On blog readers meeting bloggers.

Every time my readers introduce themselves to me, I walk away with a huge grin which stays for a while. They are always so nice. I love it! The excitement of meeting readers is still a novelty. I remember the first time it happened, in 2010, as I was crossing the road.  So. Exciting.

On the train this week: a woman saw me, sat near me and said:

"Are you Carly Findlay? I read your writing in Daily Life and wanted to say you are kick arse. More people need to own who they are." So lovely!

Last Wednesday was bookended by two highlights:

A reader of Peppermint Magazine introduced herself and shook my hand on the train platform in the morning. We chatted all the way to the city.

And then as I sat in the sunshine for a few minutes before going home, a Tweeter stopped to say "Just letting you know I follow you on twitter and I love everything you write.”

When I went to the gallery to see JPG, two lovely blog readers stopped me to say hello. One was so giggly when she told me she reads (and enjoys) my blog. And the other one made for a hilarious encounter - she stopped me to say “I don’t want to ruin your day but I just love your blog!”. I was with Charlotte and she was about to get defensive when this lady started with ‘I don’t want to ruin your day”. And then we had a quick chat, and giggle - it was so funny!

And last week I went to a lecture by US academic Beth Haller - she and Kath Duncan talked about disability representation in the media. It was so informative - I found out about lots of TV shows featuring disabled characters. Beth's last slide was referring to my Daily Life article about disability and reality TV! I squealed in the lecture and after it finished, Beth asked if she could take a photo of me under the projection! I think she tours this lecture too! And the next day I emailed my editor with this picture!

Sometimes I get tweets or messages after someone has seen me, saying they’d seen me but were too shy to say hello! I am sad when that happens because I hope to always be approachable. And I always want to find out about you, my readers. Please say hello!

These interactions are SO nice. Never underestimate the power of stopping to say hello and pay a compliment to someone you recognise or admire.

So if you see a blogger, whose writing you like, walking past you in the street or at the art gallery or on the train, say hello to them! I guarantee it will make their day!

Brunch with my blog readers.

It gives me such a buzz when people tell me they read my blog, even more of a buzz when people say they like it! (Last week at the gallery a reader said "I don't want to ruin your day but I LOVE YOUR BLOG" and gave me a hug. Could not stop giggling. So lovely. But when I meet readers in passing, there's never enough time for me to get to know them. I feel like saying "hey let's go for a drink so I can get to know you too!". And so I thought I should make this happen. For real. 

After being inspired by Fat Mum Slim's Olympus lunches (mentioned at Problogger Event) and always Josefa meeting her readers for her blog birthday, I decided to meet my blog readers this year. At the end of last year I ran a little competition - one of the prizes was to win a brunch with me, my shout!

I spent one recent Saturday morning meeting four lovely blog readers - they won the brunch in my 5th blogiversary competition. And they were the loveliest! I met Melissa, Kylie, Jess and Claire. Adam came along too.

I chose those ladies based on their entries - they wrote about what they enjoy about my blog. While that might seem narcissistic, such responses remind me why I blog. Words like “you make disability accessible” and " I start work as a doctor in the new year, and I hope to carry your understanding in with me” mean so much. It’s like the little space on the internet is creating change, bringing people together. 

When all the ladies arrived, they joked that it was like a big internet date! But it definitely wasn’t as awkward. We all talked straight away - laughing over tales of how we met our partners, talking about travel and day jobs. It was SO good to get to know them all - what interesting lives everyone leads. There was never a lull in conversation, and everyone made each other feel comfortable. Kylie even blogged about the meet here.

I was honoured that they wanted to have brunch with me - so lovely that they read here and want to get to know me off my blog. I hope that we will remain friends for a long time. 

I can’t believe I went out for brunch and didn’t take a photo of the food! (If you’re wondering, I had a salmon omelette, Melissa had lobster rolls, Clare had Philly cheese steak, Kylie had granola, Jess had crispy chicken and Adam had steak and chips.)

This is what a great blog community is about. 

Which blogger would you love to meet? Have you met a blog reader?

You want to become a published writer? Start a blog.

Friends, if you're wanting to become a published writer, I highly recommend starting a blog (and promote your blog on social media). I know I bang on about blogging so much, but it really is a gateway to getting wider exposure.

Blogging is a great way to get practice, to show commitment to a task, to show that you can meet a deadline (even self imposed) and to show that you can handle criticism. Promoting it on social media might just get the attention of an editor who might want to republish and pay you for your awesome writing! Or a company might like your writing style and content so much they might ask you to work with you in a different way! Blogging gives you an awesome portfolio of work to show people you'd like to work with.

If you get confident and pitch to an editor, your pitch doesn't have to be complicated - just:

"Hi, I wrote this about this issue/person/fun thing. Would you like to publish it on your awesome website? I think it suits your publication because... I could edit it so it looks like this. Thanks so much!"

You could even catch the attention of an editor by tweeting their publication, or using some clever hashtags.

(I took a course through the Australian Writers Centre, it was Magazine Writing and Pitching (as a prize from being named a finalist in the Best Australian Blogs Competition), and I can't recommend this highly enough! The Facebook group for graduates is SO supportive and people share lots of valuable information!)

And if you need to get some confidence pitching to editors, start by pitching to other bloggers, asking if you can guest post on their blog! Guest posting is a great way to reach a new audience and build communities.

Even if you don't want to become a published writer, blogging is such a good way to keep a record of your life and to meet new friends. Blogging is also a great way to get to know yourself through writing, and see how far you've grown.

Go forth and blog! But don't just start a blog. Keep going. Keep at it. Good luck!

(Monday's blog post was picked up by an editor and was republished on Daily Life. Look at this wonderful conversation!)

For advice about starting a blog, click here.

I am developing a blog course to be released this year. If there's anything you'd like to know about blogging, please let me know in the comments and it might be something I include in the course!

Powerful friendships are made online.

