I took some time over the last few days to reflect on my one year anniversary of blogging as more than just a day or a milestone or an excuse to buy flowers (which I did).
And by taking that time to dig a little deeper, I was reminded of a few things, lessons, that I have learned along the way. Maybe they apply to something that’s on your mind, a challenge you’re trying to work through or a puzzle you’re trying to figure out.
Lesson #1 – I don’t want to be a blogger.
When I first started blogging, I thought that this could be my thing, my next career move. There are a lot of successful blogs out there sharing their ideas and making money from ad sales, sponsorships, guest posting, affiliates and other sources of income. It fits my freedom requirements in terms of schedule and creativity. I get to write and design and develop content how and when I want. On paper it was a fit for me. But after a year, I know that it’s not the right career for me. I can feel it in my gut.
Blogging has helped me overcome fears, gain confidence, try new things and make a deeper connection to myself. I’ll keep blogging for all those reasons. But it’s not the final destination. It’s more like a training ground. After a year I can see with clarity that it’s not my next career move. It’s one piece in a bigger puzzle. It would be easy to feel frustrated and disappointed – another dead end, but instead I’m taking the lessons with me.
The real lessons:
You might not get where you think you’re going, so let go of any end result.
and
Crossing something off the list is progress. It gets you one step closer.
Lesson #2 -Don’t limit yourself or narrow your focus too soon.
I was determined to NOT write about certain subjects – parenting, women, motherhood, design, food, clothing. I didn’t want to write about these things because so many other people are already doing it really well. I didn’t want to join in on an existing conversation. I wanted to change the conversation. But the more I tried to stay away, the harder it got. The reality is all of these things are pretty major components of my world and how I live. Instead of scratching them off the list, I have to figure out how to share these things with you from my very own perspective.
The real lesson:
What you resist persists. I didn’t make that up. Carl Jung gets the credit for it but it sure does make sense.
Lesson #3 – Know your perspective.
Only through writing and posting on a regular basis could I actually discover my own perspective. I might have had some ideas when I started, but only by doing the work did the themes that were important to me reveal themselves.
The real lesson:
There’s no shortcut. There’s no way around yourself. You have to put your head down and go through to get to your truth if that’s where you want to go.
And I guess the biggest lesson is figuring one piece of the puzzle out only brings up a dozen more questions and things to explore.
What have you learned from starting something new and sticking with it? Maybe your quest isn’t career clarity like mine – maybe it’s physical health, mental health or a deeper relationship with yourself of another person…what unexpected lessons did you learn?
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