Inspired

I've been in a slump lately. I feel like I should have so much to talk about. A new house, a new job- so much happening in life. But instead of feeling inspired, I have felt nothing but writer's block. I don't think posts only about house hunting are really that exciting for you all. And while there has been a lot of emotion revolving around my job hunt/job search, I've had to remain relatively tight-lipped about the whole process. Obviously, I need that blog/personal life split. 

What I'm trying to say is that I've needed a bit of a kick start for this little blog here.

And as always, it was nothing that a good Happy Hour Hangout can't cure.

Friday was my second Happy Hour Hangout (not counting our original crew secret Santa which was amazing on a whole different level). And it won't be my last. Because no matter who is participating, I leave feeling inspired and amazed and excited about all the amazing women I "met."

In addition to our fearless leaders,  Amber of Mr. Thomas and Me and Ashten of Always Ashten, I also had the joy of hanging out with Brooks of The Handey Way, Jessa of Life of a Sports Wife, Kalyn of Geez Louise, Casey of The Aslan's Auspicious Albany Adventure and Annie of What She Saw. 

Photo borrowed from Kalyn's instagram- as everyone might kill me if
I post the screen shots I managed to get.
I have poor timing for photos!

I wanted to share some of my favorite bits of wisdom. As these ladies are damn smart and I was so happy to sit and talk to them!

"Here's my hot mess. I don't have the answers. Go." -Annie

While Annie and I don't agree on college football (though let's be honest- there are WAY too many college football rivalries among bloggers...sometimes you just gotta go with it), girl's got it going on. And she had some amazing advice about how to deal with a slump or writing the tough posts. We all love when someone else shares something they struggle with when we can relate- it's amazing.

"We all write angry. It's how you end it that matters." -Ashten

We all know Ashten writes the posts we all wish we had the guts to write. I loved her advice about writing posts when angry. It's one thing to just let it all out and hit post. It's another to take that anger and find the meaning behind it, writing the post that means so much.

"If you find yourself reading a post and writing a paragraph long comment? Then you should probably write a post about it." -Kalyn

Talking about where to find inspiration was the conversation I most needed to hear. So often I find myself in a slump and don't know where to turn. I loved Kalyn's suggestion of finding a post to respond to- whether you agree with it or not. A rebuttal post is a great way to spark conversation with others; and if you had enough to write a paragraph long comment on someone elses blog? It's the perfect topic for a full post.

"I have a love/hate relationship with statistics. It makes a monster out of me- thinking that I'm not good enough, not popular enough, not funny enough. It can take the fun out of blogging. The moment that blogging becomes something I stress about, it becomes a concern." -Amber

Preach it girl. It's so so so easy to get wrapped up in looking at the number of followers or comments or post views. But getting swept away in these things can make blogging not fun anymore. And the day that blogging is no longer fun? I'm out. 

There were so many more amazing and wonderful comments and pieces of advice. I was trying to keep notes, but I kept getting so absorbed in the conversation that I forgot to write things down. 

While I can't promise I'm completely out of this slump I've been in lately (heck, I'm starting a new job AND closing on a house in 2 weeks- it's bound to be a little hectic around here), I'm feeling better about it.

If you have yet to do a Happy Hour Hangout...I have NO idea what you are waiting for. Head on over to Ashten's blog and check it out!!