Things I Know - It's a Short List

(photo above taken by Mr. Tide and processed into an HDR image by yours truly)

One year ago today I decided to do something I swore I would never do...I started a blog.  Now don't misunderstand, I had nothing against blogs, as a matter of fact, I was kind of addicted to a few, but ME write a blog?!

Mr. Tide had been bugging me for a long time to start a blog, but I had declined at every turn.  You see, I kind of have the attention span of a gnat...it's not pretty, my friends.  You can ask my real life friends about my knitting phase, my painting phase, and I once stayed up all night to make a cross-stitch wedding sampler before I got married because I knew that when the sun rose I would not have the slightest interest in doing needlework for a very long time. 

I also write for a living, so the idea of writing more stuff just sounded like more work frankly.  But after being the last people on the planet to watch Julie and Julia (I know, I know, it's been the inspiration for about a bazillion other bloggers) I thought...hmm maybe I can do this.

I thought, maybe it will give me some freedom from what I do for work and I'll be able to write about any old thing that pops into this feeble brain of mine.  So on January 4th, 2010, I put fingernails to keyboard and created my first post.  I had no clue if it would ever be read, or if I would ever do another post, so the fact that I'm still standing a year and 317 posts later is nothing short of a miracle!

And along the way people actually followed me and read my rantings and cheered me along...who knew?!  I have been amazed, inspired, encouraged, and embraced over this last year in a way I never expected and even if I shut this blog down tomorrow (and remember there have been times when I thought I would need to) I will forever be grateful for everything and for all of you!  The friendships and bonds I've made lift me up each and every day, so Thank You!!!

I've always considered myself a Jack of All Trades and Master of NONE.  And blogging has been no different in that regard, but I have learned a few things along the way that I'd like to impart.  Don't get a pen and paper folks, these aren't juicy words of wisdom, but more like rambling reflections on this past year...plastic pearls of wisdom you might say.

1.  Be true to yourself!  The blogging experts (whoever they are?) say to pick a genre and stick to it.  That's great if you are a stick to it kind of person, but I am clearly not.  Always remember that what you have to say is important, even if it's only important to you.  You started a blog for a reason, and much like life, it's a journey filled with twists and turns and unexpected surprises along the way.  If something strikes your fancy you should blog about it...it is YOUR blog afterall.

2.  Don't count your followers before they've hatched!  I can't stress this one enough.  People will follow, and people will un-follow, it's the nature of the beast.  You'll never know why someone does or doesn't follow you, or why someone UN-follows you, but don't take it personally, it's not worth wasting your time trying to figure out what you did or didn't do.  Truth be told, it probably had nothing to do with you at all, and if it did, well you can't control it anyway so let it go my friends!

3.  Who wants to be a Millionaire?!  Ok, this is probably the biggest lesson I've learned over the last year.  The odds of you striking it rich through your blog, unless you are promoting your own business via your blog, are rather slim.  I'm not saying you shouldn't go after sponsors or monetize your blog, but creating a design/lifestyle blog as a way to strike it rich is kind of like buying a lottery ticket...it could happen!  All of my sponsors are there because they offered me giveaway items and in return I offered them sponsorships.

4.  Helping Hand!  There are bloggers out there who will give you the shirt off their backs, they'll answer any question you have and really try and help you out...but...there are also some who will play I've got a secret and won't be so giving of their time or advice.  Donna from Funky Junk Interiors is one of the good ones folks!  When I first started blogging, there wasn't a stupid email question I could ask that that sweet woman wouldn't answer and I'm still here today thanks to her kindness...and that of many others too great in number to mention!  She also has lots of tips on her blog to help new bloggers out with FAQs.

5.  Guilt be a Lady Tonight!  Cut yourselves some slack, you can't be all things to all people.  You can't respond to every comment and email, or visit every blog every day...unless you can do it in your sleep.  Do the best you can and then walk away.  Blogging was never meant to take over your life, it is meant to enhance it.

6.  Negative Nellies!  Beware the Negative Nellies in the world, they are everywhere.  Sometimes they are a family member, a friend, or even a co-worker, so be careful who you share that blog address with until you really know how supportive they will be.  I'm not saying to hide something from your spouse or best friend, but if you know someone who will try and bring you down, you may want to wait awhile before you share your "baby" with them.  People love to give advice...the problem is they usually don't tell you what is good for you, they tell you what would be good for them.

 7.  Tell me you Love Me!  Comments are a funny thing.  You might write a post that you think will light up the internet only to get a handful of comments on it.  Why?!  I have no clue, and neither will you.  It could be that your post struck a nerve with the reader and it was something they just couldn't comment on, or maybe they got a phone call just when they were about to comment, and poof they forgot to come back and leave you a kind message.  So don't sweat the small stuff, even the Negative Nellies who might leave you an unkind word from time to time...you can't worry about everything, trust me.  I like to say that if my husband, my children and my dogs all love me, then that's all that really matters!

8.  Meet and Greet!  If you've had the opportunity to connect with someone via this crazy thing called blogging and you have the chance to safely meet, go for it!  Once you've confirmed that the person on the other side of your computer screen isn't an axe murderer, you might just find you've made a friend for life!

9.  Time in a Bottle!  Don't post just to post.  If you aren't motivated for a day, a week, or even a month don't feel like you HAVE to post.  When I first started blogging I thought that if I didn't post all day, everyday I would lose readers.  You might, but refer to tip #5 and take a break.

10.  Good Times!  Remember each day to have fun with your blog.  When you're feeling overwhelmed and you want to throw in the towel, step back and look back to your first blog post.  That post was so full of excitement, promise and enthusiasm and sometimes we need to look back in order to move forward.

Look, I'm no expert on anything, I just know that if I hadn't taken that leap of faith a year ago, I would have missed out on so much...on all of you!  Creativity is good for the soul and you all bolster my soul continually.

Thank you for everything my friends!  I had hoped to host a special giveaway today, something that would embody all that you have given me over this past year, but I haven't quite found that special something yet.  Stay tuned, I'll find it eventually and you all will be the first to know when I do!

XOXO ~Kat~