Hello 2017! Beauty + Blog Resolutions

HAPPY NEW YEAR! Today’s post was supposed to go up a few days ago, but in typical fashion, mommy life got in the way. 2016 was a great year for Collective Beauty – I more than doubled my Instagram following, worked with so many amazing brands, and developed great friendships with fellow bloggers. Still, there’s always room for improvement, so today’s post is all about my goals and blog resolutions for this shiny new year!

NOTHING TO DISCLOSE

STRESS LESS 

First and foremost, I want to stress less about blogging, and make it fun again. When I started this adventure back in 2011, I had no idea where it would take me, or that I could actually make money from doing what I love – talking about makeup! It took years of hard work and long hours (for no pay), but eventually I turned a profit. I began working with brands in a professional capacity, complete with deadlines and contracts. Of course, it’s a dream come true, but it also brings a lot of stress and pressure.

I’ll continue to work my hardest at producing quality content, but I want to take the pressure off myself to be perfect. My life is totally different from 2011. I now have two kids who take up 90% of my time. So, if I don’t get a post up, then I don’t get a post up. Blogging while being a mom is hard, and I really need to give myself a break every once in a while.

EXPAND MY FOCUS

If you follow me on snapchat — and if you don’t, why not?! 😉 Then, you might remember me saying I wanted to expand my blog topics this year. I’m still on the fence about whether or not I’m going to do it, but I think it could be really fun. My main focus will always be makeup and beauty, but I’m also really passionate about being a mom, drinking coffee, and surviving this crazy thing called life.

DECLUTTER MY ONLINE SPACE

This is a big one. I have so many old posts that need to be deleted. Back in the early days of blogging, there wasn’t a big emphasis on photo quality and lighting. We were just everyday girls chatting about lipstick and blush. You snapped a photo with your simple point-and-shoot, and called it a day. Fast forward to now, and everyone’s got Canon T5-somethings, fancy studio lights, and awesome photoshop skills. Don’t get me wrong, I love that blogging has evolved, but it makes me sooo aware of how bad my early photos are. So, they gotta go!

Another big reason for the declutter, are the broken links/photos on my site. I migrated my site two years ago, and something happened to my earlier photos (they now appear as little boxes). I’m not very tech savvy, so I have no clue what’s causing this, but my guess is the URLS for the photos are now broken. Either way, it’s another reason to say goodbye to older posts that aren’t doing anything for my site.

WEAR MORE MAKEUP

I know this is probably very odd, considering I’m a beauty blogger, but I’m a mama first….which means there’s a good possibility that I’m rocking 3 day hair and no makeup. It’s tough finding time these days to sit and do a full face, but it’s really important for testing purposes. I’ve got so many products photographed, that I never blogged about, because I never had the time to use them. My goal this year is to make time each day for me, so I can look pulled together, and test products at the same time.

GAIN CONFIDENCE

My last and final goal, is to gain more confidence in my blog. I’m very proud of my little space here on the internet, but I often doubt myself when it comes to approaching brands. Let’s face it, the blogosphere is huge and getting bigger everyday, so it’s hard to get noticed. In the past, I would see other bloggers working with brands and wish it were me. Recently, I decided to muster up the courage to approach one of my favorite brands, and you know what? They got back to me and said they loved my work! On the flip side, I’ve also been rejected, so don’t get too upset if you don’t get the responses you want. It’s a punch in the gut, but keep working hard, and you’ll get there!