Blogging: How Do You Stay Motivated?

Blogging. I feel like it’s something you will only really truly understand if it’s a world you’re part of. It takes up a lot of time, takes some money, and there’s no right way to go about it. There’s no one telling you what to do, there’s no homework, no projects… it’s yours, you have your name on it and everyone runs along their own path. Depending on who I’m chatting to – some people know me primarily as a girl that works in Finance, and others know me as the girl that blogs; for the former, Skylish is really only “that blogging thing” I do, and what really defines me in their eyes is what I can do in the office. But the realities are, that blogging isn’t easy, let alone juggling it with an intense job. You find yourself concerned about things that otherwise would never matter – like Instagram’s algorithm – because it all rolls into the overall ball of “your brand” and it all has a impact on your blog. It’s so easy sometimes to lose motivation and feel like what you’re doing is a waste of time, and I had one of these moments this week – a “what’s the point?” moment. However I’m usually able to pick myself up and kick some motivation back into myself in a few simple ways…

 

Celebrate the small wins

It’s so easy sometimes to forget all the cool things you’ve achieved and opportunities you’ve had. It’s as though you become numb to your own successes at times and continue bouncing around wondering what’s next. In the past I haven’t liked to focus too much on the things I’ve achieved because i) well, there’s always more to achieve and ii) I always feel like the things I’ve achieved are mediocre in the bigger picture (with the amount of truly cool sh*t people are doing). Over time I’ve learned there’s nothing wrong with celebrating wins – even the little ones. I remember the first time I was ever approached for a collaboration someone wanted to offer me £20 if I added a link into a post – I never started blogging for any money or free stuff even though I knew that was on the table for many people – so I remember being so excited that someone actually wanted to pay me for something as simple as putting a link in a post. Now,m in the bigger picture, I could have compared myself to bloggers being sent mountain of goods or even taken on holidays, but I was just so proud of myself at the time to have secured a collaboration that it brought all the happiness I needed and let me know that I was doing something good. Celebrate your wins, celebrate your achievements, it’s never not a big deal.

 

Keep experimenting with new ideas

Two things that are important to success are: 1) persevering and 2) continuing to experiment. This applies to blogging as much as it applies to life. Let’s take working out as an example – working out and living and healthy lifestyle is not a quick fix to losing weight/getting into shape. It’s not a fad diet, it’s not a skinny tea, it’s an entire lifestyle change. This means it takes time to see results. This can also connect to 2), I used to be a pure cardio bunny when it came to working out and this is something I never enjoyed. Whist cardio is important, I also now do a lot more weight training, body weight and strength based exercises which I find a lot less tedious than a 30 minute run on the treadmill. I try to apply the same philosophy with my blog, I exercise patience and focus on producing good quality content and connecting with other bloggers, but I also try to experiment with new ideas. Different posts, different designs, and as of recently I’ve started working on a little (and free) blogging eGuide which I plan to finish deeper into the Christmas period.

 

Discover new blogs

I love discovering new blogs as it always provides a new source of inspiration if I ever get a bit bored and “stuck”. These new sources of inspiration could be all I need to switch the light bulb in my head on and provide me with some new ideas and a new source of inspiration. It definitely keeps me going.

 

Enjoy the journey

Life is not a race, but more than often we find ourselves chasing after and non existent finish line. I remember I always thought I would be totally satisfied if I just met certain milestones – “I just need 100 Bloglovin’ followers – and I’m good, I don’t even care after that”; “I just need 1,000 followers on Instagram then I won’t even try and get more followers anymore I’ll be totally happy”; “If I get 100 likes on my Instagram photos I think that’s all I’ll ever need.” I remember telling a friend in first year that my life was perfect and I just needed a boyfriend to get rid of all my worries forever. Well, I got my boyfriend, and yeah he’s great, but it didn’t quite eliminate all my worries like I expected. It’s best to live in the now than to constantly look ahead and chase after superficial things: you will forever be chasing the next 100 likes, the next 1,000 followers, the next milestone… sometimes just appreciate the point you’re at. Some of the things I’ve achieved up to this point are things I only hoped for some years back, and I’m learning more and more every day to live in the moment and enjoy the journey I’m on.

I won’t say I’ve never totally lost motivation with my blog and I won’t say I’ve never contemplated just… quitting. But as much as I’ve contemplated just giving it all up at times, it’s never been a viable option as it genuinely is something I just enjoy to do. Success = trials, tribulations and perseverance. And personally, I’m tryna be pretty damn successful.