What does it mean to have an integrated life, and why is it something worth striving for? This is the question I will be answering here, at least for myself. Today is as good a day as any to start to assess my life objectively (of course that’s impossible) and to try to break through the layers of self-deception that prevent me from living a truly integrated life.

I think I am a normal person. I have a wife and kids, a dog, and a mortgage. By today’s standard I am very religious, though I do my best to blend into society. I have spent my career mostly in software product management, a lucrative and intellectually stimulating field. I have a few unique or unusual interests that my career has enabled me to pursue: I am a pilot, I like to ride motorcycles, I like to climb mountains. I also have dabbled in creating art, but just for me.

What does it mean to live an integrated life when so much of what I do is compartmentalized? Work, church, family, hobbies – I have portioned off different parts of my life for my several pursuits. Do I have an integrated life if they never mix? What is the drawback of keeping them compartmentalized? I honestly want to find out.

This is an example post, originally published as part of Blogging University. Enroll in one of our ten programs, and start your blog right.

You’re going to publish a post today. Don’t worry about how your blog looks. Don’t worry if you haven’t given it a name yet, or you’re feeling overwhelmed. Just click the “New Post” button, and tell us why you’re here.

Why do this?

• Because it gives new readers context. What are you about? Why should they read your blog?
• Because it will help you focus you own ideas about your blog and what you’d like to do with it.

The post can be short or long, a personal intro to your life or a bloggy mission statement, a manifesto for the future or a simple outline of your the types of things you hope to publish.

To help you get started, here are a few questions:

• Why are you blogging publicly, rather than keeping a personal journal?
• What topics do you think you’ll write about?
• Who would you love to connect with via your blog?
• If you blog successfully throughout the next year, what would you hope to have accomplished?

You’re not locked into any of this; one of the wonderful things about blogs is how they constantly evolve as we learn, grow, and interact with one another — but it’s good to know where and why you started, and articulating your goals may just give you a few other post ideas.

Can’t think how to get started? Just write the first thing that pops into your head. Anne Lamott, author of a book on writing we love, says that you need to give yourself permission to write a “crappy first draft”. Anne makes a great point — just start writing, and worry about editing it later.

When you’re ready to publish, give your post three to five tags that describe your blog’s focus — writing, photography, fiction, parenting, food, cars, movies, sports, whatever. These tags will help others who care about your topics find you in the Reader. Make sure one of the tags is “zerotohero,” so other new bloggers can find you, too.