I don't!
I long for the early days of the Internet, when you published because you wanted to, and things didn't have to be "monetized".
Yes, you do have to make a living, but let's be honest: you won't make a living "monetizing" a tech blog anyway.
I long for the early days of the Internet, when you published because you wanted to, and things didn't have to be "monetized".
Yes, you do have to make a living, but let's be honest: you won't make a living "monetizing" a tech blog anyway.
The tech blog is primarily for personal growth and may also help get you a good reputation.
The personal growth is the important part. The blog gives you practice thinking about things and writing them down. It extends your memory by building an archive of your ideas. And it is fun.
The reputation part may help you attract better job offers.
Several people have suggested writing a book. Having done this, I will say: Do not do it for the money.
There’s a really easy way to get high-quality content: pay for it so that people can make a living from it. If you aren’t willing to do that, don’t be surprised when advertising is the only business model.
PS: it's not like ads aren't payment. It's just the price to you isn't transparent and only a fraction of it ends up at the blogger compared to a real payment
The point is that unless you’re willing to pay people enough money and provide enough job security to create high-quality content, you will inevitably end up with advertising, attention-seeking, and subsidization as the main business models.
For instance, Germany and other countries funds public journalism or public infrastructure through tax or obligatory fees.
You will never be able to be willing to pay enough, because there is always someone who provides a little less value, but also wants to earn money that way. And it's not like earning enough money to make a living is enough... our system encourages growth beyond that.
The moral of this story is that if you don't monetize your content someone else certainly will.
Yes, it costs me a bit out of pocket, but it's a useful shingle to hang, a place to dump thoughts, and an easy way to reference them in the future. It's not worth the time it'd take to even make the site pay for itself (~$20/mo).
I’m privileged with a well paid job though.
No excuse not to make more money. You can start a business if you have more money and employ a bunch of not so privileged people.
The worst thing the internet had done to society is convince us that writing isn't worth paying for.
The amount of writers (journalists, novelists, etc) who have abandoned the profession these past 30 years is heartbreaking. But just as every newspaper and magazine has learned: the internet means writing is free.
Everyone is trying to make a buck and it’s harder to find passionate blogs that aren’t gaming Google’s SEO to show 100 ads. Even with woodworking or gardening I found everyone wants you to buy their videos, plans, or swag.
You hit the problem on the nail though, most people think like you and will have no problem paying hundreds of dollars in tax or subscriptions to traditional media, while staunchly refusing to pay a dime to independent online writers that they themselves read more and know are of much higher quality.