i only recently became involved in the personal finance blogging community. i have blogged on various other topics in my personal life from motorcycling to japanese culture for several years. although my friends and some family may have read a few posts here and there, for the most part i blogged alone.

however, when i became more aware and conscientious about my financial situation and frustrations, i was simultaneously amazed and intimidated by the plethora of blogs that were out here written by all kinds of people from college students to working dads. no longer does it seem one can really ‘blog alone’ even if s/he wanted to. in this world of web 2.0 and online communities, the blogging world is in fact a very social place.

i am by nature relatively reserved and keep to myself, but in this world of carnivals and networks, things work differently. since it is online and i can write and read from the comfort and anonymity of my bedroom, i can still have my quiet time while interacting with others.

being relatively new to the money writing scene, admittedly i still felt initially ‘alone’. but in my desire to contribute, share, connect, and learn about all things finance, i have been relatively aggressive about becoming involved:

• i immediately participated in a handful of PF blog carnivals from the carnival of debt reduction to the carnival of money stories
• i have sought out members for a new support mini-network on debt reduction called the Debt Bloggers Network.
• i have initiated a new carnival to fill a specific sort of ‘niche’ under the guise of the Carnival of Financial Resources.
• i have joined various groups such as the wpersonalfinance, forums such as pfbuzz, and combined feed sites such as pfblogs.
• i immediately started to poke around on the finwikian (or the money wiki), left some comments across various fellow bloggers’ sites, and volunteered to host upcoming editions of others’ carnivals.

in less than a month, i have been quite busy! and enjoying myself tremendously.

this is superbly fun. and it is fun because of the people who participate and those i am communicating with through comments, e-mails, and forums. it is fun because i am ‘meeting’ new peeps and making online pals. because i am connecting with others who are as enthusiastic as i am (if not more) about everything finance, are supportive, informative, and encouraging. we are all so different from our writing styles to our writing locations, and yet we all want the same thing: to cultivate our personal finance knowledge and ‘fu’.

liberta advised recently on finding a mentor or friend or two to help us with our financial goals. in Make a Friend francois writes,

it is a lot easier to become financially free, if you have a friend or two with whom to share the journey and exchange encouragement, support and advice along the way

.. don’t tackle your journey in isolation. Surround yourself with people who are also passionate about freedom and working wisely with money. Give and get support and encouragement from them.

It is amazing how much easier a difficult thing becomes, when you share it with a friend.

i heartily agree.  not only have i been having fun, but i have also been making good progress on my financial goals, reducing my debt and increasing my wealth. certainly some of this could happen (and have in the past) without a network or an online support community.  but i know that socializing in the personal finance world has helped and enhanced the experience quite a bit (and not necessarily directly related to money issues only).

he also mentions,

Blogging has a few advantages, but blogging is not for everyone. If it will not work for you, you can also find friends who are passionate about financial freedom in other places.

speaking of ‘other places’, in Saving Can Be Social over at savingadvice, the author offers various ideas on how one can make the task of saving more fun by making it more social.  she points out that people don’t really want to save because it’s not fun, while spending is (shopping, dining out,..).  the social component is key.

most of the ideas listed don’t personally excite me at first glance, although when i think about it, i am in fact participating in those ‘clubs’ in a different form — online!  for instance, isn’t participating in the carnival of debt reduction like joining a debt reduction club?  or, the festival of frugality kind of like a ‘budgeting club’?  and by signing up for e-mail subscriptions with jo-ann’s fabrics (thereby receiving regular coupons), i’ve joined a ‘coupon club’?  then i’m pretty much an example of someone making progress with her financial dreams with the help of socializing.

we’ve heard from various sources and learned from personal experiences that human beings are social creatures. we want to have fun, and generally with others. how wonderful that blogging personal finance issues allows us to not only seek the ‘companionship’ of others, but also provides a source of entertainment.  and finally, of course, gives us that extra push to achieve our financial goals.

what do you think?

if you too are a blogger, have you found that socializing with others has not only been fun, but also helpful with your finances-related endeavors?