Four more years! Four more years!

It was August 6, 2004. The Summer Olympics were about to begin in Athens. The Statue of Liberty had just re-opened for the first time since the terrorist attacks of September 11. William Hung was a national celebrity. It was a hot, humid summer day in Virginia, and I pecked my first blog post on my deck using a Sony Vaio notebook computer.

Yep. It's my fourth blog birthday. Woo hoo!

After 1461 days, 922 posts, 350-ish subscribers, and I-don't-know-how-many comments, I'm just happy to still be among the blogging. This morning, Dave Sabol asked me what I was up to by instant messenger. I replied, "moving the needle, making progress. day by day getting ahead of the curve."

And so it is with social media types. We spin our craft post by post, comment by comment, link by link, and -- more recently -- tweet by tweet.

For most of us who work like this, just having a blog doesn't mean your ticket is stamped, even if you've been at it for four years -- or longer. Far from it. It's a lot of thinking, a lot of reading, a lot of writing. But mostly, it's a lot of work and luck. I had many challenges along the way, but the rewards, financial and otherwise, have been worth it for me.

This blog has opened so many doors. From speaking at Annual Conferences, to having my picture on the cover of a magazine, to having people pay me to write, consult and speak, I never would have dreamed that I see these results from writing a stupid little blog. I really mean it when I say social media changed my life.

Thank you to everyone who reads, comments, lurks and links. I'm happy that you've given me a slice of your continuous partial attention. And if I have ever captured a moment of your full attention, I am truly honored.

So, here's to you, Certified Association Executive readers. I hope you stick around for the next four years.

photo credit

Tagged: Association Management; Associations; CAE; Certified Association Executive