I went to a blogging awards party on the weekend. It was so good to catch up with online friends in person. I took three photos the entire night - before the event. I sent one tweet. Connection in person took precedence.

There was hugs, air kissing, and some bloggers are lip kissers. It was a reunion with old friends. And a celebration of all bloggers involved in the Voices of 2014 program.

The hands-down most asked question for me was "how's the wedding planning going/when's the big day?". (Good, when we can afford it!)

A friend (Aleney from Boy Eats World) told me that her favourite thing on the Internet is seeing Adam and my romance blossom. How lovely is that?!

Also, I was SO impressed at how many people I talked to said the phrase 'appearance diversity'. people really get it. This passion of mine is really making a ripple.

Last week I had a fleeting visit to Canberra. The first person I bumped into when I arrived at the airport was the beautiful Connie Johnson from Love Your Sister. For those following the LYS journey, Connie is doing well, speaking and promoting the cause a lot. She recognised me, we had a great chat. It was the first time I've spoken to her outside of a LYS event. She couldn't wait to take a selfie.

I met Connie through this blog - just one of the amazing friendship and connection to a cause that's happened since I started writing here five years ago this month.

Putting our lives online through blogging and social media is a risk. But it's such a GOOD risk as it means we meet amazing, talented, likeminded and kind people who we probably wouldn't get to know this well if we passed them in the street.

And the level of kindness far outweighs the real and perceived level of nastiness through using social media. (Ironically I've been writing a piece on what it feels like to go viral, as well as preparing a thank you happy birthday giveaway for my blog. Such contrasts!)

A HUGE thank you to everyone who has taken the time to get to know me and befriend me online. Even more hugs if it's extended to 'real life'.

What a wonderful thing blogging is.

 

These are the bloggers to watch. BUPA Health Influencer Awards 2014

I was so lucky to be involved in the BUPA Health Influencer Awards again this year. The team at BUPA few last year's winners up to Sydney to present this year's winners their awards. I love these awards - they support diversity, good writing and social good.

It is wonderful to see a diverse range of blogs - showcasing diversity - win the awards. A blog about autism, a blog about caring for elderly parents and a blog about animal welfare were among the winners.

And I was SO pleased I got to present Julie from the blog Have Wheelchair Will Travel with the award for best travel blog. When Julie accepted the award, she said she wants to give hope to all parents of children with disabilities - because when her son was born, she was given very discouraging 'advice'. DISABILITY REPRESENT.

Here are the winners - congratulations everyone!

Every Cloud has a Silver Lining - winner of Family Time

Edgar's Mission - winner of Animal Lovers and People's Choice

Lifestyle Fifty - winner of Healthy Lifestyle

Have Wheelchair Will Travel - winner of Best Travel Blog

About a Bugg - winner of Social Good and Best Overall Blog (Renee will donate half her winnings to Autism Victoria!)

The Mummy and The Minx - winner of Babies and Parents-to-be

Scoop Nutrition (not pictured) - winner of Healthy Eating

I love seeing these new (and not so new) bloggers coming into the limelight for achieving great things. Do bookmark their blogs - I've read them all and they're fantastic!

Blogging (and being noticed, making money) takes time and super hard work, whether it's a full time job or on top of your day job (like me) or a hobby. So many new bloggers ask when they will make money. I can't tell them a definitive answer. I make a little money now but not enough to quit my day job. Maybe they will make money from their blogs, maybe they won't make a cent. But to me, the biggest success factor and the most important thing is to be making a difference.

But it is the best job ever. Keep at it.

One blogger I have been reading since before I started this blog is Cate from All Cats Are Grey At Night. We met on the Vogue Forums (a definite reason for me starting this blog was the bloggers I'd read from Vogue). It's been over five years that we've known each other and Friday was the first time we met. So exciting! She's just as lovely, just as kind and smart (AND STYLISH!) as on the screen. I told her that most of my blog traffic comes from her blog roll - let's bring back the blog roll hey?!

I also spent some time with Lee from Supercharged Food - last year's overall winner. That woman can rock a play suit! And she is going great guns with her blogging and publishing career! Her generous advice was to be 'anti-strategy'. She blogs when she feels like it, when she has something to say. "Be honest, be real", she said. "Sometimes it's nice to give people a break from you", she said. She also doesn't see other bloggers as competition - and her candid revelation of earnings AND offers to mentor bloggers to reach monetary success is testament to that. She said "it takes five years to build a brand. Blogging success doesn't happen overnight." Lee and I are pictured with Matt from BUPA.

And the very lovely Sally Obermeder (Channel Seven presenter and blogger) was the keynote, talking about weight loss her career path, struggles with IVF and diagnosis of stage three breast cancer the day before her little girl was born. The ribbon that tied all of the elements of her life together was her here determination. "If I just put my mind to something, chipped away, didn't quit, I would get there", she revealed. Sally chipped away at losing weight. She got out of a job she hated. She worked many unpaid hours to get into TV. And she's in remission from breast cancer. She would say to her cancer "game on mole", handling it with humour, treating it as a challenge. She wondered "how do you raise a child if you've only got weeks to live? How do you tell them everything?" She also reminded the room that even when you've reached a level of success, "you've always got a slog of some kind". The hard work doesn't stop. She told us to "use other peoples 'can't do attitudes' to fuel your success" and encouraged us to "be your own cheerleader". Her talk was fantastic.

Here's what we ate. Prawns and artichoke, roast chicken and chocolate lava cake with mandarin sorbet.

And the day (almost ended) with wine time at the airport. God I was tired when I got home. I was (and still am) feeling under the weather with a chest infection, I was sore, plus it was a hundred billion degrees in Sydney, so I really didn't fancy travel, but the awards were so worth it!

 

 

On setting blogging boundaries

One of the best things about blogging and freelance writing is all the wonderful people I meet – both in person and virtually. Readers connect with bloggers because they empathise and relate to our experiences. Bloggers share a lot of themselves – anecdotes, struggles, happiness, advice.

