Creating Your Own Path

My apologies for being so silent on here lately. I have to admit that I’ve been experiencing writer’s block over these last few days. I’ve had new images to share, but no words of value to go along with them. I was sitting in front of a blank screen on my laptop for what felt like hours when suddenly the lightbulb went off and I knew exactly what I wanted to write about today. Here’s a little piece of advice: Never force your content. Only share it when it feels right and when you’re truly excited about it. I know I’ve been absent for a bit, but I hope it was worth the wait!

One of the most challenging aspects of running a blog full-time is finding your way and creating your own path. With literally thousands of bloggers and digital influencers, or whatever they’re calling us these days, it can be extremely overwhelming and at times even disheartening when you feel as though you’re getting looked over. How do you find ways to stand out in such a crowded corner of the Internet?

It definitely took me quite some time to nail this down because if I’m being truthful, it’s extremely easy to get caught up in what everyone else is doing. Without realizing it you start to do what they’re doing because you see that it’s working for them. A lesson I learned throughout these last 5 years is that things work differently for everyone. It’s also so easy to play the whole comparison game. It’s wasted energy and it steals your joy. What sets you apart is that you are YOU. There is no one else out there exactly like you so why do you want to fit in when you can stand out? You have something different and unique that you can bring to the table so make sure you own that and never forget it. I always think of this quote and believe it serves as a great reminder. It holds so much truth and power. “The woman who follows the crowd will usually go no further than the crowd. The woman who walks alone is likely to find herself in places no one has ever been before.”

I quickly learned and realized how essential it is to always be yourself and to always make sure your authenticity shines through your work. This is the only way for people to see the real you. In the beginning, as most of you know, I was only fashion-focused. At the time, it felt right and I truthfully never expected the blog to go anywhere. I didn’t really understand the importance of finding my own place in this industry. I didn’t even know it would become its own industry. Looking back I see that I was sort of just going along with what everyone else was doing. Trust me though, it’s so important to find your voice, to use it and to know what sets you apart from others.

For me, the turning point came when I became more transparent and personal with my struggles, insecurities and overall day-to-day life. There were not many bloggers doing this, at least not when I first created Life Chats a few years ago. Everything seemed to only focus on the surface layer, creating a facade of this “perfectly curated life” that could sometimes be seen as materialistic and narcissistic. I really wanted to break down this stereotype that many people had of bloggers. I wanted to tell the stories behind the photos and dig deeper to expose more of myself and essentially, share the real me. There were things that I wanted to talk about that went beyond the outfits. I’ve experienced an extremely difficult loss in my life that I carry with me every single day. I don’t always have my shit together. I’m not happy every single moment. I struggle just like the next person. Opening up and sharing these super personal aspects of my life is what brought more value to my writing and stronger connections to my readers. Instead of continuing to follow along in everyone else’s footsteps, I decided to take a leap of faith and create my own path. It’s not always easy to expose my vulnerability, but through that I feel I’ve found my place and purpose in this digital world.

Now this is not to say that you need to go and open up as much as I do. My point here is that this works for me and this is how I was able to find my own place. The key to standing out in this industry is to be able to connect to others in some way. Some bloggers have the ability to do this just through their fashion photos. For me though, that was not enough. I wanted more and I needed more. Each blogger has their own readership and audience. I believe that the community you build will be based off the way you are representing yourself. So for me, most of my readers appreciate the transparency that I share. They respond to it and I even think that they expect that from me now. I feel very passionate about these in-depth conversations that I have been able to start. They mean so much to me.

When a connection is formed, you’re going to be memorable. What you share will resonate with others and they will want to come back for more. The beauty of running a blog is that it gives you this incredible platform to create, to share, to inspire, to empower and sometimes to even make a difference. Think about the message that you want to get across in your words and through your photos, whatever that is. Let your personality shine through. As you grow as a person, it’s only natural for your content and aesthetic to evolve with you. It’s ok to experiment with different ideas and implement new changes. This is all part of finding yourself in this digital space. Just never lose sight of who you are. Always make sure that whatever you put out is a true representation of yourself. Make sure your content is created through your eyes and your vision, not someone else’s.

With so many creatives out there, it’s natural to come across similar style photos. Get inspired, but don’t copy. Give things your own unique twist and personal touch. You do not need to have hundreds of thousands of followers to stand out so as hard as it is sometimes, please do not let the number next to your name define you. I see such amazing and inspirational content every single day and not just from those with a massive following. I definitely think that there are a lot of creatives who get overlooked and are underrated. What typically catches my eye is their particular vision and the way they tell stories through their photos. I look for people and content that I can relate to and those with a real purpose and message to share. I personally love to see bloggers opening up about the real behind-the-scenes moments. I enjoy getting more of a glimpse into their world. So to those who may feel discouraged that your work goes unnoticed – I see you. Keep on building your community and never stop creating. You’re already leaving your mark, even if you don’t realize it yet.

I hope you enjoyed reading this post and that it resonated with you in some way! You can read more about building up your own community here. Feel free to leave your thoughts on this in the comments below or let me know if you have any questions. Have a great day and thanks for stopping by! 💛