I’ve been a blogger for almost six years now. I’ve been blogging through different seasons with different purposes and different directions. I have taken blogging breaks 6 months long (or longer) and I’ve blogged multiple times a day. I’ve blogged for my mom (so she knew I was alive studying abroad), myself (aka creating a diary), my readers (by sharing tips & things I think will benefit you), and I’ve blogged for the blog community (blogging about what I think people want to hear and will increase my pageviews.) I’ve blogged for plenty of wrong reasons & plenty of random reasons but I’ve also blogged with passion & purpose & BIG FAT DREAMS.
If you have followed this blog for any amount of time, I hope you’ve noticed that I am passionate about this space and about the people who come here. I’ve never perfectly utilized this space or always had a plan. I laugh about it too because even when I have a plan, it may not last long. I like to think of this place as a free place – place to try new things and grant grace. A place to learn, soak up new information, and improve. Not embarrassed by the past or the other directions that I have gone, just redefining and moving forward.
I’ve been thinking about it a lot recently. With growth comes changes but also just with life comes changes. Of course this blog doesn’t look like it did in 2010 and that is okay – good even (real great actually 😉 ) but that doesn’t mean all my old posts are trash or that I was wasting my time. It fueled my passion for blogging, it made me learn new skills so that I could grow, and it taught me so much about myself!
Not all advice is the best advice. There are SO many tips on starting a blog, growing a blog, monetizing a blog, and a bazillion other things. I love learning from people who have gone before me and I soak up all the advice, tips, and tricks. Sometimes I even try to do them all – certain that this trick will grow my Instagram, or that type of post will increase pageviews, or this picture will be pinned the most, or this is the exact plan I need to follow if I ever want to make an income blogging. It can make me crazy. Running around literally trying to do it all while stay authentic and true to myself.
I’m realizing that not all advice is the best advice for me. Some things that work for people as they grow their business and brand may not work for me – and that is okay. I hope you know that too. As you read through my Blog Tips I hope you never feel pressured to follow all that advice perfectly, I hope you feel free to experiment and try new things. To give & receive grace. To start over and dream bigger. 2016 is your year. Your year to try new things without the fear of failure. Maybe those new things will be hits or maybe they will be flops, but that is okay – you learn from both. You don’t need to blog perfectly to be liked and respected. Some of that mess & imperfection makes you relatable and trying new things makes you brave.
Learn all the things, soak up the information, but don’t be afraid to do things that may contradict what you’ve read. Be brave and trust what you have to offer. Be okay with little steps and trust falls. You’ve got this!
Such a lovely post! thanks so much for sharing <3
Thanks Yara! I hope it was an encouragement and blessing to you today!
this is such a good post beth.
not all advice IS good advice for us.
what may work for you, may not work for me and the opposite is true.
this blogging world – has gotten to be so cut throat that we can overlook the BEAUTY of the blogging world. i hope to never stop offering and receiving grace and encouragement in these beautiful internet connections.
(side note: do you ever stop and think “wow, look at how many people i’ve been able to connect with, authentically, and build friendships with – through a screen” i do that a lot. i’m always amazed!)
Yes! I so agree and that is what is important! Always bring it back to the root and check your motives, heart, and direction. I do want this to be my full time job (which means I will need to make money off of it) but I want that income to come out of the passion and mission statement of this blog – not what everyone else says I need to do to make money!
Lovely post and such a breath of fresh air in the midst of all the blogs that are full of tips and advice. I’ve been a blogger since 2009 and, like you, my style has changed, my purpose has changed, and I’ve had four different blogs – each for a different season of life. Thank you for your beautiful blog and for sharing what you’ve learned!
Thanks so much Cassandra! I totally get the idea of writing for bloggers but some of us have to stay bloggers or else we will just have blogging tips with no bloggers 😉 hahah. But really. I think we all have something different to offer and if we only follow all the advice all the time we won’t be able to do our own thing 🙂
So true! I blogged one time about my thoughts over this as well (http://sparklesbyashlee.com/home/blogging-people-pleasing-and-fitting-in), and I just totally can relate to this post. In today’s society I feel like there’s just so much information and so much desire to improve or be the best, but sometimes we just need to be thankful and embrace where we are now.
Yes! I love this so much!
Thank you for sharing this post! I’ve started this year rededicating myself to my blog, which I’ve let fall by the wayside these past few months, so I’ve constantly been reading advice posts. This was a breath of fresh air! A reminder to just be true to myself and my goals and if I stick to that, a wonderful space will grow from that. 🙂
Yes! I am so glad. There is great advice out there that I have followed and implemented but not all of the advice is everything I need to be doing! You’ve got this. Stick to your passions and try new things! Don’t stress about being perfect!
Great advice and something that I needed today! I’m in a phase of trying different things to see what WILL fit for me and what isn’t right. I’m actually loving the experimentation and don’t find that bad, but that’s because I feel like even when I do “the wrong” thing, I’m learning about myself and my process! Very encouraging post; thank you for sharing it!
I think that is an exciting a fun time! You got this 🙂
I just recently posted a similar sentiment that I just missed the writing and connecting aspect of blogging, and I miss other bloggers doing the same. I’m kind of tired of all the advice posts, a lot of them often from bloggers who have barely been a blogger. For some of us, just getting to peek into others’ lives is the fun part, and it’s the best when the blogger is true and authentic. Thanks so much for sharing this.
Kristen, yes! Sometimes the blog trends sweep in (they have been doing that since we started!) The first trends of writing all over pictures and then all the inspiration/ etsy posts now it is blog tips 🙂 I have nothing against any of the trends or phases but I just wanted to encourage myself and others that we don’t have to do all of them. I love blog tips and I read a lot of them and there are some great business blogs out there but not all of their advice is stuff I need to implement in my space! It gives more freedom to learning instead of to-do lists!
I think what is important is that we use our blog to reflect the creativity we have inside that we are passionate about – whether that is writing, or photography, or teaching, or cooking, or all of the above and use those to encourage and inspire! We all have different blogs that have different content and dreams and words and pictures. I love seeing the world through others eyes (like you said!!) I want to see the pictures they take and the words they write about things that make their creativity bubble-up and hear hearts beat!! Yay for authenticity and our unique differences!
These are such great words of encouragement Beth! Love it!
I am so glad you were encouraged sweet friend!!!
I love this.
I have been learning this recently. I was so focused on doing what “the experts” said, that I always felt stressed about my space that I love so much.
I am so excited not that I have found freedom to work hard, take some advice, and leave other advice far, far away.
Ps- I love your newsletter. It’s my favorite and I think you do a great job. Do you have any tip posts for newsletters?
Yes! I do follow a lot of expert advice but not all of it (And for sure not all of it at the same time!!) I am so excited for you! Work hard, make decisions that will fit your brand and your heart and your passion!!
Also thanks so much! I do want to up my newsletter game! hahah. Right now I just send out all my posts! I have plans to add some other cool things as time goes on 🙂 But I used this post to set mine up!! http://www.wetherillssayido.com/how-to-create-an-rss-feed-newsletter-with-mailchimp/
Thanks for the authenticity! I always love this space because it feels like I get to meet a friend. I think that is why people love following you, it’s about community and authenticity. 🙂
You are so great Kendra! These words mean more to me than you know!!! You are so awesome! And I’m sad we never got together during your Colorado months! Shame on me! Looks like Bruce and I will just need to plan an trip to the North West (I’ve ALWAYS wanted to go there!!)