Happy 1st Birthday When Tania Talks!

Hi Everyone!

Well what d’ya know, it was a year ago today that I started my blog! So happy 1st birthday When Tania Talks!

I wanted to use this post to reminisce about some of the amazing people I’ve met through blogging, as well as some of the wonderful things I’ve been involved in. I also want to look forward & have a think about where I want to be this time next year & how I might achieve these.

Let’s start with this past year…

Probably the biggest think I have gotten out of blogging are the friendships I’ve made, here are just a few who mean a lot to me:

• Chloe from Clos Beauty Spot
• Beth from Beauty In Beta
• Beth from Mermaid In Disguise
• Beth from Cow Heart Girl (I really know a lot of Beth’s, I seem to be collecting them!)
• Hollie from Hollie Becca
• Rachel from Happy Little Syllables & Fem-tellectual
• Sarah from Sarah In Wonderland
• Vicky from Victoria Earls
• Sarah from And Beauty Or Something
• Shona from Spoonie Shona & Shona Louise
• Scarlett from Scarlett London
• Gemma from Miss Makeup Magpie
• Carolin from Style Lingua
• CJ from The Creative Geek
• Hayley from Hayley Eszti
• Laura From Laura Hadley
• Cat from What Cat Says
• Courtney from Courtney Melville
• Hayley from It’s Just Me Hayley D

Some of these bloggers I have met through blogging events, such as the Blogging Owls' Bloggers Xmas Party, Scarlett London’s #Bloggerfest & the Bloggers Love #BLFW. Along with making some great blogging friends, I have also had the chance to meet some full-time bloggers, who I look up to. I have met Gracie Francesca, Anna from Vivianna Does Makeup & Lily Pebbles. All three of these ladies are so down to earth & completely genuine. What you see of them in their YouTube videos is exactly the same as in real life.

I have been really excited & flattered to work together with other bloggers. I have been part of Healthy Selves Chat & the Kind Act & the #TakeBackWhatsYours Campaigns. I have also been given the opportunity to be a guest contributor on Fem-tellectual, an exciting blog with posts from a wide variety of female bloggers. I have worked with some great brands, too many to name & have also received a paid (actual money!) post, which was really exciting & first gave me the feeling that I might be able to make my blog more than a hobby. Another experience that made me think that this might be a viable career option was when Nars contacted me to send me a thank you because they loved my posts on their products! I have a hand written note on the back of a NARSissist card that I’m going to frame & keep on my bedside table to motivate me when things get tough, both in the blogging context & in a more general context - it’s always nice to be appreciated for the work you have done (I feel like I’m back at school with my hand up in the air ready to answer a questin!).

I have learnt a lot in the past year. I had no idea how far my photographs, in terms of quality & composition, would come in such a short space of time! I would also never have imagined that I would be able to design & edit using HTML & CSS with nothing but tutorials to guide me, particularly as IT was my weakest subject at school!

Now, let’s look to the future…

I’m going to do something that’s a big bloggy no-no - talking about stats.

i would love for blogging & vlogging to be a part-time career. While I don’t think my body would allow me to do any job full-time, blogging & logging have the flexibility that allows me to create content when I’m able & rest when I’m not. The ability to work from home is particularly attractive with me coming off my medication to try for a baby. The other plus, which is a huge factor, is that I really enjoy this hobby of mine &, if I can go on to make money doing it - great!

Let’s look at my stats. As of last night I had:

Bloglovin’ followers: 282

YouTube subscribers: 244

Twitter followers: 1574

Instagram followers: 794

Pinterest followers: 202

By this time next year, I would like to have:

Bloglovin’ followers: 700

YouTube subscribers: 600

Twitter followers: 3200

Instagram followers: 1700

Pinterest followers: 500

In addition to the stats increase, I would love to meet & work with more & more talented bloggers. I want to build strong relationships with brands & be able to deliver you high quality post content & images.

So how am I going to achieve these goals…?

I know I need to start utilising Google+ more effectively. I’ve ended up with 2 profiles, something to do with one being from Blogger & the other YouTube - I think! If anyone has any tips as to how to manage two profiles, or get rid of one I’d really appreciate it!

Twitter chats are something I have really enjoyed in the past, but I haven’t joined in recently. A lot of this has been to do with either Dan not getting home from work until late so I am cooking dinner, or I’ve not been well enough. I want to make a concerted effort to join in AT LEAST two Twitter chats per week.

I have an organiser for my blog but I have lost the energy to use it! That might sound silly, but when you barely have the energy to get posts up on time having a plan laid out can at best be an extra step & at worst counter productive as it can cause you to feel that you’re not coping & not doing what you could/should/want to do. However, used in the right way an organiser can really help organise ideas, posting schedules & more! I need to keep one of those pens that have 4 colours in them to aid my organisation. I can only read the black & blue, but having sections in different colours really helps me to focus on one specific piece of information, where as text all in one colour can blur together much easier. I can then use the green & red for shapes & symbols to highlight really important things. I need to write the Twitter chats written down in my organiser & start choosing which I am going to join in with at the beginning of the week, then write them in the main ‘diary’ section of the organiser to remind myself. 

I REALLY want to read more blog posts. I find watching YouTube videos much easier as I can have them on in the background when I’m working. Reading is something I find much harder. It’s something I want to force myself to do though as I feel I’m missing out on this part of the blogging community. You can learn a lot from watching what other people do & being inspired by their work. i think this will help me grow into the blogger I want to become. To me, comments on blog posts are also a way of giving back to the community. Think about how you feel when you receive a comment from someone who has read, understood & wants to engage in a conversation with you about the topic - it feels great & I want to be able to give that feeling to people who have worked hard to produce quality content. I would like to comment on three blogs per day (except Monday, which is my stupidly long day). I'm going to start with 1 a day & build up to 3 to make it a more manageable & realistic achievement.

I want to make my blog a more aesthetically pleasing & easy to navigate space. SO I’m going to leave you with some exciting news - I’m in the process of switching from Blogger to self-hosted Wordpress! I want to get the layout just so before making the switch, so keep your eyes peeled for my new .com address! I’m hoping it will be ready for the beginning of July, but I don’t want to do a rushed job.

Tania Xx