I’m sure there are hundreds (if not thousands) of articles on the web about why one should (or shouldn’t) blog, but I think this is a very personal question. For me, the first (but not the only) reason is that I want to consume less and create more. Of course, blogging is something I’ve thought about for a long time and this article was the straw that filled the camel’s stomach.

I also feel the only way to write better and more comfortably is to write, and blogging is a natural and fun form of writing. I think it lends itself to the 15-30 minute chunks that I’m planning to invest. I tried Twitter a few months ago as way to scratch my blogging itch and the experience confirmed for me that tweeting isn’t writing. Even my tiny attention span is too long for Twitter.

But these two goals could have been accomplished with a personal journal. That didn’t feel right either, because I also aspire to providing entertaining, useful, and inspiring content, though achieving just one or two of these at a time is probably a more achievable goal. Having an audience also has perks: It’s a great incentive to not put out junk. You don’t even need an audience to get this benefit–just a potential audience. I’m also looking forward to hearing occasional feedback on stuff I write.

So what’s on the horizon? To be honest, this might be one of those projects I start that fizzles almost immediately. I almost named this Ghost Blog in honor of that possibility. But instead, I went with a more optimistically descriptive title because I have eclectic plans for this space. And while this is most definitely not a purely professional blog, I don’t plan to write anything that will prevent me from holding elected office.