Now that we are firmly into November and the holiday season is nearly upon us, I wanted to spend a little time talking about holiday stress and how to manage it! The end of November thru December is often a very exciting and busy time due to the multitude of holidays scattered throughout the season. With busy times often comes stress, and I for one am definitely someone who feels it this time of year. Sometimes the pressure of wanting to please large numbers of people, mostly friends and family, can just build up. This time of year isn’t cheap, we all want to buy presents for our loved ones and the purchases add up causing mental strain and stress on our purses. Then there are the gatherings, and I don’t know about you, but if you get more than two members of my family together at a time, conflict often arrises over the silliest issues! It’s my ongoing mission every year to manage this stress the best that I can, so that I can enjoy the season instead of stressing about things beyond my control! So, I put together some easy steps, tips really on how to manage the holiday stress before it begins and during the thick of it! Hope these tips help you as much as they help me!
#1 Have an Attitude of Gratitude
Get your head in the right place before the stress begins!
Make your gratitude list and keep it with you!
Focus on what the season is really about- being grateful for your life, your family and friends and celebrating that together!
#2 Have a Plan
Know what is going on when it comes to events, parties, obligations etc
Don’t assume someone is going to tell you, make an effort to find information (people are busy after all, especially now!)
Know who is doing what and what you are expected to be doing for certain events.
Make lists for everything so you don’t forget anything.
Review your recipes (if you’re cooking) and make a schedule for when you will start them!
#3 Be Flexible
When it comes to getting large numbers of people together during the wintery months, understand that plans often change at the last-minute, so don’t get worked up about it if that happens to you!
Don’t fight the change, just roll with it!
#4 Prepare Yourself
If you know there are people, events or situations that will stress you out, avoid them or be prepared for them.
Try to enter tough situations with a positive mindset, often your negative thoughts going into these situations can blow things out of proportion and stress you out much more than the situation itself.
Don’t let anyone rain on your parade- these are your holidays too and you have a right to enjoy them!
#5 Spread Happiness
Go out of your way to help others and make them happy.
This sort of behavior will catch on and put those around you at ease as well.
Pay it forward as much as possible!
I sincerely hope that these tips help you to manage your stress during this wonderful time of year! If you have any additional tips or tricks you think I missed, please let me know in the comments below! I need all the help I can get- that’s for sure!
With holidays quickly approaching, I know that a top priority for many of us is creating memories with our friends and families. Whether it is over a delicious meal, a fun outing or some extra special gift exchanging, there are plenty of special moments ahead for us in the next few weeks, and many of us are going to want to capture as many of them as possible. I know not all of you own DSLR cameras, and that’s certainly okay! I have been making a point with this series to also include options for those of us who may be using compact cameras or even smartphones as our primary means to capture images. Well, todays topic is all about smartphones, specifically the Lensbaby LM-10 Sweet Spot Lens for Mobile! I’ve shown you DSLR lenses in the past, and now I thought it was time to talk about mobile lenses!
Now, in all fairness, I don’t necessarily believe that you need lenses for your smartphone in order to take nice pictures, but I think they are one of those things that you can use to really achieve interesting effects that aren’t really possible or at least, aren’t really authentic looking when you use an app! The Lensbaby Sweet Spot Lens for Mobile devices is a “selective focus” lens that works in conjunction with their app that is available for iOS & Android devices, and in my opinion, helps to give smartphone photos that interesting blur and depth of field that we normally see on DSLRs (see my guide to Bokeh for more info on blur and depth of field).
So, what exactly is “Selective Focus”? It is basically when a lens allows a camera to choose an area of the image to stay in focus, while the rest of the image is dramatically blurred out! As you can see from the image above, one area of the photo, the area around the flower, is in focus, and then the rest of the picture fades into a lovely blur. The effect is very strong and really helps you to assign priority in your image for where the action is, or where the important element is, and then everything else is just a haze of colors.
Now, here is more of that same flower bush, now with the focus shifted to the upper left on a cluster of flowers, as opposed to the lower right in the previous photo. How did I achieve this? Well, the Lensbaby LM-10 works in conjunction with the Lensbaby for Mobile app, and within that app, you can actually move around the “sweet spot” or the center of focus, across the plain of your image. So you have control over what is in focus and where in the image that focus lies.
