Motel skirt, Primark polo neck, Topshop tights, leather brogues via eBay, Primark belt assorted rings
Rather fittingly for today’s Blog Issue, these photos are professional shots taken for an article in a trade magazine about that thing I like to call ‘my day job’.
Like most bloggers, I work 9-5.30 (and very often outside those hours too). I went to uni, studied hard to get my degree, did unpaid work, got my first proper job and was already on the second rung of that clichéd ladder by the time I started writing about clothes and thrifting and stuff. As my blog started to grow, my career took off too and I found myself forced to consider what comes first… the career or the blog?
I’m a pretty ambitious person and I have that desire to succeed in everything I do. I’m not about the half-hearted. I believe if you want something you have to make it happen, and making something happen means dedicating yourself to it. Giving it 100%. The whole hog. Everything you’ve got. So what happens if there are two passions vying for your attention? Can you be successful at both, even if you can only physically give 50% to each?
I often find myself making choices. I choose to give up my Sundays so I can write blog posts, catch up with my community and answer my emails. I choose to get up earlier than necessarily so I can troop outside at 7.30am, tripod under arm, to take my daily photos. I choose to dedicate lunchbreaks to research and content planning. But I also choose to not post some days. I choose to take a blog break when I’m working to a client deadline. I choose to sleep, rather than write, after a 12 hour day (of writing).
I hope that one day, blogging will be synonymous with my career. But until I get there, I’ll continue to stretch myself. I’ll keep making choices and hopefully, both will flourish. It’ll be hard work but that’s okay, because hard work always pays. Didn’t your mother ever tell you that?
Do you find yourself forced to choose between your blog and your job? Is it a hard choice to make? How do you split your time between the two?
I don’t find myself stretched between my blog and a career but I do find it far too easy to get lost in the internet rather than doing the absolute mountains of Uni work I have!
R x
I’ll get back to this point soon when I start my new job next week! At the moment, if I find a spare moment I start blog posts, save them and then schedule them for some time when I’m busy.
I certainly do. I do not have ANY spare time right now. I write posts in my lunch breaks, list vintage at night, and work in my day job the rest of the time. It is exhausting, but I love my blog.
Such a fitting post after the day I’ve had. I feel pulled in all sorts of different directions at times. I’m a mum of two, a full time MA student, a part time shop girl and a blogger! I’m incredibly driven to suceed at uni and juggling everything can be hard. I wish I had time to blog more, particularly as it’s an important form of relaxation for me. Blogging is just a hobby for me really, but it means alot to me so I try to squeeze it in whenever I can!
Love your blog by the way, I’m glad you’ve got the work/blog balance sussed.
xxx
People often ask me how I “manage” to blog as well as keep up my University grades, work and deadlines, balance internships and a part-time job while I’m home, but I’m just extremely ambitious and hardworking (: Blogging is something I do to unwind and relax, as much effort and research as I put into it, it is what I tend to look forward to each evening after Uni work! Really great post as ever Jen! xxxxx
First all you look great in these pictures that skirt is fab.
I get two days off a week and dedicate one of those days to my blog posts. I will be working a six day week over most of the Christmas period (working in retail at Christmas is crazy) but like Michelle I find my blog a way to chill and relax so it never feels like work xoxo
I work 8.30-5.15 (sometimes longer) in a job completely unrelated to blogging/social media, etc etc. I write posts at lunchtimes and in the evening and then usually spend a lot of saturday doing the same.
My job has to come first (unfortunately) so if I’m ever absent from my blog it’s because of the pesky bill paying part of my life!
At the moment no, my blog is still very much in its fledgling stage and I’m fortunate enough to be able to work flexi-time so I’m at work for 7:15 every day but home by 4:30.
The one thing I do find hard is getting my pictures taken. My husband is my photographer and he’s a newly qualified teacher so does work really hard and quite long hours so I am going to have to invest in a tripod and a camera to get those outfit shots.
