My silly travel blog got me my internship. OK; maybe I’m exaggerating a bit. But it definitely helped.
I started my blog last January as a way to document my semester abroad in Florence, Italy. I wanted to have something to look back on so I could remember all the fascinating places I went and the adventures I experienced. I blogged once or twice a week, every week, for four months. By the time I got home I was blogged-out; I didn’t realize how much dedication it took to sit down every week and write a post – but I also had documentation about my time spent in Italy that I’ll be able to look back on for years to come.
I also didn’t realize was how many people had access to it.
I had posted my blog link on my LinkedIn and Facebook accounts for family and friends who wanted to follow my journey. When I got home I left the link up on my social media accounts not thinking that anyone would look at them. But after I applied for my job with Altitude, my employers found it, and, while it wasn’t perfect (some careless grammar and spelling mistakes), they loved the dedication that I had to updating the blog.
So, this little blog that I made for free for myself and was only followed by close family and friends (or so I thought) helped me get my job and taught me two important lessons:
- Blogging can have a powerful reach and
- It’s important to be consistent to get the most bang for the buck.
Even if you don’t have much to say, you should make an effort to consistently post. If you’re a photographer, go for a photo blog or portfolio and post two to three standout photos you shoot each week. Into fashion? Create a couple different outfits and post them on your blog a few times a week.
If blog writing isn’t your thing, it’s still important to have some kind of online presence these days. Twitter, for example, is another great tool that lets people share their experiences and insights with others. A son of an Altitude member team went on a cross-country biking trip and used Twitter as his medium to upload pictures along the way. The word count limit is non-intimidating and allows you to briefly share what you’re up to and scrapbook memories you’ll want to share with family, friends – or even employers.
So, while I was blogged out after my time in Florence, the benefits of blogging are well worth the time and my personal goal for this New Year is to re-invigorate and recommit myself to my little blog. I encourage you to join me, too!
