This is a new series here at LFI, The Life of a Blogger. You will note there is an additional word in the title. That’s the word that will be added by the blogger featured that day. Each blogger will also contribute a photo of his or her work space so we can actually peek into their lives. (Yes, this is where I write.) I will kick off this series with my own contribution to get the ball rolling. Here goes:
Although I’ve wanted to write since I was about nine years old, and have written plenty, I never imagined that I would start a blog. But with social media emerging as the best way to promote a product and with a product to promote (Terra Cotta Pendants, our online-store, family business) I thought I’d give it a try.
I published my first blog post on November 1, 2010. I had jumped in with both feet and I loved it! I have since come to appreciate that blogging is a pure, unadulterated gift to the writer brave enough to start a blog.
I had no idea how much blogging would positively impact my life. I saw my life as a story before I became a blogger. Doesn’t every writer? But when I became a blogger it intensified. Now a casual dinner conversation would get me thinking, “I should blog about that!” or a troubling thought I was writing about in my journal would expand into a blog post. Blogging was changing my life by shedding a new light of awareness on it.
I gradually saw that blogging was affording me the amazing opportunity to connect with people around the globe and to share these questions about life. Together we were dissecting and boiling it down and supporting one another on this phenomenal trek called life. Through the process we were community building.
There is little in life that I enjoy more than the feeling of being a part of a community. I’m still not sure a group of people from around the world who gather sporadically or regularly; visibly or stealthily here on the porch can become a a true community, but I’m holding out hope that it can.
Do you see your life as a story? Do you think it is only extroverts who blog or do introverts share this platform as well? Have you ever wanted to start a blog or have you already taken the glorious leap?
Would you like to tell your story? Email me and I’ll send you the Guidelines for submitting your contribution.
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Hey Lori,
I am wayyyyyy behind on my blogging, reading and sharing. Anyway, I am here now. I have attached a photo of my workspace. I love that you shared yours. Very cool. if you look closely at my screen you might notice something interesting. Hah.....hahaha.
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8084/8394782267_3e08752283_z.jpg
Cheers!
Latest blog post: QOTW 2013: Week 3: What is our obsession with knowing everyone’s preferences?
@rdopping Haha - I Love it Ralph!
Did I ask you if you'd contribute your story to this series? Come through the link at the bottom of the post so I can send you the Guidelines!
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Fantastic idea and that's a really nice view! Good luck with it and the simple conversations at dinner whihc can give you blog ideas strike a similar chord with me as well.
Hope I can contribute here!
Aditya
@adityasam Hi Aditya! I hope you will contribute as well. Come through the link or send me an email so I can send the guidelines to you.
Meanwhile, do you find blogging has altered your introvert/extrovert status? Some of us are noticing that spending time online connecting with people has lessened our need for offline social time, while others are finding blogging has made them more extroverted. What do you notice about yourself?
Latest blog post: How Would a Child Draw You?
Hi Lori, What a wonderful start to your series. That view is captivating, I'm surprised you can look away to start your writing!
I definitely think blogging has made me more introverted. Socializing in person seems like an effort now somehow.
Thanks for a peek inside your world. I look forward to joining you in your journey!
@wonderoftech I do tend to daydream a little too much while gazing out at the view, but hey! Maybe I can call it meditation?
I think I know what you mean by blogging making you more introverted. Do you think it's because you fulfill your need for social interaction via the web and therefore don't need it as much offline? Or do you think we (yes, me too) are getting lazy!?! :o
Latest blog post: How Do Your Five Senses Shape the Life You Lead?
WOW...what a view Lori! And what a perspective too! I love how you talk about the way events in your day to day life become prompts for your discussions here on the porch. I catch myself doing the same (like the significant others of standup comedians, those of bloggers aren't safe from their "stories being told").
And in answer to this:
I’m still not sure a group of people from around the world who gather sporadically or regularly; visibly or stealthily here on the porch can become a a true community, but I’m holding out hope that it can.
YES. Yes it can, and yes it has :).
@Sabrina at MyMiBoSo Hi Sabrina,
I know what you mean by people in the lives of bloggers not being safe from the possibility of ending up in a blog post. That's why I try to think that thought "I could blog about this" ot myself rather than saying it out loud, but then again, they could be reading my blog... :o
Has blogging made you more introverted or less introverted Sabrina? @Sandi Amorim said, "I'm an extrovert that's become more introverted by blogging!" Are you noticing any such changes in your life since you began to blog?
Latest blog post: How Do Your Five Senses Shape the Life You Lead?
@Lori @Sandi Amorim Ha! I have to say that it's had the opposite effect on me! I'm an introvert who has become more of an extrovert through blogging! I used to be SO private that I would angst over my Facebook account as I didn't want people to "know too much" about me. Of course through blogging, and more importantly, through blogging for my coaching practice, I realize what an amazing connection I can have with others when I share more of my authentic self!
