Monday, May 16, 2011

Are There Rules Of Following?

Well, are there? I know that in the children's game of Follow the Leader there are rules. The leader stands in the front and does things. The people behind the leader are suppose to do what they do and go where they go. There are even Follow the Leader songs. So, are there any written or unwritten rules about following a blog?

Why does one follow a blog? I follow for 2 reasons. I feel that if someone is following me, I should return the favor and follow them. I also follow a blog because I like what they are blogging about and I think they are an awesome person.

Is there more to following than just putting your name on the list? I feel it is. I think that if I am going to follow a blog I should go there and read and comment on what they have to say. I think I need to let the blog author know I am there.

So, what ARE the rules of following? When do you start and when do you stop? Thanks for your opinions on this matter. I really do want to know.
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12 comments:

Anonymous said...

Same here; I follow because in some cases it's common curtesy, epecially if you're taking part in blog hops, but I also follow because I enjoy the blog and want to keep up with updates etc.

CJ xx

Susan Anderson said...

I only follow a blog if I feel committed to reading and commenting on every post. That's the distinction for me. I don't necessarily follow everyone who follows me, because I visit and comment on every blog that's on my reader.

So, for me, it's a commitment, and I don't feel obligated to follow a person who follows me. Nor do I expect everyone I follow to follow me back. (Though I'm glad if they do!) But I recognize that they might not be as interested in my subject matter as I am in theirs.

=)

Grandma Honey said...

I really don't know. I don't get the whole following thing. I just read the blogs I like and I really don't know the difference between 'following' and reading the blog everyday. Is 'following' like making a statement?

Christie Cottage said...

I agree!

I try to comment on blogs I follow, often. I was without internet for about 2 weeks, well reliable internet and I felt like I wasn't doing my "job" by leaving comments. On Thursday I went thru and commented on blogs from the past week. Then blogger dropped all the comments left after they has their problem on Thursday. The posts were restored, but comments weren't. I spent at least 2 hours posting comments! LOL

Have a wonderful day!

<><
http://christiecottage.blogpsot.com

Becky Jane said...

I have my own private bookmarks list of the blogs I want to visit on a regular basis. I also visit the blogs of anyone commenting on my blog. Sometimes life get crazy, but I do enjoy visiting the blogs that are amazing to me...like yours!

Debby@Just Breathe said...

I ask myself this everyday. I follow well over 1,000 people. I can not possibly read everyone and I don't. I have followed because they follow or I felt some obligation. I got overwhelmed with my following. I don't make the same choices I did before. I have my favorites now. Reasons I don't follow some of the others anymore:
They don't read me ever!
They only read me because I made a comment! If I don't comment they never visit with me. This is a hard to to figure out.

I believe that blogging is about making friends, actually have a nice relationship with the people I follow. I am trying hard to be the best friend I can be.

Team Chastain said...

I follow blogs that have something of interest to me. Every now and then I need to go through and pare things down, though. I tend to be interested in a lot LOL -- and end up following way too many to keep up with.

Trudy said...

I feel the way Sue does. Although I visit and comment on more blogs than just the ones that I officially follow.

Kim said...

This is a tough one. I don't follow blogs, but I do subscribe to the ones I like through my Google reader. Because I am extremely limited on time I keep the number of blogs I read to only 20. I am great at reading, but terrible at commenting--the pressure to say just the right thing is too much!

For what it's worth, you're one of my 20!

Rachael said...

I am not a follower. I get overwhelmed with writing my own blog so I don't want to feel like I have to commit to following... maybe that is rude but, I don't mean for it to be. I mostly blog to release stress and laugh... so I guess I am selfish, but, I do read your blog. You are very honest :)

Candace said...

There is no way that I can read all of the blogs that I follow every day. Lately, I can't even read the ones consistently that are my favorites...like yours! Life has just been too busy with the move. I don't feel that I have any obligation to follow someone because they follow mine. If someone follows my blog just to get me to follow theirs so that there numbers go up then they have followed the wrong blog. I want followers that want to be there because we can connect on a personal level and not because they want to play some kind of numbers game. That's just me though. I'm certainly aware that not all of the people who have signed up to "follow" along with me actually do. I could go on about this.... :)

Kerri said...

I'm not sure either! I can't possibly comment on all the blogs I love...I simply don't have time! But if I"m following, at least I have a list I can go to and pick a few to go to. And I always try to comment on those who comment on mine. I think that's more important than the "following" thing.