Creating A Vision/Happiness Board

I've been meaning to make this post for months and months now, I just have struggled to find the time to get on with it!

I love creating and even though I'm not naturally artistic (I struggle with a stick man) ever since I was a child I have always loved making collages, cutting bits out of magazines and I used to sit there make new things to put up in my bedroom weekly - I just loved it. (Oh... remember those days before the internet!)

I had been thinking about making one of these for my flat for months now - whether it be a vision board or a happiness board I wanted to have something that I could put together myself, that I could change every month or so to make me smile, keep 

You can do this with anything! If you have a goal you want to reach, saving for a holiday, counting down to your wedding, need a bit of motivation for work or maybe just want to fill the board with happy memories that make you smile - everyone needs one of these!

 As you can see I filled mine with all sorts of things - fun photos of holidays, friends and family (how cute is the one of me and my little Brother when he has chicken pox haha!), quotes from magazines that I love (especially that Cameron Diaz one!) - tickets from fun events, a card of my favorite movie The Wizard Of Oz and lots of little hints at ORLANDO to remind me that it won't be long until I'm back there #MotivationToSave!

What do you think? Is this something you would make yourself? Let me know!

(I bought my board from Amazon - it was only around £10 and looks a million times nicer than your usual cork board!)

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5 Things To Remember When You're Having A Bad Blogging Week

As you may have noticed.... A Yellow Brick Blog has been very quiet recently.

Something that I hate but right now with work and general life plans I'm running out of spare time and brain power to create and write.
This makes me so super sad and I hate looking at my bloglovin' seeing that my last post was 7 days ago - shame on me, I'm just not used to being this slack with it all!

I know I'm not the only one who struggles with not only time but ideas and thoughts for posts! I'll have days where I'm bursting at the seams with fun post ideas but at the same time I have weeks where I just cannot muster up the words or energy to throw myself onto my keyboard and type away.

My '5 Things' posts always seem to have a great reaction and I love writing tips/advice/chatty posts - in fact I prefer doing them to your bog standard beauty review (which have been very thin on the ground here for a while now... I'm sorry!)

So, let's talk blogger's block and what to remember when it hits!

1. We All Have Them
Yes, it's true! From the blogging beginners to the full-time blogging babes - we ALL have those phases now and again where we just.... can't!
 Can't think of anything to write, can't get our photos just right, can't seem to persevere with that ever-growing to-do list.
I'm been suffering alot recently - I think working online full-time may have something to do with it - and I've had an overwhelming sense of panic that I have no content scheduled, written or even planned! The less I do the less I feel I can do ... time to shake it off!

2. It Doesn't Mean You're A Rubbish Blogger
It took me a long time to realise this.
There's been many a time I've thought to myself - how can I call myself a blogger when I'm sat here with an empty brain and 5 posts going up a month, I'm pants! 
But the reality is.... I'm not a rubbish blogger it's just a short mini break while I adjust my thoughts and get back on the blogging wagon - I mean look how many posts I've uploaded in the past - I'm not pants, I'm pretty darn cool.

3. Look Back At How Far You've Already Come
Exactly! Just because you're having a bad week doesn't mean you're heading back to square one.... in fact, I bet at least 75% of your readers and followers won't even notice you haven't uploaded, unless you tell them! 

4. There Is Always Someone To Talk To!
Well....  there's never a shortage of blogging buddies - especially on Twitter. The amount of times I've expressed my stresses and blogging woes and feelings on there and had support thrown my ways within minutes - everyone's felt it and will assure you it will pass and you'll be back to you're usual awesome self in no time!

5. It Will Pass
It will. You'll be back typing away until your fingers ache before you know it and you'll wonder just where that motivation and those ideas were hiding! 
Don't stress, even if it's a month or even two, just give yourself time and don't force yourself into writing content - it will never be as good as the stuff that comes naturally!

Keep with it and don't you worry!

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We need to talk...

Hello lovely readers. I hope you are well :)

We need to have a chat - and don't worry it's not a bad chat.... well I don't think it is anyway - it's just a bit of an update/news/heart-to-heart ramble. (yup, one of those posts.)

I've been wanting to write this for a while now but it's been a struggle finding time to sit down, relax and let the words flow from my brain to my fingers, but here I am. #Hello

Yes. I'm talking about my blog and my current feels about my blogging life.

I started uploading to this blog regularly in 2013, nearly 3 years ago now and I could never imagine that I would have actually stuck to the huge commitment that it is PLUS gained everything I have done.
I've worked with amazing companies, been able to make the BEST 'internet' friends ever and even managed to get myself a dream job from my experience and self-taught know-how (cool right?). 
But lately my blogging routine has changed and it's bought a few things (and feelings) to light for me.

I LOVE writing and creating and since the year has begun I've found that talking about and reviewing PR samples, writing about my favourite cosmetic bits each month and general product jargin has been more of a chore I've needed to get done than a fun time for me to express myself through my favourite hobby.

I feel like my content is my same old beauty reviews/favourites which seem to get lost out there in the sea of other similar posts that are uploaded 24/7.
I've always wanted A Yellow Brick Blog to have that little something different and I feel like I've lost it and that's why I want to be honest with you all.
So..... going forth with A Yellow Brick Blog (Yes I'm not quitting!) I'm going to be creating alot more stand alone lifestyle, health/fitness, advice/tips, style and obviously beauty posts for you guys. (Yes beauty will still be a part of everything as it's obviously still a passion of mine - don't worry it's not going anywhere!) (Oo.... and maybe a bit of Disney too... obvs.)

