BLOGGING WITH PURPOSE

Blogging ignites my fire. It brings me joy to press publish. It fuels my creativity and sparks my imagination. It pushes me be successful and it inspires me to be greater. Blogging is not simply typing your thoughts and presenting it to whomever comes across it on the Internet.

Blogging is reading other blogs. Blogging is taking creative pictures with the intention of editing them into posts. Blogging is being part of a creative community that supports and encourages each others growth.

Technically, I have been blogging since the Fall of 2011. But it wasn't until a year ago that I really got into it and learned how much of a blogging community is out there. Since then, I have drastically changed my approach to blogging. I try not to write only when feeling inspired. When I have the time, I actively think of ideas and browse blogs and online magazines, hoping to come up with an idea of my own. I realized that I am blogging with a purpose. I have intentions of inspiring other people creatively, and I know that there are certain things that I have to do if I want to accomplish that goal. 

Here are some of the things I think you have to do to blog with purpose:

Spend time reading other blogs. First of all, there is so much you can learn from other bloggers. People like Brittany (from The Kardia), Gina (from Gina Alyse), and Jessica (from The Blogging Brew), continually inspire me. Not only do they have great advice about blogging, but their creativity motivates me to push my creative boundaries. This part is non-negotiable. Reading other blogs will help you come up with new ideas, know what is popular in the blogosphere, and make meaningful connections with people across the world. 

Engage with other bloggers. Who knew that you could make such personal connections with people you might have never met in real life? I feel like I know some of these ladies after reading their blogs, and engaging with them on social media or via email. Just sending a friendly email to tell someone how much you enjoy their blog can go a long way. Likewise, try to regularly leave genuine comments that show you really connected with their content. 

Create a mission. This is one of the biggest parts of blogging with a purpose. Why are you blogging? What is driving you to create content to share with other people? It doesn't necessarily have to be written out, but it will definitely help if you establish it for yourself. If you want your readers to take away a certain message or feel a certain way after reading your blog, you need to keep that in mind every time you blog. You should ask yourself, "Does this post align with the goals of my blog?" 

Always have pictures. Jana from Life Could Be a Dream has a great post about how to create Pin-worthy images. As I said, Pinterest has been one the biggest drivers of traffic to my blog, so creating Pin-worthy images is really important. 

Utilize social media. Anyone in the blogosphere will tell you that if you are really dedicated to blogging, your social media will reflect that. This includes regularly tweeting, posting on a Facebook page for your blog, being on Bloglovin, updating your Instagram, and Pinning your content. Social media is a great way to interact with other bloggers and get your content out there. My Pin of "7 Things I Never Want My Little Sister to Feel" has been repinned over 800 times, liked almost 400 times, and because of that it has almost 13,000 pageviews. It is my most successful post to date, and it has been amazing to see it take off. That is the power of Pinterest. 

Know your resources. Some days I feel like I am underutilizing my blogging resources. I wish took more pictures. I wish I spent more time learning Adobe Illustrator. And I really wish I could make a blog schedule and stick to it already. I keep telling myself I am going to make a blog planner, because I think I could be a lot more successful if I did. Part of blogging with purpose is making it a part of your regular routine, so that you can grow trust with readers and foster a community. Blogging is as big of a commitment as you make it, but know that if you want your blog to grow, you have to put in the time and show your dedication. Gina Alyse has a great post on Must-Have Creative Resources of Lifestyle Bloggers! 

Remind readers of your purpose. Every once in a while I like to say, "Since my blog is about encouraging other people to pursue their passions..." One, it lets new readers know what to expect out of a lot of my posts. And two, it reminds people of what I ultimately want them to take away from reading my blog. 

Write what you would want to read. What haven't you read that you have always wondered about? It really isn't difficult to find blogs; they are everywhere! There are so many bloggers that have written about so many topics. But if you have a mission to your blog, creating content specific to your goals for your blog should be much easier. Sometimes I don't post simply because I don't have anything to write about, but there is always something that you can uniquely add to a conversation or share from a personal experience. 

How do you blog with purpose?

