How to overcome comparison

For the past few months, I have been going through a deep meditation of comparison. In the blogging world, we see ourselves comparing on the regular to the point that it takes the fun out of blogging and sharing our everyday worlds. I am the ultimate queen of comparing my content and my blog to others.

 It was an ultimate goal of mine with the new year to grow my little 2,000 followers into so much more. I visited plans to be as organic and engaging as I could be when it came to growing that organic content and those followers. I set out a plan to be as engaging and as growing as one could be. Soon i started to see the Instagram hot wheels going and vast amount of growth. In that moment it started to get easier and I started to get much more confident in my work.

Or so I thought....

I started to see a constant gain but also a huge amount of slowness. Once I used to be cooking when it came to Instagram now I saw less and less. I instantly started to feel down about the whole thing and with the feeling of competition from a local blogger in the area. I felt I had to be better than that, and continuing to strive to be better than the norm. Soon I saw myself constantly comparing and thinking to myself why I was not better than this girl. 

Maybe this is what girls do we compare and compare until our faces go purple and we cry. But for real I was to the point of no return. I wanted to quit my blog altogether and just give up on what I started. The truth is overcoming competition isn't easy and isn't something that you can do overnight. But realizing your potential and what you are capable of is something that is awesome and is something that we need to do more of! 

Wishing you all a wonderful Wednesday!

Why I cut my hair off

Happy Thursday friends!

Where have I been??? Busy as crap!

If you didn't know or didn't notice yet on Instagram and or social media, I chopped all my hair off. No joke I legit chopped it off. Honestly, there are so many reasons as to why I chopped it off. Today I wanted to open up and share why I took the plunge to short. 

It was impulsive

For the first time ever, I never second-guessed cutting off my hair. That's rare because usually, I back out of doing a dramatic life change 99% of the time. This time I just walked in showed a picture and my hairdresser fell in love with the style and ten minutes later it was allll gone. Never have I ever impulsed a decision and just did it. Honestly, I think people in life need to remember that it is in fact just hair and it will grow and come back.  

It symbolizes something

The past few months I have been busy, that's an understatement. I am in college I work full time and I write this blog right here. With that being said Coffee And A Blonde keeps growing, expanding and taking off. Not only that but I am trying to be as involved as I can in my community with fashion and culture. My weeks consist of meetings and more meetings. Besides that boring story, you don't care about. I also have made a huge life change in the past 6 months personally. I have recently emerged out of my shell, found self-worth and even had self-growth. So when I was looking at my old frocks in the mirror it symbolized the old, not the new. I have had so much growth in the past few months and I felt as though that needed to changed as soon as possible.

Finally, it symbolizes change 

To me, this new hair symbolizes cutting off the dead weight. The drama, the hard feelings, the emotions and also to show people that I am comfortable with who I am as a person and who I want to be. To those people who might judge me it is a huge personal screw you, this hair today symbolizes my growth my new chapter and more importantly me. Change can be good and change can come at times when we desperately need it. For myself, I feel as though something simple like cutting your hair or changing the color or anything along that nature. Can symbolize something so much more than one may think.

Shop some of my very favorite hair products right now! 

A special thank you to our moms!

Mothers Day is this weekend, and that means its time to pamper and treat our mammas for everything  they do for us! Recently, I have been wanting to do a three generation photo. Im blessed enough to have both grandmothers on both my mom and my dad side that are still alive and healthy. I felt that since Mothers Day was right around the corner that this could be the best possible time to capture this moment.

Today I am taking a moment to thank all the mamas out there for all they do for us. But also lets not forget the grandma's out there! These ladies have taught us how to dress, act and have inspired us to chase our dreams. Moms are our best friends and thats why we should cherish them not only on one day but instead everyday!  I hope that you all have a wonderful Mother's Day spent with the most important woman in your life! 

Blogging and personal Q&A

Hey, everyone!!! 

A few weeks ago I posted on my Instagram stories and my photos that I wanted to hear from you! I wanted to know what you were thinking and some questions you all were dying to ask! I also was waiting to put this post together for when I had no other blog posts. I have been finishing up finals and I have had zero time to shoot posts and edit photos. So here it is, a collection of blogging and personal questions curated by yall! Honestly, these questions blew me away! You all had such wonderful and thoughtful questions, but also super funny ones! 

1. What are you studying in college, And where are you attending college at??

Currently, I am studying Business administration on Marketing I am minoring in Communication and I have a specialization in Human Resources. I wanted to get a really good degree that had everything in it. I felt that in today's economy it would be very beneficial. As for where I go to school, I attend Seton Hill University, some people compare it to Hogwarts! 

