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5 Favorite Things About Being a Blogger

July 12, 2016 - By 

I’ve officially been blogging for 3 years:   now almost nearly a decade.  Wow!

I am so thankful that I can say those words.  It has been a long road with Run With No Regrets, and this blog has come a long way and continues to grow.  I’m so thankful to everyone who takes the time to read, share, or comment.  Run With No Regrets has become one of my greatest joys!

In honor of this “special” occasion, I’m going to share the best things about being a blogger!  Keep on reading to find out more!

[bctt tweet=”Find out the best things about being a blogger! #runchat #blogging” username=”Janelle_RWNR”]

I'm sharing my 5 favorite things about being a blogger! Learn more at runwithnoregrets.com!

Best Things About Being a Blogger

If you would have asked me years ago if I ever envisioned myself becoming a blogger, I would have laughed in your face!  I’ve always loved writing, and I used to keep an online journal, but I never imagined any of this!

These past 3 years have been wonderful, and of course full of challenges and frustrations, but I’m still standing!  If you’re not a blogger, you may not realize all the blood, sweat, and tears involved in the process.  Despite that, it’s been such a rewarding experience!  Being a blogger is awesome!

You Get to Write About What You Love

Ever since I learned to write, I’ve been obsessed.  I loved writing my own stories as a kid.  When I was 7, I wrote a limerick about a penguin…it was my first poem.  I always loved English class through grade school and found it was an area that I excelled.

So it would figure that I would end up being a professional engineer, right?

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I love what I do for a living, but I also love being able to write and use my creativity.  What’s exciting is that being a blogger over the past 3 years, I’ve discovered how much I love to talk bout and write about running, which has really become one of my biggest passions.  It’s great to know that there are people out there who enjoy my writing and the information that I share.

If you’re writing about what you love, it’s easy to stay inspired!

You Get Awesome Opportunities

Warrior Dash 2015
Warrior Dash 2015

Obviously, there are a lot of perks to being a blogger.  It depends on the type of blogger you are, but across the board, you will regularly be emailed about testing out products, promoting a brand, or writing a review.  While sometimes these requests can be completely ridiculous, you learn what’s best for your blog and your brand.

I have had a variety of companies reach out to “little ol’ me” to promote their brand.  I was able to work with Rockin’ Refuel and do my very first Warrior Dash.  I’ve tried Green Blender Smoothies (that are AMAZING, by the way!).   And you know I’ve had quite a wild ride with being a race ambassador!   It’s great to connect and develop relationships!

There are a lot of bloggers that are successful in turning their blog into a business.  I’m not on that level, so I can’t tell you how to make thousands (or even hundreds) of dollars a month blogging.  But when you start to get really high page views, the opportunities just get bigger and better.

You’re Part of a Community

phlbloggers-social

Community is a HUGE part of blogging.  Thanks to the Internet, we’re able to connect and interact with people globally, and it’s so cool!  It’s still strange for me to think that Run With No Regrets has grown to be a community, but it has!  I am still toying with the idea of creating a Facebook group, but still thinking about how to make it work…

On top of that, the blogging community as a whole is wonderful.  You can create and join different “tribes” within your blogging niche that work to support each other, or you can just find like-minded bloggers and creatives to connect with online.  No one really “gets it” like a fellow blogger.  It can be challenging to stay motivated sometimes, and that’s why having a community is so important!

Here are some of the communities that I really enjoy:

There are also dozens of blogging conferences out there where you can meet a variety of bloggers while learning the latest and greatest.

Do you have any Twitter chats that you recommend for bloggers?  I know those are really great too!

You’re Constantly Learning

I love a good challenge, and if you think that blogging is easy, it’s not!  Not only does creating content and writing take a lot of time, there is always so much to do and learn when it comes to the latest trends in social media, branding, email list building…and that’s the tip of the iceberg!

If you like to be kept on your toes, blogging just may be for you!

Thanks to blogging, I’m more in tune with my creativity.  I’m editing images and thinking about how to make them appealing to my followers.  I’m more comfortable with HTML.  I’m picking up tips and tricks all the time and I’m excited to try new things.

I’m striving to create the best space that I can at Run With No Regrets, so I do whatever I can to continue to learn and grow.  It’s a lot like running…it never gets boring!

While it can be a little bit overwhelming sometimes, it’s really exciting to me.  And having a blog, it’s easy to see your evolution from year to year.  From 2013 to 2016, I’ve come a long way!

You’re Able to Give Back

While blogging for yourself definitely has some benefit, I believe that the true purpose of blogging is to serve others.  You’re providing information to people; you’re helping to shape their opinions on certain products, you’re sharing your experiences so that they can learn from them.