I just want to create things I'm proud of and not feel pressured to get certain things written and uploaded within a particular time frame. Right now having a box full of products in my spare room to try out and review just isn't for me.
 I want to write original stuff from the heart and my head! (Plus I really want to start writing that book I spoke about last year! #oneday)
Obviously I still have a beauty reviews and PR bits and bobs for you guys, and it's definitely not something that will be stopped all together - beauty is what I started with after all - they just aren't going to be as regular as they have been in the past.

I hope this hasn't disheartened any of you, I really do.
 Most of the time though the amount of 'saves' on Bloglovin' and page views I receive more or less triple when I put up a totally original post like : 'The Stresses Of Being A Blogger' , '5 Things I Cannot Live With In My Cupboards', 'Putting Down My Phone',  '15 Things To Remind Yourself In 2016', '2016 Goals, Aims & Plans', and 'Life Thoughts'.  

So, that's that! I would LOVE for you all to leave in the comments your honest thoughts and any requests for posts that you would love too see :)

Thanks for listening to my rambling ♥ I love you guys, thank you always for your lovely support!

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The Stresses Of Being A Blogger

Yes - you've read that title correctly.
 Blogging has it's stresses, and recently I have been feeling them weighing down on me a little more than I probably should.
I mean blogging is a hobby, something I love and do for fun and enjoyment - it shouldn't have me breaking out in a cold sweat or give me an uncontrollable feeling of weight on my shoulders should it?

Since starting my new job at the beginning of the year I have been leaving my 'blogging stuff' until the weekends (as I leave my laptop at work Mon-Fri for convenience) - but with plans and general life getting in the way I've been struggling to get on with everything that I want too, queue - the stress of blogging.

I think, sometimes, people don't quite understand how time consuming blogging actually is - I take my hat off to anyone who has a blog with regular content (even myself!), so much goes into it all but just looking at a pretty picture and a few words, maybe sometimes that doesn't come across.
I'm sure if you're a blogger reading this you will agree with me and ALL of the below!

The Inbox
I will hold my hands up - I can be a total pain when it comes to e-mails. Replying, remembering,  I hang my head in shame sometimes with my lack of internet skills.
 I may spot one in my inbox one afternoon and then totally forget that it's there for 3 days... I'm sorry okay!
I do try my best to reply to as many as possible/necessary but it comes to a point where sometimes there is just no need for me to reply. 
An infographic about superheros, reviewing men's beard oil or someone claiming they can better my google search ranking - sorry you guys go straight to trash and... I don't feel rude doing it.
Working within the PR industry now I do realise how helpful it is to reply quickly and efficently to the brands that you ARE in contact with though - so I've been trying my best to keep in regular contact, let people know when things arrive and send them over any links to my posts/mentions I may have done - but again, this all takes time and sometimes I have more flagged e-mails to remind myself to do things than not! #helpmyinboxistakingovermylife (I cannot imagine how 'big' bloggers and influencers feel - they must have SO.many.emails)

The Post - The Pile - The Photos
This is the part of blogging that I sometimes find the most stressful. Yes... we all love getting post - I get most of my things sent to my parents house as it's a little easier for me but when I head there and there's 6-10 different parcels/boxes/packets waiting for me my brain kind of goes into overdrive and I start to panic.

When will I have enough time to sort all these? What order do I do them in? Why have I committed to so much work?
This probably all sounds absolutely ridiculous if you don't blog (or even maybe if you do aswell) but that pile of products/items growing in my spare bedroom to organise, trial and photograph is enough to put my heart into overdrive!
Yes, my photos are okay - not fantastic, I'm well aware of that, but I mean I've come a long way over the last 3 years from my poxy little camera taking photos in my garden.
It takes a fair bit of time to get everything set up, plus I can be a bit of a perfectionist so I have to take about 20 different photos of the same exact setup and angle just to make sure I'm happy!
Now I write all this I am thinking to myself.... what's there to be stressed about really Kirstie? - but I always just want to do the best I can and create things that others are going to enjoy and want to read... which takes me on too.....

.....Personal Pressure
I've gone from starting out blogging not really knowing what to upload and when, to blogging every single day, to now - writing as and when I can. I think the pressure I put on myself is probably the biggest stress of all.
 I'm always striving to make my blog bigger and better and will only ever upload something if I am totally happy with the outcome and how it looks, which can take a long while I tell ya!
Time is really my number one enemy - a few hours on a Sunday afternoon isn't really ideal to create a whole week's worth of posts and I think this is what makes me so stressed. There's always so much buzzing around in my mind that I never know where to start and it all kind of goes wrong from there.
I try to upload at least 3 posts a week - and even then I don't think that seems enough, I have so many ideas in my mind I wish I could just blurt them all out!

The Comparisons
I struggle with this one and I'm sure I'm not the only one.
 It's not jealousy and it's not that I don't want others to have great content and blogs I just always feel like mine is a little bit pants when reading and enjoying other people's. I get in the 'what's the point', 'will I ever improve' head space and I beat myself up far too often.
The way I write, the quality of my photos, my content ideas - I need to remember how far I've come and maybe force myself to look back through some 2013 cringe to realise that 'hey, I'm doing alright! Chill.'

FOMO
The Fear Of Missing Out.
Blogging friendship groups, the meet-ups you miss, events you can't afford to get too! This may just be me but I always stress that I'm missing out on so much by being over here on the Isle Of Wight. 
All the fabulous things I haven't gone too or have missed out on for one reason or another just stresses me out! Do you think you need to be physically present at things to make an impact in the blogging world? (Let me know below!)

All-in-all blogging is a bloody amazing thing - the best hobby I could have ever started and I LOVE it,  but it does come with some downfalls - all worth it obviously!
I say onwards, upwards and calm from here on out!
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