The level of personal information we share is different to most other occupations. What I share with readers as a blogger is completely different to what I share with my colleagues in my day job. And I am always aware of the knowledge-power imbalance between bloggers and our readers.

Sometimes I meet readers in the street and they are excited to meet me and they recite the stuff they know about me, and then I realise I don’t know anything about them. And it becomes awkward because all I can say is hello and thank them and ask them a little about themselves in our brief encounter.

When I write my blog, I share a lot of intimate information about what it’s like to look different and have a chronic illness. I receive wonderful emails from readers telling me that until they read my blog they thought they were alone. It’s a real privilege.

I am not your health professional

But sometimes I feel the pull from readers who want more than I can give. I’ve received emails of desperation – asking for advice about treatments and fundraising and even suicide prevention.

I’ve also had messages from people who want to meet me – even just to prove their situation is worse than mine. While I take these emails very seriously, I can’t be responsible for helping everyone who asks. I always acknowledge these sorts of emails – but I tell the person who wrote the email that I am not a doctor or counsellor and suggest they seek professional advice.

Occasionally the person has written back to me a few weeks or months down the track telling me they did seek professional advice and their life has changed – and this makes me so happy. But there are times I just have to take a step back from direct contact.

We need to set boundaries for ourselves as bloggers. While we give so much of ourselves to our readership on our blog, we might not feel so comfortable in a one-on-one situation.

There are also time and emotional constraints on how much we can give our readers. I don’t have the emotional stamina, time nor professional qualifications to give everyone the advice or support they are seeking. I have had to set boundaries about how much I can share with my readers.

If I feel like a reader’s question is out of my depth, I tell them and direct them to somewhere that might be able to help – a support group, Lifeline or a doctor. I’ve created a separate Facebook page where people I don’t know can contact me.

There’s a disclaimer on my blog about me not being a medical professional. And in some extreme cases, I’ve shown emails that I feel scared or overwhelmed by to people I trust – to share this emotional load with me and to alert them that I don’t feel comfortable. I’ve also emailed the extreme cases back to tell them I don’t feel comfortable being in contact with them.

Sarah Wayland, academic, writer, health advocate and a bloggy friend of mine, has given me some advice for setting boundaries as a blogger.

"I think it is important to acknowledge that to share is to be vulnerable – if we honour that then we honour the feelings that come from allowing others to hear our voice. Protecting ourselves is two fold – it has to be physically and emotionally. Being clear about what is safe to share prior to sitting down and writing is key to your protection," Sarah says.

She advises to step back. "Step back when it’s not being helpful. I know in my own professional and personal world I run the risk of being bombarded with the stories of others and I lose sight of my own goals.

"Stepping back is an exercise in mindfulness; it allows us to observe how we are thinking and reacting to the world around us. It quietens down that internal narrative that, when overwhelmed, can be destructive."

Bloggers need bloggy support

I have connected with my writerly friends to seek advice about setting boundaries. They’ve been an excellent source of support because they understand the power of sharing our stories and social media interaction too.

Sarah Wayland also advises bloggers to seek help through support groups (such as blogging communities) and community groups; and if necessary; crisis lines. Finally, Sarah told me to choose what I reply to and how much I want to give carefully.

"If someone is pressing you for more details and you don’t feel safe in that sharing then pull back. I think that most of us know that our online self has different shades to our real life self – we are under no obligation to share if it doesn’t feel right," Sarah says.

"The underlying issue with the conversation about sharing and boundaries is often about values – if we are clear about what information we value as sacred to us and our inner circle then the idea of navigating boundaries can become easier."

How do you set blogging boundaries? Does your personal life and blogging life intersect?

(This post was originally written for Kidspot.)

 

Recovering from blogger burnout. Losing myself in shaping my blog.

I wrote some of this post, ironically, after I said I need to take a short break from blogging. I was writing again pretty much immediately after pressing publish. I got this amazing comment on my blog, after that post. It spoke to me:

"This is just my opinion, so take it for what it is worth.

Content does not always have to be "research, back linking, proofing, social media promotion" - I'm reading *your* blog, and it is ok to be you. Not some content producing robot. It is ok to just post a photo and/or a quick thought, or a link to something you read which you found interesting.. a memory, a this is what I did today, a recipe you love..

"bloggers are being encouraged to"

And who exactly made that person king of blogging? :) I think "problogging" can be a great thing at times. Sometimes, it can put massive amounts of pressure on people to be a certain way or produce posts which totally and completely bypass the reason we - their readers - loved them in the first place.

I find this seems to happen a lot after "conferences" where people are told all kinds of wonderful things and then they want to come home and put all this stuff they were told into action, and in the process they lose the one thing which most of their readers loved about their blog - themselves. :(

"I want each blog post to move a reader."

And wouldn't that be an exhausting blog to read, not to menton write - for every single post to move your readers. It is ok to move people on an irregular basis. It is ok for moving people to come as a surprise to your people, and not be an expectation for every single post written. I think you want to move people once a week at most, otherwise you'll burn out your readers as well as yourself. :)

Just be you. I like you, for who you are, not the "content" you produce and twist yourself into pretzels to create. Pretzels can be fine, they can be awesome, but if you have them each and every day, you crave icecream, or a macaron, or a cat photo. :)

Do your own thing. Be who you *are* - not who someone else says you should be, not someone you are "encouraged" to be. That is the reason I subscribed to your blog, and I am sure I am not the only one who feels this way."

Thank you so much Snoskred. That comment! I needed it! I get you and agree with you and this is what I wanted to read. Somehow I may have lost myself in shaping the direction of my blog. Somehow I've made myself busier!

I do feel the pressure to write, to perform, and like everything I do in life, I'm a perfectionist. I write for me - and so my theory about perfection vs excellence means I strive for perfection rather than excellence. It's silly isn't it? Feeling the most pressure from ourselves.

