Blogging. Sharing knowledge. Expressing yourself – and the world is watching, reading, and listening along. That just blows my mind. But it also scares the hell out of me…
I think, what scares me is the notion of the global and total presence of yourself. It is like leaving the cozy, familiar nest of anonymity to enter the unknown, scary world (wide web) of bloggers. My initial reaction to blogging That is definitely not for me. Totally out of my comfort zone! I can almost hear my parents say “Do not to talk to strangers!” Their warning made sense to me back then and it still does. Now, although clearly well intended, my parents may have partially contributed to my blogging insecurities. Because one thing is clear: Blogging surely encompasses engaging, communicating, and interacting with strangers.
Last week’s class discussion about blogging, however, made me think of blogging as a little bit more than just interacting with strangers. It is a tool to organize my thoughts, develop opinions, outline ideas and – first and foremost – practice formulating these thoughts, opinions, and ideas. This is easier said than “blogged”. Another parental advice comes to mind…. “Use Your Words!” Do I put more time and effort into expressing my thoughts, opinions, and ideas when nobody reads them or when everyone could read them? I would say the latter.
Mind-blowing. And scary.
Me, Myself, and the Web.. 
I totally understand the lack of comfort … but (and this is just me), one of the things I learned through blogging is that some strangers ended up becoming friends. I will probably never meet Sue Waters from Australia, Kim Cofino in Japan, or Ken Allan in New Zealand, but I have been commenting with them for four years now and value how they push my thinking (and how I push their’s). So I do consider them friends, not strangers.
This is not to say blogging will necessarily be for you after this course. We want you to try it out in a safe way, test the waters, and make an informed decision as you begin your academic life.
Great post with some valid concerns. One thing I tend to think about is that blogging can be whatever you want it to be. As big or as little, as personal or as broad, comical or academic macabre. The important thing to realize is that it’ yours, and you get to chose.