However my job and my blog are very different creatures and I doubt that the two will ever become one and the same. My blog is my downtime and I love it.
PS Love your outfit. Gorgeous!
Yes yes and yes. At the moment, my job is suffering 1) because it is not something I love doing (unlike blogging) and 2) all the time I’m at work, I wish I was blogging. I want to change my job into something that is more akin to my blog, my this is a tough long process but I am determined to succeed.
One day, I tell myself, I won’t have to choose.
Great post Jen. Love your skirt in that photo! x
At the moment I’m not forced to make that choice as I don’t have a career, or even a job, but I know that when I do blogging will have to come second. I’m a perfectionist and when I do get the job I want, I’ll be wanting to give that the majority of my attention.
AND,
I absolutley love that leopard skirt on you!
Ahhh just what we were talking about at the weekend!
I love blogging, but i do find it VERY distracting!
You’re so good at keeping up with it all xo
At the moment I’m struggeling to keep up as I’m working 2 jobs, 6 days a week and I’ve just taken on 2 contibuting positions at magazines on top of this! I try to keep blogging as one of my main priorities as like most people I want my blog and work to become intertwined (aiming for a career in fashion writing!) so whenever I have a spare hour I catch up with blog reading and writing 🙂
Great post, good to know it’s not just me that struggles sometimes! And I LOVE your skirt btw 😀
Kat xx
Well I don’t want my blog to be a job – I don’t have any ambitions to be a famous blogger or to write for a living, so it’s enough for me that it’s a hobby.
It is a struggle though – not so much with the photography and writing a blog post as I can usually get that rattled off in an hour or so if technology permits. It’s more the commenting and keeping up with other blogs that takes so much time and yet it’s not something I want to let slip. But by the time you’ve worked late, got home, cooked dinner, gone swimming/met up with some friends/phoned the parents for a chat, there’s not an awful lot of time left before bed!
One thing I find really hard is not letting a rough day at work influence the tone of my blog post. If I find myself sounding too much like a moaning minnie I’ll just leave it for another day.
I find blogging a great distraction (in a good way) from my demanding/stressful job, I try and focus on the positive things in my life with my blog.
I am loving your Edie Sedgewick-esq look in picture one today! The hair does suit you.
x
interesting. we sound quite similar you know, though i’m still at uni(last yr) we have similar thoughts. i’m struggling to keep up with my posts right now as uni is proving to be very hard and so much work to do. it’s hard but blogging does come second, even third to relaxing at the mo. though to be fair, when i am relaxing i’m also on blogs so….it’s a way of life now
First of all: Love your new haircut, Jen and the skirt is fab. So are the pictures!
Although I am sometimes finding it hard to fit in work and blogging in my life (with all the rest that’s going on) I need the blog to create a balance between functioning/working/ earning money and being creative and playing around. I consciously try not to ‘achieve’ anything with my blog because I often wonder if we haven’t been brain-washed into an ‘achieving mentality’ and into the American attitude of ‘if-we-just-work-hard-enough-we’ll-get-it’. In my experience as soon as you have to make money with it the dynamic changes. xo
Sorry if this all sounds a bit convaluted. It’s really a philosophical issue and if I went into it I’ll probably start writing pages…
I work in a similar industry to you, Jen – I’m in marketing, and copywriting is quite a big part of my role (it’s not all of it, but I write all our e-shots, letters, direct mail, adverts… actually, that’s quite a lot when put like that!!). But that’s one of the main reasons why I blog – so that when I come home, I can still get my brain working and don’t have to write about caravans!
But my job is demanding, and when it’s come down to it, I’ve chosen my job over my blog, because I’ve had to. It is hard, but I do this because I love it. But there is something in the back of my head going ‘Well, if this takes off, maybe I could ultimately do the blogging thing – or the things I blog about, e.g. photography, drawing, etc – freelance.’ So I guess that’s the dream, eventually.
I like the balance though, although sometimes I feel like I NEVER stop. Even now I’m multitasking with blog-reading by listing jewellery on etsy!!
