!
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I love this post! I do think there’s a lot that goes into blogging, and not all of it is immediately obvious before you start a blog yourself!
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I knew very little about making and running a blog before I started…and I still feel like there is SOO much that I don’t know! But it has been an interesting learning curve!
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Same! I barely even read any other blogs when I first started!
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I definitely do a lot more blog hopping now than I used to -when I first started blogging I didn’t even really know how to find other blogs to follow, etc. Then, once I’d followed a few the WordPress reader helped me to find others!
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I love blogging, I completely agree with the fact that it opens up your horizons. Just from reading blogs about areas I know nothing about I have learned so much
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That’s so true! I have definitely learned a lot from other bloggers and enthusiasts 🙂
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I agree with everything you’ve said! I never know whether to put my blog on my CV though, on the one hand it shows off a multitude of skills (ok, one or two skills) but on the other there’s a bit of swearing and some personal information that I’d perhaps not share with a potential employer…
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I know exactly what you mean! I haven’t put my blog on my CV before now because I haven’t changed jobs since before I started the blog. However, I know that some of my colleagues have seen my blog and twitter which is a little intimidating. I don’t exactly keep it a secret but I don’t promote it! It would depend on which job I was applying for, but I think that I would seriously consider including it on future CVs, especially if what I’ve written about is in any way relevant to the job!
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I think I might mention that I have a blog but not state the URL. There’s too much swearing for it to go on my CV and I don’t want to censor myself!
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That might be the best compromise! That way you can still talk about the skills you have gained, without having to censor yourself. The blog is your corner of the internet and you should be able to blog freely without worrying about employers being inadvertently offended.
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Great post! You said it all I came to blogging by accident and discovered the amazing blogging community and met such interesting people through their blogs and social media! Very enriching. I could not dream of living without blogging about what has become my passion.
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Yes, the community really is one of the best things about blogging and I have been pleasantly taken aback by how helpful and lovely pretty much everyone has been! I love blogging, but I do still find it difficult at times to keep up posting regularly when life gets busy – hoping to improve that this year!
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