"Isn't that just a waste of people's time?" -Jon Stewart (to blogging evangelist Arianna Huffington)
Blogging is anything but a waste of time, especially if you blog about your passion, says Arianna Huffington, who appeared on the Daily Show December 3rd to talk about her new book The Huffington Post Complete Guide to Blogging. (Although Huffington only actually authored the introduction to the book, the bulk of it is by other Huffington Post writers.) "Blog your passion," Huffington responded to Stewart when he asked one of the ways that bloggers can get their blogs noticed, "blog your obvious passion and blog your secret passion."
The whole interview is entertaining and enlightening (thank you to my brother Kevin for bringing it to my attention), with Stewart playing doubting Thomas to Huffington's sincere belief in the power of the passionate poster. But the money moment of the entire show was when Huffington seemingly accidentally verbalized perhaps the best definition of blogs I've come across:
"Blogging is not about perfection. Blogging is about intimacy, immediacy, transparency, and sharing your thoughts the way you would with a friend."
And that is it, my friends. That is the power of the blog in a world that has gotten too good at polls, focus groups, and target marketing. A blog is where you go beyond all that and build authentic relationships.