I came back from Problogger with so many good ideas. I've already been filling up a notepad, talking to people who can bring these ideas to life. Funnily, many of those don't involve actual blogging. Those ideas are all about blogging, but use the blog as a springboard. And so while I want to focus on building those projects - all will be revealed soon - I need to just be. And I've enjoyed taking some time out, reducing that pressure to have something on the blog every second day.

A blog conference always leads to heightened inspiration - the content coupled with being in the presence of like minded people really does make you realise your potential. But there is overwhelm - of the crowds, the wonderful inspiring speakers, the ideas that you come back with, and also the experience of being away for a weekend. If there was a scale of overwhelm, I'd say this type is at the good end. I'd much rather be overwhelmed with excitement and inspiration than anxiety, fear and idea blockages - but I acknowledge that for many, these conferences might leave them feeling all of those things on the not so great end of the scale. When I got back from Problogger, I did notice bloggers wonder if they fit in; if they're doing it right. The ever lovely Pip Lincolne has some nice advice about how to overcome the overwhelm.

After blog conferences there's a danger of comparing ourselves to each other. The thing for me is that I keep comparing myself to what I've already done and want to do more. I compare myself to my last achievement and want to do more, do better. This is blogger burnout.

While blogging hasn't stopped being fun, the pressure to produce a post - or content as it's known in the industry - is tiring. For now, this isn't a full time job. I've been looking to decrease my day job hours so I can do more of this amazing writing and speaking career. I don't want to just be producing content, because that seems robotic. I want to keep it interesting and topical and continue to educate. But as my dear commenter said, it is ok to move people on an irregular basis.

This isn't a whinge about the sheer volume of wonderful opportunities that have come my way because of blogging. But the input definitely doesn't match the output. I did some invoices in bulk recently and the money I've made in projects away from my blog was more than 10 times the amount I've made through ads and sponsored posts here. It is hard work.

I've also found recently I've began to temper myself more online. The more of a following I have, the more conscious I am about what I'm saying, how I'm presenting myself online. There have been times I've been questioned for having an opinion on experiences and issues - because there's the belief my opinion contradicts my appearance activism.

I don't style my life online, but I am focused on what I write here - trying to ensure I set a good example, that don't contradict what I stand for, and knowing that what I do write may be scrutinised and criticised. But sometimes I will have an opinion that doesn't seem like 'me' - the online Carly that readers are used to seeing online - and that is ok. Please don't be disappointed. Hell, I commented on our Prime Minister's budgie smugglers recently and was hauled over the coals for not being true to my appearance activism work - I was told I was body shaming him. I wasn't.

I read an article about whether personal blogging can survive monetisation and this paragraph resonated with me the most:

"Most of all, when you blog about yourself, you’re putting YOU out there for strangers to judge. Most 99% of the time it’s good. But there will be times when people will judge, say they don’t like what you’re doing, or what you’re wearing and you will have to be tough enough to live with that judgement."

You do have to be tough. It's funny how out of a bajillion lovely comments, the not so nice ones stick.

There are opinions I'd love to share but, for many reasons, I can't. Having an opinion has cost me friends. And truthfully, I'm devastated. Having an online opinion is probably harder than in 'real life' opinions because there's no body language or fluid back and forth conversation for the intention to be interpreted clearly. And it seems that it's more difficult to clear the air in person when communication with them is mostly online. And the worst is when people who don't ordinarily contact me do so just to disagree. I'm all for differing opinions but if a differing opinion is all you're going to offer, then I'm going to feel hurt.

I've recently seen some commentary about blogging (and other issues) online that has caused some heated words. Looking at these examples, and also experiences I've had, I wonder whether we are able to ever ask questions about blogging/bloggers' behaviour/social media online or is this something to ask in person? Does this commentary get more dramatic online because of:

-the chance of misinterpretation

- the length of question and answer

- the pack mentality of the replies

- replying in the heat of the moment

- the ease of typing something compared to talking in person?

I don't know. I do think conversations aboutblogging issues, online behaviour and etiquette need to be had - the more transparently the better, but I question whether having them online all the time is the right platform. (I saw this post about that topic on Facebook - must listen to the podcast soon.)

We're making this blogging business up as we go along. That's how new it is. Sure, there are many experts providing us great advice. But the great thing about blogging and having our own blogs is that it can be anything we want it to be. It's ok to slow down or change direction or only post on Sundays.

Me? I've got to keep telling myself that it's ok not to go at full speed with everything I do. It's ok to let some of the day-to-day posts creep back into this blog. And it's ok not to be liked by everyone. It's good to find myself.

 

 

 

 

Some things about the amazing Problogger event

I've returned from the Gold Coast where I spent three days in blogging heaven - two days at the Problogger event and socialising before and after. My mind is so thinky. I'm jumping about with ideas - ones I can implement now, in a month, in six months and in a year. I hope to do more posts about this event in the coming weeks - bear with me. There's just so much goodness.

There are such talented, generous, focused people doing great things. It was great to be among people who just get it - understanding the importance of blogs and telling our own story, affirming it's ok to believe in your dreams, write them down and achieve them, and being ok with a real life conversation simultaneously happening during an online conversation.

There was so much talk of community and making a difference. And that's what blogging is about, yeah. Using your blog to make a difference and to make friends.

 

 

I had so much fun meeting old friends and making new ones. Here's Foxy and Tamsin (my roomie for the weekend).

And I met Amber Melody - who is gorgeous inside and out.

And I finally saw Tash! Oh I have missed her! We hung out a lot, it was nice. (Also see my eyebrows?! Totally fake!)

Pip Lincolne introduced me to Lucy from The Design Files. Lucy and my sessions were on at the same time (and I really wanted to be at her session!). We had a quick chat and a photo and she was so wonderful.

