Today is the day you get an answer. That unspoken question…. What happens with Life after blogging? My wonderful, dear, sweet, and amazing friend Jess is taking over today while we hit the road for Branson. So grab a cup of coffee, sit back, and enjoy her beautiful words on life.
Life after blogging (or: a blog post about not blogging)
Why hello there, Cotter friends! It’s me, Jess, former EatDrinkBreatheSweat blogger. Wow, even just typing up the name of my blog tugs at my heart a little bit. You see, I bid a fond farewell to my blog at the end of May and up until very recently, I didn’t think I missed it. And well, I still don’t miss it per se, but I’ll tell you what I do miss.
…I miss writing.
So when Lindsay asked me, over a glass of wine and a slice or two of pizza at the Sutera Manor a few weeks back (has it been that long? Please come back!) if I’d write a guest post for her on ‘life after blogging,’ I was all over it.
What’s interesting to me is that the more I thought about my reasons for blogging to begin with, the more I realized something – at its most basic level, writing is therapeutic for me. So yes, while I loved blogging because of all the great friendships I’ve made along the way, and all of the things I’ve learned from those great friendships, I don’t miss that aspect of blogging. Because those friendships have blossomed into so much more than a quick drive-by blog comment or tweet – they’ve bloomed into forever friendships, kindred connections and lifelong friends. I am forever grateful to blogging for that.
But I don’t need to blog in order to maintain those friendships. There’s that thing called a phone, an email, an airplane. (or snapchat, my latest obsession thanks to Lindsay!).
For me, life after blogging has meant:
- Presence: true presence. Less innate need to be always on, always checking email or Facebook or twitter or Feedly.
- More time. My life is admittedly very full. A good full. A happy full. I fill my days with teaching at barre n9ne, working a full-time marketing/PR job and fitting in as much time with my husband, sisters and friends as I can. I find that without that electronic devil on my shoulder, I have slightly more of time for ‘real life’ activities.
- Snapshots and snippets. Instead of sharing SO MUCH of my life through my blog like I did before, I now happily share snippets instead. Usually through instagram – there is just something so powerful about a picture and a short caption (with many hashtags of course, being the total #hashtaglovah that I am) to me. It’s been kind of nice not sharing so much of my life in a public way.
BUT. The writing as therapy thing? I do miss those moments – where I have an idea or a thought or a moment of inspiration and the only way for me to get to the root of it, to fully understand it, is to write it out. I gain such clarity through words on a page sometimes. And I miss that.
So where am I going with this? I guess you could say you may see more of me up in Cotter Crunch land (if Lindsay will have me, on occasion!). Or you might just see many more instagram posts from me with longer-than-usual captions and hashtags. 😉
In the meantime, I thought I’d leave you with my advice for living a full life, blogger or not:
Please DO make time to unplug. Without guilt.
Please DON’T forget to tell your friends and Family how much you appreciate and adore them.
Please DO find that one thing that makes your heart swell. (Side note: For me, that’s been teaching at barre n9ne, helping women become their best, strongest, fittest and happiest selves has been the most rewarding experience of my life.)
Please DON’T apologize for your relationship. Whether that’s a relationship with your husband, our wife, your boyfriend, your girlfriend, your partner. Putting them first is a sign of commitment and devotion. No apologies. #truth
And lastly, Please DO have a healthy relationship with food. Food can be joy, it can be fuel, it can be both. Find that balance.
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Thanks Jess! You continue to inspire us to LIVE more EACH day!
Life after blogging/writing… what do you think? Will you miss it?
Life, friends, and Family first—> #slowdownchallenge
Cheers,
LC
p.s.
Slowdown Challenge Encouragement for today. THESE WORDS!
Hi, I’m Lindsay! Gluten Free Nutrition Specialist, food photographer and author of 
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This is a wonderful post!
Wise words! I definitely hit a point in blogging where I had to step back and make sure I was prioritizing my family, my down time, my sanity…! I have a much better balance these days. I do what I can, but when my time is up, no more blog reading or multi-tasking with my phone when I’m hanging out with the family, and (most importantly!) no guilt.
Lots of food for thought here. I think many of us lose sight of the reason we starting blogging in the first place. Jess I’m glad you found a balance that works for you.
Thanks for sharing. I totally agree with your dos and don’ts. Great points!
This was great to read. I think we all toy with the idea of giving it up sometimes, so it’s good to hear the reality of it. I’m glad it’s working for you Jess!
so so so so very timely for me.
THANK YOU.
