What beauty blogging burnout?
Someone on Twitter, I forget who, said that you can only feel truly burnt-out about something you love. If you don't love it then you'll simply be tired of it, but to be burnt-out requires a mixture of infinite exhaustion, double-guessing, and regret. Thankfully it's something most people recover from. Those who don't move on and the rest of the world continues, nonchalant.
Am I feeling a rash of blogger burnout? Oh dear, no. I do sometimes find it difficult to start a post, nay, to even choose what to write about, but I get over it. I read a book. Watch a TV show. Do my other work. Then get back to writing a post and before I know it I'm all set! It's easier now since I've been doing this for a few years - I know the vocabulary, how to plan the content, basically the whole process starting from the point I decide which products to use down to that "Save & Close" publish button. It's easier but that doesn't mean it's not difficult, which is why there are still days when I don't feel inspired at all.
There are a few common reasons why beauty and fashion bloggers stop blogging, or at least take a "hiatus". The most common one is that there's a big life event happening, like a new job, a new baby, or a death in the family. Blogging is still just a hobby for a lot of people, so it's one of the first things that take a back seat when more important stuff happens. As they always eventually do.
Another reason is the blogger might feel that she's not doing it for herself anymore. She feels she's blogging for an audience, which then makes her more self-conscious and hyper-aware of what she posts. She starts to feel the pressure from people she doesn't even know. She responds to it by trying to improve her style, her photos, her blog layout, etc. She also begins to buy more products and/or clothes to keep up with the more accomplished bloggers in her niche, to create more relevant content. Then it hits her: why am I doing all this work? Who am I doing all this work for? This is supposed to be fun! She suddenly feels ridiculous and stops.
This third reason I now find odd, but believe me I struggled with this in the beginning. Smart women do not care for being thought of as shallow and stupid. Running a beauty/fashion blog can make a person look shallow and stupid because omg all she thinks about is like, makeup and clothes! Shoes! Explosions of irrational color everywhere!
Blogging, at least being a successful blogger, is not for everyone. You really have to like it, to get a kick out of it that's outside the seductive realm of money, fans, and freebies. It has to be something that you will do because you will explode and fall apart if you don't. Okay those are hyperboles but I hope you get the drift.
I also struggled with the three reasons above, like any blogger growing up. The first one I resolved by sheer determination. I want to write at least one post every weekday. No matter what. I will wake up at 6am and I will make it happen with more than enough time to do my real job. The second dilemma was not so much a problem because I like to shop that is, to hunt down good finds whether expensive or not. Besides, purely product reviews/ outfit posts do not make for a memorable blog. I also write (what I think of as) interesting features, which do not require me to buy anything!
The third one I was especially conscious about in the beginning. Most of the people in my circle then didn't understand makeup, more so writing about makeup. I felt silly everytime I talk about a lipstick on Twitter, or Facebook, thinking that surely all my friends are snickering about poor Liz who have nothing but fancy air in her head! But I got over it. :P I know I'm not dumb. I do other interesting things outside of this niche and I don't have to be all defensive and huffy about it.
So why do all this? What's in it for me? The original and most important reason is that I like finding good things that work and then telling the world about it. In relation to that, I grew up thinking I was ugly. It's a terrible state of mind so if I can help young women avoid that I would! Frankly, I also enjoy the freebies, perks, and occasional money I get out of blogging. Seriously who doesn't want to get paid for doing something you would do for free anyway?
Well that was long. This isn't directed at anyone. I've just been reading posts about blogger burnout in this niche and I suppose I just want to explain while I'm still hyperactive after almost five years of this journey. :)