HOW TO ACTIVELY PURSUE YOUR PASSIONS

The other day I heard someone talking about how they don't like calling pursuing your passions "dreaming", because dreaming is for sleeping, and you should be active in going after what you want. You have to chase after what you want and put in a lot of hard work.

I agree with that to a point. I believe that reaching your goals involves actively making decisions that will get your closer to what you are working towards. However, I think the concept of dreaming is beautiful. Everyone should have something that gets them so excited that it keeps them up at night thinking about sometimes. Everyone should have that one thing that makes them excited for the rest of their life, because they cannot wait for what the world has in store for them.

I have no idea what I will actually end up doing in the future. I don't know where I am going to live after college or what my first job will be--or what the one after that will be. Yet, I feel something burning inside of me every day that knows I should be excited for whatever my future turns out to be. I am certainly not wishing away the present, because I am thrilled to be where I am in my life right now, but I am not afraid of the future either.

 

1. Establish your goals.

Having a dream is one thing, but if you want your dream to become a reality, you need tangible goals that will help you get there.

2. Envision the steps to achieving your goals.

Take some time to think about steps that you can take right now to achieve your final goals. Are there skills that you can be refining? Are there people you can talk to that can give you advice? It is never too early to start working towards your dreams.

3. Set deadlines.

I don't know about you, but if I don't have a deadline I tend to put things off. There needs to be something to keep you in line and make sure that you are actually putting the work in. When you have deadlines, you are more likely to keep yourself on track and actually accomplish something. For instance, maybe you want to improve your Photoshop skills. Make a goal of how often you want to have projects done by or a number of tutorials you want to have completed by a certain date. 

4. Take time to refocus.

Sometimes you need to step back and look at the reasons you chose to go after whatever it is you are passionate about. Why do you have these dreams? What is pushing you further? What is it that fire burning within you that tells you this is all worth it? You need to remind yourself of why you have those dreams.

5. Don't let yourself get stuck.

This one kind of relates to number 4. If you took the time to refocus and you realized that you couldn't figure out why you had these dreams, maybe you need to reconsider what you are working towards. For years I wanted to be a doctor. I tried to teach myself medical terms in my spare time. I narrowed down my specialty by the time I was 12 and stuck with it for years. But then one day, I realized that it wasn't actually my dream. Maybe it had been at one point, or maybe it was just easy to stick with it because I had been saying it was my dream for so many years. Either way, I realized it's okay to change your mind. Don't feel anchored down by one idea. Be open to other possibilities, because there are so many things you can do with your life that you might not even know about now.

6. Accept failures, and move on.

One of the best talks that I have ever attended taught me that you should move onto the next thing before you find out how the last thing turned out. So maybe you're a writer, and you want to be published. Part of the gig is facing rejection letters sometimes. Instead of getting stuck on whether or not your work will get accepted, start working on your next project. That way you are not letting your successes or failures dictate your path. You are moving forward, regardless of how one thing turns out. There will always be other opportunities, so make sure you are open to finding them.

7. Finally, invest in yourself.

You have to your biggest fan. If you want other people to believe in you, you have to believe in yourself first. Your confidence and your passion will be your greatest assets, and they will be invaluable in achieving your goals. Treat yourself well. Don't push yourself too hard, and always remember that your dreams matter.

Dreaming might be something that we do when we're sleeping, but I think it's one of the most amazing things that our mind can do. When I am daydreaming, I don't scold myself, because I know how important it is to my creativity. My imagination is one of my greatest strengths, and I don't ever want to deny it. If you take anything away from this, please remember: never stop dreaming.

You may say I'm a dreamer. But I'm not the only one. -John Lennon

THERE'S NO TIME LIKE NOW TO FLOURISH

As a blogger, I am constantly pushing myself to be creative and encourage creativity in others. Some of my biggest inspirations are the wonderful women I have met through blogging. Today, I am excited to linkup with Brittany, from The Kardia for the first Flourish Linkup! This linkup is all about learning to be successful and thriving with your own passions, and there is no time like now to start. I'm so lucky to have come across Brittany's blog, because she has such a wonderful spirit and energy. Her posts have inspired me to think and design more creatively, and I am thrilled to have the opportunity to spread creative energy with her linkup.

