This one is written as a blog for bloggers, whether you are starting out or are fully fledged within your field hopefully there is something you can take away from this post today.

As a fairly new blogger – I have tried and failed to keep my blog going for the last 10 years but anxiety used to overcome me and I would delete the posts I wrote in case someone I knew seen them and made fun of me.  I recently developed an ‘I don’t give a shit’ attitude which has led me to keep writing posts for this long.  Anyway, as a newish blogger with an amazing local blogging community around me I have learned a few things along the way and yes, you guessed it I am going to share them.

Opportunities

When you start out as a blogger the fear can get to you as it got to me, that no one would care about what you are writing about.  The odd time a brand will approach you because they love your work and it is still so flattering when this happens.

I said yes to every opportunity that came along but looking back I now realise that that may not have been a good thing.  While you should be open to writing and talking about everything, have an end goal in mind and remember that you are your brand.

What I mean is if you are a beauty lover and you predominantly talk about makeup or skincare, don’t out of  the blue start pushing a toaster because a brand approached you about it.  It took me awhile to get on my feet and get a theme but now that I have a theme, I find myself politely declining certain opportunities because I have no interest in them.  I value my blog and brand far too much to start polluting the page with items that I am not passionate about.  You won’t care about what you are writing and your readers won’t care either.

There are pros and cons to this point and I completely believe that if I hadn’t have said yes to everything that my blog and social channels may not be where they are today.  That being said, I definitely would recommend to just research your opportunities thoroughly before agreeing as they can knock off your brand and blog image.

Know Your Worth

Now that you have your blog up and running, or maybe it has been up and running for awhile and you are still unsure but it is important to know your worth.  Blogging and writing posts, especially when in collaboration with brands can feel a little like a hustle.  I have been very lucky with brands I have worked with and everyone seems normal but I have heard horror stories where brands have taken fellow bloggers for a complete ride.

What I am saying is, know how much to charge brands that are contacting you and don’t be afraid to charge for your work.  The social media game has changed so much in the last few years and it is a great way of making money, especially when you are putting so much effort in.  I’m trying not to make this point sound money hungry, I for one very rarely charge for posts to my blog or to Instagram.  I am however trying to explain that you should not get shortchanged for work that you do with brands.

I for one am over the moon when I am sent PR Mail, and I more often that not will use what I have been gifted to talk about across my channels and blog for free.  It’s when brands expect a little more than that or they explicitly ask you for more that you should know your worth and don’t settle for anything less.  As my future best friend Kanye West says “Know your worth. People always act like they’re doing more for you than you’re doing for them.”

Individuality

Individuality is so important.  You need to be a little different in order to stand out in crowd, not only in your blogging community but across your social channels too.  There are so many beauty blogs, lifestyle channels and fashion advice accounts that yours needs an edge, something to set you apart from the rest of the crowd.  Write about what you love and what inspires you and I promise you, your engagement will boom.

Not only is your uniqueness important, but so is what you are actually writing about.  Don’t write about something or post something just because someone else is doing it.  Just because someone wrote a great post and it received great feedback, doesn’t mean yours will.  It can be hard in a world where there are so many people with similar interests but if you are putting your own spin on your work then it’s guaranteed to stand out.

It’s Only A Number

When I started my Instagram I’ll admit I used to be so focused on how many followers I had.  I would be looking at people with 10 more to 10 million more than me and was always looking for more followers.  I am ashamed to admit it took me awhile to realise that the number doesn’t matter at ALL.  When you start a channel or blog your numbers are always going to be a little lower and they will grow with the more posts and content you create.

Do not be disheartened when you see someone with 20k on Instagram who is posting similar content to you.  Do not be disheartened because someone else got thousands of likes and you only got 100.  Instead, change your attitude and focus your attention on the people that are on your account, instead of looking for ones that aren’t.  Engage with them, comment and follow them back and get to know your followers.  The best advice I can give to anyone interested in blogging is that you shouldn’t give a crap about the figure at the top of your Instagram page as honestly, the way the algorithm works now it is all about your engagement.

Don’t get me wrong, I will be buzzing to reach the 10k threshold on Instagram so I can take advantage of the swipe up feature…

You may be reading this blog as someone who isn’t a blogger or as someone who isn’t remotely interested in becoming one but, these points translate equally into everyday life.  Life your life like the perfect individual you are and you will receive more appreciation for it.  Know your worth in your work life, no matter what you do these points still apply.

I hope you take something away from this post whether you a fellow blogger or not and please comment or let me know some of the things you have learned along the way.