Here you can see what the app looks like in action. You may be able to see the faint circle with cross hairs towards the center of the app that you can move and control with the touch screen. The app is actually a pretty crucial part of using the lens, because without it, the lens actually ends up flipping your image upside down, so the app actually reorients the images properly and also adds extra functionality with the focusing options. You can also see, the app includes a few different features for controlling color balance and such- all are pretty standard, but good to have in-app while you’re shooting!
Here are some more shots I took while taking a walk recently. I really love the way you can change the focus and really allow objects to pop. Literally, pop, because I feel like the lens gives this sort of starburst shaped blur, which I really like!
Okay, so lets talk about the lens itself, pro’s and cons style! The LM-10 isn’t your average smartphone lens. It’s actually quite unique in my opinion which is its major pro! First of all, it connects to your smartphone via a secure connection made with a magnetic anchor that you actually have to attach to your phone. It’s just a magnetic metal ring that goes around the lens of your smartphone upon which your lens will sit and attach firmly! The ring itself is quite slim and does remove easily. Lensbaby even includes duplicates of the rings in case you have multiple devices or if you find that you need another (I was quite glad to see that because you do need the ring to really make this function and having spares is important)!
Obviously you can tell from these images that the LM-10 is a large lens! I will say it’s very heavy-duty and well-built, but still relatively light. It comes with a nice lens cover connected to a mini lanyard so you can attach it to a keychain or whatnot and easily take it with you. My only drawback with this lens is that in order to use it, I had to remove my iPhone from its case. For some people this won’t be an issue, and for me it was only a slight issue, but it was a con in my mind! Now, this lens is actually pretty pricey for a smartphone lens, coming in at $69.95. You have to keep in mind that this lens is a very well-built little tool, but I know for some of you, that price is going to be a deal breaker, but I do believe there are some of you that will actually find this lens to be a pretty good value, especially if you are someone who does not own a DSLR and has no intentions of purchasing one anytime soon. For those of you who do really use your smartphone as a primary means to take photos, either of your family and friends to document life for project life, or as a means of artistic expression to share on your social media, this is something I would put on my wish list this holiday season because it really is so unlike anything else and creates images that are pretty breathtaking in my opinion!
So, what do you guys think? Would you ever use a dedicated iPhone lens to take pictures? Did you like the pictures I took with the LM-10 Lens? Let me know what you think the in comments below and if you have any other products you would like me to review for this series!
Holiday shopping, for many of us, can be something of a complicated process. If you have a large family or many people to buy for, purchases can start to add up quickly and keeping track of what you have purchased for whom can become really tricky when you are busy hiding boxes of presents in remote hidey holes in your home! You’ve probably asked yourself a time or two, is there a better way to manage all this? Well, yes, glad you asked, because I have assembled a list of 6 must have apps to help with your holiday shopping. Apps to help you save some cash, apps to help you keep track of what you are buying for whom and apps to help you have a little fun while you’re making those few hundreds of stops to the mall in the next few weeks! And best of all? All these apps are absolutely free!
1. Shopkick: I have written about Shopkick before, so I will try to keep this short and sweet, but basically, Shopkick is an app that you can use to help you earn rewards just for shopping and visiting your favorite stores. Through Shopkick, retailers market and promote their stores and products and offer Shopkick users “kicks” for various activities, like making a purchase, going to check out a specific product, and even just for walking into the store! These kicks add up and then you can redeem them for gift cards to a variety of different stores! So, with Shopkick, you can turn all those last-minute errands and repeat visits into real rewards for you!
2. Price Scan: Ever find an item in a store and then wonder if there was a better price at a competitive retailer or online? Well, with Price Scan you can scan a barcode with your phone and instantly find the best deals available for the product! Simple as that! This is a great resource to use if you are like me and enjoy “browsing” for gifts before you actually intend on making purchases because you can keep track of the gifts and products in the app and come back to them over time to see if prices have changed, making sure you are getting the best deal possible!