@Lori @Sandi Amorim @DeliberateBlog I think what's happened is that as I became more intentional about connecting in the online world, my offline connections also grew as the habits simply transferred across all areas of my life! Not to worry though - working as a coach alone most of the day feeds my need to be what my dad would call "a hermit" :)
@Sabrina at MyMiBoSo @Sandi Amorim How interesting is this! Did you hear this @DeliberateBlog ? I can see this. First the need to guard your privacy goes and then you come out of yourself into a world of connections. Do you find your need for offline social interaction has grown as well or like some of us, do you find it is satisfied with our online friends?
Latest blog post: How Would a Child Draw You?
What a wonderful idea to show everybody's workplace, have a glimpse now of mine: laptop in the center, to the right: coffee cup, Moleskine agenda next, my notepad, bills (sorted but unpaid) to the very right, mobile; to the left: another notepad (used for business meetings), an architectural magazine, a handkerchief, calculator, two candle sticks with white candles, invites, an iPad, a biscuit box (waiting to be photographed), bank statements, a pewter bowl with apples and another package with biscuits. In the background: window with a view of roofs and chimneys, pepper and salt mills on the sill. Do you think you will get a picture of THIS?
Congrats on your idea of this new series The Life of a Blogger, it will be interesting and fun to get to know others on a more personal level, compliments on your post and I loved the way how you integrate it with community building.
Latest blog post: YOUR TURN! Lori’s Winter Tabbouleh!
@Late_Bloomers What a great description. It sort of makes me want to reach out and touch and examine some of them. Talking about the rooftops and chimneys out your window reminds me of the summer I spent in Perugia, Italy many years ago.
@Carmelo Carmelo, sia benvenuto in mia casa! Ah, Perugia, that is close to my favourite place in Italy. Do you plan any trips to Europe? You could include a touching experience in it!
Latest blog post: YOUR TURN! Lori’s Winter Tabbouleh!
@Late_Bloomers Thank you! :-) Well, no trips planned at this time. But, it will happen again. I was there again in 2002 (gosh over ten years now?) Italy, briefly in Switzerland, Germany, Austria. yes, loved Perugia. Have you spent much time there?
@Late_Bloomers We'd BETTER get a picture of this - I want to see it! Don't MAKE us imagine it all! You're such a fine photographer. What will your word be Barbara? Can't wait to find out!
Latest blog post: How Do Your Five Senses Shape the Life You Lead?
@Lori Haha, wouldn't you all love that! As I am having guests tonight and my work desk is also my dining table (it is an old restaurant table dating back to 1850 or such with a wooden top and cast iron legs) it looks pretty decent now! Thanks for the generous compliment and no, I will not give it away - yet!
Latest blog post: YOUR TURN! Lori’s Winter Tabbouleh!
Wow Lori. I love your desk! No computer though... it's easier to make it "seem" neat then, isn't it, lol.
You know, I think a lot of introverts blog. It's one medium where, if you want to, you can stay quite anonymous and still get your voice out there. Not all blogs are business related. I'm not sure you could have a business blog and not be a bit extroverted about it, but the personal blogs...
Thanks for starting this series. I think it's going to be so much fun!!
Huge hugs,
Melody
@DeliberateBlog Your comment caught my eye because I'm an extrovert that's become more introverted by blogging! That's the biggest change in the 3 years I've been blogging; a change I never expected!
Latest blog post: Six Impossible Things
@Sandi Amorim @DeliberateBlog Wait - blogging made your more introverted?! How did this happen? Did it provide enough social interaction that you reached for solitude when you were "off" or do you now lose energy to people and gain energy when alone?
@Sandi Amorim @DeliberateBlog It "brought you to this place" - isn't it great the way life does that for us!
Latest blog post: How Do Your Five Senses Shape the Life You Lead?
@Carmelo @Lori @DeliberateBlog Long before blogging I was already feeling the pull to more silence, more alone time. Blogging took it to a whole new level though! The irony is that more introspection so that I can write for my blog is for the purpose of reaching and engaging with more people! Funny how things turn out :)
Latest blog post: Six Impossible Things
@DeliberateBlog I'm the same because I too coach most of the day, but the shift really happened when I began blogging. While I've always dabbled with journaling, it was blogging that created the environment for consistent introspection. And I think the shift is mostly in how I recharge. I still love to go out (although I'm much pickier now) but it seems like alone time is the best antidote, whereas in the past being with people totally energized me.
Writing these thoughts down make me realize that 12 years of coaching and 3 years of blogging combined have brought me to this place that actually feels more 'me' then the busy extrovert I used to be.
Thanks for asking the great question @Lori .
