Whenever I find myself falling slightly out of love with blogging (key word slightly. I can’t quit you blog!) I always like to think about what the last ten years have taught me. A blog is more than just its daily posts. There’s a whole lot more to it than that…
1. Consistency.I’ve talked about how this blog has landed me actual jobs in the past and that’s largely due to consistently posting. This blog has shown me that I’m not going to be an instant success overnight, but with a lot of hard work this space has truly become something.
2. Photography skills. Ironically enough I thought I was a pretty good photographer when I started this blog, but boy have I improved since then. With every post my skills have gotten better and better. Now I do freelance photography for other companies. All thanks to this piece of the internet.
3. Pride in my work. This goes along with the first point, but I’m so incredibly proud of Microscope Beauty. For the longest time I didn’t feel comfortable sharing this blog with people in real life, but now I talk about it to anyone who will listen.
4. It’s ok to be different and have a weird hobby. What used to make me uncomfortable about beauty and lifestyle blogging is now such a defining trait. I love that what I’m into isn’t super common or a popular hobby. And that’s ok.
5. You don’t have to spend tons of money on new products to be a good blogger. I’m fortunate enough to every now and again have the opportunity to review pr samples, but for the longest time this blog ran on literally no spare money for new products. Instead of giving up I found other things to blog about to fill the gaps when there weren’t new products. It helped me become a stronger writer, be able to brainstorm a bigger variety of posts, and improved my blog overall.
I’m pretty sure you all know now my complete and utter love for blogging. I sincerely think everyone should have one. So get to it!
I’ve been talking about small business since I started Oh, Hello Stationery back in 2014. So I thought it time to gather all of the posts from the past four years into one post.
I’m a firm believer in not reinventing the wheel. Someone, somewhere has made something that can make your life easier. You just have to know where to look. This is definitely true when it comes to small business. Although I love social media, I don’t love spending a ton of time promoting my business when I should be running it. So here are some of my favorite apps and programs that make my business life a whole lot easier.
Later. This is definitely my favorite program to use to post on Instagram and Facebook. It has a super easy to use interface that allows you to add a bunch of photos, plug them into a calendar, and write up captions for them. Plus there is a feature where you can see a preview of how they’ll look in your profile feed. It doesn’t auto post for you, so you’ll have to download an app that notifies you when it’s time to post. It’s super easy to use and doesn’t feel like a burden to post. It’s free for 30 posts a month.
Planoly. This platform is strictly for Instagram and you have to pay to use it. It works just like Later does, but now has the capability to auto post for you (I have yet to check this feature out). Plus Planoly lets you respond to comments right in the browser. To me it’s the beefier version of Later and takes a bit more time getting used to and figuring out all the bells and whistles. Let me know in the comments if you want a more detailed walk through.
Tweetdeck. If you’re on the twitter train, Tweetdeck is super easy to use and allows you to run multiple accounts and follow different hashtags all at the same time. It’s owned by Twitter and and allows you to schedule tweets ahead of time.
Hootsuite. Hootsuite is a one stop shop for social media. It allows you to run a ton of social accounts in one place so you don’t need to have multiple programs for different platforms. You have to pay to use it, but you’re able to respond to comments and manage everything from one place. Definitely an option if you’ve stretched yourself a little to thin over a bunch of different accounts.
There are a ton of platforms and apps out there to help run social media smoother for your business, but these are the ones I’m most familiar with. If you’d like more specific walk-through’s on any of these platforms, leave a comment below and I’ll type up a more in-depth look.
Whether you’re busy running your own business or busy keeping track of a million things at once, it’s hard being a girl boss. You need a planner that helps you stay on top of everything at once, while still being functional and cute at the same time. The video at the end of this post will go into a lot more detail about each of these planners, but I wanted to do a write-up still just in case you aren’t following my YouTube channel yet.
I talked about the Get to Work Bookin yesterday’s post if you want to see it in action and full of planner stickers, but I’m obsessed with this planner for working gals. It strips down any of the unnecessary fluff of most planners to give you exactly what you need. It has a gorgeous lined view weekly spread with room for top three priorities, space at the bottom for doodles, and tons of room for to do lists.
Although I do love the Get to Work Book, I still can’t get over my love affair with the Erin Condren Hourly Planner. It’s the longest running layout in my life because the time sections are so helpful when my schedule is super busy, but can easily be ignored if I don’t have set times for things. It’s colorful to keep my life bright and fun, while still being practical. I also love the monthly note pages and the twelve boxes at the front of the planner to track work accomplishments. The planner just lends itself to busy schedules.
