Today, I finally ,linked up my blog to the ONL learning blogs. In preparation for this, I started a routine of weekly blogging. During which, I would randomly read past ONL participants’ blog posts and came across a few gems.
One of my favorite ones is this blog piece by Dr Maha Bali on “,The joys and gaps between practice writing and publishing”. Her comment about “writing is not publishing” stood out. While she derives different levels of joy for each, she really loves the freedom that comes with writing a blogpost. It does not matter who reads or shares it. If someone else benefited from it, all the better.
“Like a blogpost. Regardless of who reads or shares it. And sometimes, we write to disseminate with a goal towards benefiting others” – Dr Maha Bali (25 Aug 22)
Same same but different
It got me thinking about my own blogging journey. Hate to admit it but over the years, I have started, stopped, restarted, and stopped blogging several times. Once again, I find myself restarting my blogging (thanks to ONL).
So far, it has been a surprisingly enjoyable treat. Yes, writing blog posts is actually fun! Even if there is no audience – the simple act of reflection, synthesizing my thoughts, putting it down and sharing in the public domain has been an enjoyable experience.
When I first found out about ONL, I was keen to participate and join this community of practice. However, I gasped when I realized that it has a compulsory blog posting component. “How long has it been since I last blogged? Won’t my posts suck?” were the first thoughts to mind. Eventually, I saw this as an opportunity and came up with a plan to kickstart the blogging routine again.
Now that my ,routine has turned into a habit, I can say with certainty that the writing experience that comes with blogging is actually quite enjoyable. It has become a habit where I enjoy the protected time set aside to reflect, and compose my thoughts. Every Saturday, I would find a nice cafe and sip a nice latte as I work on my blog post.
To share my thoughts into the public domain is scary yet empowering. I don’t know who reads it, but on occasion when I do find out, it’s always a welcome surprise. Especially if the reader benefited from it.
Classmates of ONL222, please enjoy the meme (my hello gift) and your own blogging journey. I look forward to meeting you all and reading your blog posts!
Benedict Chia
03 Sep 2022
