To What End?
Two years, 104 posts, and what comes next
I’ve been writing this blog for two years now.
One spring day in 2024, I mentioned to the woman I was dating that I wanted to revive my blog but never seemed to have time to write. Being a writer herself, she slyly suggested we could write together each week.
One writing date led to another, that woman became my wife, and for the last two years we’ve gotten up every Saturday morning, headed to our favorite local coffee shop, and written.
Because of that, I've published something almost every Sunday for the last two years: 104 posts in all.
I owe her a debt of gratitude for helping me achieve this. And I’m grateful to all of you for reading and supporting my work.
17 years in the making
I first started Some Guy Named Rae in December 2009 but was never consistent about it. From 2009 to 2016 I only wrote 40 posts, sometimes with a year or two between them. And then life got in the way and I stopped for good (I thought).
So when I restarted in 2024, I had two goals:
Extend the conversations and lessons explored through 1:1 mentoring to a broader audience (you!), and
Do it consistently.
Two years in, I’ve accomplished both.
Some weeks it’s easy. Others, not so much. Sometimes I know exactly what I want to say; other times I’m hunting for a topic to write on.
Some posts seem to resonate strongly—like when I wrote about burnout, layoffs, and the use of the word “guys.” Others, less so.
I’m writing consistently now, but to what end? It’s been a good run, but many days I feel like I’m writing into the void.
What comes next?
Lately, I’ve found myself wanting more:
More conversation. More connection. More community.
I don’t know if it’s the monotony of doing the same thing for two years straight. Or my age and the stage of my career.
Or maybe it’s simply a symptom of our times.
In a world of one-sided conversations and AI-generated slop, I want something more … human. Perhaps you do too?
And so, as I head into year three of SGNR, I’m trying to decide what comes next.
I’m not going to stop writing, but I may not publish every week. I want to create more space to explore new ideas and experiment.
I’m thinking about all sorts of things: expanding my focus, trying different modalities, hosting a subscriber discussion board, or facilitating community conversations—to name a few.
What do you want? What would make SGNR more valuable to you?
More conversation? More interaction with other readers? Different topics? Something else entirely?
I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Cover photo credit: Dino Reichmuth on Unsplash
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I enjoy your posts. They are engaging and have a good concise message. That said, I have quite a few of them unread. Probably once or twice a month they come in and I see them when I have time to hear your voice.
Some thoughts… cowrite with someone, or interview someone,or summarize something you’ve read. And leave us with a takeaway or a question for us, like you do so well.
My wish? Keep writing. We are out here in the void. Sane commentary is gold. If you start a community discussion group I would be interested but frankly my wife yells at me all the time for getting involved in too many new things. So the one thing I know for sure is that I will always read your posts. I look forward to them on Sundays.