The Plum Paper Planner is a more affordable option to the ECLP, but it also has some seriously awesome add-ons and layouts. You can add tabs in to the back of your planner for anything from blogging to mileage tracking and more. They break down their add-ons into different categories to see exactly what they have to offer. It’s super easy to get a really customized planner to suit any of your business/girl boss needs.
If you don’t need a lot of customization, but do need tons of space to write things every day, the Simplified Planner is perfect for you. It’s a daily planner rather than weekly, so there’s tons of room each day to write meetings and to do lists. I love everything about this planner, but I just don’t have enough scheduled events to justify using it to its fullest. It’s definitely one to consider if your life is super hectic and you have to be a million places in a day.
If customization seems like exactly what you need, a traveler’s notebook could be the perfect tool. It’s the king of customization and you can add in notebooks for every project and category in your life. Oh, Hello Stationery is going to be releasing a line of notebook covers soon (like the one I show you in the video below), so don’t forget to sign up to the newsletter if you want more information.
There are a TON of planners out there that could work for your girl boss needs, but these are my favorites for helping to get things done. What are your favorite planners?
Still on the fence about whether or not blogging is for you? What if I told you that I’ve landed TONS of real, legit jobs because of my blog? From my marketing position at the University of Michigan to my various freelance jobs, my blog is a huge factor that sets me apart from other applicants. Your blog could help you land jobs.
Your blog will show consistency and dedication for something that you aren’t required to do. It shows that you’re dedicated to projects you pick up and can stick with something. A lot of employers want to know that if they hire you, you won’t just abandon ship a few months later. A blog gives them piece of mind.
A blog shows that you’re self starting and do things without being told to. You’re a go-getter rather than sitting around waiting to be told to do certain tasks.
Plus a lot of employers would love the chance to see writing skills. A blog is an archive of your work so they’re able to see your voice, editing skills, and writing style. All things that’ll help you land the job above someone else.
Without really knowing it, employers will also see that you’re responsive to comments which shows that you’ll be great at responding to emails and others in a timely manner. They’ll see you can run something all on your own.
Depending on what job you’re trying to land, your blog will also show photography skills. A lot of creative jobs want you to be good at SO MANY THINGS. A blog is a great representation of everything you know. Social media skills, how to use platforms online, and how to take good photos.
So polish up that old blog of yours or start a new one. The subject matter really doesn’t matter to employers just as long as it shows just how amazing you are. Other applicants won’t have this secret up their sleeves when applying for the same jobs.
Ironically enough I’ve procrastinated a bit on writing this post. Definitely NOT how to work from home and get things done. Do as I say and not as I do, right?! But in all seriousness, working from home is not all it’s cracked up to be. Sure pajama days are frequent, but getting stuff done takes some serious focus and planning. And when there are adorable cats to be pet, it’s even harder. So here’s how to work from home and crack out that to do list at the same time.
Give yourself deadlines. It’s so easy to slack and procrastinate on things if you’re the one in charge of them, so give yourself deadlines and stick with them. I have new release deadlines, video deadlines, and tons of others to make sure I’m not watching Netflix all day.
Have a designated work space or area that you like to work in. I muddle this a bit since I enjoy working from bed so much, but I still have a designated desk space I go to when things get serious. This also helps to separate work from home life (something I’m eternally struggling with)
Have an end time so you aren’t working from morning to night. It’s important to live a regular life even though you work from home. Go outside, have a non-work related hobby, see friends. Plus if you know when your work day is over, then you know when you can tackle that pile of laundry or the dishes in the sink. It’s so easy to get swept away by those things during the work day, so having an end time gives you a clear separation between work and home.
Take breaks throughout the day so you don’t go stir crazy. This is a lot easier when you have a “real” job because they’re assigned to you. I always try to take at least 30 minutes at lunch and another 30 in the afternoon to help get me through until 7pm when I stop working.
Figure out a routine for your average work week so there is consistency in your life and you have scheduled time for certain activities. This will help make sure you get everything you need to done because there will be a set time for everything. On Mondays I like to do orders, Tuesdays are for videos and blogging bits, and so on. This helps me to know generally what to expect every week so I can tweak it if there are meetings or events.
If you can work from home, definitely do it. It’s completely changed my working life and if I can avoid going back to a desk job, I will. It comes with it’s own challenges, but it’s worth every single one.
