The Ultimate Blog Podcast - 94. Misconceptions of Blogging with Cortney Sparkman

Episode Date: October 3, 2023

Cortney Sparkman is back on the show today! If you haven’t checked out episode 85, be sure to take al listen to that one too! Cortney shares about her journey and the challenges of transitioning from corporate writing to blogging. She also shares about the misconceptions of blogging as a business. Cortney is a part of our Ultimate Blog Membership and we talk a lot about the importance of that community and Cortney shares the impact that it has had on her! Thanks for listening! Connect with us on Instagram: @sparkmediaconceptsApply to the Ultimate Blog Membership! We would love to have you!Check out Tailwind, the Pinterest scheduling tool we recommend.Check out the show notes (link below) for more information including links and resources mentioned in today's episode!SHOW NOTES: www.sparkmediaconcepts.com/episode94

Welcome to the Ultimate Blog Podcast with Amy Reinecke and Jennifer Draper. We're on a mission to empower women who want to start or grow their own blog. This podcast is for women who want to learn blogging basics and who crave inspiration and encouragement. Whether you're just getting started or have been a blogger for years, we're excited to welcome you into this space where we are passionate about creating community over competition. We are bloggers who want to encourage you to believe in your potential, step outside the norm and step into a life where you create your own schedule, your own success and your own story. Join us for weekly episodes as we navigate blogging

and work from home life all while raising a family and having some serious fun along the way. all while raising a family and having some serious fun along the way. We are so excited to share Courtney Sparkman with you today. Courtney is actually part of our community. And she is in the Ultimate Blog Membership with us. We've had the honor of connecting with her these last several months. And she used to be a writer, a professional writer, actually. And that is the whole basis of why we asked Courtney on the podcast today is kind of talking about being a writer turned food blogger. It's a very interesting job change that can come with a lot of misconceptions. And so we're going to chat about that today. So welcome to the Ultimate Blog Podcast, Courtney.

Thank you. I'm so excited to be here. Yes, we are excited to have you. Courtney has been on another one of our episodes. If you go back to episode 85, she talks about being part of our blogging community. So after listening to this episode today, if you want to hear more of her story, and all of that, you can find that on episode 85 on the podcast. So speaking of your story, Courtney, let's chat a little bit about that. Would you like to share with everyone how you made this shift from a corporate writer into blogging? Yeah, absolutely. Well, in order to talk about that, we have to go way back when to my journalism training when I was in college and got a job as a magazine writer right out of school.

It was amazing. And I loved it. And I was fulfilling my dream and everything was going as planned. And then I moved away and worked in the media very briefly overseas for a couple of years. And when I came back, this big thing called the recession had happened. And I was really struggling to find a journalism job that paid me more than I was making when I was a 22 year old working at a magazine. And so that's when I had to make the transition into corporate communications, had to make a living. of a struggle at times. And so what happened from there was that I was able to use my skills and my passion for writing and storytelling to tell stories and write narratives for organizations and oftentimes writing for their magazines, writing for their websites. And so I was able to really fulfill that. I specifically worked within the healthcare industry and got to speak with a lot of amazing physicians and doctors, patients and tell their stories.

The longer that that went on, I continued to progress in my career and it started to get a little stifling. I wasn't having as much fun. I was getting promoted and I was moving into roles that were much more corporate and executive communications. And I felt like my creativity was just dwindling with time. And so due to some personal circumstances after the pandemic, and just really wanting to have a better quality of life, and get back to my passion for feature writing, and creativity, I actually left my corporate job to start Sweet New Roots, which is my blog. And it has been quite a journey. Sweet New Roots, which is my blog. And it has been quite a journey. I launched it in November 2022 and have just continued learning from there every month.