I got back to my room and Tamsin said I was on Lucy's Instagram feed.

I cried at her kind words about me - so so lovely. And she's sent a heap of her dedicated followers over to see what I'm about.

Thanks so much Lucy! You're the epitome of what Problogger is about - sharing, kindness and love.

These were just a few of the wonderful people I spent time with over those three days. To be honest though I did feel overwhelmed by the sheer amount of people. Lots of people. I can see why people need to retreat. If I didn't have a long conversation with you or didn't get to say hello, I apologise.

I was lucky enough to speak on a panel about blogging for social good on Saturday with Eden Riley, Stephen Ellis from World Vision and Emma Stirling. It was so good!

(Pic via Lou from World Vision)

The room was engaged, asking questions in person and tweeting about the event. We were trending at one stage! Bloggers are doing amazing things for social good. Read Emma's post and linky here - add your social good to the linky! Emma said "If your blog is getting the better of you, use it to do social good". Eden said that "all the humans on the planet are your peers. What are you doing to help?"

We all suggested working with charities and causes like you would with brands. Find a charity that aligns with your niche and pitch yourself. I love that Nikki Parkinson from Styling You works with Dress for Success - to help disadvantaged women dress for job interviews. I love that Digella Bakes started Baked Relief - delivering baked goods to regions affected by natural disaster. I love that Smaggle is doing silly things for a bus for kids with special needs. I love that Jim Butcher from Mr and Mrs Romance had no idea how to get involved in doing social good before the session but has some inspiration now.

I shared some of the anecdotes from those who participated in the Ichthyosis Awareness Month Blog Project and testimonials from Sam and Connie from Love Your Sister. Their words about how sharing their stories in my blog made them feel empowered in awareness raising, confident in telling their stories and part of a community is the reason I blog.

Here's Eden's attendee selfie (nicked from this post).

And our awkward panel photo! Too funny! Too awkward! Here's the storify of our tweets.

The Problogger team is so very generous - three bloggers were invited on stage for Problogger to showcase their story - The Merry Maker Sisters and Jules from Zippy Zappy Life. These bloggers are the new superstars - and that was recognised when they received mentoring and pampering from the Problogger team. Jules has a huge family, is a foster mum and blogs about sensory issues. The MM Sisters have recently quit their jobs to blog full time. They are so enthusiastic and willing to learn. And SO lovely :)

The conference was well planned - I was in the green room for an hour and saw the amazing work that went into the social media. I also saw the team cuddling babies so their mums could get a massage. Us speakers had a wonderful dinner with the event team on Saturday night. And I'm still pinching myself that I was able to speak there!! Thank you to everyone who made the conference happen. Thanks especially to Darren Rowse - Problogger himself - for being so generous, so community minded and so knowledgeable.

Also thank you to you - my friends, family and readers for being so supportive and for giving me the confidence and drive to keep at it. There's a little giveaway happening on my Facebook and Instagram. Pop over to either one and tell me how you look and feel your best.

The conference spurred me on again to write down my dreams. I have many, and I will make them happen. Darren and many of speakers the other talked a lot about how when we wrote down our dreams, we are more likely to them happen. This is one of my dreams. Wish me luck!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Advice for attending a blog conference.

I'm super excited to go to the Problogger Event next week. It's a four day weekend for me - a holiday in the sunshine state and a catch up with good friends, plus visiting the breakfast buffet more than once. But it's also worky - I'm going to drink all the bloggy advice (and the wine) and feel a sense of rejuvenation and leave filled to the brim with ideas.

There are a few awesome posts offering advice for attending blog conferences - check out Kiki and Tea, Talking Frankly, Kidspot and Impactiv8.

So I will just give three tips. I've been to a few conferences now, and here's what I've learnt.

What to take:

Your tablet or smart phone - for live tweeting and note taking, and for photo taking. A spare one if you have one. Usually you can connect to wifi there.

Your charger, or portable charging devices and a power board. Because lots of tweeting and photo taking drains batteries. There are never enough powerpoints at these events - a power board means you can buddy up charging with your blog buddy. I have a cool portable charger - I bought it from a vending machine at the train station. It's by PowerPod. I cannot believe I got it from a vending machine!! The charger can be recharged by plugging it in to a USB wall charger or computer.

A notepad and paper - for old-school note taking.

Comfortable shoes - you will be dashing between rooms for different sessions, standing up for lunch and dancing the night away.

Business cards. I get mine made by Vistaprint.

Use social media during the conference:

I like to live tweet. I see it as a double service - making notes for yourself and sharing the conference with the outside world (or those in other sessions). Taking notes this way is a great way to save your ideas via tweets and to make blog posts from them afterward.

Announce to your social media followers that you'll be live tweeting (some may be unimpressed by voracious tweeting but for many not attending, the live tweets are gold). If you can't be there, follow along #pbevent - I'm on twitter @carlyfindlay.

Here are my tips for live tweeting.

Being social:

Please say hello. Not just to me but to other bloggers you're connected with in cyberspace over time. We don't bite. I'm always so disappointed when someone says they saw me from afar but were too scared to say hello to me.

Don't place anyone on a pedestal and feel intimidated to speak to them. The blogger you think is a rock star is just like you. We all started without a blog. I once sat next to journalist Jacinta Tynan at a blogging session and struck up a convo with her via twitter before she turned to me with a friendly smile and a hello.

Blogging conferences can be a great change to meet up with friends, but the information overload, big crowds and hyper-catch ups can be tiring.Take some time out if things are overwhelming. I went to the pool and sat in the sunshine last year instead of going to a session.

I hope this is useful for you.

I've got another post coming up before Problogger - it's a prelude to my panel talk on blogging for social good - look out for that next week. And no doubt I will write lots of Problogger-inspired posts after the conference, like I did last year.

See you on the Gold Coast, or see you online!

 

Voices of 2013. Overnight success.