10 Things I'm Grateful for:

1. Friends and family that support my dreams and creative endeavors
2. Late night talks about life
3. The opportunity to attend a university where I can study what I am passionate about
4. Breathtaking views
5. Good books with refreshing tea
6. The unique bond I have with my 4-year-old sister
7. Warm chocolate chip cookies
8. The close relationships I have with my parents 
9. Videos, movies or songs that inspire me to think about life
10. Writers, bloggers, and teachers that have inspired me to choose the life of writing and everything that comes with it

I will flourish creatively this year by:

Not making excuses. Life is always busy. Netflix is always tempting. There is always some excuse. My biggest goal this year is to stop making excuses of why I don't have time to write or work on my design skills. No one was every successful in what they didn't do, so this is the year that I take some advice from Nike and "just do it."

Taking my time. I always say that all I want is another day in the week, but I know that in reality if there were another day I would find more to keep busy with. Sometimes I rush through things, because I don't feel like I have enough time to get everything done. And there is nothing I want to cut out of my schedule. It might seem like there is too little time in the day sometimes, but I want to spend more time with my creative outlets. I do not want to feel rushed through posts or designed projects. So my goal is to set tentative deadlines but to be flexible so that I can do my best work.

Listening. Music has always been one of my biggest inspirations. When I was younger I used to write fiction with chapters named after songs that had similar themes to what I was writing about. I think it's amazing the way that a song can tell a story or evoke emotion. Music has even inspired some of my blog posts, and it has often help me better articulate my thoughts. This year I will spend more time paying attention to the lyrics that help me think creatively.

What the word "Flourish" means to me: 

The way I see it, to "flourish" is to succeed by putting in everything that you have and not holding back. To flourish creatively is to immerse yourself in your work and produce something that has never been done before. One of the things I liked that Brittany said was that she has a goal to work on creating her own style, because it is so easy to use ideas from other people, even by accident. It's difficult to push boundaries and create from a blank slate, because we have so many influences all around us. So many strive to be unique, but being original is difficult in a world coated in creativity. I think the best way to flourish creatively is to be authentic and push past your own limitations until you uncover the beauty that no one else could see.

What do you think it means to "flourish"? Join the linkup on The Kardia to share how you plan to flourish this year.

The Kardia

ALWAYS MOVE ON TO THE NEXT THING

A few weeks ago, I got the pleasure of being in a Q&A with a real-life TV writer. During a 50-minute lecture, I often tend to start to get bored, and I repeatedly check my watch to see when I will be able to leave. An hour and half past, and it never occurred to me to check the time. I could sit and listen to this guy talk all day long. "This guy" is Stephen Falk, currently working on You're the Worst, which debuted as an FX original comedy series in July 2014. He is the show's Creator, Executive Producer, and Showrunner. Additionally, he has worked on shows like Orange is the New Black and Weeds.

During the Q&A he said some things that really stuck with me. One of my favorite things he said was, "Always move on to the next thing--even before you find out how the last thing turned out." He said in regards to always moving on to new writing projects, specifically, because there is always going to be a "no." Even if there is a "yes", there is a "no", because in the TV Industry are a lot of steps to getting shows into actual production, and then being aired, and then being renewed for more seasons. We all recognize this from watching TV. Every fall a slew of shows are advertised, some might last a few episodes, some might last the year, and very few make it on to run for multiple seasons. But what we don't see is all of the shows that are written or even recorded that never make it. So, if you are always working on the next thing, you don't have to be as disappointed, because you are already making something new. He also applied this more broadly, saying you could even think about things like essays that way. Always be thinking about the next thing, because at the end of the day grade (or whatever it may be) doesn't matter as much as you think it does at the time.

That isn't to say that we don't feel it when things don't work out. He told a hilarious story about when he worked on a show that he created a few years ago. It was about what happened when he got the call that the network was pulling the plug, while he was recording an episode in New York. They had just finished a cut when he got the call, and said he would be right back and then walked out of the building, because he no longer had a job there. This night involved some choice beverages to cope with bad news, he ended up stealing a guitar, and he sat in the dark, because it was around the time of Sandy and the power went out. "It was a dark time, you guys," he quipped. He also later found out there was a police investigation being opened about the guitar, which turned out to be worth $10,000 and on loan from Gibson. So that happened. 

