Brad Marley

You might want to dust off that blog obituary. I have just been notified that blogging’s condition is (again) dire, according to the New York Times.

The culprit? Those damned teenagers.

Let’s examine the evidence: Justin Bieber brought the Web to its knees when he chopped his brunette locks and auctioned them off to charity, while the Oscars tried to bring in a younger audience for this year’s show with two millennial actors. (Somebody even dropped an F bomb! How hip is that!?)

I guess it was only a matter of time until the media hopped on that train.

And the spokesperson for this mass exodus? A teen who ignores blogs.

“I don’t use the blog anymore,” said the aspiring filmmaker interviewed for the article. “I’d rather shove my content down my friends’ throats than see if I can build a real following.” (Whoops. I made up that second part.)

According to the article, The Internet and American Life Project at the Pew Research Center said that from 2006 to 2009, blogging among children ages 12 to 17 dropped by half. A valid point.

But in 2010, blogging from the 18-to-33-year-old set dropped by two percentage points. Another valid…wait a sec. Two points?

So because blogging dropped so severely in a demographic that is known for shifting its focus by the minute, we’re saying blogging is on the wane?

I disagree. Like, a lot.

It’s true: Twitter and Facebook have eliminated the need for short-burst blogs that pump out information at a rapid pace. It’s much easier to share our thoughts on a micro basis.

But they cannot (and won’t) replace more though-provoking writing that the good blogs share. There will always be a place for good writing; a venue where writers can seek solace, no matter how many times the medium is declared dead.

Image courtesy of Dahlstroms.

Photo courtesy of Bob_Collins. (It popped up when I did a search for ‘social media rockstars’.)

In my blog queue, there is a finished blog post that will likely never see the light of day.

It’s titled ”How To Be A Social Media Rockstar In Five Easy Steps!”

It’s sarcastic. It’s snooty. And I love it.

It was written on a day when I wasn’t feeling the Twitter love, or some of the personalities I come across on my network. 

So I sat down and started typing. The end result was some of the most fulfilling and freeing writing I’ve produced in a long time. I took off the restraints and just spilled my guts on the paper.

The problem, however, is that, unless you really know me (which probably isn’t true for most people who stumble upon my blog), you might take it the wrong way and think I’m bashing all of social media, which is not the case at all.

Like all things popular that rocket into our collective consciousness, social media can be (and is) ripe for ridicule. So I banged out something that I thought was pretty funny. (Again, if you know me.)

But in today’s online scene, where anything and everything you say can be held against you, I feel it wouldn’t be worth the time it took to post if, someday, somebody comes across the entry and holds it against me, or a client reads it and takes it the wrong way.

It just doesn’t seem worthy of the snicker, or two, that it might steal from a random reader.

‘Course, Feedburner tells me I have two subscribers.

Maybe I’m over-thinking.

What would you do?

One year ago today I started writing this blog without a firm idea of where it was headed. 

And you know what?

I still don't.

The only thing I can say, with certainty, is that I'm not famous.

But I can say some other things with certainty. 

This blog:

I subscribe to 61 blogs.

But, as you can probably imagine, I have a hard time keeping up when I have to chase a two-year old around the house while holding a two-month old.

Until technology gives me the ability to upload new blog posts directly into my brain, I mostly skim the headlines and read the ones that grab my attention.

However, there are a handful of blogs I read when they are updated, no matter how busy I am.

And, I have to say, I get a little excited when I open my reader and see their blog titles highlighted, indicating a new post.

Rather than keep these gems to myself, I want to share them with you so you can subscribe and join in on the joy.

1. The Writer's Coin- The tagline reads, "Making Money Interesting." It's a personal finance blog that doesn't read like one, if that makes any sense.

2.  I Will Teach You To Be Rich – This personal finance guru teaches you how to optimize your money by automating your investments and savings. (I would also suggest reading his book, which is a step-by-step guide to financial freedom. No. It really is.)

3. Journalistics - A blog about journalism, public relations and social media. From a PR professional's point-of-view, it's the best of, uh, all worlds.

4. ChrisBrogan.com – I know he's on every single blog suggestion list, but there's a reason for that. His posts are insanely simple and smart.

5. The Abundance Blog – At first glance, this blog looks like just another self-help blog. But there is so much valuable information on becoming more creative and productive that you would be crazy to not stop by.

These are five blogs I vouch for as being worth your time.

What blogs do you like to read?