On Friday night I went to the Voices of 2013 party. It was wonderful to see so many bloggy friends again - I swear the friendship is the best thing about blogging. Everyone was so very lovely on Friday night - gosh it was good to see these ladies (and very few men) over champagnes and canapés. The ladies in the room were all so glamorous - it was fun to frock up!

(With Christina from Hair Romance and Andrea from Fox in Flats)

I was lucky enough to be a finalist in the personal and parenting blog category - with Naomi, Kate, Tricia and Kelly.

I was also lucky to be in the company of these wonderful winners (who were all so excited to win!):

House of Humble - overall winner

Whole Larder Love - best food blog

Smaggle - best style and beauty blog

House Of Humble - best creative blog

My Darling Lemon Thyme - people's choice

cake crumbs & beach sand and Cook Republic - sponsors' choice winners.

 

It was an absolute surprise to win another award. These past three weeks have been the biggest, most overwhelming ever. Just wow. Thank you to Kidspot for running this competition, and all the classes and parties. I've loved it.

I've been thinking about the work we do as bloggers, and how it's finally being recognised as real media. And there's as much work in blogging as in other occupations.

As bloggers, we are writers, editors, marketers, bookkeepers, taste testers, food stylists, photographers, fashion stylists, social media managers, comment moderators, researchers, pitchers, financial negotiators and digital strategists. Often this is done on top of our day jobs - or it is our day job. We put ourselves out there, inviting support and criticism.

The blogging world has changed - for the better I think. Of course, there always seems to be the issue of the moment (monetisation, sponsorship anyone?) but the community is thriving more than ever. Competitions like Voices give prominence to the lesser known bloggers - so many of the top 100 said how much Voices has boosted their profile and also connected them with the community - online and offline. When I was blogging back in the early 2000s, there was an online community only. This time around, the online blogging community has moved offline, and I am so grateful for that.

(With Heidi from Apples Under My Bed)

I also think that there is an expectation from newer bloggers and those that do not blog that blogging is a get rich quick scheme. I can tell you that I've made $750 on sponsored posts this year, plus around $100 on ads. This year I have written and published 186 posts and I've had the biggest stats ever. It took me just over three years to reach a million hits, and almost a year to clock up another half a million. And yet I've made a bigger splash away from my blog.

(Melbourne Carlys represent - with Smaggle)

I laugh when I see TV characters taking up blogging - Julie Rafter on Packed to the Rafters and most recently, Sonia from Neighbours come to mind. They are quick to become leaders in the blogging community and quick to get a newspaper column and paid opportunities. TV character bloggers are overnight successes. It just doesn't happen.

I've spent almost 1460 overnights blogging on this blog. This has been a particularly successful year for me - of which I am so proud, but it's certainly not been an overnight success. It's a huge amount of work - and with very little pay via this blog for me. I do it because I love it, to have a voice, and for the chance to build up a writing portfolio. I now write with the view to be published elsewhere - it does save time.

(With Nathalie from Easy Peasy Kids)

So what advice do I have for new bloggers? Be persistent, be authentic and consistently your best (you don't need to write every day but when you do, put your best out there), and get involved in the blogging communities. And write well.

I believe great blogging comes down to good, engaging writing. The bloggers who I consider to be good writers (or talented photographers) engage me the most. Good spelling, grammar, punctuation and vocabulary make for a blog worth me reading - and it can be within any genre. And I think, if you want to make a go out of being a blogger, write like you want to be published, employing good writing. A strong story is so important for me as a reader, but if it’s not written well, I feel like the strong story may have lost its impact.

There is no overnight success with blogging. It's a slow build, and monetarily, may be considered as slave labour. But stick at it and your blog's reach will grow. You will grow too, and it will be one of the best, most rewarding hobbies you've ever started.

(With Pip from Meet Me At Mikes)

 

The Step Changer panel at the Problogger Event - "Going beyond what everyone else is doing is what brings success."

(Pic via Mrs CeeCee)

My favourite session at the Problogger Event (pbevent) was the discussion between three of the nicest ladies in the blogging business - Andrea from Fox in Flats, Caz from yTravel Blog and Christina from Hair Romance. Their session was called 'The Step Changers' and covered the steps (read: HARD WORK) that have led these bloggers to success. Christina said, "everyone thinks you're lucky because they don't see the hard work behind your success. It's not one big success. It's a series of small successes. Celebrate those." Amen to this!

These three bloggers are blogging as their full time day job. While blogging and writing (and speaking) isn't my full time day job, it is my secondary career, and it has taken me a long time to do this. I work my full time job and dedicate a lot of hours to writing when I'm at home. I hope some brand new bloggers were in that audience to hear that making money blogging doesn't happen overnight. The session covered a number of themes: revealing yourself, collaboration, courage and self belief, guest posting and not giving up. Like most of the sessions at pbevent, the lessons that came out of this session can be implemented in many other careers and aspects of our lives.

Andrea writes Fox in Flats - a blog about practical and stylish fashion for busy mums. She's interviewed Peter Morrissey, Dannii Minogue and Sarah Murdoch. She's also created an ebook in conjunction with Ecco Shoes, and went to Copenhagen Fashion Week as an Ecco blogger. I first met Andrea in 2011, three weeks after she started her blog, and I am SO proud of what she's achieved since. Caz (and her husband Craig, the other half of yTravel Blog) are travellers - and their blog has enabled them to showcase and see many parts of Australia and the world. Caz and Craig have worked with Tourism Australia, Qantas, Canon, New Zealand Tourism and Cathay Pacific, to name a few. And Christina, blogging at Hair Romance and Nail Romance, does hair and nail styling tutorials, and has worked with Schwarzkopf and developed several ebooks

So many people ask me (and the bloggers I know) "How do you go from starting a blog with no readers to making it into a sustainable business?" All new bloggers start with no readers. I remember the day that my blog hit 1,000 views, and then 10,000 and then 1 Million! It didn't just happen. It took a lot of time writing, even when I thought (knew) no one was reading and a lot of self promotion. And gradually I got better at crafting blog posts. It still takes a lot of time! (If i told non-bloggers how much time I spend on the Internet and social media, theyd tell me I have lost touch with the real world!) The paid writing on publications away from my blog takes a lot of work too - as Clementine Ford said at the Melbourne Writers Festival, my blog has been my apprenticeship - it's got me noticed by editors, and blogging has got the ladies on pbevent step changer panel noticed too.