No one is perfect. No one has it all. No one can be sure that what they have will be there tomorrow. Or the day after that. That's why you always have to move onto the next thing.

Another thing he said that I liked was to always stick with what you believe in. He said, "If you fail, at least you have something that you are proud of. Because if you compromise, and it fails, then you don't even have that." There are going to be times when people want you to do something their way, but if it doesn't feel right, you shouldn't compromise your integrity.

He also talked about some of the shows he has worked on, and which shows he thinks have great pilot episodes. People asked questions about how to get where he is today, and he shared his knowledge and advice from the industry. He told us to start building up "a body of evidence." You need to get stuff out there and get your name out there. One thing I thought was interesting was that people even get recognized based on their Twitter. When looking for comedy writers, someone's Twitter might give an indication of how creative and funny they are. And last but not least, he said that you need to learn the rules, but keep what makes you weird. It is what will make you stand out. 

No matter what I end up doing in life, the lessons I learned from Stephen Falk will still be valuable. He was funny and outspoken in the best way. I like to imagine that one day I will be giving a similar Q&A, referencing the time that I first heard a TV writer speak. I'll tell the story about the autumn afternoon that I never wanted to end, and pass along his wisdom. Or maybe this will be the basis of the first TV show I write. Either way, it is safe to say it was time well spent.

eXposing the eXtremes

You can tell a lot about person based on the TV shows and movies he or she watches. Usually they display personality traits that are already evident, but sometimes they reveal ones that hide behind the surface. Often times the genre one chooses reflects his or her interests but everyone has their guilty pleasures. From the Bachelor to Jersey Shore, our society is hooked on the pathetic lives of these wannabe famous reality stars. Our society thrives on the extremes in movies and television. We want the most scandalous, the hottest, the fastest and the goriest. The younger generation just keeps getting worse because we are already addicted to the competition of outdoing one another in attempt to get the spotlight.

Shows like Glee no longer can entertain with happy songs and steady relationships. They have to push the limits to ensure their fans keep the series recording on the DVR. From teen pregnancy to bullying of gay students, Glee touches on hot topics in today’s society. E!’s the Soup pokes fun at many reality shows, exposing the ridiculous aspects of today’s entertainment.  E online describes the “wildly popular show” by saying “Joel McHale satirizes pop culture and current events.”  While the Soup makes fun of the absurdities on TV, there are certain features one could argue are just as outrageous as the very ideas it is satirizing. The transitions like “The Clips of the Week” (pretending to clip a Chihuahua) and “Chat Soup” (a pot full of talk show host faces) portray the values of today’s society. The whole show is very silly and brings humor to demonstrate how pathetic these shows actually are.

Themes in television and movies have changed over time as values in our culture have changed. If you look at sitcoms from the twentieth century, you see pure clean humor with reassuring family themes. In the past decade we have changed from innocent to a society driven my sex, drugs, and money. Look at the titles of the shows now and then:

Then: Leave It To Beaver, Seinfield, Boy Meets World, Bewitched, Brady Bunch

Now: Sex and the City, Cougar Town, the Bachelor Pad, Take the Money and Run, Dirty Sexy Money, Intervention

As our values have changed so has TV, but that doesn't mean it is always as negative as it may seem. We have many family friendly shows that are enjoyable for the masses. Abc's Modern Family brings joy even to the crabby old man that yells at you for throwing your football in his yard. Nbc's the Office makes the meanest boss bring cupcakes to all of his workers (or at least consider it for the brief moment between shredding your confidence and spitting in your face). And Eli Stone (a show that played on Abc for a few seasons a couple of years ago) brought a sense of happiness that even the most sarcastic people would be touched by. 

TV and movies may be trying to go to the extremes nowadays, but sometimes they can be eXtremely inspiring. 

(X squared p. 119)