{"id":29309,"date":"2016-11-17T09:43:08","date_gmt":"2016-11-17T14:43:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wordpress-181994-533056.cloudwaysapps.com\/?p=29309"},"modified":"2016-11-17T09:43:13","modified_gmt":"2016-11-17T14:43:13","slug":"blogging-career","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.styletomes.com\/blogging-tips\/blogging-career\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Social Anxiety Stunting Your Blogging Career?"},"content":{"rendered":"

As you may know, I did an AMA session with HEED<\/a> yesterday about how to treat and grow your blog like a business. Let me first start off by saying THANK YOU<\/strong> to all of you who could join, participate and involve yourself in advancing your careers. I had a blast answering all your brilliant questions, and it gave me a ton of insight into topics you guys like to explore!<\/p>\n

The Blogging Career Dilemma<\/h3>\n

In the midst of all the blogging career advice and questions, I had a participant in the AMA ask me the following.<\/p>\n

“I’m a shy person wanting to grow my blog. What advice do you have about me networking?”<\/p>\n

She identified an inherent characteristic in her that might be preventing her from reaching her blog’s full potential. And, rightly so, she doesn’t want this to be the thing that stops her from growing.<\/p>\n

My response?<\/h3>\n

“I can totally relate. I have severe social anxiety. So, when I first started, I tried to make one or two friends that I knew I ran into often at events. Before any networking events, I would always ask if anyone would be there from the blogger group. It created somewhat of a relief to go to an event as a result. The thing is, it’s really hard, but a lot of it is just practice. I still get extremely nervous going to events and places with networking opportunities. I learned just to be concise and have a quick pitch of what I do, be focused, and have a glass of wine.”<\/p>\n

We were on a time limit. Otherwise, I would’ve expanded the\u00a0answer. So, this is where having a blog is handy! If one person asks the question, it most likely means that more people have a similar concern.<\/p>\n

Social Life, Interrupted<\/h4>\n

Despite what it may seem like, I have a really hard time functioning in social situations. I freeze up and stumble through phrases. Random words pop into my head that might not fit the overall theme of the conversation. I try to keep things coherent, but I sometimes ramble. In short, I get a little lost on my journey in trying to relate to others.<\/p>\n

It gets tough to attend events and present yourself as a professional when all you want to do it drink an entire\u00a0bottle of wine\u00a0and hide under a table. That is\u00a0if you ever make it to the event. (I’ll take Netflix\u00a0and chill over a bustling soiree any day.)<\/p>\n

I don’t want to give you the standard spiel where I tell you how I’m an awkward kid and this and that, because I think a lot of us creatives are “awkward” at the end of the day. There’s a bit of solace and solidarity in that, but it’s still hard to know just how much someone else feels like an outsider. Are they really as nervous or as shy as you?<\/p>\n

A Case Study<\/h4>\n

There’s not of a way to measure it, but sometimes it helps to explore the topic more with people. Let’s take this AMA for example.<\/p>\n