To Use My Name or Be Anonymous

The one thing that I have had to really think long and hard about is whether to use my name and picture as part of this blog or to remain anonymous.

Anonymous –

• Pros – I can “tell it like it is” without too much worry about consequences and being held accountable for my words.  It is a weight off your back if no one knows who is actually doing the writing, you can use terms and say things that you probably wouldn’t if your name was published with the entry.
• Cons – I would feel like I am hiding, I am a “what you see is what you get” type of person.  Of course if someone wants to find out who an anonymous writer is they can, but it takes a bit more effort.

Using my own Name -

• Pros – everyone knows who is doing the writing and you actually “own” the entry.  It is a reflection of who you are and what you stand for.
• Cons – Sometimes as a matter of good judgment I won’t be able to say everything that I want to.  I can say a lot, but there are times when discretion is the better part of valor and you have to “shut up”.

I guess the using my own name faction wins out, I don’t do anonymous very well.  I am rather old school and believe that if I say it, that I own it and will earn the consequences either positive or negative. 

Does this mean I won’t be honest – NO that is not an option!

It does mean that I might choose my words more carefully or wait before hitting the publish button, so that rant I wrote so scathingly about “whatever” isn’t published until I have had an opportunity to calm down and re-read/edit my words of wisdom.

So I am going into ”My Dashboard and setting the Author to Harold Shaw, Jr. and will be using a new avatar – a picture of me in teacher mode that will be taken during one of tomorrow’s classes, instead of using my stock “white hat” picture or my favorite hiking picture.

So here is to me owning up to owning this blog.

Doing the right thing for the right reason – today and tomorrow.