If
you love blogging, there’s a thin line between being a hobbyist and a
professional. Passion - that what drives everyone in the blogging world to
excel in what they do. It's the same thing that I had when I started
pinoymetrogeek.blogspot.com roughly five years ago. It’s still passion that has
been driving this hobby right at this moment. But I want to shut it down.
In 2011, I started a Hobby
In 2011, I started a Hobby
The
blog started as a personal tech site which gathered attention from Philippine
tech blogosphere and yet I stayed grounded for the first three years of the
blog’s existence. In the course of five years, the blog made milestones –
awarded a Google Adsense account in my third month, bought my domain on the
first year and eventually started ranking in search engines.
I
have made my first public appearance as a blogger in 2014, exactly three years
when I started blogging, in one of the local smartphone company’s product launching
in Manila. At that time, I realized that my tech blog could make it big in tech
journalism.
In 2014,
I shared my hobby to the community
It
is also the same year that I entered Cebu blogging scene, became a member of Cebu
Blogging Community and attended local events. In 2015, I changed my perspective
about blogging and tried to do serious efforts in using the blog’s potential. I
made it far; 2015 was a big year for pinoymetrogeek.com – it was nominated in
national blogging scene, listed in the Top 10 Tech Blogs of a consumer’s
website, won Best Cebu Technology blog.
There
have been many wonderful things that happened with the blog and most of my
readers think that I’m dead-serious when it comes to blogging, that I’m doing
it 24/7, that I’m a ProBlogger. I’m not, for now.
In 2016,
I’ll shut down my Hobby
At
this standpoint, I have realized many things. If I wanted to be a Professional Blogger,
I need to literally change the way I see blogging. I need to shut down the hobby.
I’ll
shut down the generalist approach in blogging. This time I wanted to be a specialist
in helping people find the gadgets that they need.
I’ll
shut down the thought that a blog is made to inform. My blog is made to teach.
I’ll
shut down the idea that blogs are all about traffic. Engagement is now the
priority.
I’ll
shut down the barrier between the blog and its followers to make a better
community of tech enthusiasts.
I’ll
shut down the idea that my blog is just a blog. It’s my business, and it’s my
brand.
Today,
we are bloggers; and we have a choice if we will be the same kind of blogger
tomorrow. That’s why I’m shutting all systems down today and rebooting to Pro
version tomorrow.
Pinoy
Metro Geek is currently joining DigitalPro for Professional Bloggers Bootcamp for
Cebu Blogging Community powered by eStratMedia, Global Hub Executive Suites
and Globe Prepaid.