Another great post! I have recently started a new job and found it hard at first to balance out my blogging and writing with my job. I have now settled into my new routine and I have struck a better balance.
I make sure that I use my time well – I dedicate time to blogging & try to stay away from the rest of the net when I’m working on my blog (don’t even tweet whilst I’m blogging!)
I also try to keep ahead of myself with blogging, I make notes and list ideas and prepeare beforehand. I also try and schedule posts.
Wow, this couldn’t have come at a better time. My job is about to take up a lot more of my time, and I find myself worrying about how I will still manage to do both. But I will find a way, and even if I’m not able to blog as frequently as I do now, I will be sure to give it my all when I do have time. Thank you for your perspective on this challenging issue!
I can be blogging for hours and it feels like five minutes, sometimes i have to say no more… and just go and find something else to do. i dont really have the time to blog when i am at work though, thank goodness.
love that leopard skirt
Scrapbook de la Emma
I just work in the blogging wherever I can. It’s something I enjoy doing in my spare time to flex my pen shaped muscle and I do hope that writing will eventually take up more of my time. (I do bits and bobs for work at the mo’ too which is actually how I discovered I enjoyed it so much). Thankfully, my blog isn’t too focussed on top notch pics either so I don’t worry about that side so much. I like to think my images are, er, endearingly shabby!
Love that skirt, by, the by! x
This is very true. I worked hard to get my degree, did unpaid work and now have my job. I do love my blog, but am feeling a bit behind on the blog as I concentrate on my job (which I don’t really like :().
So I do need to sit down and have a think about priorities.
I think you’re doing a great job with balancing teh 2!
For me, mine is an escape, a diary and a “venting” outlet for my thoughts and frustrations (although most of THOSE types of post get saved forever as draft and not often posted)..It’s a hobby I choose to do in my spare time, and a while back I decided I couldn’t let myself feel guilty if i didn’t want to update at a particular time etc. I don’t see it as linked to my career, and wouldn’t want to let it get in the way of anything else..I guess it depends where you feel it fits on your list of priorities..
I really admire your work ethic, your blog is fantastic! you are an inspiration 🙂
This is such a good post, and something that I am struggling with at the moment. I am working fulltime (and more), also studying for a professional qualification which means exams every few months and revising weekends and evenings, I have some semblance of a social life, and I want to keep blogging too! Sometimes it all gets a bit too much.
I guess I always remind myself that I am blogging because I want to. If I stopped posting I’m sure a few lovely people in the bloggopshere would be a bit sad, but noone would die because I stopped. The only person putting pressure on me to blog is me, and that’s because I enjoy it, not for any other reason.
I don’t see it as my career path, just something I love to do, so as you say if I have to get up early to take photos, or spend an evening blogging when I’d rather be in the pub, it’s my choice.
I think blogging would be an amazing career to have, but it would be stressful too, the idea of working for myself really scares me as I would really find it stressful not being able to count on a regular paycheck. I am so admiring of those who do manage to make the leap to professional blogger though.
jen, its like i wrote this post! i do the exact same! im determind successful in work and my blog and i do find im stretching myself thin in doing both.. its hard having two passions that dont run side by side.. i get up early too to write posts and reply to comments and plan my evenings around what nights i have time to blog! glad you tackled this issue. xo
I ALWAYS have this issue now i’ve started Uni. Although most days I get my Uni work out of the day, there’s a social element I always feel I cant miss out on. I have to admit that blogging has definitely taken a back seat over the past month.
It was definitely hard to keep up with everything when I was a student. And now that I’m not working or studying, I’m realising that on the days that I put up a new post, it feels like blogging is a full-time job – with a slow internet connection it can take hours to upload pictures for a blog post and even more hours to reply to comments. I’m wondering how I’ll keep up with everything when I *do* get a full-time job!