The reveal

The ladies said that success came to them when they dared to be honest and reveal something about themselves. For a long time Christina only revealed the back of her head, but when she put her face on her blog, readership and engagement increased. Andrea wrote a heartfelt piece about her mother who passed away from cancer for Witchery's White Shirt Day, and this resonated with many of her readers. And Craig from yTravel Blog wrote an epic post about how his and Caz's journey has not always been smooth, and it's taken many years and lots of struggle to get where they are today - and the readers' response was hugely positive. I related to all of these anecdotes - for when I first plucked up the courage to write candidly about my skin, on a particularly bad day of infection on my face when I didn't want to look in the mirror, my readers showed me the support I needed to keep writing about it. They wanted to know more and they wanted to support me. And since then, lots of people with visible differences have identified withmy story. And so my blog took the clear direction of focusing on what it's like to look different.

Collaboration

"Anyone who has success is because they're standing on the shoulders of giants", said Caz. Reach out. Work together. And Christina added "asking for help with blogging can lead to a strong friendship." Andrea said that Dannii Minogue told her she was a fan of Fox in Flats, and they'd been messaging each other on Twitter for a little while. She got the guts to ask Dannii, who is a mother to a toddler, if she would be keen being interviewed on the blog. Dannii said yes! Andrea went on to say "every time I don't feel like going to an event, that event is the time when something good, exciting, important will happen". I absolutely agree with asking someone to work with you. I pitch myself to editors all the time - sometimes it's fruitful, other times I get a no, but I know that these editors are now aware of my work and something may be a better fit in the future. Also, when Sam Johnson was talking about creating Love Your Sister at an event I went to in June 2012, I said to him that I'd love to offer him some alternative media in the form of a spot on my blog. He was keen, telling me they wanted to work with bloggers, and that he trusts me and my work. I sent him an email in November of last year asking if there was any news for the LYS launch date. We emailed back and forth and chatted on the phone to plan the interview for my blog before the launch. I made it happen - I am proud to be the first blogger who announced Love Your Sister. (Sam was a guest speaker at pbevent, and it's so great that as a result, more people are aware and wanting to get involved in his cause.) The ladies also spoke about bloggers collaborating with readers: Involve your readers. Ask them questions. Use their answers as blog content. "Make your readers the hero." They suggested asking their readers questions and turning them into blog posts.

"When you find someone you want to work with, pitch yourself", recommended Christina. Caz spoke about being persistent. "Don't take a no personally when you get a no. Learn from it. Don't give up", she said. She spoke of how persistent she and Craig were with finding a contact at a tourism company - finding ways to get to the person they needed to speak to by building relationships with others in the company. "Being persistent with your requests means you're building a relationship with more people in a company", she said.

Courage to believe in yourself

"Make an investment in yourself do a course, travel, pick up the phone rather than email. Make the change. Have the guts to try new things!", Christina said. Pitch to publishers, take a leap, invest in face to face meetings, travel, spend. Christina told us how she invested in a trip to New York to go to BlogHer and to meet potential clients face to face. It paid off. "It's often the gutsiest decisions that bring the best results. Learn new stuff, push yourself, move forward", Andrea said. She added: 'No matter how you feel, get up, dress up, show up and never give up!' Don't quit. At the quitting moments, amazing things happen." Caz affirmed: "Draw upon the strength of what you've previously achieved. Back yourself. Think about where you were a few years ago & be in awe of what you've been able to achieve. You're making a difference."

Guest posts

Guest posts were encouraged. Caz recommended "using guest posts to get yourself out there. Don't forget to include your Google authorship profile." Andrea added her advice: "try guest posting on a blog/site that has different content to yours, but a similar demographic." And Christina sugggested "carrying your brand over to the places you guest blog on." And so after this session, I pitched a guest post to yTravel blog who said yes! (I've still got to write it yet!)

Don't give up!

I think it is really easy for new bloggers, or even established ones, to want to quit. They feel like they're not being read. They find blogging a chore. They aren't sure what to blog about. Don't quit! You never know who might be reading your blog. "Every time I've wanted to quit, I get a message from a reader about the big difference I've made to their lives", Caz said. I've never felt like I have wanted to quit, but sometimes I feel there's nothing more to write about. And then, like Caz, I get an email or comment from a reader telling me I've made a difference, and I want to keep blogging forever. And I know there will always be an opportunity to blog about something, or for my blog to lead me to a bigger opportunity, and so I keep going. "Opportunity comes every single day. If you're not prepared, you're not going to respond to these opportunities", Caz finished with.

I caught up with an old friend for a drink the other night. She's a paediatric bone doctor (osteopath) and told me about her practice - Growing Bones. She's got a website and she was excited to tell me about her blog that she has, covering osteopathy for babies and children. She said that she loves researching and writing down what she's learnt and spoken to her clients about, and is confident her advice will help parents searching for a solution. My friend was also excited to receive comments from around the world - she can't believe the reach that a blog has. My friend admitted not knowing too much about blogging and social media but said the blogging and social media work she has been doing for her practice is something she really enjoys. She had no idea bloggers can make money from their blogs, nor about blog conferences or that you can meet bloggers in real life. I loved her enthusiasm about her blogging - an add on to her practice - and I knew that while she's only fresh and her blog is not well known yet, she doesn't want to give up anytime soon.