If you’re into blogging for the money…you’re doing it wrong.

I love when I get emails from my readers asking me questions about training for a race or giving an update on their progress.  That’s when I remember why I’m doing this!  I love being able to help new runners and encourage them on their journeys!

Whenever I write a blog post I think about its true purpose…I don’t write just to write.  I write so that I’m sharing useful information.  Right now, my post on affordable hydration products for runners is doing really well.  Why?  Because it’s a relevant topic that people can relate to!  Being able to help people make these types of decisions means a lot to me.

Oh, and I really love to host giveaways…they are my FAVORITE!  Giveaways are great because they are tangible. And who doesn’t like free stuff?   I’d love to be able to do more giveaways on the blog!

If you’re a blogger, what’s your favorite thing about it?

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100 Comments on “5 Favorite Things About Being a Blogger”

  1. We have been blogging for just over three yrs as well and we have been given so many opportunities as well. So much more than what we had expected this blog to do. And yes the community. We have met many great pple through blogging that have become actual friends.

    Reply

  2. Being a blogger is seriously the best thing ever! I wouldn’t trade it for anything else really – I love meeting (well, sort of? LOL) like-minded people and making connections and just speaking my minddddd! 😀

    Reply

  3. Happy anniversary! I didn’t think I’d be blogging after 4 years, but I find writing the posts is a nice way to escape for a few minutes and get my thoughts out. I think grammar stuff in English class pushed me away from writing, but I can write what I want on my blog and there’s no grade 🙂

    Reply

  9. Congrats on your anniversary! Like you, I had never seen myself doing this, either…but I have always loved writing. I also have learned a lot about the “industry.” Some of my early posts are very plain and boring because I didn’t grasp the creative edge with pics at first. And, of course, there’s all the wonderful fellow peeps I have met along the way 😉

    Reply

  10. I think my favorite thing about being a blogger is being able to connect with so many other bloggers, both virtually (most of the time) and occasionally in person at conferences! I also love that this community understands ‘blogger problems’ – dealing with snarky comments, troubleshooting tech problems, etc! 🙂

    Reply

  11. That is awesome you have grown to a place where you have opportunities and have some groups you have a solid network with! It is time consuming, but the rewards are worth it 🙂
    I think for me connecting with others has been the best part, I just don’t have a real life group so my virtual buds are fun to connect with.

    Reply

  16. Happy 3rd Blogiversary! Love your blog Janelle! I can see all the hard work and passion you are putting into “Running With No Regrets” (love the name btw) and I’m so happy it’s all paying off for you!
    Creativity is probably my most favorite thing about blogging, and all the wonderful bloggers and readers you meet!

    Reply

  18. Happy Blogiversary! I totally agree that the blogosphere is a pretty exciting place. It’s grown a ton since I started almost 8 years ago. What??

    Reply

  19. Yes, there are so many awesome things about blogging! The best thing for me, hands down, has been the opportunities and people I’ve met. I always say if this whole blogging gig ended tomorrow, I’d still be a very happy and lucky girl!

    Reply

  21. Happy blogiversary! I love blogging as I learn so much about running, workouts, etc you name it! It’s a strong community and I really like “meeting” other bloggers and getting to know them through their blog. It’s always a bonus when you live near them and can meet up!

    Reply

  33. I’m definitely with you on all these reasons on why it’s awesome to be a blogger! <3! I The blogging community is so awesome! :]

    Reply

  37. I’d love to win an entry to this race! Local races are fun, and it looks like it would fit into my training plan well! 🙂

    Reply

  38. Congrats on 3 years of blogging. I love blogging for all the reasons you listed, plus I now have friends all over the world, it’s pretty amazing.

    Reply

  40. Congrats on blogging so long! I can definitely tell from your blog you put a lot of time and effort into it. 🙂 I was amazed when I got into blogging how much there was to learn. I wish that race was closer to me – it sounds like a lot of fun!

    Reply

  42. I totally love blogging for so many of the reason you’ve listed here! It if wasn’t for what I’m doing as a hiking blogger I don’t think I’d be as happy. Being able to help people who want to get started hiking and backpacking is just as satisfying to me as writing about the subject I love most. Thanks for sharing 🙂

    Reply

  48. I recently moved to Philly and I really want to try out as many Philly races as possible! My favorite thing about blogging is interacting with other bloggers!

    Reply

  49. I’ll hit a year of blogging in November & it’s just so great to push myself out of my comfort zone with things like HTML & SEO, but get to write about things I am passionate about – especially when I see that others feel the same way!

    Congrats on 3 years! That’s a BFD. 🙂

    Reply

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