Blogging Insecurities…
*WARNING*
******LOTS OF RAMBLING AND VENTING BELOW*******
So… it’s Monday afternoon, and after a very busy weekend, I’m just getting to blogging. And I’m still trying to figure it all out.
You see… back when I had my full-time job, I had time to blog and brainstorm and leave tons of comments on all the blogs I love.
I would be logged on twitter all day long and tweet with all my blogging buddies.
The funny thing is I had more time to blog at work, than I do at home…
Oh, and the only reason I feel comfortable saying that is cause I’m not at that job any more.
My full-time job is turning one year old in a couple weeks and consumes one hundred percent of my time. Not that I’m complaining… I love being with her, around her, beside her, anywhere with her. She’s the best!
But… now that she’s mobile, I’m constantly making sure she doesn’t get into anything silly.
In fact… right now, as I type this… she just pulled out a stack of all my favorite decorating magazines… she’s actually flipping through the pages like she’s reading it.
Ope… never mind… she’s ripping the pages out… be right back…
Phew… Crisis resolved… moving on…
I blog for lots of reasons. I blog because its an outlet for me. I blog because I want readers to know how much I love being a mom. I blog because I want to help. I’m an RD, with a butt load of knowledge I can share. I blog because I want readers to know that you don’t have be on some crazy diet to reach a healthy weight.
But… I think I can speak for other bloggers when that question pops in our head…
Do people really like my blog? If my blog went away tomorrow would they miss it.
Are people only reading my blog because I commented on theirs?
Is my blog boring? Am I a good writer?
Those questions pop in my head every few weeks… then I get my blogging mojo back for a couple weeks… then I feel insecure again…. and so the cycle repeats itself…
Then that day comes… we read a blog post that has that title…. “I got a book deal!”
Then we sit, and wonder… “could that ever happen to me?”
I guess we’ll never know unless we go after it.
I guess what I really want to say is that I’m really glad you’re here 🙂
Thank you for reading and sticking around!
And thanks for your patience as I continue to try to figure this whole blogging world out 🙂
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Now it’s time for questions….
If you’re a blogger… do any of the above questions pop in your head?
If so… how do you feel about it?
Do you ever get blogger insecurity?
This is a selfish question for me… Is there anything you would like to see more of on my blog? This blog is for me AND you 🙂
um, of course all of that stuff pops into my head at least 3 times a week! but you definitely don’t have anything to worry about…I adore your blog and look forward to reading it. you have fabulous recipes, a great sense of humor, a beautiful perspective on life and motherhood, and you’re a Texan (which obviously makes you a badass :)) keep up the great work and never be afraid to follow through with what you want!
You know all of my answers!!
<3 xoxo
I think every blogger has her/his insecurities…you get vulnerable when you put yourself and your work out there! I definitely wonder the same things, too. Honestly, I don’t think people will “miss” my blog if I stop, because there are tons more blogs out there. Blogging is a paradox: you are public and heard, yet readers have ADD, and when you disappear, other bloggers take your place. It’s a big world out in the blog world, and we’re all trying to find our place. I think the best thing we can do is to just be ourselves, instead of being one of the masses, and be unique. Which I think you are; you have a lot of your own characteristics and style. You have real insecurities, your own individual condition and background and story.
Oh my gosh, please don’t stop blogging. I look forward to your blog popping up in my google reader! When you stopped blogging for the few weeks around having your baby, I missed your posts and stories. This fall I actually return to school to pursue my dream to be an R.D. Switching careers from pastry chef to R.D., crazy huh? I am so excited yet scared at the same time…this decision uproots my husband and I from SC and transfers us to a new state with new jobs, a new home, and a new life. You are such an inspiration and motivation. Do what makes you happy. 🙂
I am not even sure if you know that i read your blog (lol) but I do. I have made several of your recipes that you post, and I love reading about your baby. I do have the same insecurities. I also fear that people may get the wrong feeling about me because of something I blog about. I don’t like the fact that people can’t know ALL of me. They just know what I blog. Get what I’m sayin? main point: if blogging makes you happy and its enjoyable for you, then DO IT! Who cares what others think. There will always be haters 😉
I am a new blogger and I think these things all the time! I write my post and then I read it again and again and think that maybe it isn’t worthy of putting out there. I do it anyway and then we I get some good feedback I feel encouraged. When I don’t get any feed back I wonder what I am doing wrong!
I am new to your blog but what I have seen so far looks great! Keep it up and see where it takes you.
