Blogging is something that I have wanted to do for a long time. Being an avid writer, I have filled a number of notebooks with random thoughts that I wanted to revisit at a later date. The problem with that is, there is no easy way to find what you are looking for, or to easily keep track of progress. The same problems emerged with regard to starting a blog, as I attempted to compartmentalize everything in an attempt to better organize my thoughts. Just as specific social networks exist for specialized purposes (professional networking, connecting with family, casual hook-ups, etc.), I found myself being hyper-aware of the content that I was looking to produce, and spending a lot of time trying to decide where exactly it should reside. Nearly 30 domains later, I finally feel like I am starting to put it all together.
Before now, the concept of informal learning and the development of tacit knowledge through doing were all but lost, as I was not participating in the act of blogging. While operating under anonymity is one way to bypass these concerns, personally, I feel that it is important to provide transparency into who is actually behind the words. My most publicly visible website is AaronHagenbuch.com, and this functions as a way of owning my online identity. When people Google me, I want the results to reflect an accurate representation of myself. This site also functions as an online portfolio that showcases professional interests that may not belong to one specific vertical.
Merging these independent pieces is what I am attempting to do with Hagenbuch Loop, as my interests are quite varied and ever-growing. From educational, personal and professional pursuits, I am the common bond that holds these worlds together from my unique perspective. Under this unified umbrella of combined concepts, it is possible to start seeing how each one influences the other, and to make more positive strides toward personal understanding. The opportunity to share my passions and perspectives in a digital format for everybody to access is one of my biggest motivations behind this blog, and I am hoping to better grasp the reasons that other individuals choose blogging as their primary form of expression.
