A Case For that Yellow Badge on the right

Why?

There are three main ways you'll react to the yellow badge. One: "Hey, why does The Tony Tay have that (lame) yellow badge saying he's a certified blogging course graduate?? I'd ask him but then people would think I also want the (lame) badge." Or two, which is more likely: "What?? What yellow badge are we talking about?". Just look over to your right and you'll see it. This case however is here because the badge deserves the third reaction: "Whoa, cool badge! I should click this badge and see what happens. Where did Tonyeli get it from? I want me a badge like that for my blog!", or something along those lines.

 

So what are you saying?

There's a reason the badge is there, and the reason is this guy: John Sonmez. 

I first had the idea to start my blog about a year ago, and as expected, I thought about how cool it would be, before promptly forgetting about it. And I thought about again sometime later, and again, and again, each time without doing anything about it. Then in May, I was looking for help with a project online, when I stumbled upon The Simple Programmer. At The Simple Programmer, the first thing that greets me you is an ad (annoying ads!), asking whether you want to sign up for a free email course about starting a blog. I saw this ad, and for some reason, I clicked yes. That's where John Sonmez comes in: You see, he's the founder of the simple programmer, and organizer/tutor of the blogging course.


So, a week later, I started receiving these lessons via email. Truth be told, I only skimmed through the first lesson, and I considered unsubscribing multiple times. But I never did. Instead, I stuck with the lessons until we got to one where the assignment was to create a theme for the blog and write three posts based on that theme. Now I didn't have a clue what my theme was going to be, so on a whim, I decided to email him for advice and ...he responded. Yes, he took his time to think of a theme based on some info I'd given him in my email, and even added a few ideas. A week a later, I created The Tony Tay.

But, I still didn't publish anything. Not until August, when Mr. Sonmez sent a reminder about the blog along with some helpful tips. That spurred me into action. So I wrote out a number of posts, and I sent him one (A Case For Your Average Idea) to hear his thoughts about it. Once again, unexpectedly I might add, he read it and replied saying he thought it was great. Cool right? Yeah so the badge was a bonus for completing the blogging course, and I decided that if not for anything at all, for the fact he replied my email I'd put that badge up.

Okay, okay what next?

I don't know what you'll take from this story - everything I've thought of has been remarkably clichéd. In any case, you can join the blogging course. It's still the first thing you'll meet when you load the simple programmer. Admittedly, it's meant for software developers, and as a career boost, but it's still helpful, and I don't think Mr. Sonmez minds. Also, if you can, don't be afraid to encourage someone or give them the time of day. Even though I've not quite told the entire story - it still took some encouragement and pushing (especially from one very special human being), before I published - I'm not sure I'd have put up The Tony Tay if I hadn't joined the course. Plus, there are some people who haven't bothered to visit here, after I sent them the link, yet someone whom I've never even seen, whose name I misspelt in the emails I sent him (sorry about those), decided to give me the time of day. Now you're reading this. I believe that speaks for itself.