TravelingSaurus has officially been around 1 year. I’m not one for reminiscing, but I think it’s worth noting the one year anniversary considering many bloggers don’t make it to this point.
The good news is that I still like to blog. I don’t blog for money. I don’t blog because I want people to think my life is awesome. I don’t blog because I have loads of spare time and need something to do.
I blog because I like to write and I like to travel, and I enjoy having a (somewhat) creative outlet outside of my very reality-based life.
But, like other bloggers, I struggle. I struggle with wondering if I have enough readers. I worry that my content sucks and I don’t have enough engagement. I still hate sharing too much personal information, particularly considering I remain a very private person (hell, most of my friends don’t even know this blog exists). I’ve gotten better about taking good photos, but I still have a long ways to go.
And let’s be real, I still write and grammar check all my work and personal emails way better than I do with anything that gets posted here.
If I’ve learned anything in a year it’s that blogging–like anything in life–is never an “end” to anything. You are constantly learning, changing, adapting, improving, and editing.
Blogging also has all the wonderful qualities of life/human behavior. The cliques, the snark, the “my way is the right way”, the self-promotion above all else.
Fortunately, the only person I ever compete against is myself (and sometimes my husband…in running…which is a totally lost cause so it doesn’t count).
And for a perfectionist, starting a blog has really been a good exercise in patience and humility. Posts will never be perfect. Sometimes that photo won’t even be good enough. Many times I spend hours looking at other blogs wishing that I had more time, was willing to invest more money, had a professional photographer, owned a better photo-editor, and could just do more, and do it better.
Maybe one day I will do all of those things. But not today. And not tomorrow. Probably not even this year.
And you know what? That’s ok. With a year behind me, I’m still glad I started blogging. I’m still glad I kept with it. I’m glad I still want to write. And that’s what matters.
Heather, I could relate to almost every word in this post! Sounds like you blog for the exact reasons I do, purely for the love of writing, travelling and as a creative outlet. I too am my own worst enemy with the blog – sometimes I find it so disheartening that my blog doesn’t look as good or get the readers that so many others do but then I have to remind myself why I do it and that I’d probably still do it anyway. Well done on making it to a year where lots of people may have given up. I love reading your posts and personally, I think your photos are excellent so I wouldn’t worry too much about that fancier camera! ☺
Thank you so much, again, for the kind words. I look up to your blog and great adventures–plus, it’s nice to read stories from someone else who enjoys to travel but doesn’t travel full time!