I'm no longer anonymous - Blogging Anonymously or Publicly

Lately, it seems like every single day someone who I know finds out about my blog. Now, EVERYONE knows, besides the people who I work with. I need to keep it that way for now…

I say that I’m no longer anonymous because all of my friends know, and because I am easy to search on Google. I’ve also started posting more and more pictures everyday. I also plan on sharing our engagement photos once those are ready. The engagement photos will be my first official photos released on my blog that show my face. I know, you guys cannot wait at all. The suspense is killing you!

I am completely joking of course 🙂 Also, sprinkled throughout this post are comments of what readers said in my last Should I still be anonymous post.

The other day, we were over at W’s friend’s house and his friend said “Hey Michelle, I heard you have some writing thing going on.” And also recently, someone ambushed me (of course I am using that term loosely!) and showed me my blog on their phone. ON THEIR PHONE! What was I supposed to say?

And then just last week, I received an email from a reader, and she was telling me that my blog is helpful. We then started talking back and forth and she actually went to the same high school as me, and she lives in the same town as me! Small world, right? I feel like I have nowhere to run now!

Everyone knows about my blog now. W’s parents asked me for my blog URL the other day, and my friends have found it all also. Probably doesn’t help that you can just type in “Michelle finance blog” and it’s on the first page!

I have W to blame for all of this.

He kept blabbing to everyone and everyone kept asking him for hints about my blog. Of course he gave enough hints and now everyone knows about it! Even though everyone knows, I honestly don’t think too many people read it. Not too many people have really brought up anything that I have talked about in a blog post.

Haha, but that is a good thing. I like not feeling like I am always hiding from everyone. Yes, I do not have any direct pictures of my face up yet, but I still want to be safe when it comes to my job. However, I am friends with many bloggers on Facebook and on my personal Instagram, so many of you already know what I look like. And most of you already know my last name.

I was anonymous in the beginning because I used my blog as a way to vent about the things going on in my life – the passing of my dad, the horrible things someone else in my family did, and so on. It was easy to talk about things on here, but now I’m moving past all of that, so it only seems normal to be public now.

Positives of being more public:

I’m not as mysterious. I’ve heard a lot of people say that they would rather read a blog where the person is open about who they are. Well, this is something that I am working on. I can’t wait until I make the 100% freelancing switch and am then able to post awesome pictures of myself everyday 😛
I don’t feel like I’m hiding from my friends and family. This is number one on my list. I felt like I was living a double life for so long. Now, I talk about my blog so often that they are probably annoyed.
It’s more fun! And it’s easier to blog publicly. I’m no longer trying to hide things that could potentially reveal who I am.

Risks of being public with my blog:

Financials are now public. Do I really want to post our net worth on my blog anymore? What about my extra income updates and things about our jobs?
Certain things that I’ve said about my family and the situations that I gone through have been edited. I would hate for you-know-who to see what I’ve written. Even though she is in the wrong and has done absolutely horrible things to me, and I am in the right, I would hate to go down that direction and open everything back up. Right now, I am just moving on going forward in life…
Nothing is private. This is a given. Everyone will know everything about my life now!
Of course, there is always the risk that my work will find my blog and read my passion or money post. That would be an awkward conversation…

Are you anonymous or public? What would you prefer to do and why?

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Comments

Brad says
June 19, 2013 at 8:19 am
My website is extremely new but this is definitely something I struggled with from the outset. I initially included our last name on the site, but I almost immediately removed it after further review.
If all goes well we’ll make a name for ourselves in the Richmond, VA area, so I suspect (and hope?) our anonymity will short-lived in that regard.
In any event, it’s really courageous of you to come forward publicly and I thoroughly enjoyed this article and your site (this is my first visit).
- Michelle says
  June 19, 2013 at 6:43 pm
  Thank you Brad 🙂
Tina @ My Shiny Pennies says
June 19, 2013 at 8:36 am
I’m anonymous because like you and others have said, it allows to vent freely about what’s happening in my life. If I were in a bigger city, I may consider going public since the chances of running into someone I know are lower.
- Michelle says
  June 19, 2013 at 6:44 pm
  Very true Tina!
Savvy Financial Latina says
June 19, 2013 at 10:09 am
I blog anonymously. Or I try to anyways.
I want to set up a public blog that’s related to operations research/business analysis. It’s in the pipeline. I will leverage this to build my brand.
- Michelle says
  June 19, 2013 at 6:44 pm
  That sounds great. You should do that!
Frugal(er) says
June 19, 2013 at 3:12 pm
I’m anonymous still and unlikely to change, though my closest friends know about the blog and read it. I think it’s a bit more freeing to at least be semi-anonymous, but the real reason I do it is because I’m a public employee and just don’t want random folks talking to me about my money. I personally don’t like to be photographed and will most likely never put a picture of myself online (except my private facebook) because I’ve had far, far too many creepy men think that I am their friend to risk having them know more about me than I tell them face-to-face. But on the other hand, I love reading blogs where people post pictures of themselves and you really feel a part of their lives. Maybe I’ll change someday…
- Michelle says
  June 19, 2013 at 6:45 pm
  Thanks 🙂
simple living says
June 20, 2013 at 1:44 am
Great article and I think many bloggers, especially beginners struggle with being anonymous or not. I guess it comes down to a persons comfort level with putting them self out there. For those who are anonymous in the beginning, I think their views change after they have blogged for a while and slowly start to use their actual profile over time.
Jacob @ iHeartBudgets says
June 20, 2013 at 12:54 pm
I’ve been public since the beginning, and it is kind of a bummer that I have to limit myself on posting certain things. I can’t talk about my job, my income, or a handful of other things, but I do like putting a face to a blog to get a sense of personality and it really does make it more relatable. Glad you’ve decided to come out! 🙂
John@MoneyPrinciple says
June 20, 2013 at 5:28 pm
We started out semi-anonymous but have come out some time ago. It is difficult to write a blog as an inconnu. Much easier and more engaging for the reader if they think there is a real person behind the blog who is not afraid to be seen….
thepotatohead says
June 22, 2013 at 12:20 am
We are sorta anonymous. We use pseudonyms on the website, but anyone that has emailed has gotten our real name. And we’ve told friends and family. So not exactly public knowledge, but not trying to be completely hidden. I think it would be weird though for someone in the office to know about the blog, so mainly trying to keep that at a minimum.
Peter says
June 27, 2013 at 5:37 pm
Great article and I find that people who are anonymous when they add comments, change how they comment and give more value after they become public and slowly start to use their actual profile to validate what they have to say. I am also a blogger on debt free living and totally agree with the idea of being public with your comments. My site http://www.simplylivingdebtfree.com/blog/ also promotes open comments, so should you have any advice or comments on debt consolidation, or debt free living articles I write, I would be happy to receive them.