I love that you connected back with what you're passionate about. And chose out of the gate, I'm going to make this big scary leap and do this thing because of joy and because you missed what brought you joy. And that's a really brave thing to do. So first and foremost, I just want to honor that because I think that that's really brave to be able to walk away from a career that you've built to try to basically start at the ground level of something that you'd never done before. So kudos to you for just being brave. Thank you. It's so funny because my parents have always had a hard time explaining what I do. I mean, they know that I'm a writer, but my dad

would always say, Oh, she works in advertising. But to them, corporate and advertising and marketing is all kind of the same to them. It was interesting. I was talking the other day about some of the work that I'm doing. And my dad said, Well, you're doing what you wanted to do. This is what you were doing from the very beginning. And I'm like, exactly right. That's exactly where I am right now. So it's really neat to see it come full circle. It has not been an easy journey, but it has absolutely been the best decision I've ever made in terms of my career. So when you started your blog, or when you decided you were going to start this blog, what did you know about blogging? And did you know that it could be a business? Were you

planning on creating a business with this from the get go? You know, there are so many misconceptions. And I know that's why I'm here today to talk about some of those. But I think the biggest thing that was on my mind was, am I cut out for this? And I'm hearing all of these people say that you can make millions and thousands of dollars to be a content creator. But how much of that information can I actually take and make into a viable business? So having been so corporate minded, I will say that I approached my business and my blog from the beginning like a small business.

And so I invested in some resources and did a lot of research and took some time, honestly, to plan and prepare. But certainly, I had no idea when I started what was in store. Certainly, I had no idea when I started what was in store. And in fact, I told myself, you have every credential that you need to start a blog. You've been writing professionally. You can do this with your hands tied behind your back. And little did I know, the type of writing that's required here is completely different than anything that I have ever done before.

So certainly, there have been a lot of surprises along the way. Can you talk a little bit about what some of those differences are when it comes to writing for corporate versus writing on a blog? What are the things that surprised you the most? Yeah, absolutely. So having been in such an environment where being formal was really important, I will just say it was quite a challenge to get myself into the mindset of being creative, even though I knew that's what I wanted to do. And that's why I was doing this whole thing. Getting yourself back into that mindset is really challenging. So I had been writing on behalf of, you know, a couple of CEOs and some, you know, corporate executives. And then,

you know, here I am. And I'm like, here's an apple hand pie recipe. It's delicious. So, you know, really learning about what resonates with readers. And it's definitely not what's resonating with a corporate audience. So kind of reevaluating and trying to understand how people want to receive information, which was very different from how they had been receiving it when I was working in my corporate life. Yeah. There's a lot more flexibility, which I did not realize. So treating my blog as a business and coming at it from a business perspective, it was almost boring at first because I was trying to follow every rule I had ever learned in corporate, even though I started out in journalism

and I worked for magazines and I've been a freelance writer for, for years. It just, it was completely different. And so giving myself that grace to try a couple of different things and to, to get comfortable with being uncomfortable, which sounds like a cliche, but it's so, so interesting that, you know, you can write for a corporate environment for years and it is completely different than writing for a blog. And so anyone who feels that they are not equipped or maybe don't have the experience, it's absolutely not true. You can really make it what you want as long as you're serving your audience. And so I think I had to actually take a step back and say, okay, like, am I being a

little too formal? Is this resonating with anyone? I need to show a a step back and say, okay, am I being a little too formal? Is this resonating with anyone? I need to show a little more of my personality. For some people, that comes really naturally. For me, it's been a transition for sure. Yeah, because you were taught to write in a certain way. And like you've said, this is a totally different way of writing. You're still writing. So you're still at the base level. You're still doing something that you enjoy doing, but it does look different. I found it interesting when you said that writing for your audience for corporate is very different than writing for your audience for a blog. So when you're writing, when you were working in corporate versus writing for your blog, there's been a level of vulnerability, I assume, that you've had to find with your blog that you

didn't have to use in your corporate career because, well, they're just honestly just set up completely differently. And it's not to say that people who blog have to share the ins and outs of everything about their life, but there does have to be that level of vulnerability, I think. So how has that shifted for you? Going from, I'm going to call it surface level writing, to more of a vulnerable type of writing. And you have a food blog. So I mean, you don't have to get super vulnerable with a food blog, but you are sharing more about yourself. You're putting yourself out there because it's a personal brand. So how was that shift for you? Going from writing at a corporate level to going and writing like,

this is Courtney Sparkman and this is my baby. This is me. I am the only one who represents me here. How was that shift for you? It's been incredibly challenging. It has been a shift in mindset. For all intents and purposes, I've been a ghostwriter for my entire career, right? Because, you know, the only time my name has ever been on anything was when I was working for magazines or doing any kind of journalism. So someone else's name has been there. And furthermore, when you work in a corporate environment, the legal has to look at it, you've got to get several approvals, the person you're writing for has to give their sign off. And so you have to get used to your work being changed and you have to get used to taking feedback. Whereas here, while those barriers are lifted, and I love that, I just have to say,

