Inspiration: Why Blog

I blog to INSPIRE! Not just in one direction, but in ALL.

I love blogging. I love to read others and be inspired to write my own. This way I get a chance to connect with beautiful and talented people across the globe that I would never meet otherwise.

In my morning reads, I came across this article about blogging and a blogger's reason for starting a blog.
I personally decided my reason for blogging on day one. But sometimes you can lose sight, like with anything else.  So this article helps with just that. You can also take this and adapt it for anything that you do that is your creative outlet.
Enjoy!

Nicole Charnel

Originally published on ProFresh Style.
Found through The Feisty House.

I was recently emailed by a gal who has been blogging for a while and has started to get frustrated at not reaching these goals she set for herself. I’m obviously deciding not to share as those are private to her and I’s conversation. Either way, it lit a spark in me and made me realize that no many are speaking the truth behind blogging and the realities of it all. So this being a stranger and for no other reason than me being me, I decided to give it to her straight as I won’t any of you, my best friend or in front of a room at a conference.

I decided to share with you this email I wrote in response to her to maybe either: 1. Help with any frustrations or 2. Resonate and spark something inside of you. Peace and blessings ya heard.

(DISCLOSURE: For those of you who know how I talk and write and all that good stuff, this is familiar but for all you newbies. Hold back on the defense tip. Take it in and think about it.) xprofresh

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Hey girl!

Thanks for emailing. Listen, totally hear you. I’ve been blogging for 5 years now and it’s no where near what people think it is.

1. I’m broke, brands don’t pay shit unless you have an agent (which I don’t advise, I’ve turned down opportunities that sounded good at the time but wouldn’t be worth sacrificing my brand)

2. The life I’ve created on the blog, although definitely more realistic than most blogs, my life isn’t actually all that great and exciting. And to a lot of people, it looks as if I’m successful. Boo, I’m far from it.

3. I work a full-time job (which is my career choice), blogging money is never enough and I hardly have time to actually blog. With all that said, the blog should never, ever, ever be about the money or making it a full-time gig.

Here’s my advice. You’ve got the normal requirements for a blog: white background, clean layout, beautiful images and cute style. But…. WHAT ARE YOU SAYING?! Here’s the thing: there are 2 million fashion blogs in the U.S. alone. That’s 2,000,000 and counting! So think about your blog and be honest with yourself when answering these questions:

What do you stand for?
What is your purpose?
Who is your audience?
Why should they care?
What makes you different?
Why did you start a blog?

And there are a few things to remember. 

1. It’s not about money
2. It’s about working with brands
3. It’s not about becoming famous
4. It’s not about getting free shit

If those are the reasons you’ve started your blog, it’s time to reconsider. Don’t be unrealistic with yourself because only you know the truth. If you have started your blog for any of those reasons, go back to those questions I wrote above. If your answers don’t lead to a conclusion of, “I wanted to start a blog because I had something different to say/contribute/add” then blogging just may not be right.

This all prob sounds harsh but listen boo, the blogging world is ridiculous. It’s nothing of what it used to be. Blogging back in 2008ish, was about saying something in the open air just because your friends didn’t understand you, so at least you could tell the internet. Now, it’s just incredibly corporate feeling: with politics, bribery, deceit and disgusting individuals all around.

For the rest of her article and advice, click here.