Latest blog post: Six Impossible Things
@Lori @DeliberateBlog @Sandi Amorim Oops, Lori ... you beat me to the punch with your thoughts and comment! I suppose there's a certain honor and glory involved for me to be following you ;-)
@Sandi Amorim @Lori @DeliberateBlog I've always admitted to being introverted but when I'm in a group situation, people often think of me as almost extroverted. It really depends on the group!
I'm fascinated by how your introspection has created a desire for more alone time. And, isn't it alone time that is necessary for greater introspection? So, which really came first?
@DeliberateBlog @Sandi Amorim No, not too Wop-Woo for me ;-) So what you're saying is that it's not that blogging is making us more introspective but that being more introspective may possibly be leading us to blog. (did I extend what you said, I think so!) It makes sense, though. Maybe it's just timing - the blogging thing arising and becoming so easy for the layperson to do at a time when we are all becoming more aware and want to share that awareness with others. Was it the chicken, was it the egg?
Latest blog post: How Do Your Five Senses Shape the Life You Lead?
@Lori @Sandi Amorim I'm not sure this is down to blogging, as much as that the energy of these times. Self awareness requires that we spend time with the self... I know loads of people who have started staying home more, setting different priorities, etc. Also, after a full day of coaching, when I've been at a really high energy level all day, I find that I need time alone afterwards. I REALLY don't want to be around anyone, or go out. It would be like coming out of a deep meditation and going to a rave. Too much stimulation. But I don't mind it. I love spending time alone. And when I crave the company of others, I make that happen, too. So, it's not really because of the blogging, but more because of my own spiritual journey.
Hope I didn't get too Woo-Woo on you there. ;oP
@Sandi Amorim @DeliberateBlog That's what I was wondering. It's a fine distinction and an interesting shift. I wonder how many other bloggers are experiencing such a shift.
I'm more of an extrovert but I find lately that I'm growing roots at home, preferring to be here than to go out.
@Lori @DeliberateBlog Not sure how it happened! I think the regular introspection of writing on my blog has had a profound impact. I'm still extroverted but with a much stronger craving for time alone.
Latest blog post: Six Impossible Things
@Sandi Amorim Wow Sandi. I hadn't thought of that. Do you mean that you've become less social, or less expressive? I ask because I've become less social since starting to work from home (as well as for other reasons), so I go out less. But when I do, I'm still as extroverted as ever...
@DeliberateBlog Maybe it's also due to maturing ;)
Latest blog post: Six Impossible Things
@DeliberateBlog I'm also still as extroverted as ever when I"m out with folks, but afterwards seem to need much more downtime than in the past. I'm also more particular about what I"ll say yes to now. So I guess it boils down to less socializing over all, but well chosen events that work for me.
Latest blog post: Six Impossible Things
@DeliberateBlog Hi Melody! My computer is there but not very visible. The monitor is off to the right - you can see it in the picture - and my keyboard is on a pull-our shelf sort of beneath the desk.
Good point about the business blog vrs the personal one. Blogging under an anonymous name, though, could be interesting. We know some people who do that.
Can't wait to see your "desk" and hear your story! But just for now, answer one of my questions: do you see your life as a story?
@Lori Absolutely! A whole series of stories, actually. I've always said this, since I was a teenager: My goal is to be really old one day and have tons of amazing stories to tell. My life isn't a novel. It's an anthology. One story's not enough... :o)
@DeliberateBlog @Lori Melody, I like how you consciously shape things. Your approach to life is captivating. it's like you wake up each day and say: "what shall I craft and how do I want to experience this day?"
Very cool. :-)
@DeliberateBlog An anthology! Wow!
I could barely get past the photo to read the post. All I could think was, is her desk really that neat? I won't show you a photo of mine! But I do have a nice room to write in, complete with my canary named Henry, who is singing to me right now.
If my life is a story, then it seems like a series of almost disconnected stories. I sometimes wonder how I've crammed so many lifetimes into one. People who have met me in my current "lifetime" can hardly believe it when I tell them about my earlier ones. So if I were going to see it as one story, I would want to look for the theme. I will have to contemplate this some more, because at first glance, the theme is not apparent to me.
About the writing, I have always been the professional writer in my family. As a lawyer, much of my career was about writing, and most particularly drafting contracts. Not the same as blogging, and yet, much of what people like about my writing, I can trace back to my legal training and teaching. Go figure.
Great series. I'm going to come back later and read more comments. Always fun to follow the conversation.
@galenpearlNo, my desk is not always that neat - I straightened it all for the photo! ;-)
Your story, then, has many different chapters Galen! I'm looking forward to your post, "The Life of a _______ (what word will YOU put there) Blogger"
And yes, we need a photo but you can clean up first! Maybe Henry can be in it!?
