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What to blog, or what not to blog? That is the question.

I recently received a question from an entrepreneur about how to start blogging. He saw me posting last week at a conference, and shared how he’s always wanted to write. However, he wasn’t sure how. One of the questions he asked was about blogging at a “personal” level or at the “company” level. I’m interpreting this as if he should blog on the company website about company interests, or on a personal blog about personal things (company interests, too).
As always, I’d say, “it depends.” Though, he added that his goal was for his company to succeed – “whatever leads that way would be great”.
Knowing he’s new to blogging and has a direct motive to help the company, he should write on his company’s blog about his company’s interests for a couple reasons. First, it’s clear he wants to grow the company’s presence and brand first. Given he’s the CEO, his personal brand will be tied to the company at this stage anyways.
Second, starting out blogging is simple. The difficulty is being consistent. It’s important for him to start very focused with his company’s blog with a dedicated cadence and focus. A personal blog (like this one) is great to develop personal branding and attract followers to the grander purpose.  Again, being the founder and CEO, his company will be tied to his personal brand anyways.
Even if his personal brand was very strong today, he’s starting out a blog. If he was a thought leader, he would still be starting this from the ground up. In this way, I still suggest writing for the company, and share his posts with his network.
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Starting with A Small Plastic Piece, The Effect of One Ever-lasting Brand

Recently, I played with my 3-year-old niece with a toy that I even had growing up, and it’s as great as it’s ever been. I remember when I started playing with the toy when I was closer to 8 or 10 years old. So to watch my niece play with it at such a young age was fascinating. This toy has been around for ages. It’s got a strong following with collectors, movie goers, theme park visitors, and more. That toy? Legos.
I want to take a moment and appreciate Legos. The company, The Lego Group, started manufacturing the plastic toys back in 1949. The company and its original form as wooden toys started in 1932 by Ole Kirk Christiansen. Per Brand Finance, Legos is the most powerful brand in the world today.
These simple interconnecting blocks and mini-figurines captivated my niece. I, in turn, was captivated watching her play with them. Here’s what I noticed:
  • Builds observant and analytical skills. My niece studied a flash card of a model dog to assemble. Perhaps I’m not giving her or young kids enough credit. But yet, it was amazing to watch her study the picture and search for the right pieces. She observed the shape, color, how they fit together, etc.
  • Cultivates creativity. My niece also assembled several ice cream cones stacked with various “flavors” and toppings. She was experimenting with different color schemes while role-playing an ice cream vendor. It was fun.
  • Motivated persistence. I wasn’t sure how my niece would react when the pieces didn’t quite fit together the first time. In fact, I was ready to jump in when they didn’t fit together immediately. I didn’t. Instead, she would pull the pieces away, observe the alignment, then try again. She would fidget with the pieces till they lined up perfectly and fit together.
  • Encourages bigger, more fascinating dreams. Lego pieces are, for the most part, simple and small. My niece knows she can assemble these small pieces and build something fascinating.

Few brands come to mind with such a powerful, meaningful effect on people from an early age. It’s amazing to see how Legos continue to evolve. They not only stay relevant, but they stay at the top of today’s culture.

That’s the dream, right? To build something so great and so influencing that impacts so many for so long…
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