3. Wunderlist: If you have a long list of friends and family to buy for, keep your thoughts and purchases in order with Wunderlist. Touted as being one of the best list making apps available, Wunderlist has a simple and clean interface with just the essential list making necessities to help you keep your list in order. Use the app to keep track of who you are purchasing for, gift ideas and even budgets for each present. Now you have no excuse for purchasing duplicate gifts or going over budget!
4. Cartwheel: If you are already a frequent Target customer, you may already be familiar with the Cartwheel app. It is a dedicated app for Target shoppers to find instant savings on items in their cart while they are shopping. Simply scan the barcode of your item while shopping to find any extra deals or instant coupons that you can apply to the item. Once you go to checkout, give your phone to the associate at checkout and they will scan the custom barcode in your app and apply all the discounts and coupons you found while shopping! It’s pretty easy and can save you some extra money, especially if you are like me and bad about using coupons!
5. My Package:Online shopping for the holidays has grown exponentially over the past few years, so chances are you are going to have more than a few items coming in via the mail! Keep track of these packages to make sure you don’t loose anything but entering your tracking number and an item description into the app. The app will then begin to track your package with its geographic location and alert you as it makes its way to you! You can even set up delivery alerts, so you can be sure to check the mail before anyone else at home and tuck away any important packages like the gift giving ninja you are!
6. Retail Me Not:You may have already heard of or used the coupon site, Retail Me Not, but they also have a great app that can help find you coupons and deals for both in-store and online purchases! Add your favorite stores to the app or let the app track your location to find great deals near you at a wide variety of retailers. Again, this is an awesome app, especially for people who like to hunt for great deals or are always forgetting about coupons!
I hope you found this list of apps helpful as you proceed with your holiday shopping! I know we are all trying to save extra money where possible and make this stressful time of year a little easier and especially more enjoyable! If you have any other must have shopping apps that you think I need to know about, please let me know in the comments! Of course, don’t be stingy- go ahead and share this post in your social media feeds so your friends and family can make use of these great apps as well. I’m sure they will be very thankful you did!
Well, well, November is here and I have to say, I wasn’t really wasn’t expecting it this soon! This is an important month for me and my family. For one, my wedding anniversary is in November, the 10th to be more specific, and I am slightly ashamed to admit that I was sitting around watching TV with my husband the other day when we got on the topic of upcoming holidays and events and totally forgot that our wedding anniversary was around the corner. It’s not that I forgot the date of the anniversary, but more like I failed to realize that it was not months away as I had been thinking, but just a few short weeks away. For the past few years, my husband and I have gone on vacation to celebrate the day, but this year we were rather late to the game when scheduling our vacation and instead of going away in November, we are going away in December, so that may have something to do with the whole not remembering thing. November also happens to contain a heck of a lot of birthdays. My husbands for one and then a handful of other miscellaneous family members. For a few years, November was also very important to me as I had regularly participated in Nanowrimo, so I still get anxious at the end of October in anticipation for that, even though I skipped Nano last year and may very well do so again this year. Of course, last but certainly not least, November means Thanksgiving and Black Friday, at least it does in the U.S. I love Thanksgiving because I love to cook, and for the past few years I have been happily preparing Thanksgiving dinners for my family. This year, I am even hosting my first Thanksgiving at my apartment for part of my family, so this will be a pretty important holiday for me this year! Then of course, the next day, all bloated and hungover from food, I will partake in a mini shopping spree and then come home to set up my Christmas Tree!
So, this month I have a good many fun and exciting things planned for the blog and for my YouTube channel as well! First of all, I have put together a collection of must have apps to make your holiday shopping much easier, more organized and hopefully, save you some serious cash! I’m also going to give you all a run down of my favorite Thanksgiving recipes and the menu that I am planning on for my holiday party! If talk of menus and shopping is already giving you anxiety, I’ve got that covered too with a little pep talk about how to manage stress during this highly stressful time of year! Don’t worry, planner folks! I also have some wonderful plans in the works for you and your filofax! I’ve got some ideas for planner personalization and a number of new printables on the way! Excited yet? I know I am!
For now, take a moment to just savor this early November feeling. Maybe take some time to write down a few goals for how you can enjoy this time of year and also manage the daily mess of life in a reasonable balance! Go ahead, just write down three little goals you have for this month. Here, I’ll go first!
