What Keeps You Going? August 31, 2021 in TishaTalks This is a question I often get asked. In such a crowded market, my consistency and enthusiasm for Behind the Smile..:) often leads people around me to think my blog is more ‘popping’ than it is. My blog hasn’t grown at the rate I thought it would. I’ll be honest and say that it’s somewhat disappointing, but not to the extent that it keeps me up at night. If you’ve been following me for a while, you’ll know that I first started blogging on a site called Our Thoughts, Your Eyes… I never checked the stats. I never felt there was a need to. It wasn’t until late in 2015 that I finally decided to look at the numbers and I was pleasantly surprised. So when I launched Behind the Smile..:) I automatically assumed that the success would follow me. Rather, growth has fluctuated. So why do I do it? Why do I continue to ‘compete’ against every Tom, Dick and Harry with a laptop and a fancy camera? Why haven’t I focussed my posts on relationships, hair and makeup? Afterall, these have been my most popular posts. When people ask me these questions, essentially what they are asking is why I haven’t conformed. So now that I’ve phrased it that way, is there any need for me to answer? My blog is for me: my release, my hobby, something I can call my own. Something that forces me to reflect on my behaviour, something that forces me to grow and develop, something to keep my mind occupied when my thoughts begin to wander into dangerous territory and most importantly, something I can share with the world at my own leisure. Social Trends Our generation has been built on sharing our lives. We share (or at least used to) statuses on Facebook. Splatter our thoughts on Twitter. Shamelessly post best selfies on Instagram and save the behind the scenes for Snapchat. Blogging is simply another form of social media. It just so happens to be my favourite. If you have me on Snapchat you probably already know that I post what I want, whenever I want, regardless of who cares to watch. The prinicple is the same, I do it for me and share it, so if you happen to be interested, it’s available for you too. The Sauce I turned into a statistics freak when I first launched Behind the Smile..:). I was confused at how much support my friends who had recently launched their own blogs were getting and how little attention I was getting. That was when I first wrote Don’t Get Lost in the Sauce. I would check my numbers daily. But what I noticed was that whether or not I liked the numbers I saw: I kept writing. Because I was doing it for me. When I got negative feedback it fuelled me: I kept writing. Whenever I received positive feedback, I was always taken aback, shocked that someone had even bothered to read. To hear that someone was inspired by the words that I had strung together, or that they could relate to my thoughts or even that I had led them to think more deeply about a topic: it’s all motivating. I kept writing. But it isn’t what keeps me going. Long story short I realised that it really didn’t matter what others thought, good or bad, because I do this for me. That’s what kept me going. Me. So no, I won’t change my style, I won’t try to be more ‘on trend’ and I won’t change my topics, because then it wouldn’t be me. If you’re interested, I hope you enjoy reading the rest of what I have to say. TishaSchmile Related Post navigation ← A Proper Job (Part 2): Defining Success We Can All Win! → 8 comments for “What Keeps You Going?” kweenpr August 31, 2021 at 8:59 pm I liked this . I feel like not only did you write this for your readers but I honestly think yo could use this I times of doubt to remind you to keep going . So this post is timeless ! Love it Reply TishaKimiira August 31, 2021 at 9:24 pm That was my intention! I’m glad it came across! Thank you for reading 💙 Reply gracielaalexandraa September 1, 2021 at 6:01 am Girl YES! I feel like a lot of bloggers lose there north after blogging for a while. We begin to compare our blog with someone elses and it just gets messy! I love the fact that you stated EXACTLY what you do and what you’re here for! Always refer to this if you see yourself getting off track! Blessings, Graciela Alexandra xx Reply TishaKimiira September 1, 2021 at 7:39 am Appreciate it!💙Thank you so much for reading!x Reply Boujeeratchademic September 2, 2021 at 8:38 pm I was just pondering similar questions to myself. A post I have scheduled for tomorrow quickly talking about my recent lack of inspiration resulting in a gap in posting. But I also admitted to myself that bulk scheduling tends to feel forced unless I truly feel the need to write about a particular thing. It seems when you get deep into the monetizing and trying to keep up with everyone’s advice about SEO and how to draw traffic you can really start to lose the true identity of your blog. Reply TishaKimiira September 3, 2021 at 12:26 am Bulk scheduling can definitely feel extremely forced! Keeping the vision clear is what I’m trying to do- I really don’t want this turning into a chore. Reply Boujeeratchademic September 3, 2021 at 12:34 am That’s the goal! Reply TUÄžBA September 2, 2021 at 10:52 pm Wow, great post dear! So interesting review!Lovely photos. You have so interesting blog and I like it.Follow for follow? Let me to know on my blog.http://www.suslukokona.com Reply Share your thoughts!
August 31, 2021 in TishaTalks This is a question I often get asked. In such a crowded market, my consistency and enthusiasm for Behind the Smile..:) often leads people around me to think my blog is more ‘popping’ than it is. My blog hasn’t grown at the rate I thought it would. I’ll be honest and say that it’s somewhat disappointing, but not to the extent that it keeps me up at night. If you’ve been following me for a while, you’ll know that I first started blogging on a site called Our Thoughts, Your Eyes… I never checked the stats. I never felt there was a need to. It wasn’t until late in 2015 that I finally decided to look at the numbers and I was pleasantly surprised. So when I launched Behind the Smile..:) I automatically assumed that the success would follow me. Rather, growth has fluctuated.
Why do I continue to ‘compete’ against every Tom, Dick and Harry with a laptop and a fancy camera? Why haven’t I focussed my posts on relationships, hair and makeup? Afterall, these have been my most popular posts. When people ask me these questions, essentially what they are asking is why I haven’t conformed. So now that I’ve phrased it that way, is there any need for me to answer? My blog is for me: my release, my hobby, something I can call my own. Something that forces me to reflect on my behaviour, something that forces me to grow and develop, something to keep my mind occupied when my thoughts begin to wander into dangerous territory and most importantly, something I can share with the world at my own leisure.
Our generation has been built on sharing our lives. We share (or at least used to) statuses on Facebook. Splatter our thoughts on Twitter. Shamelessly post best selfies on Instagram and save the behind the scenes for Snapchat. Blogging is simply another form of social media. It just so happens to be my favourite. If you have me on Snapchat you probably already know that I post what I want, whenever I want, regardless of who cares to watch. The prinicple is the same, I do it for me and share it, so if you happen to be interested, it’s available for you too.
I turned into a statistics freak when I first launched Behind the Smile..:). I was confused at how much support my friends who had recently launched their own blogs were getting and how little attention I was getting. That was when I first wrote Don’t Get Lost in the Sauce. I would check my numbers daily. But what I noticed was that whether or not I liked the numbers I saw: I kept writing. Because I was doing it for me. When I got negative feedback it fuelled me: I kept writing. Whenever I received positive feedback, I was always taken aback, shocked that someone had even bothered to read. To hear that someone was inspired by the words that I had strung together, or that they could relate to my thoughts or even that I had led them to think more deeply about a topic: it’s all motivating. I kept writing.
Long story short I realised that it really didn’t matter what others thought, good or bad, because I do this for me. That’s what kept me going. Me. So no, I won’t change my style, I won’t try to be more ‘on trend’ and I won’t change my topics, because then it wouldn’t be me.