I love your blog, Estela! It’s hard to find a blogging balance when you are a stay at home mom (or mom, in general!). We stretch ourselves thin to be there for everyone!
I have blog insecurities sometimes. I think it gets tied to comments or if I see the analytics numbers go down here and there. But, then I remind myself why I started my blog. It’s not about the numbers; it’s about connecting with people. And if I only connect with or share my struggles with a few people, it’s okay. Honestly, even if no one read, I think I would still blog! It’s so fun to chronicle my life through food. I love the creative part!
Keep blogging…only when you can. That way it will not seem so hard to find the balance 🙂
I love your blog and read it all the time 🙂 In fact, I purposely said I wasn’t going to comment on others’ blogs during my vacation, but I saw this post and just had to come on here and show some love! We all have these insecurities. It’s only natural, but you can’t let it get to you. M is your number one priority. The blog is a far second and that’s all that really matters!
I love reading your blog because I can relate to so.many.things!
I have a hard time lately finding time for blogging as well. Busier now then when working an outside job for sure.
Of course I have those insecurities! I think we all do to a certain because frankly, there are so many, but yes, I would be sad if yours went away! <3
Ok so I knew when you were quitting your job after the 1st month or two wore off and baby started crawling, that you’d work harder at just folding the laundry and showering before noon than ever before in life 🙂 Not saying ladies who have FT paid employment outta the house arent working, they are, it’s just that as a SAHM, well, you know. Hardest work ever. Most fulfilling, but hardest.
Blogging. I blog when skylar naps however it means that i dont do anything else for myself besides blog. Which i dont like. I really want to scale back, not up. But my blog is getting bigger, not smaller. I guess it’s a good prob to have but i want to find the balance to blog for ME, not for my readers and what they would find interesting. Great question!
Yes I read your blog and love it. I would not change a thing. I tend to NOT like blogs that are catering to their readers. Those blogs are always the same … no spirit … no controversary. These bloggers become so afraid of losing readers they tend to not blog about what they are really feeling.
There is a conversation about working moms and stay at home moms over at letshaveacocktail.com that I think you could add something interesting to.
Hope you continue to blog as you have been …
We are so similar! (Only I am not a mom or an RD) 😉
I blog because I love the connections with like-minded people but there are plenty of days when I wonder, “Why do I bother?” I’ve always said I’ll stop blogging when it’s not fun anymore.
I love your writing style…it’s easy to read and it’s a pleasure to read. That’s why I come back again and again. That, and you make a mean muffin! 😉
Yes I do read your blog(but I rarely if ever comment), and no I don’t always jump on everyday to read it but if it was gone tomorrow I would miss it.
I don’t look for anything specific when I come here. I like everything you write about, be it your daughter something health related or a new receipe…
I think when it comes to blogging you do it for yourself. I’ve had a couple blogs which I doubt very few people even read. And that’s ok. Because at the end of the day my blog means something to me and that’s what matters most! 🙂
Hey there! I do read your blog and absolutely ADORE the recipes…in fact, I have a whole notebook divider dedicated to your recipes! I love to bake and eat and really find encouragement and motivation in your words, recipes, and stories. I know things are tough right now but know that there are people who read this blog daily and really rely on your advice. I’ve struggled with eating issues for over 15 years and you’ve been the first blog/RD (and I’ve been to TONS of RDs to try to help me) to actually help me and show me that eating healthy isn’t an all or nothing thing.
Thanks for what you do and know it is very much appreciated!
Oh my goodness, Estela, this is a post I could have written last night when I was debating if anyone liked my blog! I have these thoughts every single day. When a post gets only a few comments, I wonder if everyone collectively decided to hate me. I always question whether people enjoy reading my blog, whether they get my humor, or if they look forward to each post. It’s so hard to gauge! I’m hoping it’s totally normal to be insecure, but I think I’m new enough that I can’t answer that. As for your blog, I really like it. And I love the pics of your daughter.
Firstly, I LOVE your blog! When I get into work in the AM, I whip open a few tabs and Weekly Bite is ALWAYS one of them 🙂 Always!
These questions pop into my head a lot. Especially, “Are people only reading my blog because I commented on theirs?” And 9 times out of 10, that’s true. I don’t read any blog out of obligation. Unfortunately, I don’t have time enough to keep up with all the blogs I want to each day. And sadly, as my life gets busy, my traffic gets unbusy…and plummets. I’ve learned that that’s okay and the people who read my blog for the right reasons come back.
What I HATE is when people comment something that relates in NOW WAY to my post, or is completely generic and is just a way of getting in a comment. It seems so petty to me…it’s not a popularity contest!
