to own my *bleep bleep*
Ok, this post is coming at me hard and fast and will probably require a few rounds of edits and a good couple of days to take the heat off but I have to write while the fire is lit, and it's nap time so I have uninterrupted time to churn this out.
Late last fall I was intrigued by a mommy blog that was looking for contributing editors. I am currently on parental leave and thought, hey I could maybe do a side hustle. But, the more I thought on it, the less I wanted to share my time off of my job with a company when I could be spending those precious hours with my sweet beautiful baby boy.
Instead of applying for the job I emailed them some pitches. A pitch is a scaffolded idea. For a blog it is an easy way to get a feel for the story and your voice without having to create a fully edited and grammatically correct post ready for publishing. They didn't ask for pitches, but I thought, I want to write, and they are obviously looking for content, this could be a win-win.
Well, it certainly was a win for them. I pitched 6 ideas.
They have had someone else write 4 of my ideas.
I was seething. The fourth article was alarmingly specific to my family life and I couldn't help but feel like it was stolen from me.
I know that my ideas weren't earth shattering or completely new. And I don't even know if they truly used mine or someone else's.
I went on Instagram to calm myself down (because Social Media always helps distract us from our lives in an unhealthy way) and Kate from Wit & Delight was sharing in her story about stopping the narrative in your head of being the victim (she was referencing Elizabeth Gilbert and said: own your bullsh*t, which hit me square between the eyes). I was playing the victim and not owning my own BS. And I am on here now processing because it's nap time and I have to be quiet and can't be ranting and raving while my son sleeps.
I realized after this thunk on the head -- I HAVE GOOD IDEAS -- I don't know why I continuously look for other avenues and places to have my voice heard. I have a teeny little blog here and I don't want to sell you anything. I just want to write.
Owning it: I freely gave my ideas away. They didn't ask for them, they didn't solicit from me. I freely gave up good ideas. Ooh, ouch. That's the truth right there. Own your BS.
The hardest part for me wanting to write and having a blog is that I am not just one thing. I am an Enneagram 7... the good parts of it. I'm not a huge subscriber in the Enneagram but I know it's the hot personality thing now and most of you will have a clear snap shot of the inner working of my brain based on the archetype. Unlike most 7s, I like a plan. When I hear "ride or die" I wonder where are we going to, and will there be food along the way or should I pack snacks? I pack snacks to go 10 minutes down the road for goodness sake. I even bring my own water bottle over to peoples' houses. But the challenge of blogging is having a platform and a voice and readers want a consistent message. My mom always suggests that I write a book, but I struggle with what I would write about for so long on one topic. And, if you haven't noticed by now, dear reader, I am a fount of wisdom and ideas that are all over the place and the only cohesive piece is that I have written them all. The biggest challenge for any blogger is to come up with fresh ideas and perspectives that align with your brand, and if someone were feeding me good, marketable, succinct ideas I would be churning out content like you wouldn't believe.
Usually by now I have a goal for my blog posting schedule based on my Resolutions. I haven't figured out my new year's resolutions, it's February, that more than likely means I won't have any. I do have a few guiding words for the year (that sounds so froufrou even for me) but I cannot tell you how often you will hear from me, or what the year is going to look like on the blog. I don't have a plan (classic 7). I don't have pitches. I just have random inspirational ideas that sometimes come to me during my son's nap time (READ: I have a solid couple of hours to work on and edit) and this teeny tiny platform to shout from.
Thanks for following along, I hope you have an excellent 2020.
Stay tuned.
PS I will not tell you which blog it was as I don't want them getting more traffic because of my ranting and raving.
That's all.
✌️
Late last fall I was intrigued by a mommy blog that was looking for contributing editors. I am currently on parental leave and thought, hey I could maybe do a side hustle. But, the more I thought on it, the less I wanted to share my time off of my job with a company when I could be spending those precious hours with my sweet beautiful baby boy.
Instead of applying for the job I emailed them some pitches. A pitch is a scaffolded idea. For a blog it is an easy way to get a feel for the story and your voice without having to create a fully edited and grammatically correct post ready for publishing. They didn't ask for pitches, but I thought, I want to write, and they are obviously looking for content, this could be a win-win.
Well, it certainly was a win for them. I pitched 6 ideas.
They have had someone else write 4 of my ideas.
I was seething. The fourth article was alarmingly specific to my family life and I couldn't help but feel like it was stolen from me.
I know that my ideas weren't earth shattering or completely new. And I don't even know if they truly used mine or someone else's.
I went on Instagram to calm myself down (because Social Media always helps distract us from our lives in an unhealthy way) and Kate from Wit & Delight was sharing in her story about stopping the narrative in your head of being the victim (she was referencing Elizabeth Gilbert and said: own your bullsh*t, which hit me square between the eyes). I was playing the victim and not owning my own BS. And I am on here now processing because it's nap time and I have to be quiet and can't be ranting and raving while my son sleeps.
I realized after this thunk on the head -- I HAVE GOOD IDEAS -- I don't know why I continuously look for other avenues and places to have my voice heard. I have a teeny little blog here and I don't want to sell you anything. I just want to write.
Owning it: I freely gave my ideas away. They didn't ask for them, they didn't solicit from me. I freely gave up good ideas. Ooh, ouch. That's the truth right there. Own your BS.
 |
| Photo by Pascal van de Vendel on Unsplash |
The hardest part for me wanting to write and having a blog is that I am not just one thing. I am an Enneagram 7... the good parts of it. I'm not a huge subscriber in the Enneagram but I know it's the hot personality thing now and most of you will have a clear snap shot of the inner working of my brain based on the archetype. Unlike most 7s, I like a plan. When I hear "ride or die" I wonder where are we going to, and will there be food along the way or should I pack snacks? I pack snacks to go 10 minutes down the road for goodness sake. I even bring my own water bottle over to peoples' houses. But the challenge of blogging is having a platform and a voice and readers want a consistent message. My mom always suggests that I write a book, but I struggle with what I would write about for so long on one topic. And, if you haven't noticed by now, dear reader, I am a fount of wisdom and ideas that are all over the place and the only cohesive piece is that I have written them all. The biggest challenge for any blogger is to come up with fresh ideas and perspectives that align with your brand, and if someone were feeding me good, marketable, succinct ideas I would be churning out content like you wouldn't believe.
Usually by now I have a goal for my blog posting schedule based on my Resolutions. I haven't figured out my new year's resolutions, it's February, that more than likely means I won't have any. I do have a few guiding words for the year (that sounds so froufrou even for me) but I cannot tell you how often you will hear from me, or what the year is going to look like on the blog. I don't have a plan (classic 7). I don't have pitches. I just have random inspirational ideas that sometimes come to me during my son's nap time (READ: I have a solid couple of hours to work on and edit) and this teeny tiny platform to shout from.
Thanks for following along, I hope you have an excellent 2020.
Stay tuned.
PS I will not tell you which blog it was as I don't want them getting more traffic because of my ranting and raving.
That's all.
✌️
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