A Blog Award and Why Blogging Community Rocks

The last time I was looking to switch jobs within my company, I focused on one factor: the people. Not the project or the organization or even the position so much as the people. I passionately believe that if I were in the company of people that I could trust and appreciate, I would perform at my absolute best. People, I decided, make all the difference in one’s happiness and productivity at the workplace. And I was lucky enough to find a team made up of the best people.

My principle applies yet again when it comes to the blogging community. The blogging journey is very similar to the career journey. While blogging in and of itself is a fantastic vocation and profession, the blogging community – the people, the bloggers, the writers, the authors, the creators, the editors, the readers – truly make the experience worth the effort. It is the people behind those blogs and their earnestness which are quintessential to the process and to the rewards which follow. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.

It is with the same earnestness that I want to thank Desert Book Chick for the Beautiful Blogger Award.

There are 6 steps to accept the Beautiful Blogger Award (1-3 is already done up above):

1)      Thank the person who nominated me for this award.

2)      Copy the award & place it on my blog.

3)      Link to the person who nominated me for this award.

4)      Tell us 7 interesting things about yourself.

5)      Nominate 7 bloggers.

6)      Post links to the 7 blogs I nominate.

On the 7 interesting things about me:

1. I fantasize about living in the early 1500s only to catch a glimpse of Leonardo da Vinci‘s exquisite hands paint the Last Supper, the Mona Lisa, or my favorite: Ginvera de’Benci. I think, and read and obsess about Leonardo da Vinci and the genius that he was, and the timeless beauty which he created.

2. I love the rain – I still remember how I used to walk under the rain to school in Iran. I’d walk over the wet autumn leaves and silently wish and dream to live in the US one day so I can walk over wet American leaves instead!

3. When I buy new clothes and gorgeous shoes, I keep them in my closet and on the shelves for days and weeks before using them. I find it impossible to immediately wear a new pair of shoes or a new piece of clothing. It almost has to “settle” in my closet first.

4. I love new things and quickly grow tired of old cars, appliances, clothes, and electronics – but I love to age with my friends. I crave friendship that ages over time, and there is nothing I would want more than to keep my friendships intact over the years and decades.

5. I am still trying to find my true path in life. I have more questions than answers than when I were 20, an age when I was quite certain I have it all figured out for myself.

6. Nothing can keep me more engaged than stories about my past or my family’s past. I have a longing for the past that is incomprehensible and incurable.

7. I have a ridiculously brilliant younger brother – this makes me interesting by association! Younger than me by over a decade, I am often nursing a headache after our casual conversations, be it on the aesthetics and history of wine, the theories of astrophysics, the science behind Google’s Search Engine Optimization, the compositional details of his latest music, or the psychological challenges of an older sister dealing with a younger poster child sibling.

On Nominating 7 other Bloggers:

1. Dragos Roua: Dragos has weaved an amazing tapestry of self-improvement and motivation articles, all in highly great detail, depth and breadth. He is one of the best minds in the niche, and articulates difficult concepts beautifully with masterful analogies. He is kind, compassionate, unique, and has even started to do audio podcasts, much to my delight.

2. Timeless Information: Armen is gifted with the best sense of humor and creativity both in his blog and in all his commentary. Timeless information is filled with useful, practical knowledge and honest information and experiences on personal issues and on developing a keen and sharp mind to tackle them.

3. Change your thoughts, Change your Life: Steven has powerful content, articles that can change your mindset and therefore your actions and consequently your life. He has shared some very personal endeavors and writes thought-provoking articles on goals, habits and beliefs, just to name a few areas.

4. From Bottom Up: I remember being completely engrossed in Hulbert’s Sylvester Stallone back story. I left the blog with an indelible impression on the actor and a renewed sense of motivation and courage for life. Hulbert takes on the experiences and backgrounds of the select rich and famous and draws us into their journey, sharing with us the lessons of their success.

5. Big Girl Branding: Cori runs a daring, sassy, unpredictably fun blog with the most resourceful articles. She puts a new spin on internet marketing and writes with practical and direct approach, sometimes extremely direct, which makes it all so good. Her sense of humor forgives her a lot! She is awesome.

6. Almost Fearless: Christine’s story resonated with me immediately. Her fearless approach to a big change of career pushed her into a huge dive into the blogging world. This change has saved and transformed her, affording her a life of travel around the world doing what she loves. She writes with a personal story-telling approach and connects with her readers well.

7. Free Style Mind: Oscar’s blog is impressive; he is himself forever improving his own habits and ways of life, and sharing them in a creative style with his readers. From waking up at dawn to managing your money better to a useful reading list, you will find not only excellent content but much authenticity in his words.

This was a fun and tough exercise. Writing on the 7 interesting things about me was unusually hard but not as difficult as narrowing down a long list of fabulous bloggers whom I follow to a mere seven. The best part of getting this fun little award is in giving it away 7 times over, and being ever so grateful for the nomination. The blogging community rocks!

So please share your thoughts in the comments, and please introduce us to other fabulous bloggers out there, including yourself if you maintain a blog.

Tagged as: blogging, gratitude, networking, self-improvement

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