Blogging Lessons Learnt in 2016

1. Don’t try and do it all

This year I stretched myself a LOT, to the point of exhaustion. I went on countless trips and holidays (which sounds like fun) but mostly they involved work, and the truth is by the end of the year I was completely burnt out. I’d never experienced stress or anxiety like this before and it left me scared and worried about my health. After assessing my year as a whole I realised how much I’d unrealistically taken on and how much time I’d spent working versus relaxing and enjoying life. After finally taking some time out at the end of this year I finally felt like myself again and ready to approach things differently in 2017.

2. Not every relationship works out

Not everything is going to work out (relationships with friends, partners, clients, brands etc) and that’s OK – there’s going to be people that adore you and ones that absolutely can’t stand you. Sometimes things fall down and it’s no ones fault in particular, people or relationships just grow apart, or go in new directions etc. I’ve had to remind myself this in 2016, and it’s made me more grateful for the amazing relationships I do have rather than focussing on the ones that didn’t work out.

3. Quality over quantity every time

Because I took on so much this year and over-stretched myself, I felt like some of the basics suffered. For example, I didn’t post all the regular blog content I was shooting, or put time and effort into properly crafting blog posts people actually want to read. In 2017 I want to cover lots of amazing topics including career, how-tos and travel guides (and anything else you guys want to hear about!). Not to mention starting back up my ‘Out for Coffee with’ series and meeting other bloggers and creatives!

4. Saying no is a good thing

I heard a saying recently something about when you say no to things you’re actually saying yes to yourself. I totally relate to this after a full on year of working, blogging and events. I’ve seen first hand how saying yes to everything only makes your quality of work dip, and you run out of steam pretty quickly. There’s definitely such thing as burnt out / anxiety and doing ‘too much’ and I experienced this first hand this year. Saying no more will be a positive thing in the new year!

5. There’s inspiration in my own city

I’ve realised I don’t necessarily need to be constantly traveling to find inspiration for my blog! The reason I started blogging was to give you guys outfit and shopping inspo, and bring snapshots of life in Sydney. There’s so much inspiration in this beautiful city within my reach – I don’t need too look far or escape to find it. Some of my most loved posts on Instagram are snapshots of local cafes or just my bedroom! Although one of this years resolutions was to travel more (I did approximately 13 trips away) next year will about finding joy at home. Travel won’t be completely absent, but spending more time in Sydney will allow for better, more planned content and catching up on travel guides I wanted to write this year.