6 Years Of Sweet, Short & Stylish

It’s strange to think that I’ve been blogging for so long now. 6 years to be exact! Blogging has been my passion for a long time and it’s incredible to document life and see myself grow through these blog posts. I was 19 and in college when I started and if it wasn’t for my blog, I would’ve ended up with a degree in a field that I didn’t like and probably working in a job that I hated. I’m so grateful that I took a small step in a different direction. That I tried out a new hobby! That little hobby turned into discovering my love for creating online content and graduating with a degree in Media Management and a job as a social media manager at a corporate company in Dallas.

I still remember how I felt when I got my first campaign. It was with Garnier Fructis (read the post here if you want a laugh lol) and I felt like I had won the lottery when I got a box of colorful hair dye in the mail and $150 for a blog post. The money didn’t matter (they could’ve paid me a $10 and I wouldn’t have cared!), it was the fact that it was possible to make money doing something that you love and seemed “impossible” at the time. No one that I knew in real life was earning money through blogging especially in my hometown of Rochester, NY. The world seemed so different back then.

Yet something has changed about blogging and the world of social media now. A lot of bloggers are focusing too much on the money (I know it’s a full-time job for a lot of people!) and complaining a little too much about the lack of engagement on their Instagram or lack of clicks to their blog post. I’ve been seeing them asking people for more likes. As if their audience owes them something. It’s almost as if people have forgotten their true passion for blogging. It’s sad but money does that to people including bloggers.

These past two years I’ve done a lot of reflecting on my blog and have really taken an effort to create meaningful content and to not post, just for the sake of posting and getting likes, followers and money. But to return to posting for my own enjoyment. I didn’t want to lose that spark that I had started my blogging journey with. This also led me to falling in love with real life again and taking time to step away from posting things on my phone (which is hard for a girl who does corporate social media as a full-time job!) and just enjoying the moment. Not everything has to be documented – sometimes it’s more special when it’s kept to yourself.

This type of mindset has led me to improving the things that I do post and making sure that I find joy in the process of creating content. I’m no longer taking on sponsorships that I have no interest, no longer posting about sales that I don’t really like that much (I’m talking to you, Nordstrom sale!) and making sure that I’m transparent and 100% me. I can’t stress enough about how important it is to be passionate about what you’re blogging. If you have no passion then what’s the point? Blogging has taught me many lessons over the years but this is the most important.

To my wonderful readers, thank you for staying with me on this journey. I couldn’t be more grateful!

Love always,