My 100th Post

Wow. 100 blog posts already. I started this blog in April, 2020. The world was shutting down. There was a lot of uncertainty and fear surrounding COVD-19. The political climate in America was... tense.

However... Life were getting quieter. I gained more time in my day working from home. "Social Distancing" meant social calendars were non-existent, unless remote. Work life became far less stressful. I was able to think. I was able to breathe. I was able to learn more.

So, with extra time on my hands, I started to think hard about what I wanted to do with my career, my life, and my time. I dove deeper into hobbies, goal-setting, and online education.

When I looked deeper at my career path, I realized my career has always been a compilation of a variety of interests.

I've done: event planning, coaching, lifeguarding, pool management, swim instruction, nannying, retail sales, production artist, motion graphic design, art direction, creative direction...

Mixed in with: photography, branding, creating social aspects, education, broadcast, project management...

and

Designs have spanned from: interiors, social media, sets, motion, print, advertising campaigns, process improvement, so on...

After doing some LinkedIn Learning videos, I realized I wanted to know more about how to best interview. I wanted to learn more about how companies work. I wanted to learn about branding and how it pertains to freelance design work. I wanted to figure out how to expand upon rusty skill sets rather than being "typecast" into doing one thing for the rest of time.

I really don't do well with sitting still for too long. I fall into slumps if I'm not growing.

Some of the skills I wanted to improve on were: business strategy, photography, writing, film/production, and gain a better understanding of social media.

When I looked deeper at my life, and how I spent my time, I realized I wanted to learn more, make more, and document life and a lot of the process on projects I was taking on. I wanted to be able to reflect back on things I had tried not only for myself, but for my loved ones. I wanted to stop being so hard on myself. I wanted to try things and be okay with failures. I wanted to smile and pivot when things go wrong. I wanted to really live to the fullest of my abilities.

Sounds cheesy, right? Whatever, things taste better with cheese - same goes for life. Add the cheese if you please.

Anyway... When I started to put the two together, I realized the best way to combine what I wanted to improve upon for both my life and my career, the best way to practice, was to create a blog.

This was scary to me.

I don't like opening up publicly. I've often shied away from expressing emotions. Vulnerability was NOT my thing. It was easier to push feelings down, bottle 'em up, and add more hours to my work schedule. I'd much rather be of service to others than to follow my own goals publicly. I also didn't want to fail.

However, my desire to work on these skills, and work towards personal goals outweighed the fear.

I decided 2 things:

1. I'd keep it out of the spotlight. I wanted to practice these skills without the pressure of other people's opinions. I did it in the background, and on my time.

2. I'd start by treating it like a potential company - using it as a way to practice some of the business strategy education I was learning on LinkedIn. If this "website" (much easier for me to wrap my head around if it was a "website" rather than a "blog") were a business, what would the core values be? What categories would it cover? (aka what skills do I want to try, what things do I want to learn, etc.) What would be a reasonable "publishing" schedule? How would it be branded? What would its name be? Doing all of this, pretending it was just a website for a fictional business made it easier to lean into.

I did research on naming companies, how social media should all play well together, and had fun pretending it wasn't personal. I chose the name "Hello Ember" after brainstorming a few, and researching what was available. The name is vague enough that it can cover many categories. The choice of "ember" was meant to be a play off of "that lightbulb moment" when you get an idea or "sparks of creativity". With "embers" being the little glimmers of these ideas floating into your head, but if they're not supported, or "invited in" (and this is the reason behind "Hello" being the welcoming first part of the name) these ideas might not make it.

Yes, I know, I can be an over-thinker.

Once I was happy with this name choice, I snagged up all the social channels I wanted to learn more about from a business perspective: Instagram, YouTube, Pinterest, and a website. I knew from being a graphic designer, and from working for a couple companies that had done re-brands, that handles and channels are important to lock-in. I decided to focus on one area, and then play on the other channels eventually if I wanted to. I'd focus on writing and taking photos for the website. I'd also practice consistency.

That's not so bad. I can do this since it's not social-facing. I just will be sure I don't post photos of myself, or reveal too much. Just play in the shadows.

I gave myself a two year goal. I'd stick with it for two years and see what happens. What's to lose? We're in a global pandemic and I've got time to play.

Fast forward to now - April 2022. Here I am writing my 100th post - a long reflection on how I started.

My life looks very different now. I don't work for the same company. I don't live in the same house. I push my project-skills. I take better care of my body and my health. I have started my own LLC using the business education I learned at the beginning of the pandemic. I protect my time. I gained routines. I hold myself accountable for goals I had. I allowed myself to heal from past experiences. I respect my emotions. My anxiety of not-being-good-enough has decreased significantly. What started as an exercise in growing skill sets has given me so much more. Going forward, I don't know what the future will hold. I don't know where I'll be, but I know after writing 100 of these, that I finally feel comfortable sharing these more openly. I know I want to create more graphics, videos, and expand skills through those channels. I'm not afraid anymore of what others think. I'm having a blast doing this. I enjoy this for me, and I think that's okay.

"Hello Ember" has grown into a full blown fire for life, and I don't see that fading anytime soon.