I can’t believe it has been a whole year since I started on this adventure! In the past year, The Purpose In The Pink has given me so much joy. The first 4-6 months after launching the blog were quite difficult for me personally, but this has been a great outlet for me! My mission is to share my story, help & encourage others with my faith and mental health struggles, & share my fashion style, and I hope to stay true to that going forward! After reflecting over the past year, here some extremely valuable lessons I have learned:
Be Yourself – I know this isn’t for everyone and that’s okay. I have been influenced by so many other people, blogs, and fashion trends this past year, and although I like many of them, I am still going to be me. That means I am going to write about what's on MY heart and buy things/clothing that I like. I am not going to stop wearing pink or sequins just because it’s not “in.” I like what I like. And although it’s popular to think a certain way, follow the crowd and be in style, I want to stand out not for anything I wear (although I know sequins are hard to miss!), but for what I write about. That’s what is most important. It can be hard not to get off track sometimes for me personally, but I think this is the place where I can be me and that is awesome.
Grammar Matters - I will be the first to admit that I don’t remember half of what I learned back in high school English over 10 years ago – the hard truth that grammar really does matter! I screw up a lot. Even when I have someone else read my work, something gets overlooked. I feel stupid many times when I am corrected for a careless mistake. But there is grace for that and I am thankful that I am improving in this area! 🙂
Blogging is A LOT of work – It’s basically a full-time job and for sure a part-time job. This varies depending on what you want it to be, which is nice because I can go at my own pace. I will admit I put a lot of pressure on myself to post more than I do, or write about topics because everyone else is, but I have only done what I can do. Constantly doing fashion pics/writing about my personal story & other topics takes a lot of time, energy and creativity. Planning ahead and being organized is key!
I’ve Learned A Lot About Myself – Yep! I think I am more self-aware than I ever have been, and I don’t mean that in a bad way. It has been good! I’ve learned what I can and can’t handle, I still struggle with comparing myself, and I am my own worst critic. But I am also proud of myself and proud of how far I have come.
You Can’t Please Everyone – EVER! One of my weaknesses. I think when I first started, that was my focus. And while I was going through a lot of things personally, I wasn’t aware of how this was affecting me. Now, I am writing about things that I want to talk about. I don’t worry about it as much anymore because I don’t need their approval. I only need the approval of one, and if it isn’t honoring to Him, then that’s a different story.
Take Breaks When Needed – This has been super helpful and has so important for me personally. I have taken several breaks from social media in general to keep myself in check. The fact is, it’s not my full-time job, and if other aspects of my life are being avoided because I am too busy on my phone or computer, then I need to take a step back. I still try to do this on the weekends – to check out, be present and spend time with my husband, family and have some down time for myself. I think this is important for everyone. Social media plays such a huge role in everyone's life – and sometimes we need to take a look at that and see how it affecting our relationships/work/spiritual life, etc.
Appreciate & Engage With Your Audience – I don’t think I realized this was a part of the blogging world until 5 months in! I had no idea how to “gain followers” or engage with them. That's a huge part of it. Being relatable, talking with them, getting to know them, etc. I have actually met so many other bloggers this way, and it has been refreshing to find other people with the same struggles or just people you have a good time with! I am thankful I have made new friends along the way who support me and reach out to me!
All in all, I have grown as a person, and I am so grateful to be able to share my story, thoughts and advice on The Purpose In The Pink. There have certainly been times this past year when I didn’t want to continue doing it, but here we are 🙂 Ready for new opportunities and ideas! I am excited to see what year 2 has in store! Thank you all so much for reading this little blog of mine. I appreciate you so much!
Xoxo,
