Ok that’s a bold statement, especially since I have my own travel blog, but it’s a serious thing that I have thought about a lot because, I don’t want to be, but I probably am…
First of all, why do people write travel blogs? Having read quite a lot of ‘about’ pages and also thinking about human nature, I have a few hypotheses:
- People are narcissists and want to brag about places they have been or make out like they know more about a certain area than someone else does
- People like receiving praise for their posts, getting ‘likes’ and little dopamine hits
- People want to make money from it, and/or get free stuff
- People want to help others or inspire people to travel more
- People love travel, are passionate about it and want to write about it
Harsh? Maybe… But I mean, what is a blog anyway? It’s basically an online diary. If someone was passionate about travel and wanted to write about it, they could easily do so without publishing it. I think I fall into this category myself. I write my blog as a journal to remember, I read it a lot myself. So then… why do I publish it??? Is it because I am a narcissist?
Well… Yeah… Probably…
Humans are inherently social creatures, we share our homes, our food, our emotions, our stories with each other. Why?
There is something in all of us which searches for praise and recognition from our peers. I am not saying it’s right, wrong or 100% of us are like this, but it is an inherent part of our society. We hold competitions and give awards out in all sectors of our lives, sport, art, science, media. Being recognised for our achievements, whatever they are, is a core part of what drives us.
Put it this way, most musicians do it for their love of music, so then, why share it? Why play gigs, why release records, why have a chart? I think because they get a kick from seeing other people enjoy it, dance to it and sing along. They feel they have contributed to society in a positive way. Or maybe they just want to make money from something they are good at, I don’t know. Either way, what does it matter? If people are positively inspired by it, does it matter what the motives are?
To conclude, I think I personally, and probably 99% of travel bloggers, are all of the above. To write about something regularly requires passion of the subject, but to publish it requires a little bit of everything else. We’re all a little narcissistic and think we know best on somethings, and there’s no denying the happiness a new like or comment brings. But perhaps the most important thing to remember is this:
People write travel blogs because other people read them.
So if people read them and it brings them joy, positivity, entertainment, inspiration… then surely it doesn’t matter at all why it was written and this post is just a load of over-thinking… 🙂
Libbytes Blog 