My favourite personal blogs: 2019 edition

3 Sep 2019 06:26

I keep saying I'd like to blog more but being out of the habit means I'm lacking ideas. (Having ideas often prompts more of the same.) So, to get back into the habit, I've been browsing my own blog's archives, and writing updated versions of old posts, like my "Stuff I like" posts. This one is a collection of some of my favourite personal blogs. I'm happy to say the current list includes more women than last time (the original list was 100% male).

AnomaLily.net

Like some of my other favourite blogs, I primarily read this one for the monthly review posts. It has a focus on personal finance, but I also love hearing about Lillian's forays into ice skating, travel adventures, and efforts to balance what seems to be an endlessly growing list of jobs and responsibilities.

Josh Vickerson

Again, a blog I like for the monthly reviews. Josh is quite open in his reviews, which explore what's happening in his life as well as goal-setting, and trends in all the data he's tracking (using Exist!).

Life of a Human

Yet another blog full of monthly reviews! In fact, I found some of these blogs through my old project, which was a newsletter full of personal monthly reviews. I think one of my favourite things about reading personal blogs, and especially monthly review posts, is that you can keep up with a person's life as it unfolds.

Lindy's reviews focus on goal-setting, as well as general life happenings, and she often talks about her efforts to upskill and move forward in her career, as well as making time to practise parkour.

NZ Muse

On a completely different note, this is the blog of a new mum. I'm not a parent, nor about to be one, but these infrequent posts are general enough that I find them really interesting. They often share experiences I'd never considered or heard of, and they're not very long. I always enjoy seeing a new post from this blog in my RSS reader.

Josh Sharp

Of course, I couldn't leave out Josh's blog. Like seemingly all personal bloggers (i.e. those who don't think of themselves as "influencers" or of their blog as part of a job or "branding"), he posts infrequently. About half the time it's to share an interesting tech project, idea, or experience. The rest of the time it's his personal review of each year (no surprise that those are my favourite posts). I like his annual review format so much I ripped off a lot of it for my own reviews.

All About Balance

This blog has a personal finance focus, but the quarterly review posts include short sections on things like physical and mental health, relationships, and volunteering in the community. It's nice to get some ideas about personal finance while also getting to know the author a little each quarter.