Originally posted on Alpha Development blog

Why I started blogging

“You are a web developer, why bother writing blogs? You can use the time you spend writing blogs with developing applications, instead.” I often hear that among my friends, and yes, they may have a point; writing blogs is often time-consuming, and all these precious time spent could be utilized to hone my expertise. But, being a developer or an expert is not all that simple.

Almost all developers I know are bloggers, too. Blogging is not all about writing and sharing opinions; blogging is often both teaching and learning. Being able to keep up with this constantly changing world is a very important trait for a developer to have. We must always be ready to accept and adapt with constant and often unforeseen changes. Writing articles for the tech world allows writers not only to share invaluable knowledge to aspiring developers, but also to help grow their expertise on these topics.

We must note that writing the actual words is only 10% of the whole process. The other 90% is a long time of researching, analysis and processing these raw data into valuable information. This 90% helps the author to question his own knowledge, challenge it and improve it. It is in this 90% where the author is able to expand and grow what he currently knows, and learn more on what he does not know. Moreover, as I said earlier, techs and practices often change in this field, and writing about a certain topic will often lead into new discoveries.

“If you just want to expand your knowledge, why bother writing about it?” Well, you got a point, again. In a field where it’s getting saturated day by day, it is often hard to distinguish between who knows things and who **really* knows things*. So, what is the easiest way to show people that you are knowledgeable about something? You talk about it. How do you talk about something in the web? You write about it. Talking about things you know best often give potential clients or employers an overview regarding the level of your expertise. Blogging may, sometimes, separate you from competition.

Finally, blogging also helps in creating valuable connections with other developers. Blogging helps you share a bond with other people, by essentially talking to them through writing and story-telling. Connections, in any field, are as important as one’s skills. You need connections to find yourself walking through the right opportunities. Being knowledgeable and skilled is not enough to build a career, you need to be at the right doors, and at the right time. Even if you are the best developer that exists, if no one knows who you are, you only become the best developer in your world.

Blogging is part of being a developer. As a developer you need to continuously learn, network and sell yourself to the world. Blogging allows developers to share a part of themselves to the world. And most importantly, and as you may have realized by now, blogging may sometimes be the deciding factor if there will be food on a struggling developer’s table or not.

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