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How Much to Reveal in a Blog
By Jay | January 3, 2008
A blog is a funny thing. Sometimes it seems utterly anonymous – after all, this is the internet and strangers are the ones who read my blog.
But then, it’s a small world, and what I write is out there for everyone to see, and could come back and haunt me. What if someone I know happens to come across my blog & recognizes who the author is?
I don’t like to keep a lot of secrets in my life, so am ok with self-disclosure and putting a lot of personal thoughts and issues up on the blog. I also feel that being honest about these things helps myself and can help the people who read my ramblings. Honesty is always a good thing, especially when it comes to something considered shameful, like debt. I don’t mind disclosing my debt – this is a real, tangible thing and my goal this year is to pay it off – and this blog is about the journey. It’s also my own beast to tame: no one else is responsible for my debt. If someone I know recognizes me and my debt, well so be it.
But there are things that are unwise to disclose. For example I mentioned the amount of my year-end bonus a couple weeks ago, then thought the better of it and edited the dollar amount out. It would have a negative impact on others, including my boss, if my salary or the size of my bonus got around the office. From now on I’ll refer to my income in general terms rather than specifics.
Also, I rarely write about specific people other than my partner M. He said that he’s ok with me writing about him as long as I don’t spell out his name, so I refer to him as M. (whatever good that’ll do!) Sometimes I think I need to come up with a nickname – something better than M. Hmmm…I can think of a few, but he probably wouldn’t like those much either!
In short, I have no problem revealing my thoughts and actions, my spending and budgeting, my personal struggles. But I am careful not to reveal information that could impact other people. I feel that this strikes a good balance.
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January 3rd, 2008 at 12:04 pm
I so agree with you. I too have some quandaries about how much is too much. I have pulled back a lot - my family found my blog and I have been the black sheep ever since…
January 3rd, 2008 at 12:46 pm
That’s too bad; I really liked that blog and the honesty with which you wrote about family issues in it was helpful to me in dealing with my own.
It is a tough issue to balance.
January 3rd, 2008 at 6:29 pm
for the record, i think you revealed your partners name on your December 21, 2007 blog entry. i assume it was a mistake? so im letting you know. i enjoy your blog!
January 3rd, 2008 at 7:16 pm
Woops! Thanks for catching that. I’m surprised he didn’t ;-)
January 3rd, 2008 at 9:09 pm
I too am sad - it was an outlet I really needed because, as you could probably tell, I can’t talk to them. Luckily I have gotten through the roughest part with them and have moved on…
January 3rd, 2008 at 9:18 pm
Beth, have you thought of putting up an anonymous blog where you write these things out? You could change the names of the guilty parties along with some of the details.
I’m sure you would attract interested readers: your posts were powerful, and had the stuff that great fiction is made of.
January 8th, 2008 at 9:31 pm
I’ve examined this question long and often. I started my blog as a way of getting stuff off my chest and examining how I felt about things. It wasn’t meant to be something that people who knew me read but somehow that happened and that has caused me to moderate some of what I say. I did think about starting another one but decided that I’ll stick with what I’ve got and try not to mention things that may hurt some people. It’s a balancing act.