I started this blog project for two primary reasons: 1) to improve my communication and articulation abilities and 2) to hold myself accountable. Now that I’ve consistently posted for 2 years and published more than 100 posts, it’s time for me to reflect on the value of this website.
What is the value of my blog posts and this website?
Honestly, I think that my blog posts provide very little value for other people. On the other hand, I’ve experienced tremendous personal growth. I have improved my writing, communication, and articulation abilities, as well as my confidence in these areas. Additionally, these posts have sparked interesting conversations with friends, they provide a great reference for the future, and they hold myself accountable to read regularly and understand what I read. Despite these benefits, my blog posts are mostly self-indulgent. There is no theme to my blog posts, and they are not targeted towards a specific group of people. Topics include business, technology, religion, psychology, and more. I think that this lack of cohesion makes it difficult for readers to stay engaged. Most of my readers are family and friends who are simply interested in what I’m doing.
How can I improve the value? And, is it worth it?
One way to improve the value of my posts is to write about a consistent theme, such as religion, aerospace, energy, business, or technology. Op-eds are another option for attracting readers and improving my communication ability. Regardless, to increase the value of my website, I think that I need to create a consistent theme, and post regular content related to that theme.
Additionally, my website is not easy to navigate. There are approximately 100 posts, and they are not organized in any particular way. Therefore, I should organize them into categories and make it easier to find content. This also means that I need to improve the general layout.
A few specific theme ideas:
Summary of all Books of the Bible, and applications to business world
Current news in the clean energy industry
Op-eds about clean energy (or aerospace) technologies and events
I can transition to writing op-eds about aerospace, energy, or religious topics. Another idea is to focus my website on understanding the Books of the Bible, or posting summaries of news/events in the energy industry (I don’t think anything exists for this yet). Do I want my website to be more religious focused or industry focused?
How can I improve the website layout?
Group posts into categories. Create a different theme. Keep the lego theme? Create a color scheme?
Category ideas:
Technology and science
Religion
Nonfiction
Business and self-help
How do you stay up-to-date with current technologies in the aerospace and energy industries?
Aerospace:
AIAA Daily Launch
Wall Street Journal
CNN
CNBC
Washington Post
Reuters
Aviation Week
SPACE
FlightGlobal
Aviation International News
Bloomberg
Space News
Energy:
RenewableEnergyWorld.com
ScienceDaily.com
CNBC