Tanya Foster in Talbots animal print top and Mott & Bow jeans

Tanya Foster in Talbots animal print top and Mott & Bow jeans

Tanya Foster in Talbots animal print top and Mott & Bow jeans

Tanya Foster in Talbots animal print top and Mott & Bow jeans

Hi! We’ve just returned from a magnificent trip to Belize. While there, I had plenty of time to relax and reflect on life and this blogging journey. Can you believe that it has been 6 years since I launched my blog? Yep, it was January 2014 when I had this little idea to learn something new and share daily stories. There are 6 things that I have learned about myself while being a blogger.

Happy hump day! While on vacation, we figured out that Belize does not “spring forward” to Daylight Savings Time. This was an unexpected happy surprise especially since we were living on island time with no agenda or plans. The good news is that we never experienced that feeling of losing an hour because, well… we truly never knew what time it was. Brilliant!

That leads me to today’s blog topic. I’m sharing 6 things I’ve learned after 6 years of blogging. Some are personal and some are general observations. Random thoughts, if you will. I’ll be interested to see if you agree with me.

What I’ve learned after 6 years of blogging

1. Travel is no longer private (neither is my life). I guess I made this a choice since I’m a Lifestyle Blogger. Part of what I do is discover brands and destinations and share them through this site and on my social media. If you follow me on Instagram and watch my Instagram stories, you are basically on the trip with me. This is my way of sharing what I am experiencing in the moment but it also allows me to gather input from you which helps form the blog post. But nothing is private and I feel like it makes this career a job that is 24/7. Again, I made that choice…

2. I have to be “ON” at all times. By this I mean I have to have full make up on and a cute outfit when I leave the house (or travel). I made the mistake of running up to Nordstrom Northpark without make-up one time while quickly trying to pick up and online order. Additionally, I had on Nike running shorts and an oversized tee of some sort. You get the picture – slob kabob! Of course I ran into a follower who wanted to get caught up as I awkwardly was trying to make conversation while trying to remember if I brushed my teeth. GEEZ!

3. “Online Tanya” is much more aspirational. The downside to blogging and influencing is that it all seems perfect ALL THE TIME. The reality is that it is perfectly curated. A lifestyle blog is meant to inspire and to do that you have to be aspirational. Why in the world would I blog about my shitty day? You don’t want to read that. Nobody does! Heck, Pete barely wants to hear about it.

4. I dress better, feel better and therefore, look better! Since launching this blog, I’ve learned how to pull together looks and dress better. While my style has always been classic, I now embrace style trends and make them my own. I value brand partnerships that embrace this. I’ve also learned that if I veer too far off, it doesn’t resonate very well. It took me a while to figure this out in the beginning so if you go back 6 years in content (yes, everything is archived on this site) you might see some interesting style choices.

5. I honed my skills on beauty, skincare and aesthetic procedures. As far as BEAUTY content, nothing matters more that anti-aging for me. I can tell that you love blog posts where I share my latest injections, peels, laser treatments and skincare products. In fact, I am working on a PAGE for this site that will be the “best fo the best” for this topic. I love investigating these procedures and products and sharing what really works for me. Stay tuned for more on this front…

6. Being honest and genuine truly matters. Yes, I get paid to talk about brands and I do make commission off of some of the items I link on this site. While I absolutely LOVE what I do, it is a business. Taking brand campaigns that I don’t 100% believe in DOES NOT WORK. I learned that the hard way in my first year of blogging. Stay true to yourself and the rest will fall in place. I feel like this motto that I have adopted for myself and my site is a good mantra to live by in general.

 

Whew! There you have it. Did you discover anything you didn’t already know? Leave me a comment today and you might just get a little surprise in the mail…HINT, HINT!

While we are talking style, I’ve realized that I am a huge lover of animal print! This blouse is new and I’ve paired it back with my Mott & Bow skinny jeans. Everything I have on fits true to size. One can never have enough animal print! Check out this blog post and you will see a very similar look.

Thanks for stopping by. Make it a great day! xoxo – Tanya

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Animal print blouse with mott & bow jeans

photo: Audrie Dollins

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