I can write whatever I want. And that's amazing. And I cannot tell you the joy that comes from that. Putting yourself out there can be really scary. Vulnerability is so important, but it's also really scary, especially if you haven't had to do it for a long time. And I'm a relatively private person. I don't even really use social media in my personal life a whole lot. And so to have this business and for me to be the voice and for it to be mine and my brand has certainly put me outside of my comfort zone for sure. And it's been a learning experience, but it's, you know, I think it's been highly beneficial and I'm learning a little bit, you know, it gets easier every time, but vulnerability, if you're not used to showcasing yourself and your feelings and your thoughts,

or you've been afraid of what people might think or how they might react, it takes time to get to the place where you feel really comfortable doing that. And I would say I'm probably not quite there yet. It's been since November. So November of 2022. So you know, it's, it's been less than a year, and I'm still not quite where I think I'll be eventually. Are you a blogger and looking for a community of bloggers to network and learn from? We are so excited to share with you that we have created a space for people just like you to learn, connect, and grow in their blogging business. It's called The Ultimate Blog Membership and we would love to have you join us. The Ultimate Blog Membership is

a monthly membership that includes two coaching calls each month and a forum to ask questions and get answers from both of us and others in the community. Each month, we have a coaching call that will help you learn how to grow and improve your blog by bringing in guest experts and coaching ourselves on topics that will help your business thrive. The other live call each month is a Q&A call where you can hop on and connect with other members and discuss live questions that you have or troubleshoot any areas that need assistance. This community has been incredibly encouraging and motivating since we created it in January of 2022. And we are excited for you to apply to join us.

If you are interested in joining us, click the link in our show notes for more information and the application to become part of the group. We want to make sure that we can support you the best. So we have just a few questions that we need you to answer to make sure we'd be a good fit. We are so excited to connect with you even more in the ultimate blog membership. Check the show notes to apply today. and I think another big shift must feel like you've gone from probably somebody telling you what they want written they want you know an article about this or a publication about that and now all of a sudden you're sitting here with a completely blank whiteboard in front of you and you're in charge of what you write. And so the joy in that is,

oh, I get to be creative. But then I think that sometimes can hold us back a little bit too, because the whole world is in front of us. What one little tiny thing do we pick? And how do we know we're picking the right thing? And then you kind of get paralyzed by fear in terms of making a choice about what to write about. That is so true, Jennifer. I mean, being paralyzed by fear is something that I struggle with still today. I wanna write about all of the things, but I have to really think about,

okay, am I the right person to write this? And is this gonna resonate with my audience? Because this isn't about me and what I want to say, although there are times when that's appropriate too. This is really for other people. There's a misconception, I say, although there are times when that's appropriate to you. This is really for other people. You know, there's a misconception, I think out there that bloggers are doing this for vanity purposes. But I am of the belief that, you know, we do this because we want to help other people, we want to encourage them and inspire them and be of service. And so, yes, you're right, you can write about anything you want to do. There's just a lot of thought that goes into, is this the right thing for them? Right? Like, is this going to resonate with them?

What value am I bringing to them? So some of those things still are the same as they would be in corporate, but it's just a very different type of environment. And I will say, I cannot express how much I love not having to go through approvals. I will bounce things off of friends or family or my husband will read something, but that's pretty much it. And I cannot tell you how freeing that is because, you know, in a corporate environment, your communications can get, you know, held up by legal or held up by other people for weeks at a time. You're like, okay, guys, this event is happening or this message needs to go out, or we're really getting close to that deadline. Come on.

And that just doesn't exist. So I love the flexibility that it provides as well. Yeah. I love that you have the lens coming from both, because I think that we probably have a lot of listeners who they might not necessarily be a corporate writer, but they might be working in corporate and wanting to make that shift over to blogging as a business. And they might be having some of these exact same misconceptions about blogging that you're talking about. What were some other ones that you had? Was it hard for you when you decided to leave your job to say, I'm going to leave this job and I'm going to start my own blog? Was that a difficult... I mean, was that just difficult in and of itself just to say that out loud?

