Ten things I’ve gained and learned from nearly a year of blogging

I started this blog in January this year because I enjoy writing and wanted to take it more seriously. I also felt that I had something to add on topics that weren’t being covered anywhere else.

The experience has been rewarding, exciting and unexpected:

1. Interviewing my fundraising peers has developed valuable and insightful relationships with colleagues across the profession.
2. The blog helped me develop an online portfolio of writing, which will support my ambitions as a writer of both fiction and non-fiction.
3. It’s directly led to a paid commission in the charity trade press.
4. I’ve been involved in influencing policy at the Institute of Fundraising.
5. The fact I have an online platform of my own has made it easier to quit social media – something I’ll be writing more about in future.
6. It’s given me something to think about and work on while on maternity leave.
7. When writing a blog, it’s important to have a unique angle. I have plenty of opinions on GDPR, for example, but didn’t feel like I had anything new to add to the existing conversation.
8. I’m grateful to my employer for being supportive of my writing, and am glad I discussed this with them at an early stage. In addition, it’s important to maintain a distinction between my writing here and the work I do for my employer.
9. It’s led to surprising outcomes. My writing on blockchain was picked up by a Reddit thread that’s critical of Bitcoin (r/buttcoin) and led to hundreds of non-fundraisers viewing my site. And it turns out I was quoted on Breitbart over a year ago (I only discovered this yesterday, not being a regular reader of Breitbart for reasons which are hopefully obvious, and I’m not going to link to their article!). Thankfully, though, no trolls.
10. The fundraising community is incredibly friendly, supportive and civil online.

So, if you’re thinking of writing and adding to the conversation on fundraising, charities and/or life in general, I would definitely encourage you. I’m excited about how my work as a fundraiser, my writing, and my ambitions in general develop over the next year.