The power of blogging- reaching out and touching people

Blogging is a phenomenon of epic proportions, of that there can be little doubt.  A lot has been written about blogging and how it's become the new form of journalism but to me it's so much more than that.  I have done a lot of self-reflection lately and realize the power of blogging is in the platform it creates to reach out and touch folks.  Blogging is much more personal than journalism by design and it is astounding how it can allow bloggers to touch readers.  I have made it a personal goal to touch at least one person a day through my blogging and I can tell you when that happens it feels good.

Touching people is a fuzzy phrase that can mean a lot of different things.  It can be simple advice to improve someone's ability to do their work or it can be something that truly affects someone's life in a big way.  I am fortunate to have a big audience with the blogging that I do.  My blogging is read by millions of people over the course of a year which blows me away when I think of that.  That readership is bigger than the circulation of all but a handful of newspapers in the US I'll bet.  Think about that for a moment, blogging has given me the potential to touch millions of lives over time.  The trick is to make the best of that legacy.

I hear from people all the time who describe how something I blogged has affected them.  Sometimes in a good way but sometimes not so good.  Either one is OK, it shows that something I blogged has touched them in such a way that made them think about it.  There's nothing wrong with that.  I've heard from folks from all over the world who told me that something I blogged touched them deeply.  It doesn't matter what was blogged if it touches someone that way.  There are very few things in this life better than the feeling I get when someone tells me they have been touched in a good way.  How many opportunities in life do we have to do that?  Blogging opens up this in a tremendous way and it's a great thing for me. 

I heard from someone this past weekend who has a disability who shared that advice I blogged enabled him to put something together that has made a big impact in his ability to do things in life.  How much better can it get than that?  Knowing that something blogged has made such a big impact on someone who needs all the help they can get is priceless to me.  Blogging provides a platform to do good things and these deeds aren't always obvious as such.  Those are the best kind, the simple blogging that makes someone's life better.  It makes this all worthwhile so those of you who blog think about that.  You are appreciated.

Comments

[Dave Cynkin]

James, great post. I've been enjoying the tech posts from you and Kevin for quite awhile (great blog, but you guys know that), but this one struck me as particularly important. Amidst the fast evolution of online journalism, some criticize monetized blogs as being insincere, and here's a prime example of that generalization falling flat. Pursuing content creation with passion and good spirit, aimed toward helping people, that's what it's all about. Thanks for calling attention to the power of reaching out and helping others through your blog. I'll bet it will inspire others to do the same, and that is yet another way you've touched readers.

If you guys are coming to Blogworld in Vegas this September, please ping me so we can meet up!

Best Regards,

Dave Cynkin
CMO, Sleep Deprivationist & Thrill Seeker
BlogWorld & New Media Expo
http://www.BlogWorldExpo.com

[Mike Cane]

Yes, well, the kind of "touching" you do to me is poke-annoy-poke-annoy-poke-annoy.

Fiend!

[sitecharts]

Great post and great blog.
Although I have to criticize you for always making my mouth water for some of the gadgets you review. My credit card sadly does not like you much ...

;-)

[Terry Finley]

I have been blessed
as a blogger and as a
reader of blogs.

[Brian S Friedlander]

Hi James:

I to am amazed by all of the comments and the way bloggers like you an I can reach out to a very large community. I happen to specialize in the area of assistive technology and my blog is full of ideas of how educators are using a variety of mind mapping, visual learning tools and assistive technology to help individuals increase their functional capabilities. Visit my blog and let me know what you think. Thanks for all of your posts I do read them regularly.

Regards
Brian S. Friedlander
http:assistivetek.blogspot.com