2. Who takes all of your photos?? 

I have been working with a photographer and we have been really getting along and working pretty well together which is something that is so amazing to me. When I started blogging I always had my mom shoot for me. Eventually, we got a better camera and she would just snap some photos and we would be done. With the evolving content I want to bring you guys I knew I needed a more advanced photographer. (SORRY MOM) The person I have been working with pushes me and we really are able to bring ideas alive! Which is super dope! 

3. What does your blog schedule look like?? 

With the changing schedule of being done with class, I have much more availability and consistency. All that being said I would love to get back to three blog posts a week with some room for more fun and honest posts like this one! 

As for shooting days, we have been aiming to shoot on Monday afternoons. We have been finding that being the best and most effective time to get photos in! 

4. What is your favorite show! 

I have always been a fan of Scandal and How to get away with murder! Those have always been my very favorite scripted series! They are so suspenseful and so addicting, period end of story.  I am however a huge reality tv person! All of the real housewives are my favorite, along with southern charm. Basically anything on Bravo I'm sold. 

5. Biggest tip when starting a blog? 

Probably stay consistent, its so like obvious but it is so so so so important. Literally, if you stay consistent and try you will see the success. Anyone can be a blogger but if you really attempt and work for it, you can successfully stand out from the pack. I started my blog when I was 17 and now at 20. I have literally created a brand and opportunities from this blog. That is something that is so amazing to me! 

6. Do you shop a lot? 

Yes and no! I am able to work at a place that I can affordable buy things for my blog. I learn however to repurpose and bring clothes back around. 

7. Favorite snack and or food?  

I love bar food anything un- healthy. I love nachos and fried food. I am slightly a fan of fried pickles from the local Sheetz. I love comfort food that happens to be really bad for you.

8. Does a lot of people know you have a blog? And how do you handle the conversation? 

Yes and no, it isn't a conversation started but it is something that is brought up. Many of my friends think it is super cool so they usually tell people so then those people just ask me a million questions, which is something that doesn't bother me. Also, a lot of people find me on social media and the usually figure it out on their own. My boss knows I have a blog and he thinks its super cool. Which is so wonderful if you ask me. My advisor knows that I have a blog, mostly she thinks of it as a resume builder. 

I handle it pretty well I think. Sometimes it can be pretty uncomfortable which is no fun. But it is always nice when someone else explains what I do. It usually makes things so much more comfortable! 

I hope that you all enjoyed this Q&A! I would love to do another one soon! So please always feel free to send me some of your questions! I always love to hear from you all! 

Growing...

Happy Monday friends! 

I am so excited to be back after a week-long hiatus on my blog and all my social media! I was in Charleston with my best friend and her family for a week and I finally returned last night! PHEW!

 I am so excited to finally be home and to be talking about this amazing course I participated in back in June with Julianna of Blush and Camo. Growing our Instagrams can be a huge and hard challenge! It takes tons of time and configuring and yet we are still left with the heartaches of losing followers or not getting that endorsement. After college was done for the summer I took some time to step back and reflect over my brand and my social media platforms. 

Soon I found out about Julianna's"How to grow your Instagram" course and I was basically sold. I knew this was the push I needed to make something out of Coffee And A Blonde's Instagram. And boy was I right! Since taking the course I learned that I needed to reach out and comment and like and be way more active on social media. And that has paid off for me big time, I have made so many more wonderful blogging friends on social media just from reaching out and adding myself to the conversation! Which is fantastic and totally #girlboss like! I have to send a huge thank you from the bottom of my heart to Julianna for helping me to become a total #girlboss. And also for encouraging me to love what I am doing and to help to continue to create content that will hopefully encourage you also!

Two Year Blog Anniversey

Two years ago I embarked on a journey to start a blog that would capture my love for fashion and style. I never realized, I guess all the wonderful and amazing people I would meet from blogging! Working with some amazing brands and companies is only the beginning. Never did I ever think Coffee And A Blonde would receive so much love and or I would be able to impact so many people! The greatest feeling in the world is helping someone to feel confident enough to wear something and or be that voice of encouragement. It is literally crazy to me that I am only 19 and I have been able to impact people in some way! 

I have so many people to thank for one my mom who always is the best photographer a girl could ask for. I started this blog with just an iPhone and now we are taking all photos on a professional camera. She also could never take a photo in her life so I am pretty proud we have been able to learn and improve with photo abilities. When people ask who take my photos I say, my mom! They are usually shocked which cracks me up! She's with me in the cold and blistering hot. Without her, I would not be able to create amazing content for Coffee And A Blonde. So without her pretty much none of this would be possible! 

Throughout blogging, I have been able to learn so many life lessons that I will carry throughout the rest of my life! Working hard and not giving up is something you need to have if you want to pursue a job in blogging! Blogging doesn't come easy, but the outcomes are the best feelings ever! Stay humble and stay positive because at the end of the day great things will happen for you! 

 I want to personally thank you for the continuous love and support with my blog! I would not be where I am without you all!