@Lori @galenpearl She's not getting a photo of my desk either ;)
Latest blog post: Six Impossible Things
@Sandi Amorim @galenpearl I HEARD that Sandi! I'm right here! LOL
Your picture is making me long for the days when we lived at Lake Tahoe. What a winter wonderland that is half the year. I'm afraid that my current office isn't nearly as inspiring. :-)
I can see we better get "our word" in early! Yet, it's likely that many words would describe each of us. We're not one dimensional after all, are we? I'll have to give it some thought to land on the most descriptive and accurate word for the man I currently see as a blogger.
Lori, I'd like to know more about how you see your life as a story. Is this something to do with seeing your life as a dream? Are you telling your story or just living it? And I, too, wonder about community building. I love the idea yet I wonder about what it is. Is it friendships? If so, how long does it take to create depth and real connection?
(as usual I have approached too many topics in one splurge!)
@Carmelo Yes, I agree that we are not one-dimensional Carmelo. What word are you thinking of? Some are already claimed ;-) If I had to choose another besides "introspective" I probably could have found one. Online thesauruses will be employed.
I had thought every writer saw his or her life as a story. I may have been wrong about that because all my hooks are coming up with the worms still on them! I see mine this way because it seems so well-crafted, so perfectly written. It is sometimes like a dream, I guess, but dream or not, I have always seen it as if it were a story and I was the star of it, as we arel all stars of our own narratives.
When I say community building, I'm referring to the concept as described by M Scott Peck in The Different Drum. He so inspired me with this book that I've been hyper aware of communities and whether or not groups were communities or on their way to becoming one. A community can spring up nearly overnight when there is a crisis that unites a group of people, say when an earthquake strikes for instance. Or a group of people who gather regularly can become a community over time, passing through stages of growth. Check out Peck's book - a gift!
Too many topics? You? Nah! ;-)
Tell, me; do you see your life as a story?
@Lori Ha! You give me such benefit of the doubt. Really, I can focus, honest!
I don't know my word yet. Maybe I'll just take what's left over after they're all taken. Maybe I'll have two or three to choose from! ;-)
As for seeing my life as a story I'm sure I do in ways. I think if I were to consider myself a writer that would make a difference. Maybe I'm more of a philosopher (of sorts) and look at life itself as a story. Is that the same thing?
@Lori @Carmelo @Ralph Dopping @Sandi Faviell Amorim Great inquiry! I do see my life as a story and often think of parts of it as chapters. I thought that long before I started writing or coaching, so it seems that's a personal preference rather than related to my profession. As a coach I see life through a particular filter, but that's very different from my life as a story.
Latest blog post: Six Impossible Things
@Carmelo Hmm. no, not the same thing but interesting! Maybe all philosophers look at life that way. Makes me wonder how other sorts of people see life. Does a mathematician see life as a problem to be solved, for example. How does an Architect@Ralph Dopping ? How does a Life Coach see life @Sandi Faviell Amorim ? Are there any quantum physicists reading? This could (should) be a whole other post. I'll give it some thought!
I love this post! What a view you have- no wonder you are always writing such inspired posts! I can't believe how long you have been blogging. :) I definitely know what you mean about each great conversation making you think about what your blogger community might think about the topic- or just wanting to write about it. For me it is less about conversations and more about experiences. So many of them make me want to whip out my camera! I can't wait to write my post! =)
@MelanieAThomp It does help to have a nice view beyond my monitor! With laptops today, a blogger can blog anywhere, though, can't they!
Do you see your life as a story Melanie? Do you know what I mean by that?
@Lori I definitely see my life as a story. I am always narrating it in my head too. I think it helps me to be a better person! When I am thinking about my story I am always wanting to be the heroine. Thoughts?
@MelanieAThomp Of COURSE you're the heroine! We're all the stars of our own stories - at the vortex, exerting more creative power than we know. Seeing our lives as stories creates a bit of a feedback loop - very powerful! I like how you narrate it as you go! Do you edit it as well?
;-)
Latest blog post: How Do Your Five Senses Shape the Life You Lead?
Sounds like a wonderful idea Lori!
I think this is really a nice idea to start these series, and am sure everyone would be excited to share their stories just the way you did too. I would surely be getting in touch with you, though after a few days once I sort out my blog that's getting a new look now. :)Thanks for sharing this with all of us. :)
@Harleena Singh But first please answer this question: do you see your life as a story Harleena? (Is it just me?)
@Lori - It's not exactly a story, yet it can be called one because most of us came into blogging for a reason. Mine was mainly to be able to be home with my family and kid's and give them the utmost before they leave home (just as all kid's do), which made me leave my full time job and switch roles :)
@Harleena Singh I think it will be fun Harleena! I look forward to receiving your submission! Let me know which word you want to fill in the blank of the title "The _______________ Life of a Blogger" so I can reserve it for you as I'll only be using each word once!