♥ Leia
So true, so true Jen! At the moment I am in the limbo stage of working for free / waiting for proper job, which is actually a lot more effort than just being in a full time job as I am bouncing off three jobs. To be honest I don’t like having idle time so I am pretty happy with it. The blog just seems to slot in there! I enjoy it and all my jobs so nothing really feels like a chore which helps. I would love to have some more time and money to invest in the blog, I would love a fancy camera, editing software and a proper photographer. I would also love some more money for ‘props’ to use in styling but hey you can’t have everything. As my blog is a little bit of everything fashion related I dont have the pressure of daily outfit photos or writing intensly insightful posts, it is pretty much as and when, but there are some post ideas I have which require more research and writing time but have been put on hold. As a few others have said what I really miss out on is visiting and commenting on other blogs, I try my best but there often isnt as much time as I would like.
I too find it hard to fit things in and want to do well in everything. I’m often out of the house for 12 hours a day and spend all my working day writing (medical writing that is). I am a bit more chilled out with my blog though – if I don’t post I don’t post, and sometimes I’ll just write a brief note to show I’m still alive. I would love to have an uber cool blog with 100s of followers, but it’s really hard work and I have so many other hobbies that sometimes something’s got to give. I do still have fun blogging though and maybe one day I’ll have more time for it I hope.
Keep up the good work though, love your blog, your photos and your hair looks great! 🙂
Outstanding post. I love my blog, and it’s improved my writing skills (not that much exercised in a science degree) and is a lot of fun. But I would NEVER put it above my career – my degree means far too much for me for that! For me, it’s a pretty easy decision.
I couldnt help but aaaauw at this picture jen – your wee facial expression is too cute! You look lovely as always!! 🙂
Youre a real inspiration and an insanely dedicated blogger. Its very clear that you put a lot of time and effort into your posts and you totally one million percent deserve all the awesome feedback you get in return. I really genuinely love love love reading your blog, and when you speak about more serious issues like this I feel like giving you a big hug – you always manage to hit the nail right on the head! Its really reassuring to read that so many people feel the same. To be honest now that I’m working full time (well, lets say an optimistic self employed person, haha) I do find it hard to fit blogging into my routine, and spend as much time on it as id like or leave comments on every single post I read. I’d love to, but I just physically cant. I sometimes worry if I stop writing, readers will fade away and stop reading so sometimes I do panic. But I dont want that to take away from the fun of writing and reading in this amazing online community I so randomly stumbled across.
But anyways, I’m rambling now. Thank you for being you! 🙂 <3 xx
Great topic – I often find myself envying girls who write blogs and don’t have a ‘career’. They are at school/university/out of university but working part time and have all of the time in the world to blog. I work such long hours that by the time I get home, I’m ready for bed. It’s hard to be bothered a lot of the time, but I do enjoy it enough to keep doing it, I just become concerned that I don’t update as much as my readers might like me to. I think you do a wonderful job of managing a career and a blog – true dedication xx
I love my blog and work my ass off on it… but teamed with a full-time unpaid internship PLUS job hunting PLUS actually trying to have a bit of a life, sometimes my blog moves a little further down the pile. But, to be honest, this isn’t often. I’m giving it my everything lately!
I love that skirt on you. 🙂
▲ WOLF WHISTLE ▲
As a single mum of two very little ones, working full time and a blogger. I find it very hard to keep up with it all sometimes. Some nights I find myself up until 1.30-2am in the morning still finishing stuff off. Then up again at 5.30am o start the process all over again. But… I love my blog and until I can afford to do it full time, this is the way life is….. although too be fair I feel that excited about my blog I don’t mind the lack of sleep at all 🙂
I found this post really interesting as I spend my life juggling my job (which pays the rent) and illustration. I have stressed myself out to a ridiculous degree trying to do both, so now I just get on with my job and do one thing at a time outside work. I find if I push myself too hard all the joy goes out of it!
Really cool to find your blog, I was starting to feel I was the only one who wasn’t at uni anymore! 🙂 xx
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