Guys-I’ve officially been blogging for 12 (yes, TWELVE) years today! It’s still surreal to me that something that started as a creative outlet while I figured out what I wanted to do with my life is still going strong!
I don’t have to rehash all of the changes that I’ve made in this space over the years-you can figure that out just by reading my archives, lol- but what I will say is that being okay with evolving this blog as I, myself, evolved as a person, was the best thing that I could’ve done. Had I not started this blog, I’m not sure if I’d be doing what I do now: a full-time lifestyle photographer and content creator. As I continued to get better with creating content for this blog, I realized that that was what I wanted to do for my career as well. It took a lot of blood, sweat, and tears, and I almost gave up a few times because things were so difficult financially, but I’m happy that I continued on. Having this outlet really helped me find myself in so many ways, and for that, I am eternally grateful.
Every year I always reflect back on what I’ve learned over the last 12 months, and now, more than ever, I urge you to live in a place of authenticity if you’re interested in being a blogger, influencer, content creator-whatever you want to call yourself. Being a blogger is fun, but it is NOT for the weary. Monetization shifted the industry so much, and so many people forget their “why” because they’re so focused on trying to get paid, but I’m here to tell you, yes, you can make a few dollars by shilling product non-stop and have a plethora of pretty photos on Instagram, but if you don’t have a solid reason behind why you got into this beyond that, it’s going to be hard for you to have real influence.
dress | shoes | earrings | bag
Authenticity, and being of service to your audience, will always be the secret sauce. Yes, blog about what you love, but there has to be an element beyond self in order to get your audience to keep coming back and to trust you as a resource. If I’m sharing a brand’s product, yes, there are key things I need to highlight, but I also need to give you personal reasoning beyond that for it to really make sense. There’s so much vagueness in this industry now, with so many creators sounding and looking the same, but the ones that continue to stand out, regardless of how big their following is, are the ones that continuously tap into their gift of storytelling. Authentic storytelling is an art, but I promise, if you focus on getting better with that, versus trying to just push links, your community will find you, trust you, and support you.
I love giving advice around being a blogger because I’ve done it for so long and have been able to have success with it even on a small scale, and being authentic will always be my number 1 tip when it comes to doing this. Always be authentically you.
12 years. Who’d have thought!
Thank you for being here. There’s so much more to come!
xo, Kim