And were you prepared for how people responded? Yeah, it was incredibly difficult. And that was my ego and my imposter syndrome. Speaking of like, I've been doing this for almost 2 decades. I've got credentials. Anyone can do a blog. Anybody can write a blog. That could not be further from the truth. Sure, anyone can buy a domain or set up an account or and write things, but to actually make it a viable business, that is a challenge and it takes a lot of work and that's not to deter anyone from doing it. But this idea that blogging is easy, and anyone can do it, certainly, it's, it's impossible to do it all. There are so many pieces and parts that go into launching a blog. And so that was one of like, well, if anybody can do it, then I can certainly

do it. So I'm not going to be a blogger, I'm a writer, right. And so then I started actually getting into this journey and realizing the amount of work and how hard people work to be bloggers and now I probably say I'm a blogger right I still do freelance works I'm still you know a professional writer but I'm a blogger too and that was something that took some time like I thought that my credentials were going to set me apart and little did I know there are so many incredible, prolific writers who have blogs, who have no training in writing, have no corporate experience, and they are changing people's lives and helping them every day. So I think that that is a perception that a lot of

people who work in corporate jobs probably have. Like blogging is not a serious business. And that is absolutely a major misconception. What are some of the most surprising things that you've learned as you've started your blog that you weren't expecting to be a part of blogging? Were there things that you were not prepared for? And as you look back at them now, would you have done anything different? That's a great question, Jennifer. I have a lot of thoughts there. So I would say the biggest lesson for me that I have learned is that I need help. Right. So I think I thought I could do everything by myself. I thought that I didn't

need anyone. I could be successful on my own because I've worked in an environment where I worked with social media experts and I worked with SEO experts. And, you know, I had an entire team where I was working and our job was to communicate. And a lot of times I was writing and editing that content. And so I don't need help. And that could not be further from the truth. Like you cannot do it on your own. You will get overwhelmed. You'll be paralyzed by fear. You will be stuck. And so it's really important to be a part of groups like the ultimate blog membership and just resources where you can learn from others. So I think that's been the biggest learning is like, I need help. I can't do it all. And I really need to hear from other

people's perspectives. I need to have a community. And, and so there's that. And then, you know, I also thought that writing for my niche would be easy because I'm passionate about it. So I thought everything will just come naturally and it'll be fine. And I know so much about this already that it's just, my words are going to flow and they're going to resonate. And that's just, you know, it takes a lot more than that. So you have to be really mindful. There are a lot of things that you have to learn, you know, really like consistency and tone, SEO, your hooks.

Like I've had to learn photography. So I picked up a camera two months before I started my blog. And so it's been a fun journey. I had no idea that I could take photos. Apparently, I'm decent at it and I'm learning. But there's a lot of training that goes into this. And I would say that was probably the other lesson that I learned was just the sheer amount of work.

And I don't, again, I don't say that it's tough work to deter anyone from starting a blog. But this is not easy. There's a lot that you have to learn. I mean, that learning curve is real. It is, you just have to consistently be trying to figure out the next best thing, how, you know, the industry is changing or what's going on within your audience, what they care about, your analytics, is just developing an entirely new skill set. So it's not like you're sitting at home and you're just typing some words out. And you're uploading. There's a ton of work that goes into every single blog post that I don't

know that people understand and see. I love that you're bringing light to this. Because I know how you're feeling right now. You're probably like, gosh, I'm really not painting probably a great picture about blogging. Yeah. Nobody's going to want to start a blog. But you know what? Jennifer and I, I think we used to try to convince people that they needed a blog. And a couple of years into having Spark Media, we finally realized we're not in the business

of convincing somebody that they need a blog. We're in the business of somebody who's like, I want to blog and who's confident in that. We're in the business of teaching them how to do it the right way. And teaching somebody how to blog the right way is not teaching them to do it the easy way. Because taking the shortcuts in regards to blogging, I don't think that's going to serve anyone well in the long run. So we do go through a lot of those very specific things like in the Ultimate Blog Bootcamp. And we go into a lot of deep dive things and the Ultimate Blog Membership with our students each month. That's important. I love that you said that. Thanks for that little commercial about being part of the community.

It's so true though. The reason that we started this company was because of people just like you who started and were like, hold on. This was a lot more than I had initially planned on. I thought I was going to work like 5 to 10 hours a week and this is going to be super fun and I was going to make thousands of dollars out the gate. And it doesn't work like that. I would love to tell you guys that it does. But it does take a lot of hard work in the beginning. It feels like a very thankless job sometimes in the first couple years of doing it, because you're really figuring out who you are, and you're trying to find your community and your audience. And I think the people that find success, a couple things. One, they come into it just like you and said, this is my business.

