Lessons Learned From My First Year Of Blogging (That Apply to Everyday Life)
It’s my one-year blogiversary! Every year, during special occasions like my birthday and the new year, I reflect on my growth and lessons learned over the past year. travelJewels was born from my frustration of graduating from a top public health graduate school program, going through 9 months of applying to over 50 jobs, having numerous informational interviews and a lot of close calls, and still not getting an offer!
In this disheartening process, I needed something to affirm myself. If no one would give me an opportunity, I would create one for myself!
I started to think about my interests beyond public health. What makes Jewels Jewels? Travel immediately came to mind. It’s been a massive part of my identity over the past 7 years. I’d informally helped friends plan trips over the years but didn’t think anything of it; it was just something I was naturally good at. Many people suggested I start a blog, but I never considered it until this wilderness period. So, I gathered my tribe and hosted monthly brunch and brainstorm sessions where we would help each other flush out our “side hustle” ideas, and a few months later, travelJewels went live! Also, I accepted a job offer that excited me during that period! While at the time it sucked going through that kind of struggle, in retrospect, I’m appreciative of it because it pushed me towards a path that I probably wouldn’t have explored if I’d gotten a job immediately after graduate school.
Here are a few lessons learned from my first year of blogging that also apply to everyday life:
1) Your side hustle should be something you are extremely passionate about.
There’s personal blogging, and then there is blogging for business. I chose to run travelJewels like a business, and let me tell you… it’s A LOT OF WORK. I work full-time hours on it, but I also have a job where I work 40 hours a week. I work on my blog before work, after work, and on the weekends. My passion for it is what keeps me engaged during the moments when doubt occasionally creeps in. This passion is essential because you may not see the tangible results of your work immediately, but with consistency, it will only be a matter of time. For example, I could let myself mull over not having XX social media followers by a certain point, but instead, I focus on the many things I have gained. Through travelJewels, I’ve developed basic web developing skills, became a content creator and social media manager, and so much more. I know the followers will come because I’m becoming better and better at this each day. My favorite gain this year is the people who tell me how my site helped them plan a trip! I love being able to help people FULLY live their lives.
3) People recognize and appreciate authenticity.
Throughout the year, I struggled with finding my “blogging voice,” but it quickly dawned on me that the best voice is authentic. In a world of high-reels on social media, people surprisingly gravitate towards rawness. This was seen in one of my most popular articles about surviving a travel disaster. It’s easy to write about the glamorous side of travel. Still, the reality is that it isn’t always as glamorous as a filtered IG photo, and people appreciate that kind of authenticity.
4) Produce quality over quantity.
As someone who works full-time, I can’t fathom producing more than one article a week regularly. I’m not the fastest writer (although I’ve gotten a bit quicker this past year,) and it’s not sustainable for me. I prefer to produce one quality article per week over five sub-par articles. Quality always wins and will keep my readers engaged.
5) Breaks are good and necessary.
The key to a successful blog is producing and promoting quality content regularly. But my mental health is equally important to me. Life is about balance (I’m a Libra, so it’s in my DNA :D), and it’s vital to recognize when you are at your max and need some downtime. At the beginning of the year, life threw a plot twist where I needed to slow down and care for myself. At first, I resisted taking any kind of break – in my mind, that meant I would fall behind and be unable to accomplish my milestones. But it was the best thing I could have done for myself and my blog. I came back refreshed and with a great gift for my readers.
6) Slow & steady wins the race.
The deeper I got into my blogging journey, the longer the list of things I wanted to focus on in my blog became. In the beginning, I was trying to do many things at once (which wasn’t practical). As a result, I created a year plan broken down into quarterly goals. This helped me make realistic and achievable goals.
7) Stop the comparison game while you’re ahead.
While I recognize the importance of scoping out the competition in your field and identifying what makes people effective at their work, it must stop there. There’s sometimes a tendency for unhealthy comparisons and self-defeating thoughts that aren’t productive for anyone. I have to constantly remind myself that although there are thousands of travel bloggers out there, there’s only one Jewels. Recognize your uniqueness.
8) You don’t have to do this alone.
I’m so thankful for my tribe! I have a few lovely friends who help me edit my articles. I also have a fabulous business bestie, Jessie Jade, Artisan and Founder of Sun Kiss Organics! We started our business/blogging journeys around the same time, and we constantly bounce ideas off each other and encourage each other. Also, I’m so grateful for FB groups. There is an FB group for everything! I’m a part of a few travel and blogging groups that constantly provide me with information and support. Be sure to search for FB groups in your niche!
9) There’s never gonna be a perfect time… just do it!
When I officially launched travelJewels, there was so much more that I wanted to do with it, but I realized if I waited for this or that to happen, I would never launch it. There will never be the perfect time, so do it now! Launch that blog, start that YouTube channel, and create that business. You got this!
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