Back to Basics – Why I Love My Job Reason #127

You know, sometimes I forget that there are people who really have no idea what a blog is, much less know why they should want to be a blogger. The first thing I tell them is usually something like:

Blogs are like online journals. You can write about whatever your heart desires – be it news, fashion, television, work (but be careful!), your interesting or funny life – and use it as a tool to meet people, develop your own writing skills, start a community, you name it. You can even make a little money from it!

Of course – that last bit is the only thing people really “hear”, but what gets me sometimes – what really brings me back to Earth – is when people say, “Okay, but how do I blog?”

I do a lot of sites for actors, comics, and reality show celebrities. Most of these people are computer savvy enough to check their email and play a few games, maybe write a word document, or use excel for spreadsheets. But rarely do they understand what blogging is all about.

But you see, that’s the beauty in my job. I get to teach them.

It’s pretty well-known that I’m a die-hard WordPress fan. I use nothing else to build sites anymore, regardless of whether there is to be a blog on the site or not. It just makes life so much easier all the way around. So usually my first step is simply teaching people how to log in to their admin section, and what tabs they need to click on to create, edit, and maintain the content on their sites.

I love it – I can hear the tension in their voices over the phone as I walk them through the login process. “Anticipation is where it’s at, you know. Everything after that is gravy.” (A quote from my favorite comic – Lewis Black) My client sits there anxiously clicking on their keys to log in, and I’m hearing this pressure build up in their voices as I bring them into their admin and get them to the “Write Post” page.

They begin to write a sample post. Title… content… category checkbox. As they’re doing this, I can hear the release of tension in their voices. “Oh my god this IS easy!” I hear. I tell them it’s like riding a bicycle. Once you give in and let go – it’s a blast, and you never forget it.

They click the “Publish” button and then “view site” at the top of the page – and WHAMMO! Now I hear the smile (yes, I can hear smiles on the phone) and inevitably the word that comes out of their mouths next is, “Wowwwww…” followed by something like “Too cool!” or “I did it!”

This folks, is the best part. The gratitude, the realization on their part that they can do this, the joy of them seeing their own words in virtual print. I LOVE MY JOB!