I have considered all of the above questions. Sometimes I have nothing to blog about and I wonder… should I force it just to be ‘present’.. should I not cause the post will suck. If I get 100 visitors and 1 comment does that mean my post did suck? And like you said, am I only getting comments because I commented on someone else’s blog? Haha..
Thank you for writing about what (I think) we’re all thinking from time to time. And for the record, I enjoy your blog 🙂 As an up-and-coming RD I value your opinions on health topics. Also your mommy stories are so darn cute! Keep it up..
Estela, don’t stop blogging! You would most certainly be missed. As a relatively new blogger, I have these thoughts daily. Do people really give a darn about what I have to say? But at the end of the day, my blog is my creative outlet, regardless of who reads it. I do it because I enjoy it. And I can tell you enjoy it, too! That’s reason enough to keep it up, even if you post less often or comment less frequently. I have to tell myself I can only do so much. If my blog becomes a second job than that defeats the purpose.
Chin up, Estela! You rock!
I do enjoy your blog… although I haven’t been around reading blogs lately because all crazy things in my life, but I enjoy yours. I don’t have a kiddo yet so it is nice to read about a young mom with a young kiddo making it all work.
I sometimes do have blogger insecurity. I wonder if anyone ever cares or if the stuff I talk about is important.. I am not an RD and really have figured everything I know by trial and error and based how it has effect my health and day to day life.
Hope you are having a wonderful Tuesday.
Great post Estella! I think as bloggers we all struggle with these questions. I have no problem keeping up my blog because of my desk job but if I were to leave it, I don’t know what I’d do. I’m glad you’re sticking with it and I’m sure it’s nice to still be part of a community now that you’re out of the working world!
I really enjoy your blog because you have knowledge that most of us don’t have. I wonder about these questions all the time, like why do people waste their time reading my blog when there are millions of others out there. And should I really be posting every day when Maya needs my attention more than I need to blog? I struggle all the time!!
Oh my gosh, I think about those things ALL THE TIME!!!! It can be such a frustrating thing and total love/hate relationship. Sometimes I feel like it is a popularity contest which is too bad, but such is life.
I LOVE your blog and think it is written beautifully. I also love hearing about the Mother aspect because it is such a big part of your life and will hopefully be part of mine soon too!
Just like everyone else’s above the answers to those questions are ALL YES! I have blogger insecurity often, like you said it’s a vicious cycle that is almost impossible to get out of…especially when you see that book deal post! I love your blog and look forward to reading it so do NOT stop blogging (please!). Thanks for posting something we are all thinking.
Heck yeah! I think you were speaking to me! I have a culinary degree and now I have all these food challenges. I just want to share with people and learn from other’s experiences! I wanted a degree in nutrition, but that is just not in the cards for me. I love reading your blog, the personal and the educational! Thank you for sharing whatever you have time for. You will never get this time back, so enjoy every second of it! Thank you for getting that all out there. I feel like a weight has just been lifted from my shoulders!
I definitely experience this–I feel like my blog doesn’t have a voice. Since I’ve been so bad about it with my last semester in school I haven’t been able to stay on track with posting. Also, I don’t have a specific topic. It’s all random musings from my life. There’s running a 5k, and then I bake cookies. There’s vacationing to DC and then trying to sew a dress. None of it is cohesive but it’s all about what I’m thinking about and what’s going on. For me.
And when I took a couple weeks break, a TON of people came out of the woodwork and asked why I stopped. So we’d miss you too 🙂
Wow this is a great resource.. I’m enjoying it.. good article
Of course I like your blog!! And I think it’s amazing that you can raise a child, work, and blog. All I have right now is school and I’m struggling to find the time!
Sometimes I get blog insecurity too. I feel like if I don’t post often enough then people will forget about mme and take me off their google readers 😕 But I really don’t think that’s true!
And even if I don’t comment as often, I still read your blog! 😀
I think your blog is great and I enjoy seeing things you cook or stories about your family. It’s real life, and that’s always refreshing.
As a blogger, I sometimes wonder if this or that is boring or if my pictures are bad quality, etc. But I try not to let it consume me. I’m just being me, and if someone doesn’t like that, I can’t (and won’t) change that. I hope my readers like my posts and try to get a lot of feedback. My blog is also growing and even after 3 years, I’m still learning and evolving as I go along.
I think your blog is perfect as is because it’s YOU and that makes it unique. 🙂
Jenn
Nombre de weeklybite.com a GoogleReader!
Nicolas