Goal 1: To create content of substance and of value to my readers to help them through the end of the year!
Goal 2: To find something good in everyday, no matter how crazy it gets and to reflect on how Thankful I am for my life!
Goal 3: To make reasonably healthy food choices during a time when I normally feel food takes control of me!
See, that wasn’t too bad? Now, if you would like to share your 3 goals in the comments below, feel free! I would love to see what you’re priorities are for this month and it may even inspire and influence some of the content I create for you all! Oh, one more thing I want to mention is that you can still download my free 30 Days of Thankfulness printable to help motivate you to live with more gratefulness in your heart during this special time of year! So make sure to hop on over to my shop and check it out!
Thank you all so much for reading and I wish you all the best of luck this month as you prepare with family and friends for what I hope will be a wonderful holiday season!
October was a really great month! I have to say, although I believe the days passed much too quickly, I feel like I have never had a more wonderful or productive month. I know I have said this before and I think I am beginning to sound like a broken record, but I really think that my 31 Things to Do in October printable was a major reason I was able to fit so much into my month and almost stay on track making sure that I was constantly in the fall spirit enjoying my days, the change in weather, and making special memories with friends and family! I am so pleased to know that so many of you also downloaded this printable and have also been enjoying it in your planner, utilizing it as a tool to also help you make similar memories and enjoy the little things that make the month of October special.
As you may have already seen, I posted my November printable, 30 Days of Thankfulness, yesterday, and I am hoping that this new printable also helps to keep me in a positive and grateful mindset during the month of November. I am already overwhelmed with gratefulness by the response from members of the planner community who have already gone ahead and downloaded this new printable. I know gratitude is a topic that comes up often in the planner community, and I think this printable will be a wonderful way to help us all take a moment to see what’s truly important in life and show our gratitude for our lives through thoughtful, well intentioned actions!
So, you are probably wondering what else I have been loving this month, product-wise? Well, to be completely honest, there really have only been a handful of items that I have been obsessed with this month since my main priority has been focusing on experiences and not “stuff” this month.
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My first monthly favorite has been my Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure nail polishes, yet again. I have been loving wearing a combination of three of my fall favorites, Pat on the Black, Almost Almond, and Jungle Gem. Next up is the lipstick I have been loving. Since it’s fall I have been all about a purple lip, and I picked up the Milani Violet Volt lipstick this month and have been loving the color! I also picked up a new drugstore foundation this month, after my long time favorite, the Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum Foundation, ran out. I ended up choosing the L’Oreal Visible Lift Serum Absolute Advanced Age Reversing Makeup, which is a total mouthful, but has been working wonderfully for my dry skin! My last beauty related favorite has been a perfume, my Dior Addict Eau Fraiche, which I nearly complete forgot I owned because it had been tucked away in the back of my beauty closet for months!
As for non beauty favorites, this month I purchased my first fur vest after deciding that I really wanted one this year to add to my wardrobe! I did some research on different options, decided on the quality I wanted and the price range I was willing to spend within and then found this beautiful black fur vest at Neiman’s! It’s currently on sale as well, so if you are in the market for a high quality fur vest, I do recommend this one! Also, this month I was lucky enough to receive a Fluoro Pink Original Filofax in personal size to review from Filofax! I’m not sure if its too early to say, but I have to admit, I think I may have found planner peace with this beauty! Keep an eye out on my YouTube channel for a set up video coming soon! Finally, my last favorite for this month has been my macaron planner charms that I purchased from an Etsy Shop called Mahal Made! If you love macarons or sweets in general and would like to purchase some cute little charms for your planner, I highly recommend this shop!
Of course, it wouldn’t me a monthly favorites without a video, so in case you would prefer to see me do a little show and tell, here is my October Favorites video linked above for your viewing pleasure!
Now, it’s your turn. Let me know what made your October favorites list! Do you have any suggestions for me of products I should try? Oh, also, if you were one of the members of the planner community who downloaded my 31 Things to Do in October Printable, let me know how you enjoyed it this month? How many of the items were you able to check off? I’d love to know, so leave me a comment or send me a tweet or Instagram picture!
