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Blog — "a few things"

Blog Because You Love to Blog

Heidi Shenk "a few things" "blogs"

Recently, I've been feeling a bit bummed out with the blogging world. I open up my Google Reader with hopes to read great content and instead I see giveaway after giveaway. Recently, some blogs have hardly had any content other than giveaways, which is not why I began reading them in the first place. Feeling frustrated, I tweeted this:
Within minutes, I was overwhelmed by an outpouring of feedback from all sorts of people. Some comments were from people that completely agreed with me. Others from people that felt they had strayed too far from what their original purpose of blogging used to be and thanked me for the reminder.

I had previously written about my frustration in comparing myself to others around me. I suddenly realized that was no longer an issue for me. Certainly, as bloggers, we all want to have a strong readership, but for me the numbers suddenly no longer mattered. I was watching other blogs grow on giveaways alone and it hit me. I'd rather have ten readers that care about what I am sharing than one hundred readers that are only in it for the free stuff.

I'm guilty of having the occasional giveaway. I think most blogs do have giveaways now and again. Giveaways are fun, but I don't want to be overloaded with them to the point that my written content comes second to a giveaway. I am not blogging for income, numbers, or solely to provide free stuff. I am blogging because I love to write and I want to share my passions.

I mulled over this idea of writing a blog post about this topic. I didn't know if I should write this post because I am a worry wart. I will probably offend people. I might even lose readers that I enjoy engaging with. But this is my space. And as much as I worry about all of that, I also love controversy. I love debate. I love conversation. So why hold back on who I am and not write about something that really hit home for me, and apparently so many others.

After my tweet, I had engaging and thoughtful conversation from so many individuals, including some of my fabulous readers and other bloggers that I admire. THIS is what blogging is about, I thought. It's about expressing opinions and feelings. It's about writing about what you love. It's about building community.

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Frustration

Heidi Shenk "a few things"

I had a few things happen this past week that left me feeling at a bit of a stand still. As I began reflecting on all of it, I thought about the beginning of this indie business venture of mine. Starting out it seemed easy. There were no overly complicated things to think about. As my business continued to grow, each level became much more difficult until I reached the point where I am now.



The amount of work that I put into my shop has increased immensely, yet there are times when I feel as though there is little progress forward, or sometimes even days when I feel as though I am taking several steps back. The worst part about this frustration is that it is draining me of creative energy. I sit down with the intention of creating, only to sit and stare at an empty Illustrator artboard or a blank card and stacks of paper. I'm stuck in a negative cycle.

In one of my most recent fits of frustration, a blog friend Patti shared a great article that got my mind back on track. It reminded me of what my priorities need to be. So I decided to consciously think about the positives. I decided to get back into my yoga routine that I lost a few months ago. I decided to take time off from the things that were adding to my frustration. I decided to stop comparing myself to others and to not be so hard on myself. And mostly, I decided to step away from things if it becomes too frustrating, and come back to it a different day or a different time.

Day one into my new positive cycle and I'm feeling a lot better. I'm realizing that I control how I feel rather than letting it up to circumstances. Some of the circumstances are not up to my control in any way, but it is up to me how I react. Aside from these changes I'm trying to make, I decided to let it all out realizing that I'm not always alone in this department. Do you ever feel stuck in a rut of frustration? What are the methods you have used to cope with your own frustrations?

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