No- not the awesome Childish Gambino album of 2013. You may have noticed that there's been some radio silence over here for the last two weeks! Don't worry, I haven't fallen out of love with blogging or spewing a million of my thoughts online, quite the opposite.
I decided it was time for a little break from my corner of the internet. Just for a week or so, no scheduling, no excessive time spent online and no worrying. We all need a little digital detox sometimes, right? Sometimes it just takes a few extra deadlines to pull your eyes away from the internet for a while and almost always, this is a good thing.
In my two weeks away from the blog I:
Binged a buttload of episodes of Flaked, made a good start on an art project for a client, spent time with family (just yesterday we headed into the Lake District, one of my favourite places on Earth and had a day out), learned how to make some really nice soups, carved a pumpkin, changed my hair colour (finally!), got over half way through my book, and learned that it's okay to withdraw from certain aspects of your life for a while. ESPECIALLY, if it's going to make you come back with a fiery passion that you totally took for granted before.
|
| PURPLEEEEE! |
|
| Boats at Fell Foot |
I used to feel anxious if a post wasn't going up, apologetic if my Sunday Post wasn't ready on time but now I realise that nobody is going to mind if you take a break! As much as I absolutely love curating this little part of the internet and making new friends, it's okay to have a breather.
"Stop worrying about how many people follow you online and start worrying about the quality of people who follow you. Don't waste your time reading articles about how to get more followers. Don't waste time following people online because you think it'll get you somewhere. Don't talk to people you don't want to talk to and don't talk about stuff you don't want to talk about."
Do what you love and love what you do. Whether that's writing everyday, keeping up with your fave people online, spending time in nature or throwing your phone into a bin for the week. As long as it makes you happy, do it.
People will always forgive you for taking time out (often a lot easier than you forgive yourself), some may not even notice! You only have to put up with the imaginary pressure you put on yourself until you decide not to. It was realising this that made me put down my phone for a while and prioritise other stuff.
I have a bunch of wonderful, amazing friends and opportunities that wouldn't have come to me if it wasn't for blogging but after this little digital detox, I won't be putting as much pressure on myself to be perfect. All because, the internet.
Do you feel pressure to do things sometimes that nobody has even asked you to do? When is the last time you took a break?
No comments: