“It might make people feel uncomfortable.”
“I’m covering a touchy topic.”
“My family and friends will tell me to get a job.”
“I don’t want them to know what I’m doing because they’ll have a problem with it.”
“I only want them to know about my blog after I am successful.”
I have connected with many bloggers online – and offline – who are ashamed of their blogs.
They secretly:
- fear criticism
- worry what family or friends or society in general would say about their blog and writing, if fam and friends knew about their blogging exploits
- fear failing because their fam and friends are dying to say: “I told ya so!”
- worry about angering friends or family members due to the subject matter being covered
- fear family and friends criticizing them for 1 of a million reasons
I learned a painful, agonizing lesson over years: if you hide your blog from your family and friends, success hides from you.
The only reason why you hide anything in life is because you fear revealing it. Otherwise…you wouldn’t hide it!
Blogging Happiness and Success
I became a happy, successful blogger by being me through my blog in front of the world, including my:
- family
- friends
- loved ones
I covered subject matter ranging from my travels, my struggles, my wins, my failures and I even delved into my mom’s terminal illness to share how I’ve embraced and grown through this experience.
If you fear sharing your blog with any human being you are ashamed of being you. If you cannot accept yourself, and your blog, and your viewpoint, why would family members and friends fully accept you?
They are a mirror, reflecting back to you how clear – or unclear – you are on your blog and yourself.
All About Them Nothing to Do with You
If someone reacts to your blog, or a specific post, with:
- anger
- shame
- embarrassment
- rage
- heavy judgment
- criticism
It is 100% about them and how they choose to see the world and says nothing about you.
BUT….if you fear sharing your blog with family and friends, it says 100% about you and your fears, and you need to dive into and feel those fears to be:
- happy
- comfortable in your own skin
- the most successful blogger you can be
Is this process comfortable?
Hell no!
I made decisions during my blogging career and life that triggered feelings in loved ones around me, but their reactions had nothing to do with the love, fun and service I rendered and the person I became by making those decisions. At that though, their triggered reactions triggered my fears, anger and shame, which led to some highly unpleasant feelings I had to embrace.
Guys; this is part of the blogging journey as you decide to blog from a free, authentic, genuine, heart felt space.
You cannot truly write from the heart and build a thriving, genuine, empowering blog if you carry the fear of criticism from family and friends, hiding away, masking the true you, worrying about topics based on their projections or reactions, not based on the empowering, inspiring, fun subjects that you choose to cover.
Be you. Blog you. Follow your dreams. If your family and close friends react in a certain way to your blog or a specific post, their reaction has everything to do with their fears and pain and suffering and *nothing* to do with the empowered, inspired, uplifting message that you have to share.
You need to believe in your blog and yourself no matter what others think, say or do in reaction to you being you.