Why Do You Read Fractured Faith Blog?

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I’m on a course this morning. It has a very grand title – Interview Panel Skills Refresher Training. One of the many hats I wear at work is that I interview prospective employees. You know, when you apply for a new job. You nervously enter the room in your best suit to find a stony faced interviewer or three sitting across the room from you. Your heart sinks and your stomach performs a cartwheel.

Well, worry not, for that stony faced suit is me. And one of the first things we are taught is not to be stony faced. Quite the opposite actually. We are to be welcoming, friendly and do everything within our powers to make the applicant feel at ease. We smile, offer them glasses of water, encourage them to relax and make themselves feel comfortable. For the next 45 minutes or so, I’m their new best friend.

The reason for this? We want the interviewee to do well, to perform to the best of their ability and blow us away with their awesomeness. We want to give them the job, not intimidate them to the point they are a gibbering wreck unable to string two sentences together. If we do that, then we risk losing high quality applicants and never filling the vacancy. Our job is to guide you through the interview and bring out the best in you.

To do so, we ask lots of open questions. We allow the candidate ample time to answer. We nod, we smile, we maintain eye contact. We take notes and, where required, offer helpful prompts to ensure they don’t veer off track. We mark fairly and consistently to give the applicant the best possible chance to pass the interview. And at the end we afford them the opportunity to ask any questions they might have about the job or the organisation.

Before they know it the interview is over and it’s warm smiles and handshakes all round. We thank them for coming, show them out the door and tell them we will inform them as to whether they have been successful or not at the earliest possible opportunity. We want them to leave the room on a cloud as opposed to under one. So that when their friends ask them how the interview went they will reply ‘Yeah, it was tough. But it was fair.’

I want this blog to be a similar experience. When you dip into it, I want it to be a welcoming and positive encounter. I want to encourage, facilitate and accommodate. There’s nothing worse than an awkward, one way conversation where you are made to feel on the back foot from the word go. I want this to be a safe place, a place where you can be yourself and leave your worries and problems at the door.

I want to get you thinking and talking. I want you to engage, leave comments and interact with both myself and the wider blogging community. I want you to leave this blog in a better frame of mind than when you entered it. I want you to come back, day after day, and become a regular visitor. To share your knowledge and wisdom with us all. For isn’t that what blogging, and writing in general, is all about? To share, to learn, to grow?

As Fractured Faith nears 9000 followers, I’m proud to watch our little community grow. I’m constantly seeking feedback as to how we can improve, how we can develop into a blog that you always look out for on your cluttered timeline. So I’m throwing it out there. Why do you visit the blog? What are we good at? And where can we improve? Please leave your comments below and let’s get talking.

Published by Fractured Faith Blog

We are Stephen and Fionnuala and this is our story. We live in Northern Ireland, have been married for 17 years and have three kids - Adam, Hannah and Rebecca. We hope that our story will inspire and encourage others. We have walked a rocky road yet here we are today, together and stronger than ever. We are far from perfect and our faith has been battered and bruised. But an untested faith is a pointless faith. Just as a fractured faith is better than none at all. We hope you enjoy the blog.

86 thoughts on “Why Do You Read Fractured Faith Blog?”

  2. Well, that’s a tough one for first thing in the morning… And, I used to be good at giving fair feedback (or so I was told), so here goes…
    Your blog is most of all entertaining, the subject matter changes from day to day and so you could never call it one dimensional. It’s down to earth, covering topics which we can all relate to, (family, work, keeping healthy and life in general to name but a few). It’s also extremely well written. You use phrases which are clever, like “on a cloud as opposed to under one”. These little things make your posts enjoyable to read and often make me smile to myself.
    On the downside… Hmmm… I can’t think of any. So keep up the good work!
    P.S. Perhaps I shouldn’t mention this in case it bursts the bubble, but I’ve been pleased to be getting some Likes of my comments (which doesn’t happen on many, if any, other sites, though that’s perhaps due to your huge following). So I think you also provide a service or forum for people to express themselves.

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      1. No, I meant I was receiving likes/getting positive feedback on my comments on your site. So I’m sort of riding on the back of your stardom! E.g. 2 today. 🙂 I may have had one or two followers as a result, but it’s hard to know where people find you to start following. It’s a wonderful world the blogosphere!

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  3. Hi. Good Wishes.
    Thanks for the Opportunity.
    Tbh… Enjoy the read after a hard day…
    Like Now. Ok… i, Shiro visit oft cos’;..

    A big-hearted yet different approach
    that brings forward a view… usually one i had not thought of. Humbled Humor when needed… Keep ALL that. Going.

    Perhaps a weekly post on Your Opinion…
    Of a Current Event/Book-Review/Film-Movies/Songs/Historical Event etc.?.
    “something” that moved You per se.

    Thanks again. Take Care.
    Till next…

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  4. Remember it well – the interview panel. From both sides, but more often the panel side back when I was gainfully employed.
    The honest answer is that I came to your blog because you were one of the first readers of mine. i stay because your topics strike a chord with me (more often than not) among a crowded inbox of ‘read-me’s. And you are honest (at least, that’s what comes across).

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  5. You are consistent, transparent and cover a variety of topics. I connect with some content better than other, but find it worthwhile to read and to learn about things I may never experience. Since we are all works in progress, there is comfort in sharing the journey.

