Blogging blogs....

Before founding Onus Consulting Group, I maintained a passive interest in blogs. Reading them... but always with a grain of salt. My thoughts were that anybody could set up 'shop' and write about pretty much whatever they wanted. Even then, I admired it as an effective means to collect general sentiment to whatever subject I was reading up on. Blogs, like most great ideas, started quite modestly. In 1999, a college student, Brad Fitzpatrick, wanted his high school chums to keep up with how he was doing and founded LiveJournal. Before this, there was no evidence that the general public was comfortable sharing the personal details of their life or attitudes on certain topics online. The success of this sort of transparency was unprecedented in our increasingly privacy-conscious society.

Now, as the writer of one, there has been a stronger drive to find great blogs that aid the personal finance acumen of Canadians. Talking about my experiences as I encounter them and thoughts, only helps so much [if I do acknowledge so myself]. As the founder of Onus Consulting Group, there is a stronger incentive for me to speak of issues that relate to the services of the firm. At times, this can hinder the multi-dimensional perspective the reader seeks.

What do I suggest? Some of the most efficient and powerful blogs in the blogosphere dealing with personal finance are the ones that are written by journalists. Particularly, consumer advocate, Ellen Roseman, of the Toronto Star (http://www.ellenroseman.com/). This individual has virtually created a legacy for herself by fighting for the rights of individuals who have grievances with companies. Her genuine 'do-gooder' attitude is incredibly refreshing and really resonates with her readers. As I, myself, found myself doing this weekend when friends lamented to me about being cut off an all-you-can-eat sushi dinner, I found myself saying: "Write Ellen Roseman." Her manner of asking questions does a terrific job of engaging her audience. This is, especially, exemplified with the consistently strong number of comments she draws.

The National Post's Jonathan Chrevreau is another great example of a well done personal finance blog (www.wealthyboomer.ca). However, it is for different reasons. Rather than the casual aura of the blogosphere, the dynamic of his blog, entitled the Wealthy Boomer, reads more like an extension of his articles. The content of his material is incredibly useful. Not just to the wealthy boomer. Or any boomer, for that matter. But, for any Canadian looking for insight into the retail investment industry. In that regard, his blog is much more focussed than that of Ellen, who will write about a host of topics. Additionally, his video blog features interviews with some of the notable players in financial services. Its presence drew my envy, as he has made a remarkable use of this medium.

In conclusion, it is refreshing to see newspapers give their journalists discretion over what to write about....a quality I find is rare to be commended. This is not to say that the average joe talking of their experiences or the founder of a company talking of issues that relate to the services of his or her firm will not be useful to you. It just must be noted that adding blogs by able journalists, such as the two featured, to your blog reading can represent a very successful upgrade of your personal finance knowledge.

'Z'