The Benefit of College Students Creating Their Own Blogs
20 years ago, blogs did not exist. Today, an estimated 133.8 million people will have read one of the 150 million blogs that exist this year. In the future, both of these numbers are expected to rise. Given the extensive use of social media, whether it be Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or Linkedin, blogs seem to be extremely underrated in their benefits for college students, despite the overwhelmingly large numbers listed above. Below are six reasons why blogs are essential for college students, and not only because they take up a line on your resume:
1. Blogs teach you technical skills. HTML, CSS, Photoshop, SEO, and WordPress are only a few of the big skills you will learn and get better at as you improve your blog. These are tools a lot of recruiters look for proficiency in.
2. You are forced to become a better writer. Even if your goal is to work in finance, being well-rounded is a quality that companies look for, because it shows your ability to adapt. By self-editing and writing long posts, your writing will drastically flow and become stronger, which will in turn make actual assignments easier.
3. They give you the ability to show discipline and be proactive. Since a blog is something you do on your own, it is entirely up to you to continuously write and do upkeep. This shows companies that you are motivated and take initiative.
4. Showcase your expertise in a field. For example, if you are an English major, you have the ability to pick your own pieces of literature and authors to showcase why you believe they are important. You can exhibit your profound knowledge in an organized fashion that will make you stand out not only in your field, but in your blog expertise as well.
5. Find yourself. Blogging allows you to write about anything you desire. You could research something you may not have been interested in for a post, and suddenly become engrossed by it. Additionally, designing your blog and your own writing style enables you to find your own voice, and help you understand yourself better.
6. Make money! As soon as your blog is even a little bit established, you can advertise things such as old textbooks and dorm furniture for sale. When your blog is further established, you can promote affiliate products, advertise for different companies, and use an organization such as AdSense to monetize your blog.
The best thing about a blog though? It is what you make it. It can be extremely simple and straightforward- you can benefit in only one of these categorizes- or you can put in a lot of effort and benefit from it in every category. The maintenance level is at your own pace, but the possibilities are endless. However, in a society so heavily influenced by the media world, why not continue the trend for your own success?