The Blog is 1🎈🎉

The blog turns one. Whoop whoop! I feel like a mother whose child just turned one (sort of, kind of). The blog turning 1 is an enjoyable experience and a reminder of the things that I need to get done, the habits I need to cut off (inconsistency) and the platform I hope to build. The blog has taught me a thing or 12 about life and myself, and I am super thankful for the experience.

The creation of the blog

In the summer of 2014, I started a blog powered by Blogspot, and I probably had only 3- 4 posts because I was a full-time student and couldn’t balance school and running a blog.  Fast forward to May 2016, I was on co-op (internship) and had some free time so, the desire to run a blog came back. One thing led to another, and I didn’t get to start the blog until late July. It was on one of those Fridays, while I was talking to a colleague about my plans for the weekend, that I mentioned researching and creating my blog. At that moment, I decided I was tired of ‘planning to launch a blog’. I bought the domain and released my first post!

So, without talking too much, here are 12 lessons I have learned from the blog:

• Just DO IT: You are probably used to this Nike phrase, but to me, it’s more than an expression associated with the brand. It is a reminder that there is a limit to how much planning or dreaming I can do. At some point, I will have to start whatever it is I want to do if not it wouldn’t get done. To just do it, without excuses or fear of the unknown. For every incentive to work towards achieving your dreams there will always be a reason not to.

“All our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them.”- Walt Disney

• Always be willing to learn, open to correction and feedback: At the time I started this blog, I was an intern in my first professional job, and I realised I knew nothing about the real world. Then, I started this blog, timid of expressing my opinions which made me always seek feedback. It was then I  realised there was and is a lot to learn. Now, I call myself a lifelong learner and hope to learn a thing or more every day.
• To not give up, Be persistent: A lot of times I want to stop blogging because I don’t have the time or I feel like there is already similar content out there- there is a book full of excuses. In spite of everything, I have learnt not to give up- to keep pushing forward!

Success is not the absence of failure; it’s the persistence through failure. – Aisha Tyler

• Celebrate small beginnings: Wouldn’t it be great if we could just wake up to see our dreams materialised? Well, sadly that isn’t how life works, and there would be challenges along the way. I look at the blog and remember when my page was swamped with ads, I also remember trying to set up widgets, playing with different themes and I am so thankful for the process. Couldn’t have had it any other way. Cheers to growth.
• Avoid comparisons: This isn’t as easy as it sounds and I am still very guilty of comparing myself to others. A lot of times, I see other bloggers doing amazing stuff, and then I look at my blog, and I get sad and slightly depressed. I have to constantly be reminded to be inspired by others and not compare myself to them.

                  “Comparison is the thief of joy”- Theodore Roosevelt

• Draw the line between doing things for me and the blog: This goes hand in hand with comparisons. I have found myself doing things for the blog that I am not necessarily interested in. Sometimes, it’s because someone else did it, and it looked cool. My tag line reminds me that this platform is to express the world from my point of view and not anybody else’s.

• Whatever is what doing is worth doing well.

• The importance of clearly defining my purpose and goals: I started this blog with the intention to share my thoughts and interests so when people asked what type of blog I had; I refrained from categorizing my blog. Over time, I learnt that it was important to define my blog niche, and who my audience was. AwahShasha is a lifestyle blog for everyone but most importantly millennials, and it is the world from where I stand.

• There is a time for everything

• To not be scared to market my brand or myself: I am far from perfect with scheduling tweets and Instagram posts and promoting my blog or myself, but I’m learning to be confident in marketing my blog. I used to worry that I was probably annoying people with my fascination of my blog. If I don’t market my blog, who will?
• To be me!
• To be grateful ALWAYS! 

Thank you all soo much for the love and the support so far! Thank you, Thank you & congratulations to @karenhappuch for winning the anniversary Give away!

There’s definitely more to come, and I can’t wait to continue this journey with all of you. If you are not already subscribed, please subscribe, so you don’t miss a post!

Once again, Thank you all!

Shasha