And I'm going to take myself seriously from the start. And two, they come into it just like you and said, this is my business. And I'm going to take myself seriously from the start. And two, they're willing to learn and get plugged into a community because that is so important to be able to have somebody that you can bounce ideas off of and things like that. Jennifer and I've been told numerous times, there aren't many people like you guys who were next door neighbors at the time that we were blogging. And we are really lucky to have that. And it became this thing that we one day were like, why do we keep this to ourselves? Why are we just the ones talking to each other?

Why can't we invite others into this? And so that's the whole reason that Spark Media came to light. And I think that's a really important thing because you actually didn't do the bootcamp. And you weren't part of any of our other things. You came in to the membership and have been able to find community that way. So you'd already set up your blog, because there's still a need. Even if let's say you already have your blog set up, there's still a need for community. There's still a need to learn resources and how you can stay up to date on the things going on in the industry. There is still a need to learn resources and how you can stay up to date on the things coming on in the industry.

There is still a need for that. And I, as a blogger myself, I think Jennifer can agree. We all need community. We all need people when you feel like you're burned out or when you feel like I cannot write another blog post. You lean on those people to remind you of why you started, why you're doing it, and why you should keep going. And so I just loved what you said there. I think it's important to recognize that. I mean, I love blogging. And I can't imagine really doing anything else now.

I've done it since 2017. I can't really picture myself doing anything else. But that doesn't mean that every day is like rainbows anything else. But that doesn't mean that every day is like rainbows and sunshine, but I would still choose it. Oh, absolutely. And Jennifer, she said earlier, or she asked me, would you do anything different? And I will say, I took the hard route. I tried thinking I didn't need help. I did everything myself. And while that was a learning experience, I absolutely wish I knew about the bootcamp because I would have taken it, you know, and there is value in doing things on your own.

I understand now a lot of things that I wouldn't have otherwise understood. And I've learned to do things I didn't ever think I would have to do, but it was tough and there's always a better way, right? So having a resource like the bootcamp would have to do, but it was tough and there's always a better way, right? So having a resource like the bootcamp would have been highly beneficial. The way I found you is that I was listening to the podcast because I was lonely. I was always a part of teams. And now all of a

sudden I was on my own and I was lonely and I didn't have any friends to talk to about this journey. Everybody's been supportive, but they don't really quite understand. And I was on my own and I was lonely and I didn't have any friends to talk to about this journey. Everybody's been supportive, but they don't really quite understand. And I was looking for resources too. And so I'm like, okay, well, in the mornings when I get up and get ready, I always listen to a podcast. Let me find something that, you know, I can learn from as well as feel a little bit of connection of like, I'm not alone in what I'm going through.

And then I connected with you on social to tell you how much I was enjoying the podcast. And here we are now. And you know, I'm a part of this amazing community, where I get to learn from others and have connection. And even one of the members of the group, we've been having, you know, conversations offline. And now you know, we're friends. And so we are going through things together and talking through things. And so it's just, we're friends. And so we are going through things together and talking through things. And so it's just, it's incredibly beneficial. You absolutely need community and you need support and you don't have to go through things alone because it is hard work. I remember sitting in an office one time and this very high level executive, wonderful person, you know,

she was kind of giving a pep talk to this group of younger professionals. And she was like, you know, we've got these amazing clients and we're doing this, we're doing that. But you know, we've got to hustle. Like we want people who want to hustle. And I remember thinking, sitting there, you know, in this, this huge, you know, sky rise in downtown Dallas, Texas. And I'm thinking, I don't want to hustle. I'm tired. I feel like I'm hustling. If this is not hustling, what am I doing? How can I give you any more of me than I already have?

And so then it was funny, that actual scenario came to mind the other day. I thought, I am hustling. And I told my husband, I was like that that actual scenario came to mind the other day. I thought, like, I am hustling. And I told my husband, I was like, I hustle for a living. And then I had a thought and I was like, I thought I didn't want to hustle. Wait, no, no, no. I want to hustle for me, right? And my family. And I want to hustle on my terms.