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  6. Stephen, I read your blog for many reasons: It is timely and well written. It often makes me laugh and frequently makes me think. I enjoy very much reading something far removed from my little world, the cultural insights are fascinating. I appreciate your openness and honesty, I never get a sense that this is some type of ‘put-on.’ I also read in an attempt to make myself a better blogger. Writing does not come naturally to me and my efforts to do so seem to never quite say what I want them to.
    But as I look back at some of my earlier entries, I can see some improvement in the flow of my thoughts. I hope to continue on this learning curve for as long as I write. To do that I need the lessons and encouragement of others that I look up to; like you!
    Please keep writing,
    Chuck

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  7. Wow. You expect me to come back every day. I can’t do that. 😛 I would but I don’t have that time. but I will always come back for your stories about everyday life like today’s (I did HR for a bit and nobody ever introduced job interviews like you did, I the most human way, maybe it’s an NI thing to be kind to others 🙈). Or when it’s about running. Or about a fractured faith. And for your creative writing. Actually, come to think of it, if I had the time I would come back every day. Because I like whatever you all write. 😍

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  10. You write from the heart and you write very well! Plus, often your blog makes me smile or laugh, and who doesn’t appreciate that?! I like to hear about your experiences in life and how they are similar or dissimilar to my own.

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  11. I enjoy reading blogs from various locations (I am from the US) and seeing a glimpse of how life “somewhere else “ may be lived and experienced. I’ve been encouraged by your perspective(s). Thank you for sharing your precious world with us.

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  13. I read for reliability. You and I both are alcoholics in recovery, ocd, and the more obvious, bloggers. You are also from my dads home (albeit we do not get along). I enjoy the natural flow of your writings and the honesty. Keep on Steven. Be you because you do it well.

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  15. You are doing precisely what you set out to do…in spades. If I am quiet (stony faced?), it’s only because I can’t think of anything to say. I’m a listener.

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  16. I don’t even remember how I stumbled in to your blog, but I’m glad I did. I love the honesty and sometimes rawness with which you put pen to paper. Your blog is often times hilarious but at the same time poignant. The fact that you take time to acknowledge every comment is huge in my opinion. Keep doing what you do, and thanks for doing it in the first place.

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  17. I never know what to expect. You write so well on different topics that I look forward to see where you are going each day. I started reading your blog initially because you had read one of my posts. I keep coming back because you are entertaining and I am learning to be a better blogger by reading you (and a couple of others). Keep up the good work.

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  18. Well, one of the reason I drop in is you’re not a person behind a stone face. Your blog is a nice place to drop in and sit a spell. You don’t rant, you’re open, and you share. In short, the blog is a blog, but the guy writing is someone I could easily sit down and have a beer with and enjoy spending an hour with. if you were anything except a nice guy, and not the person you are, I wouldn’t be visiting.

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  19. You’re a space I try to never miss visiting. Your posts are always thought provoking, often funny enough to make me laugh out loud and authentic. At least it feels that way to me. Your topics most always interest me. And, you’re a very good writer.

    I really don’t have anything to offer in terms of change. I’m very happy with your blog and mean everything said above.

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  20. I am glad you liked something I wrote – I was able to click on your gravatar to take me to your blog, because for some unfathomable reason, it is no longer showing up in my reader.

    To answer your question, I visit your blog regularly because you “keep it real”. I love your self-deprecating sense of humour, I love your wit – but more than that I find comfort and belonging here. I feel our shared humanity is honored here. Your compassion, empathy, and friendliness makes me feel safe and “at home”.

    You must be a brilliant human resources person – the evidence is here for all to read. I am grieving setbacks and challenges regarding my husband’s health. Your blog offers me a bit of a breather from it all. And I thank God for you, for your silliness and for your wise insights. And I thank you!

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  21. I read because you’re funny, entertaining, and above all: transparent. I really appreciate transparency in a world where it’s so easy to be fake.

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  27. I read your blog because you usually post daily content and there will always be an interesting piece waiting when I visit. And also because I care about your story.

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  28. I just recently started following your blog. I needed to try something new. And I think reading your blog is a good choice for me.

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  29. I visit because I enjoy reading what you have to say. Plain and simple. It often sparks creativity or insight or raises questions that I then can seek to answer in my own writing. Because it fosters community and has been a great place for me to rest for the last (almost) two years of blogging. Thank you for asking the question, but I read to hear your thoughts and your honesty…don’t change that!!

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  30. Ok, ok, I confess. It’s really not about you. I come to meet other people through your blog. 😆 you know what I always say. I’m inspired by your writing, style and story. It’s very down to earth and hilarious. It’s like talking to an old friend. Keep up the good work! 👍🏼

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  36. I like reading your posts because they take me on a journey. To another country with a slower pace where I can enjoy the ride and see where it takes me. This post is an example of that. The way you describe the interview process which is so different from what some of us living in the United States experience. The process you described is there not to deflate the applicant but prod enough to allow for insight into an individual for you are your team to make a good decision in filling a position. A positive fair experience. When I read your blog, it allows me to join you in your journey of blogging a fair inclusive experience.

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  39. Pingback: Why Do You Read Soulja 4 Christ Blog? – Soulja 4 Christ

  40. This is my first time to visit, but your name made me do it. The visual that accompanies “fractured faith” is visceral. When the first loss of faith happens, it is shattering. I don’t know if I came to the right place, but I think it’s awesome you left your readers an opportunity to say why this visit. Congrats on the number of followers! Now to your about page so I don’t sound like such an idiot next time!

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