#GIFTED I guess before I start, I’d better say… Happy New Year! I really enjoyed those 7 weeks of 2018 and truly cannot believe that we’re here, once more, saying hello to a brand new year. It’s funny, you’d think nobody understood how time worked with how shocked and appalled we all are at how quickly 2018 went. But alas, time stops for no man and with a new year, comes new goals and a new chance to achieve our dreams. That definitely sounded less corny in my head but you get the sentiment.
2018 was thankfully a really good year for me and was the year I saw my blog grow and grow more than I ever anticipated or expected (despite putting a bloody lot of hard work in but self doubt YO). I released my eBook, bagged myself my biggest blogging opportunity yet, worked with a number of amazing brands, turned my blog into a business and saw my income increase from extra pocket money to something a bit more substantial.
Last year gave me even more of a drive to give this blogging thang a really bloody good go. It’s going in the right direction, as in I’m not facing the wrong way on the M25 and I’m as motivated as ever and seriously looking forward to the year ahead and what’s in store. I love a bit of manifestation me but I also know how important it is to go out and grab opportunities by the metaphorical balls and work hard to make shit happen.
So, with that being said, here are my blogging (and business) goals for 2019!
Release at least one more blogger resource
In October last year I released my Beginners Guide to Blogging eBook, which I absolutely loved creating and I’ve been over the moon with the positive response from that. I’ve always known that I love helping people – especially bloggers – and since creating that, I’ve realised that offering more of my knowledge might be the way forward. I have something in the pipeline (God I hate it when people say that) which I’m very excited about so hopefully I can cross this goal off my list soon!
Refine my nichés
Towards the tail end of last year when I was thinking about where I wanted to go with my blog and how I wanted to move forward with it, the main thing I realised was that I felt that I personally juggled too many nichés and it was starting to look messy. I love a niché-less blog and I still will be for the most part but I as I said above, I love helping people, so this year I really want to refine my topics and focus more of blog-help related posts and have those make up a bigger chunk of my content. Although I’m always going to chat about Disney, share my favourite books or discuss mental health when I want to!
Be more topical and relevant
Similarly to above, as well as refining my nichés I also want to put more of an emphasis on being more topical and relevant. I only really started to do gift guides last year, which I really enjoyed and obviously gift guides get a lot of traction, interaction and attention from brands. I’ve tended to just ignore the time of the year we’re in throughout my blogging career so far but I’d like to change that next year and actually keep up with the rest of the world!
Increase my income
I know money is a sticky subject, especially in the blogging world and even in 2019, some people seem to think bloggers and creatives aren’t worthy of being paid but I’m incredibly proud of what I’ve been able to achieve with my blog and the increase I’ve seen, especially during the latter half of last year. If I want to keep going and make a sustainable career of this, I’d love to increase my income to a steady and consistent number each and every month. Whether that’s through brand collaborations, my own resources or both.
Improve my photography
Keeping this one short and sweet but I really want to improve my photography this year; flat lays, product photos, landscapes – you name it! At the end of last year, I invested in a brand new camera (which wasn’t bloody cheap!) so I’m really hoping that, along with some practice and patience will allow me to see results for this one!
Before I shoot, I just want to say a big thank you to Yankee Candle for sending me these two gorgeous candles from their new ‘Elevation Collection*‘. There’s 16 scents to choose from, starting at £8.99. Whisk yourself away to far off shores with Costal Cyprus or Shore Breeze or if freshly washed sheets are more your thing, light Sheer Linen for a stunning clean, spring-like scent. They also have 4 warming Christmas scents, if you’re still not over the festivities just yet!
I chose Shore Breeze and Sheer Linen because I just adore fresh, clean scents when it comes to candles. One of my favourite smells in the entire world is during Spring and Summer, when you put your bedding back on your bed after hanging it outside to dry all day. I received their large 2-wick candles and I know I’m going to get hours and hours of burning time out of these. I’m going to save them until after Christmas and start the new year, with a brand new scent.
What are your blogging goals for 2019? Any exciting plans? I’d love to hear them!
* Items featured with a (*) were sent to me in exchange for a feature in this post. All thoughts and opinions are entirely my own.