4 Tips to discern more about yourself through blogging

The more you read about blogs and blogging strategies, the more you may think about how similar strategies could assist you in different ways. Inspired by Tina Su of ThinkSimpleNow.com  who wrote a great guest blog on Problogger, and also inspired by ideas offered by Jason Ivers on  A Miracle A Day.com, I decided to prompt you to ask some of your own questions to empower you to develop dreams in your own way:

1) Why are you blogging? Lots of people blog to pass the time.  You may do it when you're bored, daydreaming or, to satisfy a desire to learn.  Some of us blog to connect with like-minded people, to search for answers, to obtain advice or direction or, as a means to compensate for emotional voids.  You may be driven to forge relationships or to postpone another reality.  Probe yourself with questions to get the ball rolling.  As you figure out why you blog, its easier to notice what isn't working and decide to change.

2) What are your blog goals?   Sometimes people start a blog to narrow their life focus.  They may blog about anything and everything, and gradually realize they prefer discussing fewer subjects.  This can help clarify an identity or purpose.  If your purpose is soul-searching or venting, blogging can be an effective, emotional outlet. Yet, if your main purpose is something else, like, to inform, to increase your traffic, build a client base or, to promote particular services, then you can see how reflecting and focusing your motives would help you immensely.  Brainstorming is a fantastic starting point.   

3) How does a blog teach you about yourself?  How you choose to contribute or present blog info reflects your priorities and offers a glimpse into your personality. Are you goal-oriented? Ambitious? Confused? In-transition? Does the spirit of a teacher emerge in your soul? Do you have a particular audience or community's interests in mind? Its not only what you instinctively write that reveals things about you, but also the kinds of readers your energy invites into your life.  As your blog intentions become clearer, readers are more likely to gravitate and benefit.  People readily reconnect when drawn to a threads of interest (or other appealing things on offer).  As you sense blogs are a means of raising self-awareness, you gain your own momentum.  

4) Who are your readers?  Although blog visitors don't always leave comments, you can progressively gain insight about the kinds of people who visit and revisit your blog.  Consider systems that help you compile statistics.  You can determine details like which sites link your blog, which key words and articles are most popular, you can obtain geographic information abut your visitors and subscribers.  You can offer questionnaires and suggestion boxes to generate feedback.  It all depends on what you want.

So, the more you discern through blogging, the clearer you grasp what you want.  To get what you want, structure your blog to help others get what they want.  Simplicity means getting to know yourself in ways that become mutually-beneficial.  Now, run with it.