5 Tips to Better Blogging and Better Living

As we look back at the year just gone by, it's only proper that we reflect on what went well, what went poorly, and how we can get better in 2007. After reflecting on it awhile, I decided that my resolutions for 2007 also could serve as a guide to better blogging (and living), so I will post these tips for all to see, and I ask that you all hold me accountable over the next year.

1. Listen
This step is far too often overlooked. We tend to get so caught up in the heat of our passion that it's easy to assume we know everything we need to know in order to form judgment. The only way we'll ever know we're wrong is if we first learn how to listen.

2. Think
And by "think," I mean reason. We ought not just think about what we're going to say, but instead we need to challenge our preconceptions and test our assumptions. That also means we have to identify the assumptions at their roots, which is harder than it seems.

3. Share
Accountability. Accountability. Accountability. Nothing is more frustrating than being the only one to to think you are right. Falling slightly behind that is to have no one available to challenge your thoughts. Blogging opens up our thoughts and beliefs to others, who can challenge our assumptions or our logic, or they can just comment on the way we look. Hey, there is a seedier side to community, and in order to experience the good, we also have to risk the bad.

4. Listen
It's no accident that this shows up on this list twice. It is by far the most important aspect to successful communication and lasting persuasion. Once our ideas have been exposed, it is incumbent on us to listen to and understand why and how people either agree or object to them. With discipline, this practice will only strengthen our ability to communicate as well as facilitate cooperation or support for those ideas, or it will bring us to understand a different perspective that we would have otherwise missed.

5. Improve
This is more of a habit that encapsulates every aspect of our lives, but to bloggers, this means we push not only ourselves to achieve greater things, but also the communities in which we participate. When you think about it, our most rewarding accomplishments come from helping others. And when we seek to lift up the community, that same community lifts us up and allows us to achieve greater things than if we were simply to try to do it alone. This same principle ought be applied to the behavior of business, where the "communities" should be the customers and the employees and the shareholders, but just as often as not seems to be all about the shareholders, the executives, and the board members.

So, What's Next?
I was thinking about "tagging" a few of you, but there are a few worthy memes out there, and I don't want to burn everyone out on them. However, if you happen to have any resolutions for the new year, please share on your blog and either trackback here or post a link in your comments (HTML is allowed). I (and, I'd gather, many others) would love to read them! - Cam Beck

Comments

[CK]

mine are here which point to here as well as there. Just resolve to read the post and all is clear:
http://www.ck-blog.com/cks_blog/2007/01/resolving_uniti.html

P.S.: I can't get URLs to show up as hyperlinks here. Why not? Happy NY from NY!

[Stephen Denny]

Cam: I've enjoyed your commentary over at Fix --

New Years' Resolutions? I got 'em here: http://note-to-cmo.blogspot.com/2006/12/note-to-cmo-new-years-resolutions_28.html.

From being a bit more like Mack and CK to killing a few giants to saving the world (probably in that order), I've framed up where my head is for the new year. And writing them down -- let alone publishing them -- makes them much harder to deny later.

Thanks --