On my iPhone is a new monthly feature on Strange & Charmed where I give you a peak into what I have been loving on my iPhone for the month! Covering topics like apps, games, podcasts, music, websites, books and more, I hope this series helps you all discover new and exciting content out there that can be enjoyed from your iPhone! To stay up to date with this series, make sure to follow the On My iPhone tag!
So, it’s officially fall and now, one of the best months of the year is coming to a close. I know I have already waxed poetic about how much I love October, and although I am very sad to see it go, I know that it was a very fun-filled month for me! I made sure to pack a lot of fun fall and Halloween activities into the month and I have plenty of memories to look back on and to celebrate! I, of course, made sure to collect a few awesome internet favorites on my iPhone this month, some of them were old favorites rediscovered, and others were some new releases that I am excited to share with you!
Currently Playing, Snapchat: At about mid-month, I finally jumped on the bandwagon and created a snapchat account. I have been loving sharing impromptu photos and little behind the scenes glimpses of my life on my snapchat story! If you have snapchat, make sure to follow me and I will add you back. My username is MissTrenchcoat, of course!
Currently Reading, The Brief: I know I have mentioned my love for Levo League in the past, but they have recently released a daily e-newsletter that shares a dose of news and pop culture fun to act as a pick me up to your workday, Monday thru Friday! If you could use a simple and short little workday email to help brighten the day or help entertain you during your commute home, feel free to check out The Brief for yourself!
Currently Watching, Gilmore Girls:This month has been an epic TV month for me, ever since I discovered that all the seasons of Gilmore Girls are now available on Netflix! I loved Gilmore Girls when I was younger and I am very excited to be catching up on one of my favorite shows. So, if you were a big fan of Gilmore Girls in high school and college, definitely add the show to your instant queue!
Currently Surfing: Facebook Groups:Specifically, I have been getting back into the Filofax and Planner groups on Facebook ever since my love and obsession with my planners was reignited with a few new planners I was sent to review! If you are interested in joining any of these groups, I will go ahead and link a few of my favorites below, but I must warn you that these groups are incredibly addictive and I suggest you don’t join any of these groups unless you are super serious about participating!
Currently Listening, The Raven: One of my favorite October and Halloween themed activities is listening to the audio recording of The Raven, narrated by Christopher Walken. It’s available via YouTube and I love spending a quiet fall evening at home listening to Walken’s creepy but festive voice, reciting this creepy yet festive literary classic!
My new Kate Spade iPhone case as pictured with my awesome Fluoro Pink Filofax!
Oh and of course, one final little thing on my iPhone… my new Kate Spade iPhone case! I picked this up at the outlet the other week and I think it’s absolutely adorable for fall!
Don’t miss my On My iPhone video for this month as well! I know I missed making a video last month due to scheduling issues, but I do go into greater detail during my videos than I do on my blog posts, so if you want to know more, click through to the video!
So, now it’s your turn! What have you been loving on your iPhone or iPad this month? Any great new apps that have caught your attention? Let me know in the comments or better yet, send me a tweet to let me know!
As a blogger, SEO is one of the most intimidating aspects of managing a website. For one, it feels like everyone talks about it like the be all and end all of running a successful online site, and apparently they’re speaking some unknown foreign language throwing around terms that any uninitiated webmaster or blogger would find confusing! It took me a number of years researching the subject to really understand what SEO was all about, and once I understood all the technical terminology and elements involved, it ended up being much less complicated than I once feared. Furthermore, I discovered that as my blogging skills increased, I was naturally incorporating aspects of SEO in my posts without even realizing it! So, you may already implement certain rules of SEO in your current blog without even knowing it, which I hope is something of a relief to you, as I know it was to me! So, I thought it would be helpful if I put together a post on the subject of SEO, demystifying the term and giving you 10 important tips for bloggers to use to better implement SEO into their sites!
What is SEO?
SEO stands for search engine optimization. It’s essentially the process by which you affect the visibility of a website or webpage in organic (aka unpaid) search results. As a blogger, search engines like Google and Yahoo are a major source of traffic to your site. After all, when you first start out with a blog and don’t yet have a large following or significant web presence, you will begin to get readers and an audience via search engines. Someone out there on the web is searching for something, an answer to a question, a product review, an opinion piece on their favorite show, and they come across your blog via the search results. Obviously, if you have ever done a simple google search before, you know that a single search can yield hundreds of pages of results, and your goal, through using SEO techniques, is to get your relevant information higher up on the search results list to increase the chances of your content being seen and clicked on, bringing traffic to your blog!
