Hey Monday! Let's get real.

There’s something that’s been on my mind that I think is important for me to share so today’s blog post is going to be a little heavy. I’ve mentioned this a little bit before but man. Moving overseas has really been weird for my business. Though I consider myself to be extremely lucky to get to live in such a cool country and in such a beautiful town (I mean seriously just look up Strömstad and you’ll see what I mean), being a blogger/content creator here has been a big struggle and it doesn’t seem to be getting much easier.

When living in LA, I went from getting frequent paid collaborations and invitations to brand events to speaking on a panel about how to have successful instagram engagement (i laugh now lol), to... these days not much. My inbox has become a sad, somewhat dusty cave. I lost a lot of work when I moved overseas because many agencies and brands either don’t have the budget to ship overseas, or they simply just don’t want to work with people who are so far away because that blogger may be catering to a different country demographic (which actually for me is not true as many of my followers are still in the US!). 

In an effort to be more proactive, I have been reaching out to people myself and getting a lot of no’s which is something I’m not totally used to. But that’s the reality of my situation. For bloggers, a big move can either help you, or it can hurt you. And for me it’s been a little of both, on the business side of things for sure more than anything else. I think that getting turned down and not getting much business, especially after moving, is something bloggers must struggle with, right?, but nobody really talks about it I don't think. Maybe because not very many move as far away as I have done . But I’ve always been very open with you guys, and I wanted to share with you what’s been going on with me because I'm not gonna lie, it's been hard sometimes. And it's not easy to talk about. But I will say that this new reality has not stopped me from posting. I’m quite proud of the content I’ve created and the brands I’ve been able to work with since moving here (some really, really cool Swedish brands that I wouldn't have known about otherwise). And I love that my aesthetic has turned into more of a pastel look, more coffee, pastries, nature. A slowed down life. And a fun glimpse into what living in Sweden is really like (happy to share all that I can!).

The biggest takeaway I have from this whole experience is that if anything, all of the struggles and the no’s have taught me to focus on what matters most: my life. I didn’t move here because of my “career”, I moved here for love. Because of this move I’ve been able to live a less stressed out life too (less deadlines, less pressure) which is a GIFT. 

But yes, it’s damn frustrating sometimes. I have days, even after living here for a year, where I feel very sorry for myself and am sad that things are different now. I sometimes feel “forgotten” and like “old news" which probably sounds completely ridiculous, but there you have it, and I know that it's perfectly ok to have those feelings. It's ok to feel sad sometimes. But if I know anything about myself, it's that I'm a pretty positive person so I always find a way to remind myself on the daily that those things (specifically all of the material "perks" of being a content creator) maybe aren't so important anymore anyway. Now I get to focus on having my dream wedding and going on my honeymoon and then sometime later starting my very own family! Alllllll good things. Gotta be grateful for that and the rest will take care of itself.

If you’ve gotten through this, you’re a real champ. Thank you for reading. I appreciate it more than you know. And if you have anything to add about your own struggles or frustrations about finding yourself in a new place, you can always reach out to me. Or just leave a comment here.