If it looks like I just came back from vacation, it’s because I have. Okay, not a real vacation to the tropics or anything, because uhhh Rona. I did take a social media break recently and it felt like a vacation to me lol.  If you’ve been following me on social media for a while, you know that I take pride in being consistent. I’ve worked really hard over the last three years to consistently post and create looks almost everyday.  I’m extremely proud of that. While it may look easy it’s been extremely challenging.  I work a full time job it’s a challenge to remain consistent. Along with it being difficult to post consistently while working, I found that I started being really hard on myself.  I’m grateful, because I’ve had numerous opportunities to work with brands and share sponsored content, but I started to put way too much pressure on myself to be perfect.  I always had to have the perfect lighting. The perfect pose. The perfect caption to go along with my perfect shot.  I’d constantly obsess over engagement. Honestly, it just became too much.  I was starting to get overwhelmed and it wasn’t really fun to create anymore.  Over the last month or so I’ve found myself becoming extremely exhausted and uninterested in social media/blogging . The thought of posting and creating just put me in a mood.  I’ll be honest the racial injustices in America along with the Covid-19 pandemic over this past month definitely had my emotions all over the place. I found myself needing to stay on social media for information, but also needing a break. I typically love shooting content, but my motivation was nonexistent.  My Mom and Sister literally had to give me pep talks before our photoshoots, smh.  I always told myself that I would no longer blog if it wasn’t fun anymore and I felt myself being in that space.  I absolutely love blogging/social media and creating content, so I didn’t want to quit so easily, but I knew I needed a break.  Three weeks ago I decided to take a break from consistent photoshoots, creating outfit looks, content, and posting. I told myself that I would take whatever time I needed and I did just that. Let me tell y’all that break was everything.

During my break I found myself slowly becoming passionate again.  It was fun tapping into a creative space without pressure.  I created so many makeup looks and watched a ton of YouTube videos that I typically wouldn’t have time for. Along with creating on my own time/terms I learned a lot. I learned that I needed to make a more conscious effort to practice mental self-care (take more breaks), but most importantly show myself more grace. I realized that I had never really taken time to check my mental space. I had spent so much time focusing on pushing content and what was next that it left me constantly feeling anxious and feeling like my work wasn’t enough. I had worked myself so hard that I didn’t even stop to enjoy the fruits of my labor.  I didn’t even take time to reflect on how far I’ve come and highlight my accomplishments. The break was a choice, but it was everything I needed.  It allowed me to to be still and make space for new ideas and new inspiration. It also taught me that it’s okay to be content with the present.  We’re constantly desiring more for ourselves, but sometimes it’s okay to just be okay with what you’ve done so far.  It’s okay to not constantly analyze and reach for perfection. While my break is over (cuz my passion and excitement is back) I plan to continue giving myself grace.  Each week I plan to reflect and remind myself that I’m doing my best. I’m going to highlight something that’s made me proud each week, so that I’m consciously applauding my progress (this is definitely okay). If I can’t post every single day I won’t be hard on myself.  If I don’t get the engagement that I would like…that’s okay. If my pictures aren’t edited to perfection, that’s okay.  We have be kind to ourselves and recognize that while we want to be successful and strive for more, sometimes our current space is more than enough. We are more than enough.  I always preach about self-care and it’s importance, but I think mental care is the most important of them all. Taking a break and occasionally doing nothing is one of the best things you can do for your mental space.  This week if you find yourself being overwhelmed or anxious I encourage you take a step back and reflect.  Reflect on your journey, your accomplishments, and just how far you’ve come. I encourage you to give yourself grace and be proud of what you’ve done thus far.  After all, this is a marathon and not a sprint.  We have plenty of time to reach our goals.  Just don’t drive yourself crazy in the process. Have a great week, loves.

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