Ohhh so glad this was a message you needed to hear Miz!! Stay strong 🙂
I love it! While I truly enjoy blogging and don’t plan to give it up (for now), the thing I have appreciated the most aside from the writing release, are the friendships I’ve created all over the country. The hardest thing is to step outside of the blog comment box and remember to shoot a text/email/phone call over to that friend to let them know you care.
YES — sometimes it’s those little touches that matter way more than a comment box or even an email. I’ve been getting more into the habit of sending a physical letter or card to a friend as a nice little surprise here and there, it’s so rare that we get mail from anyone other than BILLS that a card or a letter is a cherished item these days, you know?
I admit this is something I’ve considered so many times, but it hasn’t seemed like the right thing to do for me try. I really enjoyed reading this and how sound feels. Thanks for sharing!
Love this post! I’m fairly new to the blogging world and at this point, I can’t imagine my life without it. I think when the time comes that I decide to call it quites, I’m definitely going to miss it and I seriously don’t know what I’ll do with myself…I’ll have so much more time on my hands!
I am one of the lucky ones that can call Jess a true friend! I love that woman and all she stands for. Her passion for family, friends and loved ones is inspiring. I also think she is one hell of a good writer. Every time she writes, I feel what she is saying. I have considered not blogging anymore. I really do love Instagram for it’s positive force. However, I just don’t have the heart to leg go just yet with blogging. I blog less, but I’m ok with that. Life is beginning to even out a bit for me so I will hopefully be able to share a little more. I’m living in the moment and I am just letting the natural flow of my future happen. Incredible post!
You guys have a safe trip Lindsay and give Heather a HUGE hug for me please! Good luck to James! I will be waiting to hear how things go. Love you all! xoxo
And I am one lucky woman for calling YOU a friend, my dear. Your comment made me smile big but it ALSO made me miss blogging a little bit…but mostly because of your words, you are just such a dear friend and I am so grateful to know you through blogging AND to stay in touch outside of blogging has been the best gift of all, truly. xo
PS I LOVE INSTAGRAM!!! hehe
I try so hard to schedule blogs for this very reason – to live and enjoy life and those I love! Funny enough I see blogging as a way to ‘scrapbook’ at the same time, same thing with instagram etc. I’m not sure if maybe technology has woven itself into our lives lately? I try to unplug but sometimes plugging in keeps me plugged in if that makes sense?
I miss Jess’s posts, too! Thank goodness for social media to still keep us connected!
Miss you too Ms. Heather!! But you’re right, there are lots of other ways to find eachother these days – social media orrrr a race…that we never officially got to meet up at but we tried like HELL didn’t we?? 😉
Love you friend. And I love that you have learned so much from blogging and without blogging. I do still miss your daily posts though. Maybe I just miss you period. When are you moving here???
Haha I think you and Lindsay and Sarena and Kristina need to move to Boston personally 😉
That was great to read.
Yeah, I’ve actually never thought about this. I only started FOR REAL blogging in January. But, now that its become such part of my life, I can’t think of it not being anymore. I haven’t thought of what my life would be after blogging. I think I’ll always blog in some way…hopefully.
This is brilliant! I do notice a lot of people who feel guilty for not blogging all the time. It’s like we have created this monster out of ourselves that feel the need to be addicted to blogging, forced to check social media 100 times a day, and just get burnt out! I’ve had people tell me what they want to see more or less of in my blog and I’ve realized that it’s for me. The blog is my outlet, my ability to write in a creative manner, and do the things I desire. I love this post!
Ive thought about this alot and Ive made hard decisions about what direction I want to take it. Great post.
As someone who throws the idea around of giving up my blog on a daily basis, I found Jessica’s words comforting and inspiring. I think for me, taking regular breaks is essential for my well being and for the health of my family. Many of the reasons I don’t want to give up blogging are exactly the same as Jessica’s… writing is my therapy being number 1 . I look forward to reading Jessica’s post her at Cotter Crunch in the future!
So glad that this post gave you a little bit of comfort — THAT is what I love(d) about blogging, those connections and words that resonated, even if they resonated with just one person? Well, mission accomplished 🙂
I think for me it’s less about just the blog and more about social media. that’s where I find I have to disconnect so as not to be so crazed and missing out on the moments!
Aww! I love this post sis! And I miss your posts too, but I also agree with you on every point you made. Shift away from being always on and instead, make it count with those that you really care about. Not drive by comments or tweets or whatever. Share what you want, snippets of life and let it all unfold naturally. I have missed blogging so while I am semi-returned to it, I don’t pressure myself as much as i used to to write, and don’t force a post ever ever. just write when I feel compelled. Love this post and equally miss Lindsay! like whoa!! come back!