Why SEO is important?
SEO is important because there are certain things you can do to make sure that your blog posts get seen by more people who are searching for content! You really don’t have to know any coding or have any computer science skills to make sure you are implementing some of the most important techniques. If you have been running a blog for a little while, you probably already have the skills necessary to take advantage of SEO!
10 SEO Tips for Bloggers!
1. Focus on creating high quality content that people are searching for.
This one may seem like a no-brainer to any serious blogger, but you’d be surprised how many blogs and sites create underwhelming content. If you want your content to be seen, you need to create interesting content that people would be willing to spend time experiencing. It also helps if you are creating content that falls in line with what people are searching for. For example, many people use search engines to find answers to questions or to solve problems in their own lives. If you write informational content that helps to answer common questions and issues that may be effecting large groups of people, it is more likely that people will find your content, enjoy it and want to become a regular reader!
2. Writer longer blog posts.
Once upon a time, there was a specific word count that was necessary for webpages to boost their visibility in search, and to some extent, there is still a rule of thumb out there that you should make sure each page of your site contains at least 500 words. However, newer SEO stipulations explain that longer blog posts, in general, do much better in search than shorter ones. I realize this is a little bit of a grey area, but the point is, whenever possible, write longer blog posts. Take the extra time to create a little more content, add a few more points to your article, whatever you need to do to make it longer, that will help when it comes to SEO!
3. Use clever and descriptive titles for your posts.
This is one of those common sense rules of SEO. When you are titling your blog post make sure it adequately describes the content of the post. Furthermore, I always believe it’s best if you create a more clever headline that may include a play on words, alliteration or a numbered list (ex. 10 Ways to Clean Wine Stains).
4. Use images as often as possible throughout your posts.
Image search results are just as important as text search results and pictures do so much to improve the content of a post. Not only do pictures illustrate the content of a post, but they are help to develop the aesthetic appeal of your site. I know when I am searching online, I often give preference to links with images than text alone, even when the text is relevant to my search. A picture is worth 1,000, so use them as much as you can in your blog posts!
5. Make sure to name your images descriptively and also include alt text.
To ensure that your pictures show up in relevant search results, make sure to give your images descriptive names. Instead of IMG_123, give your image a name that explains what people are looking at, that way you increase the likelihood of your images being seen during search. Now, as far as alt text goes (alt text = alternate text), this is an option that you may see in your blog’s content management system when you go to upload new media to a blog post. The alternate text is simply a spot for an additional description that may be more matter of fact than the name of the file. Whenever possible, make sure to add alt text to your images. It doesn’t show up on screen when you publish a post, but it does help boost your images in search.
6. Use descriptive categories and tags for your posts and make sure your permalink are structured by category and blog post title (not by date!)
When you are writing your blog post, you have the option to add categories and tags to your post that help to give a bit of extra description and organization to the content. Make use of both of these features by assigning your post to a category that will act as a means of sorting your post by content, and tags that will help identify key words or terms that describe your post. Make sure to use logical, easy to understand categories, instead of personalized terms that may only make sense to you or frequent readers. For example, file a recipe post under “Recipe” not “Alexis Cooks” because more people will be searching for the term recipe than a more obscure phrase or term. Also, when selecting the structure for your permalinks (the permanent web address that will link back to your post) choose a structure based on your categories and blog post titles, not by a date structure! A category structured permalink may look something like this yourblogname.com/recipe/WorldsBestMeatballs, while a date structure would read more like yourblogname.com/2014/10/26/WorldsBestMeatballs. I think you can see, that the first example is much clearer for people to understand, and that means it’s also clearer for search engines to understand when filing search results!
7. Share your links through social media.
Once you have done all the hard work of creating and writing a great blog post, your work doesn’t end once you hit publish! You need to make sure you put the links to your awesome content out there on the internet for people to find and for search engines to link back to! The more links to your blog floating out there in the web, the better, but make sure not to inundate your social media feed with an endless stream of links. I think a reasonable rule of thumb is not to post more than 1-2 links per hour per social media feed!
