5 years time

January 24, 2019

5 years time

So this is kind of an exciting landmark because I have now officially been blogging for 5 years! I can't believe it's gone by that quickly and I love looking through super old posts (even if they do make me cringe a little now). As I've mentioned before, I started by blog because I knew I wanted a career in the field I'm in (at the time I thought fashion journalism so Content Marketing Manager isn't a million miles from that - infact it's better). With me knowing that I didn't want to go to uni, I knew I needed something else to set me apart from the crowd and to prove I was good at what I do, so I thought starting a blog was a good way to have a record of content writing.

Another reason was probably because I kept diaries all through school, documenting all my major life events and private thoughts and random wonderings. But once I was at college, got a job and began going out more and more, my life got too hectic (and too exciting) to find the time to write about it. But I guess I missed writing about myself because I started my blog less than a year after I stopped keeping my diaries. And 5 years on and I'm still at it! Here are just a few reasons why I love keeping my blog.

1. I get to write

The first answer being the most obvious; I love writing. I know that not everyone does, and from the skeletal content on some websites, not even all bloggers do either. But I didn't start my blog in the hope of shoving 'influencer' in my bio one day, I started it because I love to write and I still always enjoy that aspect of it now.

2. It centres on my passions

You should always do things that you're passionate about; that's the job advice we get a lot. And it turns out that the thing I'm most passionate about is my own life! I love to read some other bloggers pages where it's more about the reader, but my blog is and always has been about the writer. My platform is a chance to talk about all my favourite things; fashion, travel, food, ideas; and I love that it gives me that opportunity.

3. It captures the memories

I do actually have a crazily good memory anyway, so my blog isn't necessarily about remembering. But having all my favourite moments documented in a place where I can go back and revisit them is pretty special. Plus, time alters the memories in our brains; we don't remember memories as they are, we remember them as we are. So as time goes on, we perceive past events differently. My blog makes sure that I can go back and see a perfectly frozen-in-time version of holidays, nights out, meals out and major life events.

4. It's a platform for opinion

One of the great things about the world we live in now is that we're all so connected (while also being painfully disconnected, but that's an argument for another time). Social media allows us to all join in on the conversation regarding the world around us, from serious issues like Brexit to the even more serious like rate-my-meal-deal. But because you're limited by character numbers (among other things), it can be hard to get a concise point across. My blog over the years has been a platform to discuss politics, feminism, confidence and any number of other things that I've wanted to weigh in on, without clogging up people's social media feeds with stuff they may not be interested in.

5. It inspires me

Trying to think up fresh blog content (aside from my day-to-day outfit posts and what-I-did-at-the-weekend ones) can be challenging, especially when so much has already been written. But having these brainstorms helps to inspire me, and it does transfer over into my job too; keeping my head filled with new ideas and exciting topics can never be a bad thing.

So with 5 wonderful years to date under my belt, I thought I'd take a look back at some of my personal favourite blog posts that were either fun to photograph, great to write about or simply loved by you guys. In general, I love writing my travel blog posts and any editorial content (like my career updates, philosophies on life and thoughts on topical issues) the most but there are also a few stand-out posts that I especially love. A jenni-from-the-block highlight reel, if you will. You will also notice that a new year has been celebrated with a new blog theme (finally) so let's see what the future of blogging holds for me next...

We're not living in Paris in the 1920's