Success can be anything you want it to be

All three ladies on the step changers panel at pbevent belong to the Remarkables Group - Australia's first blogging agency. Belonging to a blogging agency seems to be a marker of success in the Australian blogging industry - but blogging markers of success can be anything you want them to be. For me my marker of successful blogging is being published in a publication that I admire, or being asked to speak at an event after someone read my blog, and especially receiving an email from a reader saying I helped them in some way. (Andrea said she thinks she's doing blogging right when she receives a beautiful email, tweet or card from a blog reader.) Your marker of blogging success might be that your comments have doubled in a year, or your post was shared by a reader or blogger that you respect, or that you've made some new friends.

Christina said "Going beyond what everyone else is doing is what brings success", and I think that is so true. Run your own blogging race, work hard and success, in whatever form you want, will come.

Thanks for a wonderful session, ladies. Yours was truly so worthwhile attending. And Christina, you have enviable hair.

You can read more of my experience at the Problogger Event here.

 

What I learnt about digital content creation at the Problogger Event #pbevent

(source)

 

One of the big takeaways I got at the Problogger Event was that us bloggers are all content creators, and that it’s really easy to value-add onto the content we’ve already created (our blogs, duh!). Years ago, it was very expensive to create digital content, but now it’s become much cheaper, though quite a bit harder to get our content noticed.

I went to a couple of sessions that talked about content and product creation – a “launching your speaking career” with the very lovely Yvonne Adele (you may know her as Ms Megabyte) and Trevor Young (you may know him as PR Warrior) and also a session specifically about creating digital content, run by social media experts Ed Dale and Shayne Tilley (pictured below). Ed and Shayne said "Everyone has a product inside them that will help someone".

(source)

 

Here are my top five tips about digital content creation – the things that I will be doing, like right now:

1. Don't spend too much money on your blogs and digital products. There are apps that do stuff cheaply, and online communities to answer your questions. Shayne and Ed recommended Fiverr – where you can source experts to do stuff for you, for $5. You don’t need to learn coding for your blog when there’s an expert who can do this for you.

(Edit: I forgot to add - There was also talk of bartering of skills, so you don't necessarily have to pay the bottom dollar for a service that you believe is more valuable than $5.)

2. Take the time to learn about the things you are interested in and want to be good at. (I cant recall who gave this tip - it may have been said in another session. there was just so much to absorb at the conference!) I’ve changed my reading habits to include blogs and magazines to educate myself in start-ups and social media - my two faves at the moment are Collective and Monocle magazines. I've also bought a few books of wisdom. Ed and Shayne recommended Digital Publisher, which I have found on iTunes. And to think, five years ago I bought Cosmo and Cleo every month...

3. Podcasts are easy to create and distribute onto your blog and social media accounts. Shayne and Ed recommend the Auphonic app to create podcasts straight from your smart phone - no complex thingies needed! I've downloaded it to my phone and will have a play soon. I love podcasts and want to make my own!

4. Take your top 10 blog posts, copy and paste them into word, brand the document with your branding, and make the document into a PDF. You now have an eBook. You can sell this at your speaking events, or giveaway in exchange for email addresses/reader details. This was a tip from Yvonne-Adele and Trevor, and I would say it's my favourite!

5. “Don't be intimidated by others who have created content before you. It's creative carnage for everyone. Just do it.” Ed and Shayne were very passionate and encouraging. I’ve been thinking about value adding onto my blog for a while, especially through podcasts and ebooks, and now I know it’s not hard and nothing to be afraid of, I will give it a go.

What are your goals for your blog?

How are you learning new things?

Have you switched from reading trash mags to intellectual ones?

 

Nine awesome people I met at the Problogger Event #pbevent

I met lots and lots of people at the Problogger Event. There were simply too many to be able to meet everyone, but the people I did meet were all wonderful. Here’s just a few of the people I have come to know through Problogger (and some online prior to the conference), and think you should know them too.

Tamsin Howse - editor in chief at Kiki and Tea - I'm a sometimes contributor there. It was so much fun hanging out! (Note that I'm standing on my toes to be as almost as tall as Tamsin, and my eyes were a bit blinded by the morning sun!)

Economies of Kale – Liz blogs about chronic illness and healthy food. We sat next to eachother in the final session of the first day.

Jules Galloway – a natropath and another healthy eating blogger – a lovely woman who took me under her wing.

The Life of Clare – Clare is all about sustainable living, whole food cooking and travel. I met her early on in the conference, at the breakfast, and I introduced her to her blogging idol, Veggie Mama. Her fandom was very cute. Clare is expecting her first baby too!

The Plumbette - Bec a female plumber! I chatted to Bec sitting outside at lunch on the second day – she asked me lots about my blogging journey and she seemed so keen to learn.

Vanisha - I also met Vanisha early on during the breakfast (first world problem: the croissants were too scratchy for my face). Vanisha is a blogger from Canberra and she has also started a blogging mentoring website and program called The Purposeful Blogger. I went on a Gold Coast shopping tour with Vanisha and six other lovely ladies on Sunday.

Emma Stirling and Catherine Saxelby - I have met Emma and Catherine before - they're both dietitcians. I met Emma at the Heart Foundation cooking class and bumped into Catherine in New York on a food tour (so funny that we were on the same tour in such a big city!) and then we were at BlogHer together. These ladies are so inclusive, and they really care about healthy eating and social good.

Jacinta Tynan - I have followed Jacinta's newspaper columns for a little while now - I admire her as a writer. She asked a question at one session I attended, and I thought she looked familiar. I checked her twitter, looked at her, then tweeted to her that I think I am sitting next to her, and that I like her writing. We had a little chat - she is starting to blog after writing for the mainstream media for a long time. I also really loved her pink jeans and striped top!

I have truly made some good friends through blogging. I love meeting the people I get to know online in person. I only wished there was more socialising time at the Problogger Event!

If you were at Problogger, who did you bump into?

And what new blogs have you discovered recently?

 

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