And that's what blogging has enabled me to do. So. Oh, girl, i can relate to that i've never worked corporate jennifer has but i watch i mean i watched my husband and i literally i'm like buddy i don't want no part of that i something i can't remember what exactly happened last week and i said it out loud i was like like, yeah, I love that you make a decent living and all of that. But boy, do I not envy your schedule in the slightest at all. I just don't. I don't want that part of it. And I want to give space for the people who are like, but I love that because that is my husband too.

The thought of hustling to earn money the way that we do in blogging, he wants no part of that. He likes to go and know that he is going to bring home X amount of money. And this is what this is going to look like. So I think that that's a key piece too. That's a security blanket that you walked away from too with corporate is walking away from a guaranteed income because it's not guaranteed and you do have to work for it. It takes all kinds to make the world go round. My husband's been with his company for 25 years and I respect it. It's almost unheard of these days. Let me tell you, I am currently going through a bit of a journey myself because I left my career when I was making the most money that I had ever made ever. And I just quit one day and walked away.

I look at LinkedIn and I kind of get sick to my stomach every now and then I'll log back onto LinkedIn. And it's hard for me because it reminds me of a life where I was miserable. Like I see lovely people and they're being promoted and good things are happening to them and I'm happy for them. But there's a part of me that is sad for them too. Cause I'm like, Oh, they have no idea that like, it doesn't have to be that way. But then I have to remind myself, you know what? No, they are crazy successful. And this may be exactly what works for them. So it's like, well like what works for me in my business is not necessarily going to work for someone else in their business. They may thrive in that environment. So it's funny,

I'm like pitying my former colleagues. And that's so rude. They don't have the same things that I want, you know, or maybe they do. And if they do, I hope they call me and we can talk about it. Yeah. But it's, it's just interesting. It's like the things that were so important to me in my career, which were upward trajectory, success, being seen as a success from others around me matters zero to me now. Like the things that I cared about, sometimes I think about it. I'm like, what in the world? Like, who was I? You know, I pray that I continue to be blessed to the point that I can support myself and my business and my family and not have to go back to that environment because it's just, it's not for me. So let the record show. I don't ever want to work for

corporate again. I want to continue being an entrepreneur. I don't want to have a viable business as a blogger. I want to help other people. So I relate to that so much after many years of corporate work. And there occasionally will be a day where I'll be like, would be nice just to go to work and come home and be done with work versus having it on my mind all the time. But overall, for me, I agree with you. It's just the freedom and the flexibility and the change in priorities. And I think the mental aspect of so much of this you've kind of touched on. And I think it's just something that we have to really be mindful of and think about on our own as entrepreneurs. We have to think about different things. You brought up the loneliness factor, and that's a huge one. If you're used to

being in an office or on calls every single day with multiple people, and then all of a sudden, you're alone, you have to make sure that you're doing the things that you need to do to take care of yourself in that way and having meaningful conversations, making connections, and surrounding yourself with people who not just support what you're doing, but understand what you're doing. Because otherwise, it gets really lonely, really fast. And then you also have to, like you mentioned, the hustle culture aspect, you have to really set boundaries for yourself in terms of what you are and aren't willing to do. And, you know, taking the time to take care of yourself in other ways and not just, you know, setting these really high goals and just going for them. I think it's,

it's about pacing yourself and learning about yourself and being honest with yourself about what's really important. Absolutely. You really hit the nail on the head with that. I mean, when you're doing something for yourself, you're never really truly away from your job. I'm thinking about it when I'm visiting with family and friends.

I'm eating something or seeing something or sparking ideas and constantly. And I mean, there have been times when my husband has been so busy with his job that I have just sat in my office and I'm just working away. And, you know, then it's nine o'clock and I haven't even made dinner. Actually that happened last night. I was like, I just thought about figs, like it's fig season and I want to get it out, It's so funny, but it is lonely, right? And I'm relatively introverted, which you wouldn't think. I would not think that at all. Courtney, I have never got that impression from you that you're introverted.

I am. I get my energy from being alone. I love to read and be quiet. And I take walks and I don't put in headphones because I want to be present with nature and what's around me. And working in corporate, like it was so exhausting because I would have to be on all day, like on. And then I would go home and I would just like want to pass out, you know, but it's like, even so, like on, and then I would go home and I would just like, want to pass out, you know, but it's like, even so, you know, and I think COVID kind of made me a little more of a hermit, even because we were working from home and not being around people. And then I'm like, oh, I'm really cozy here. I think I'm a homebody, you know, but even so, like, I want people, like I need people, right? I need friends. I need colleagues. And so that's something that has been really great.