Well said! I often wonder what I’ll do when I tired of blogging… if I tire… I’m still in love with it 3 years later. It would be nice if it was a (paying)full-time job though.
Good luck this weekend, Kiwi and Kiwi Sherpa! 🙂
I’ve definitely had to cut back a little bit in the time I’ve spend on blogging, since I’m now in a pretty seriously relationship, and balancing a pretty time consuming full time job. I have to remember that blogging is totally optional. As soon as it’s not fun, I’ll stop doing it! But for now, I’m enjoying the balance 🙂
I adored this post. So much truth. The best thing I did was take two weeks off to disconnect..from it ALL! Felt so good. So refreshing. Every since then, I’ve been more mindful about many-a-things.
This is so true and I’m glad you took your priorities into perspective. I think a lot of people feel they “have” to blog and really lose the appreciation of it and other things in their life, as well! I hope you find a new way to write. Maybe write articles for a local paper or online journal?
this is perfect, Jess! I am in no way wanting to stop spabettie, in fact right now I am looking forward to getting back to it MORE, but I often think about managing the time better, doing more AND less. doing more WITH less (time).
I always take time to unplug, which is NICE.
safe travels Lindsay and James, and good luck!
YES. doing more AND less – equally important, if that makes sense my friend. I look forward to your (yummy) posts too, you are a genius in the kitchen!!
Yes, yes, yes! I totally agree with all of this. Excellent guest post! Thanks so much Jess!
Ummm, can I say how much I love this post?? And love seeing Jess here? Jess – I’ve totally missed your writing because you always seemed to hit on some interesting point or made me think. But I love what you have learned post-blogging too and these lessons? Yes! Shifting away from being always on is hard and uncomfortable but worth it.
Aw you are SO CUTE Christine!! I’ve honestly missed writing a LOT more than I thought I would so when Lindsay asked me to guest blog for her when she was here for a visit, I was SO excited to do it! Something so cathartic and freeing about writing for me 🙂
I’ve seriously considered quitting blogging over the past couple of months, especially since when I took 5 weeks off during the Bar Exam I didn’t miss it at all. I enjoyed not having the pressure of needing to get posts up, of taking pictures of everything, responding to comments, etc. On the other hand, I love having this creative outlet and I hope to gain more real-life opportunities, like a job, from this experience. Ha, can you tell I’m still torn?
I love this post! I can always use a reminder to stop and enjoy life more. The computer is ever-present it seems and takes up so much time if I am not paying attention 🙂
Loving all those do’s and don’ts. I’ve had quite the journey with blogging (love/hate), but I think I’ve finally found a good place with it where I don’t feel like I have to put it first and put the rest of my life on hold just to get a post up or comment on other blogs. And those friendships… oh man, nothing beats those. Great post!
I looooooveeee THIS POST!! Such great words of advice <3
LOVED this post! I told Lindsay I was so looking forward to this post & it did not fail – needed it!!!!!!
It’s so nice to read something from Jess again! You do have a way with words that speak volumes. I’ve thought about quitting my blog just because at times it does feel like a time suck. Why am I spending so much time on it when I don’t plan for it ever to be a full time job? I’m much better at finding a balance between it all now but it is tough.
LOVE this guest post! So well written and honest…no more needs to be said. 😉 XOXO
Great post! I think I will miss blogging for the friendships. I’m so thankful for the friends it has brought me.. those forever friendships!
Wonderful perspective. Thank you for sharing. It is something I have wondered about from time to time and it was helpful to read your take on it.
I loved this post! I took a hiatus from blogging for a bit and definitely found that what I missed most was interacting with my readers and other blog writers on a daily basis – they truly become your friends and a staple part of each day!
I love this post! I seriously thought about quitting blogging last June, before I re-did my entire blog. Great perspective here 🙂
Also nice hearing from you!
It has been over a year since my posts have become less frequent. My family and my goals are my number one priority. Thanks for posting this!!
Love it Jess. I admire you for quitting your blog believe it or not, because it takes a lot of guts. I think it’s much too easy to become addicted to watching the electronics, the “likes,” the comments, the stats. I’d venture to guess that we’re all a little too entwined with the online world. Balance – you said it!
Aw really? That actually DOES mean a lot to me — it was a hard choice to make, and even just reading all of your comments on Lindsay’s blog makes me sort of miss blogging a little bit. I won’t lie. BUT I know that my time right now is better spent on presence and all of the things that go along with that, you know? Thank you for your comment, my friend!
balance? what’s that? just kidding. Yes, Jess is great at that and it is crucial. She’s got guts but she is also just plain INSPIRING! like you Suz