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Refocusing on Priorities

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Do you ever find yourself straying after from your core goals and priorities and what really matters? Recently, I had been so caught up in the next decor, DIY, picture taking, social media mode that I found myself straying away from prioritizing my home values. Also, I found myself spinning around in circles day in and day out just trying to keep up with it all. As a blogger, I tend to have this mindset that I need to always have something ready for my readers. Maybe so. But when it comes to the point where blogging is almost taking priority, then something’s got to give.

Living Room

A few days ago, a glitch in my hosting system completely vanished my blog for two full days. At first, I was calm not knowing what to think. Then I became very frustrated and called in multiple times venting my frustration. I kept getting answers like my files are taking time to load so I’ll have to wait 24-48 hours for it to come back up. Every time I called in another “wait” ticket was submitted which extended the time even longer. Not that they were not mean – they were very friendly. But I was beginning to think that they did not know how to fix my site. The one good thing they told me is that all my files were still in the system. I have never had such a problem with them before and I think it was an honest glitch but that was no fun at all.

Anyway, finally after two days to no avail with my site, my husband came home and asked if I had called the hosting back. Apparently, he had been trying to pull up my site while he was at work to see if it was working. He wanted my permission to get on them if they would talk to him. I guess they must have secretly known because when I called again, someone finally decided “enough was enough” and they could not keep adding “wait time” to fix my issue. I explained to the rep how I have been getting the run-around and he said that this should not have taken this long to fix. Can I just add that it took him about 5 minutes or less and my site was back up as if nothing happened? What was all that “wait” time about previously? Sigh.

But you know, in the midst of it all, I was forced to slow down from the crazy and just enjoy the down-time for a minute. I even decided to refrain from a couple social media sites for a day (I know, such a long time right) just to breathe in some fresh air. I was forced to stop and consider what is it I am really after. Who am I trying to reach? What is my purpose behind this blog? Don’t get me wrong. I love my little site and all but I am just saying that sometimes I need to just step back and prioritize. Consider what is it I really want for our home and for this blog. As a stay-at-home mom to littles, it is not easy to keep up. But for me, blogging is kind of my little “self” hobby – more like an outlet for this introvert.

Blueberry Bread

And while I love blogging and connecting with others on social media, it can become very overwhelming without the proper balance. In efforts to cut back, refocus, and prioritize I have been making a few changes. One of them which I started a few weeks ago is cutting back on how many posts I do weekly. I used to stress over not having three or four posts weekly. But now, I aim to get at least one good post out (working on this) and if I do two, all the better. I don’t know how other moms with littles and home, and all that come with it run a full-time blog and keep up with everything else. But I sure cannot keep up with the Joneses.

Another way I am cutting back is by narrowing down a bit. What to narrow down to is a challenge in itself because I love all things about home. But I have lessened down on posting about kids crafts activities. The printables, in particular, take weeks to create. I have plenty activities on the blog that we’ve done for quite a while and I am not deleting them. Many of them have received a ton of pins. I may throw in a post or two if I find something new and relevant. In addition, I am not posting as much recipes as I used to. I am not getting rid of them, just not doing as many. And I am working on doing less on many other areas of the blog. Because I am finding that doing less is actually more for me. Other than having more time to concentrate on home (which is priority), I am also finding that I have room to do other blog related work that I have neglected in the past (such as site design, email subscriber related items, Media Kit, etc). I even take the time to promote my posts and your posts more than I have been doing and check and reply to blog related emails. Ha!

Truthfully, I am really enjoying the less stress posting. I was recently thinking about how I kind of miss writing simple posts like these that do not take days upon days to come together. No amount of special photos and polishing up things to make it all look nice and fancy. Just a plain old little post from the heart with photos I snap when my home is clean – not really meant for the blog:) Unfortunately, these areas of our home do not have good lighting either.

Ps. If you are wondering when I have a moment to type, it is usually at night when all are asleep or during naps. Other than that, I don’t even open my computer during the day when the kids are awake. I may respond to a question via my phone but I am never letting them play while I type. I used to think I could do it but quickly realized that it not the best way for us. I let them have priority.

Before I wrote this post tonight, I was really in a slump and was not sure if I wanted to post anything. I was about to edit photos for a DIY home post but realized I had not downloaded them and really did not feel like going through the process. I figured I would browse around others sites and while reading this post about simple joys, I decided I would write something encouraging like old time. It was really helpful to not stress over it and having less to do.

One of the encouraging verses I have been learning to practice for a while now is Proverbs 16:3.

“Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established”.

