Well I can’t believe I’ve done it! November 20th is I’m Not a Beauty Guru’s first birthday. In people years it would still be considered a babbling little baby, but for blog years I’m happy. 🙂 My first post, Beginnings, can be found here.
This is going to be quite a chatty post, just a warning.
I’ve been thinking about this post for a very long time, and I’m so happy to be writing it. I’m proud that I was able to get to this point. I was one of those people that always started off writing journals with the best of intentions and then abandon them. This little blog I have kept up though, which I am happy and proud about. 😀
A notable thing I did this year was that I joined the CBB Network and was able to meet a lot more beauty bloggers. It was so nice being able to go on my bloglovin and get a constant stream of awesome content! 🙂 Also through the network I was able to start great conversations with other beauty bloggers which I love! I find the network is one of the funnest and unexpected parts of my first year blog journey.
Now for some reflection. Why I started the blog, where I feel I am at, and where I hope to be in the future. I guess in all honesty, I really enjoy where I am at. I started this blog with the intention of it just being a beauty diary. A place for me to keep track of my purchases, if I liked or disliked something, and the works. I never thought I would join a network of blogs, or even set up a bloglovin page. I know many many blogs that have been able to ‘achieve’ much more than my blog was able to in a year or less. I know I have not been a constant poster, but I’m cool with that. I didn’t start this with intentions to try and become an internet celebrity or anything (quite the opposite). Even as I start to learn the ins and outs of beauty blogging, I’ve shied away from some aspects. I’m not saying I am not open to PR or promotions, but that has honestly never been a driving force behind my blog. I knew that I would only stick with this blog if I did it on my own terms.
This has been a hobby for me where I am able to produce something and look back on it. I am able to benchmark my progress and grow. But as any blogger I’m sure has experienced, it’s so easy to get caught up in the numbers game. Even recently I can remember going through my Analytics account fiendishly going through report after report trying to see how I felt my blog was doing, awaiting a comment on my newest post, or even just looking at the follower count on other bloglovin blogs I follow. This is so easy to do, but I think it can turn so destructive. I can’t lie and say that when I see my follower count decrease I don’t feel anything. As I’m sure many know, blogging is very personal and I can’t help but feel a little upset when I see that counter drop! I guess it’s how you deal with the situation and move on from it is what matters. This blog is my space and I’ve been running it how I want to run it. I remember first thinking at the beginning of my blog journey about making the blog private, but then at a spur of the moment, decided to make it public. I’ve been able to meet some great people through my blog though, and for that I am thankful.
So as I move into my second year of blogging (I hope it continues!), here are some things that I hope to keep in mind and goals:
- I hope to continue to grow as a writer. This is a skill that I can improve on, and my blog enables this
- Try my best not to get caught up in the numbers. Remind myself that I am doing this for me and nothing else
- Continue and remember why I enjoy blogging. I hope that if I ever found that this blog was not what I hope it to be or is causing me any undue stress, I’d be strong enough to step back and even walk away
- I also hope to continue to work on my photography and potentially editing. The picture on this post is the only photo I think I’ve ever edited on my blog. I hope I’ll have time to experiment more with editing.
- Be as active (or unactive) as I wish. I know if I push myself to do something that I don’t want to do, it will just end up not done or done poorly
- Maybe potentially re=design my blog with HTML/CSS. I’ve been dying to code my blog for so long, but I just find it so difficult. I’m in IT too, the shame…
- Learn more about Google Analytics. I think it would be very interesting to actually understand these metrics, plus this seems like really good information to learn about
- Remember to enjoy the ride!
Hopefully what I’ve said in this post is in no way controversial. This is honestly just a a personal post and applies to my blog experience!
For those that read my blog, I just want to give a sincere thank you. I love having active discussions about products and beauty items with others. 🙂 I hope you are able to enjoy your time on my little slice of the internet.
So here’s to 1 year, and hopefully more in the future!
PS. I thought I would ask this at the end as well. Any tips for me going into my 2nd year of blogging? Any critiques of my blog? Thanks for reading! 🙂
7 Comments
Thank you so much Whitney! That means a lot. 🙂
Belated, BUT HAPPY BLOG BIRTHDAY! It's cray to think of how different my life has been because of blogging–meeting and befriending other Torontonian bloggers (MADNESS + TG for the CBB network!) and going to PR events….like….DAFUH?? Not going to lie, the numbers game is a little self destructive for me, since I love to self-sabotage so much. I try to emphasize that its not the numbers, but the people you become friends with, but still, when that number goes down, it's like "BABY COME BACk"
Thank you so much Vanessa! 🙂 Yes! I'm so proud of you! When I saw you with Pixiwoo?! So awesome. 🙂 It's hard to get in the mindset where you don't care about the numbers. :/ OMG, funny story. Bloglovin notified me that I had reached 30 followers and by the time I checked, I was at 29. :/ Nice haha.
CONGRATULATIONS!!! I too started my blog as an 'archive' of sorts regarding the products I purchase, haha. It's a great feeling to stick with an ongoing project like blogging, though, because as you said, looking back after so much time at how much you accomplished, and how much you progressed, is such a great feeling. I hope this is the first year before another, and another, and as many more as you deem fit for yourself.
Oh yeah – HTML/CSS is something I want to get into, and my brother knows a ton about it, because I hate being at the mercy of the blogger templates LOL. But I see all the numbers and symbols, and just want to claw my eyes out. T_T Anywho, keep up the great work, and happy belated blog birthday again. 🙂
~nikki ('<>')>
Thank you so much Nikki! It means a lot! It's honestly such a good feeling! Thank you again! 😀
Yes exactly! I liked what I was able to do with this blogger template, but it's different than doing it yourself, you know? I've had this "CSS for Dummies" book for years and years and was just not able to get into it! Thanks for all the support Nicole! I hope you are well. 🙂
Congrats on hitting your 1 year mark! I've been blogging for a long time and I totally hear you on the losing sight of your motivations in the numbers game. If you keep sticking to why you were inspired to blog in the first place and concentrate on that, then it will continue to be fun and enriching. Everyone goes through ups and downs and I even quit blogging for a couple months, but I came back b/c it's so addicting to meet new ppl who share the same passions!
Well thank you so much! That is definitely what I am trying to focus on going into my second year. It definitely seems like one of those hobbies that are hard to pin down. Like, you love it, then hate it, then love it again. (Not that I've ever hated blogging though). I can't see myself stopping anytime soon! 🙂