Oh summer, where has the time gone? It’s almost August and right now I am all about getting ready for BlogHer. The annual convention of 4,000+ bloggers kicks off on Thursday in my backyard – NYC. Over the past few months, I’ve been watching the Twitter streams and Facebook posts of everyone who is coming.
There is so much more focus on who is invited to what, and what the great swag is going to be. I can’t even begin to talk about that, as I feel it is a topic that is wearing itself out.
What I do want to talk about and talk to are the bloggers who are new or relatively new in this space and are attempting to find their way around the huge throng expected at the Hilton.
As a new blogger, welcome to the community. It may seem scary at first, but there is a lot of love and support to be found here.
I once received a piece of advice from someone that I think is really relevant here. When I first started taking group exercise classes, the instructor told me to find a person to use as a fitness role model. Someone who was in better shape than you, but was an achievable goal for you. Could be a real person or someone in a magazine. Key was achievable. For me, that was never going to be Giselle as I could starve myself all I wanted and work out 24./7 without ever looking like her. However, the woman who was consistently in the front row of the class looked a little like me, only better. Her stomach was flatter, her legs more toned. With work and perseverance, I knew I could look like that. I used her as an inspiration to motivate my workouts and inspire me to get in better shape.
My advice to the newbies is to use BlogHer to find your own blogging inspiration. Sure, we all love The Bloggess and Pioneer Woman, but maybe you want to stick a little closer to the ground first. Find someone like you – maybe in the same genre, or with the same goals who’s doing things a little bit differently. Maybe even better than you. Learn from her.
For me, that person is Marcy Massura. Marcy comes the closest to me in terms of what I am hoping to do in blogging. She’s a mom with a career who also blogs. That was key – I was looking at all these bloggers who do this full time and feeling a bit inferior. Of course they can do all that blogging, I thought. Well, Marcy gets a lot done while rocking a really cool career. Her blog design is sharp, her posts are well written, and her mission/vision for what she wants to do is clear. Community, branding, and total engagement are what I think about when I visit her sites. And those are all things that I want my blog to be. Plus she has great hair. Working on that too.
We also have similar interests. As one of the Three Disneyland Moms, she too rocks the mouse ears. That’s where we officially met, at the Disney Social Media Moms conference. I loved her tweets, which were as whip-smart and funny as she turned out to be.
My wish for all of you newbies at BlogHer is to find someone who keeps you focused on what you want your blog to become. Who knows, maybe someday soon you can be someone else’s inspiration.
THIS. “She’s a mom with a career who also blogs.” I rarely get labeled as a mom blogger, but somehow because I blog, and I’m a parent, blogging MUST be how I spend my days and earn pin money.
“I’m a mom with a business who also blogs.” That’s me. Thanks for making ME realize there is a difference.
This is my first year going to BlogHer, and to be honest, I’m sort of dreading it. Too much peeking in on the Facebook groups and Twitter hashtags (like I normally do before a conference) left me feeling completely inferior because I wasn’t obsessing over clothes or swag. I have an amazing wardrobe & closet full of “oh honey!” amazing shoes. I don’t really need conference swag to feel valued to a sponsor. So, that left me pretty empty feeling. Realizing I will go there as a a “professional woman and small business owner” that I am makes all the world of difference.
Thanks. By the way, YOU are one of those role-model ladies for me.
Lynette, we get caught up in SO MUCH regarding BH that it’s important to remember what we can be. And to remember to find our tribe, our people, the ones that represent what we want to be in the social space. I used to go and sit there saying, “I’ll never be like so and so” and the truth is I won’t be. I don’t blog full time and even tho I have been involved in social since the days of CompuServe and The Source (does anyone remember The Source anymore?) I felt like I was a poser. The truth is that we all have something to achieve, the sandbox is big enough for us to achieve what we want, as long as we keep our eyes on what is in reach. I think the pathfinder sessions are a great example of that – my blog as change agent, business, media company (ok, so I have an issue with the “book proposal” one but I am biased) – these show the different paths we can go on and what we can strive to become.
And your last comment was very sweet. Thank you.
I have a (very professional) girl crush on Marcy. Love a no-nonsense, funny woman. Great tribute, Ellen.
What a great article.
Ellen, I used this same advice to lose weight…only the person I used was me. I would look in the mirror and suck in my breath as much as possible. What I saw was where I could go. And, of course, the more weight you lose when you suck (wait…did that come out right) you look thinner still.
Thanks for sharing! Enjoy BlogHer.
That’s awesome in so many ways!
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