When I find myself having too much on my plate or not knowing how I’d get through the tasks, I always stop to read it. In fact, I have it written in our little eating area in the kitchen. It is such a good reminder when I sit down with a to-do list or when I am looking at a chaotic mess around me to just give everything to God. Every time I do this, it is like instant clarification. Because when we give our works to God, He takes delight in directing us (Proverbs 3:5-6). Everything will fall into place and our to-do lists will be prioritized, too.

verse

If you are a blogger, do you find yourself having to refocus every now and again on what really matters? Do you find that blogging and all that come with it can tend to take over if you don’t prioritize? I would love to know your thoughts in the comments.

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26 thoughts on “Refocusing on Priorities

  1. As a blogger myself I know that it is so much more behind the scenes than just writing a blog post. Being a stay at home mum, I really find that some days I have sooo many ideas but all these take a long time to create, edit, upload, do the social media as well as learn about blogging and of course catch up with other blogs. Spending time with family and working is not easy when you have young kids.

  2. Zan, great share. Funny how the higher power puts things in place to slow us down however they present themselves lol. Glad your up and running have great weekend and been loving the house makeover :)xo

  3. First, how frustrating for you to have your site be down for so long!! I get annoyed when mine is merely slow! Secondly, yes, yes, and yes! Blogging looks so seamless and easy from the outside to the reader, but once you are a blogger yourself, you quickly realize the amount of time and dedication it takes (sometimes I even forget to eat I’m so wrapped up in getting a post done or some other task)! I am constantly trying to think of ‘systems’ or ‘formulas’ I can develop to help cut back on the amount of time certain tasks take (I’ll let you know if I come up with anything useful)! I’ve also read a lot about “batching” your time (dividing tasks into chunks of time that you only work on that task) to help make things more manageable as well…that however has been a work in progress for me as well. For a little encouragement – I think you’re doing great, keep up the great work!

    1. Thank you Cristy for your encouraging reply. I have yet to find a good consistent system. That batch idea sounds like a good one – I tend to want to do all or nothing all at once!!!

  4. Oh Zan, I so understand your hardship. We Alger so passionate about one thing that all our focus goes to it. Sometimes I just need to walk away from postings, reading other web sites and such just to focus on my personal life
    I think it comes in waves. Just hang in on ride it out. The only pressure is from ourselves xxoo

  5. I can completely relate to this. I’ve been focusing on some less-exciting needs in our home (like touching up trim, spring cleaning, etc.), which isn’t really blog-worthy. But those things have to be done whether or not they make great blog content.

  6. I don’t know if non-bloggers have any idea how hard we work. I had to take a long, hard look at my own blogging business a while back and realized that working 14 hour days and having 5-6 sponsored posts a week was not what I really wanted when I started my “hobby” blog. It was beginning to take over my entire life. I hired a VA Team to handle most of my social media and I pulled way back from working those long, long days. I’m more in the middle-of-the-road phase now and it feels great.

    I have no idea how moms with young kids at home gets it done. My hat is off to you!

    1. Cutting back always feels so good. Having to do 5-6 sponsored weekly posts is really touch. There were times when I did just 1 and I was totally overwhelmed. So glad you have help and have hired VA for all the social media stuff.

  7. I absolutely know exactly what you are saying. Stacy and I made a commitment recently to spend less time on devices in the evenings and more time connecting with one another. It didn’t last long, LoL. My blog takes up an amazing amount of time, often easily 12 hour days. It’s like owning a business with no employees and everything depends on you. I was sick this week with an abscessed tooth and must confess I enjoyed taking time off from social media and post promotion.
    I have no idea how bloggers with children at home get stuff done!

    1. Oooh an oabscessed tooth – not good! But I am sure it felt great taking a break from the social media to get some down time! And I hear you about the commitment not lasting long..LOL! It could be so difficult to hold off. Blogging takes a lot but balance is key!

  8. Family must come first. That is the bottom line. Blogging does take a lot of time, and believe it or not, energy. Sounds like you are learning your limits and making a plan to stick to them. Good luck! 🙂

    ~Lorelai
    Life With Lorelai

  9. I completely agree!! Even only blogging for a few months it can be overwhelming when the chores and daily grind starts to pile up. It’s hardest for me when I’m working on a blog project and the kids want me to play. They’re still too young to understand “give mama 5 minutes”. It frustrating for them, and me! Love this post!

    1. I have tried blogging when the kids are not asleep and have always failed. It just does not work for me, too. It is always helpful for me to remember that they come first and if I miss a post or two then that is alright.

  10. Zan, priorities are important. As a blogger. it’s super easy to get lost and wanting to learn everything, the newest platform, try the newest DIY trend and it can be overwhelming. You do the right thing when you prioritize your children over the blog thing. I’ve been there, trust me. I also leave everything to late night but lately, it’s almost becoming a problem as I also fall in bed early 🙂 I might just need a good night sleep here and there:) Keep up great work and prioritize! Take Care! A:-)

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