special costumes: Blogging | A Few Things To Remember

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I was recently thinking about being a blogger and the things that often come along with it - the thoughts and feelings we have or the actions of others that can leave us feeling a bit 'meh' about the whole thing. I think its really important to remember to always try and remain positive when blogging so I thought I'd offer a few pieces of advice from my own personal experience below. I hope you can relate to some or maybe even all of them on some level ...

You will be judged unfairly. Take it with a pink of salt or as Taylor Swift would say 'Shake It Off!'. Don't feel like you can't be true to yourself just because a few keyboard warriors like to pick on everything and anything you do. Ignore them, move on and keep being you. I've developed a pretty thick skin over the past twelve months and I think this is really important as its impossible to please everyone on the internet. People will dislike you for no reason at all and my advice would be to not let the opinion of those you don't care about affect your day.

You will have moments of doubt. You will have times when you feel like your blog isn't 'up to scratch' and everyone around you is producing better content. I've been there many times, its only natural. However, you have to remember that we're all different and if every blog was the same, blogging wouldn't exist. What makes blogging so amazing is that we're all individuals with our own style and stories. Have confidence in your own work and if you love it, others will too!

Social media isn't real life, don't let it suck you in. That girl who appears to have the perfect life on your Instagram feed has her own problems too. Its SO important to remember that nobody leads the perfect life and as the saying goes 'stop comparing your behind the scenes with everybody else's highlights reel!'. We can all take pretty photos of our 'best bits', stick a filter on them and share them online - it doesn't mean that behind closed doors everything is peachy. Most people just choose not to share the dull, boring and stressful moments with the rest of the world.

Cheating will always end badly. Yep that's right, unfortunately people do this across all platforms and it makes me sad that its almost becoming the norm. Not only because its unfair on those who have worked hard to build a genuine following but its also sad that people feel the need to 'buy' followers in order to gain something like freebies or 'fame'. As soon as you stop concentrating on numbers, you'll enjoy blogging a hell of a lot more. Plus, cheaters always get caught out eventually.

Some people won't get it. If your second cousin or Bill down the road don't understand why you're blogging and aren't willing to listen to you talking about it, that's fine, don't try to justify yourself. If people don't understand that blogging takes a lot of hard work, passion and effort or understand why you'd spend so much time doing it, let it be. As long as you enjoy it, that's all that matters. There will always be ignorant Ian's (no offence to anyone called Ian intended) in the world!

Keep your dignity, always. Blogging is developing quickly and there are more and more opportunities cropping up where brands want to pay bloggers to endorse their products. I think this is great as it allows bloggers to turn their full time hobbies into careers. However, never ever accept an offer just because there's money involved. If you post halfheartedly about things you're not all that interested in, your readers will be able to tell. If you wouldn't spend your own money on it, don't accept it.

Don't take it too seriously. I guess blogging is 'serious' in the respect that it can become a full time career and is developing into a well recognised form of media. That's all well and good. However, when you begin to take it too seriously, you lose the enjoyment. Take blogging for what it really is - an outlet for you to share your passions and something you enjoy doing. Don't let it become a chore. Let go of the stress and expectations and just be yourself, its a lot more enjoyable.

There's no right or wrongs. If you fancy sharing something a bit different to the norm on your blog, then you go Glen Coco! Don't feel like you have to be the same as everyone else to 'fit in', you really don't. I know its hard to be totally unique as a blogger but as long as you're passionate about your content, that's all that really matters.

Its not a race. If you're a new blogger, its important to remember that those established bloggers you look at and think 'I'll never be as successful as them' were in your shoes once. Everyone starts somewhere and blogging is anything but easy - it takes hard work and dedication to gain a loyal following. I'm going to throw another quote out there (nothing like a quote for some inspiration) but its true that you shouldn't 'compare your chapter one to someone else's chapter 20!'. Just work hard, enjoy it and go with the flow!

Do you agree with any of these points? Are there any others you'd add?

Lots of love,