8. Own your own domain.
In case you didn’t know, it’s always better to own your own domain than to stick with a third party blogging service domain. Once I moved my blog to strangecharmed.com from strangeandcharmed.blogspot.com, my traffic grew rapidly! Although that .blogspot.com or .wordpress.com may seem harmless, it actually overcomplicates your domain and makes it harder for people to find your blog because its actually just a sub-webpage of a larger website. Even if you can’t go the self-hosted wordpress route that I recommend, make sure to spend the extra few dollars a year to buy your own custom domain, even if you stay with blogspot or other similar blogging platforms.
9. Choose a blog layout that shows your complete post on the page- don’t make people click through for additional page views!
We have all been to blogs and websites that only display a summary or the first few lines of a post in their feed, enticing you to click through to the full post if you want to continue reading. Some people consider this something of a nuisance, preferring to click out of the website rather than to pay the toll of an additional page view before any real value has been acquired, but research is now showing that this style of layout actually hurts page views in your SEO rankings as well as annoying your readers. Remember, if it takes a real person an extra step to get to your full content, it also adds an extra step for the search engine as well, and when push comes to shove, your content may be spot on, but if you are putting a barrier between your readers and your content, your traffic and SEO ranking will suffer. If you are using this sort of layout, you should be able to change the default in your websites “reading” options by changing your posts to Full Text instead of Summary.
10. Reach out to other bloggers and do guest posts to increase your inbound links.
Having multiple inbound links is another way to bolster your rankings in SEO, and the best and most legitimate way to do this is via guest blogging on other sites. Not only will guest blogging give you the opportunity to get your content out in front of a new audience that may then begin to drive traffic to your site, but the actual links from other blogs to your blog will show up in search results and improve your site’s overall SEO performance! So make some valuable blogging connections and put your name out there beyond your own little corner of the internet, and you will see a myriad of different benefits!
So, those are my 10 SEO Tips for Bloggers! Like I said earlier, most of these tips are the sorts of things you end up doing as you grow your blog and improve your blogging skills overall, but it’s good to know how much certain techniques are actually helping you beyond the obvious! If you enjoyed this post and you are a blogger, feel free to link back to this post from your own blog and share these important tips with your blogger friends! Also, leave a comment down below if you have any other great SEO tips you think would be helpful to share!
Welcome back for another installment of My Productivity Playlist, aka Whistle While You Work 2.0! Since it’s October, I thought it would be super fun and festive if I themed out this playlist to fall favorites and haunting Halloween sounds! I’ve gone ahead and made another Spotify Playlist in order to share these tunes with you, and it seems that you guys like this idea because many of you told me so and began following me on Spotify which I do appreciate. Plus all you followers had the added bonus of actually accessing this playlist before I published this post!
Toccata and Fugue in D Minor by Johann Sebastian Bach
The Phantom of the Opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber
I Put A Spell on You by Nina Simone
Witchcraft by Frank Sinatra
Montagues and Capulets by Sergei Prokofiev
Sweet Transvestite by The Rocky Horror Picture Show
Told you it was festive! I hope you guys enjoy this playlist and of course I want to know what you’re listening to right now! So, leave me a comment or go ahead and send me a tweet and tell me what music you have been loving this month to get into the Halloween spirit or just to help get you through the day!
I recently received a very lovely comment from a reader and member of my online community about my life and the work I do creating inspiring and motivational content for others. The comment was truly sweet, and ever since I received it, I have been thinking a lot about my life and the way it must seem to others who follow me online. From the outside looking in, I seem to be living a very charmed life! By all means, I feel incredibly grateful and thankful for my life, because I know that I do live extremely well and am overall, incredibly happy with my situation in life. That doesn’t mean I don’t have bad days like everyone else, or struggle with things like anxiety or depression from time to time, but I know I lead a charmed life. Hence this blog is called Strange & Charmed because it encompasses the duality of my quirky yet blessed life, but I think you already knew that.
