The thing about useful stuff is: My 500th post

My 500th post - a pause for reflection Wednesday, June 13, 2007

When I started blogging here on June 22 2006, I didn't start out with any particular agenda or expectations. In part, I wanted a scratchpad to record thoughts about interesting stuff I found on the web. I'd also learnt much from other blogs which had unselfishlessly shared the things they'd found, their opinions and news.

I never anticipated that I would complete 500 post in less than 12 months, nor that I would meet so many great people, some purely as a consequence of blogging. Nor that I would encounter so many great apps and witness so much innovation.

In looking back, the pace at which things go "mainstream" has continued to accelerate. Many features I blogged about a year ago, are now considered obvious "must have" features, having quickly moved from cutting edge. Perhaps that is why so many apps have begun to look "samey" and "me too". Far fewer apps of late have left me thinking "Wow", and motivated to blog about them, but that may just be that I am becoming more selective.

I'm definitely skimming posts on Google Reader at a faster rate and drilling into less these days. Again, I'm perhaps more selective (or have to omany feeds) but am I becoming more blase about content? Perhaps.

It's also true that a couple of ventures I'm involved in have led me to post more about certain subject e.g. music (these will be announced soon), and which may have led me to stray "off topic".

However, the best thing from the last year is having encountered some ventures and entrepreneurs that have gone on to enter mainstream consciousness, about which I can say "hey, I knew them before they were big!". Some of them I confess have shocked me with their success but others were clearly destined for great things.

One such person clearly destined for success was Kieran O'Neill, who I met around the time I began blogging. He and 3 chums had travelled up from Bath University for the first drinks party that Techcrunch held in the UK. They were hoping to meet Arrington and to network with "the right people". It was held in a crowded bar in Soho and by chance we struck up a conversation. An impressive guy, Kieran told us about his venture, Holy Lemon. Well, BBC News is carrying a report here about him and his sale of that business. We've bumped into each other a number of times since, which has always been a pleasure. I'm delighted for him and for those others too numerous to mention that have taken their dream and made it happen. Being amongst these people here in London is a joy and a privilege. They are why I'm looking forward to the next 12 months.

posted by John Wilson @ 10:11 PM Permanent Link newsvine reddit