And again, like I have wonderful friends, absolutely wonderful friends, wonderful family. They're all very supportive. They don't get this. They don't get blogging, right? And so I don't expect them to, you know, so that's why groups like, like this are so important and such a joy and a delight. Like, you know, who else can, you know, we talked with about like the joys of, you know, peeling a beet. Like, have you ever cooked a beet and peeled the skin off afterwards? Like, come on. pharmaceuticals to like, I want to talk about the joy that comes from figs and beets and all of these healthy foods. You've got to have your people and your tribe, you know, that you can go to with that. So it's a lot of fun. Tailwind is an amazing tool that allows you to schedule your blog posts directly to Pinterest

ahead of time. We are all about batch working here at Spark Media Concepts. And when you can schedule out your Pinterest, it can take that task from time consuming to productive with just a few clicks. We also use Tailwind to schedule our Instagram content, which we find to be much more productive than creating a post each time we need to share. We really believe in working smarter, not harder and utilizing Tailwind as a no-brainer for our business and also our independent blogging businesses. The cost of Tailwind each month is less than what takeout for one meal would be. And it has the capability to save you hours of time. If you want to learn more about adding

this time-saving tool to your blogging business, click the link in our show notes to learn more about Tailwind. I think that is a fun part of blogging, especially when you can really narrow down your niche. You are speaking to so many like-minded people who are interested in the same things that you're interested in. And I think that's one of the things that makes it easy to go to work each day is because you're sitting down and you know that you're creating content. And that's going to make an impact on somebody because it's made an impact on you. And I just think that's a really awesome way to get to show up and earn a living,

quite honestly. Absolutely. Absolutely. And I did want to also say another really big misconception that I had was that somehow because I had been writing professionally for so long, I was a better writer or I was better voiced. I'm is not their thing. That's okay. You still have something to say and you still have people that need to hear what you have to say. You don't have to be a perfect writer to get that done. So much goes into blogging. That's not necessarily about the writing. The writing is one piece of a very large pie, pumpkin pie, one piece of a very large pie, pumpkin pie, I'm ready for fall, pizza pie, you know,

it's writing is a piece of the pie or a piece of the puzzle. And so, you know, I would encourage anyone who feels like they have a message to share. Even if you think that writing is not your strong point, you've got this. And if you don't feel like you've got it, join us in our group and, you know, we'll encourage and inspire and help you along the way. I think that's a really great way to end it is just inviting those people who might have a little bit of that imposter syndrome. I don't have X, Y, or Z. Therefore, I can't be a blogger. Just inviting them into that community, into this industry, and learning one thing at a time. You've said here, you still feel like a beginner in some ways. You're still learning so much. I feel the same way. That's

just part of the job. And I think the sooner that you realize that blogging is something that's always evolving, ever-changing, and that's the exciting part of it, and that you get to continue to be creative in your job and it doesn't feel stagnant, it doesn't feel boring, then I think that's when we can really find the joy in it. So thanks for chatting through the misconceptions and about parts of your journey. Courtney, did not know you're an introvert because you're always so talkative and you always engage in conversation. So I definitely learned a couple of new things about you, which was super fun too. Well, thank you. Well, thank you so much for having me. I've had so many questions from

other people about writing and about this journey. So it's just such an honor to be able to share this with you. Thanks for having me on. Can you let people know where they can find you and connect with you? Absolutely. So SweetN Roots is my website at sweetneroots.com. I'm also on all the socials at Sweet New Roots. So please come say hi, send me an email. It's Courtney, C-O-R-T-N-E-Y at sweetneroots.com. And I would love to have a conversation. Thank you so much. We'll put all those links in the show notes. Thanks for being with us here today, Courtney. Absolutely. Thank you. Thanks so much for tuning in today. If you'd like to continue the conversation about blogging with us, please find us on Instagram at spark media concepts. You can also sign up for our weekly

newsletter where we share blogging tips and inspiration. You can sign up by finding the link in the show notes. For those of you who are ready for the next step and want to start your own blog, join the waitlist for the ultimate blog bootcamp. The link to join the waitlist is also in the show notes. Go out and make today a great day.