As 2019 comes to a close I had to write my annual reflecting on the year post. In preparation I re-read last year’s “Looking back at 2018” and my first blog post of 2019 “My Blogging Goals for 2019” because this year has been a blur and I couldn’t recall what I had written! Once I read them, all those emotions rushed back in and I realized that a whole lot has not changed, however there were a few key things that I am proud of about this year and some things I definitely need to work on.
To recap: 2017 was my slow year due to my pregnancy and giving birth, 2018 became my comeback year where I wanted to prove I could still kick butt as a working mom, and 2019 became the year of scaling back.
After a very busy 2018 I realized that my time is VERY precious.
I am a working mom putting in 40 hours in the office, a lot of hours in commuting to and from, therefore the remaining hours in my day are SO valuable because they are my hours of being a mom and wife. Julian is also at the “terrible two’s” where I have to keep my eyes on him at all times plus he is a total sponge! With all of that in mind, I created a boundary where my time with him was sacred and I steer away from blogging related work while with him. It also made it difficult in attending events because most of them are in the week during my “precious hours”. I found myself saying no to these networking opportunities which was hard at first but got easier as time went on. I will make an exception here and there for those REALLY good events 😉 With all of this, it has only left me with night times (after 8pm) and when Julian takes the afternoon naps on the weekends to do blog work (and everything else *gulp*). What did that mean for my blog? I had to be more efficient, strategic, and focused during those times since it was very limited.
One of the main improvements this year was leveling up my content both in photography and copy.
The photography portion, I attribute to working with my photographer and friend Tuy (Photography Yours and Mine) who allowed explore different locations in San Diego like Coronado, The Japanese Friendship Garden during the blooming season, Balboa Park, UCSD, and Barrio Logan. All of these places I have been wanting to shoot for since I started and she helped me make that a reality with her photog skills! Thank you Tuy! It also helped me tremendously in being efficient by shooting multiple looks and focusing on the writing and content creation during the week in my “blogging hours”.
Blogging with Intent and adding value
I finally wrote my “How I got out of Credit Card Debt“ blog post and it was the most engaging post where I felt like someone was listening. I got so many heart felt DM’s that blew me away, even made me tear up hearing your stories of financial struggles and victories. It has encouraged me to write more with intent which I sprinkle in my Instagram captions. I also tried to structure my blog posts to be more helpful with styling tips and sharing good worthy sales!
Knowing my worth: Knowing what I bring to the table as a blogger/Influencer
This goes hand in hand with realizing my “precious time” and guarding it. I definitely was more selective with campaigns and stopped doing anything for free. I pride myself in my content, from the written copy to the photography which takes time and effort, so in order to devote that, I needed to work with the right brands that valued what I brought to the table!
This year I was so honored to be a cabi Ambassador, be featured by Macy’s in their Summer/Fall campaign (which they heavily promoted in San Diego leading a lot of my coworkers to find out that I am a blogger/influencer), work with JCPenney throughout the year for their New Arrivals campaigns, land a campaign for Julian with NIDO (where all the earning went to Julian’s college savings account), working with local malls like Las Americas Premium Outlets for Mother’s Day and Holiday shopping, and many other brands. Above all, I only want to endorse brands that I love and know that many of you would love too. I refuse to compromise my integrity as an “influencer” and want to only share things I truly believe in, or believe would help you.
Challenges
With the highs come the lows and the biggest challenge for me was and is time. I still struggle with my content calendar and checking off all of the things I want to do. I am hopeful that in 2020 I will move in the right direction (I will address that in my 2020 goals post). I also struggled with honing in on my message and vision (another thing I will address in my goals post). Just like 2018, 2019 has felt like the Wild West on steroids for influencer marketing. I battled a lot with being a one-woman show with VERY limited hours trying to produce and publish content like an influencer with a team and manager!
Challenges and all one thing is for sure, it was a good year and I can’t complain. I love chatting with all of you via DM and getting to know some of you. I love the feed back, when you guys tell me what you want to see more of (I literally write it on my notebook). I truly value all of you who spend your precious time supporting me in any way. THANK YOU and here’s to 2020 y’all!
Stay tuned for my goals for 2020 post!
Best {Fashionable} Regards,
Paulina
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