Blogging & Business

Not all advice is the best advice

January 26, 2016

Not all advice is the BEST advice. This is so true. It is okay to filter through advice, expectations, and rules and decide what is best to follow and best to skip. Be YOU. 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!

xoxo, elizabeth

  1. Grady

    January 26, 2016 at 7:04 pm

    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!

    1. Oak & Oats

      January 27, 2016 at 10:07 am

      I think that is an exciting a fun time! You got this 🙂

  2. Kristen

    January 26, 2016 at 7:59 pm

    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.

    1. Oak & Oats

      January 27, 2016 at 10:15 am

      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!

  3. samantha@elahtree

    January 27, 2016 at 7:29 am

    These are such great words of encouragement Beth! Love it!

    1. Oak & Oats

      January 27, 2016 at 10:08 am

      I am so glad you were encouraged sweet friend!!!

  4. Kristin Cook

    January 27, 2016 at 8:17 am

    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?

    1. Oak & Oats

      January 27, 2016 at 10:26 am

      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/

  5. Kendra

    January 27, 2016 at 4:48 pm

    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. 🙂

    1. Oak & Oats

      January 27, 2016 at 5:02 pm

      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!!)

Comments are closed.