What you don’t know about me, the part I am not so open about sharing, is my past, most notably my life before I began blogging in 2008, and even further back than that. Truth be told, as much as I live a wonderful, happy life today, things were not always going so well for me. Growing up was pretty rough for me. For most of my childhood my family was lower middle class, my parents divorced when I was young and from that time onward, I was always moving from one place to another, never setting down roots or establishing friendships in any one place for too long. At various points in my life, I was exposed to some decidedly unfortunate aspects of life, like addiction, abuse, neglect and of course, poverty. It’s a little hard for me to even admit that here to you all on my blog because to be completely honest, it’s painful to even remember those times. However, I think it’s important for me to share this with you guys because we have all gone through bad times in our lives and although some of us have experienced different struggles, we all have them and they are all painful!
What I want you to really take away from this is that if happy well-adjusted Alexis can come from a a place in life where she didn’t have very much and then turn around and make something of her life- something lovely and wonderful- then you certainly can too! I gave it some thought, and put together a list of some of the things that helped me to get where I am today. If you are struggling right now or in a rebuilding phase, hopefully these tips will help you get inspired to make changes in your own life in order to fulfill your dreams and potential.
1. Make a plan: So life isn’t great for you right now, but it doesn’t have to be that way! The first step to getting the charmed life you want is to make a plan. What can you do right now to make your life better? What is lacking in your life that you need to acquire to come to a better place? Figure out what you need and make a plan on how to achieve it!
2. Get to work: If you want something, you have to work for it, it’s that simple! I know this can be a scary concept sometimes because it means that we actually have to take control and get things done ourselves. Your wonderful life is out there waiting for you, but you need to work for it- the world isn’t just going to roll over and hand it to you.
3. Ask for help: I think one of the major things people get wrong when they are trying to build their lives is that they feel like they have to go it alone, as if having help diminishes what you have or can accomplish. This just isn’t true. Don’t be afriad to ask for help if you need it. Sometimes, we don’t know exactly what we need from others, but reaching out for a lifeline can often bring unexpected and positive results.
4. Get out of your comfort zone: We all know that change isn’t easy, and it certainly isn’t comfortable. However, if you want to bring change to your life, you are going to have to get outside your comfort zone and be prepared to feel very uneasy and unsure. Stick to your plan and understand that just because you can feel the pain of change, doesn’t mean that you are hurting yourself. In the long run, a little discomfort during the process is much better than staying in a bad situation.
5. Replace bad habits with new ones: Often times, we are our own worst enemy in our lives. If you complacently play the role of innocent victim, your life will never change. Instead, try to pin-point the areas in your life where you feel helpless, and make changes in your habits to develop confidence. For example, if you feel like you are always working but never have money and like to blame “bad luck” when you get a speeding ticket or a bill goes missing, acknowledge that the common denominator in those situations is you and that you need to become more responsible with your money by getting into the habit of paying bills early or making sure you practice safe driving. Whatever bad habits are holding you back, acknowledge your part in them and do what you can to build new habits in their place.
6. Always be ready and willing to learn: I believe that the people who have the greatest lives are the people who always keep their eyes open for new opportunities to learn. You seriously never know what important life lessons are around the corner, but if you walk around with blinders on all day you will miss them and in turn may miss important signs from the universe that may help you make the most of your life. Be open and always prepared to absorb new information and messages that can bring greater insight to your life.
7. Mix it up: They say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. If you have made your life changing plan and have gone ahead and broken out of your comfort zone but you still don’t see changes yielding any results, mix it up. Don’t be afraid to try something new, or to approach your problems from a new angle. Remember, the path of life isn’t a straight line, you may have to take a few turns from time to time!
8. Have a back up plan: So, you have made your plan, and you are determined to stick to it, but things just aren’t working. This is why you need a backup plan- something else to fall back on if your original plan doesn’t pan out. After all, it’s important not to rely too much on one single course of action. Like they say “don’t put all your eggs in one basket!” Options are good, just so long as you aren’t bouncing between options too frequently!
9. Stay inspired: It could take years for you to see major changes in your life, at least, I know it did for me! Don’t let this deter you or cause you to loose hope in your dreams. After all, this is life, and your in it for the long-haul! Make sure to constantly look for motivation and inspiration for your journey so you don’t loose steam. Even when things get tough, and they will get tough as you try to make major life changes, remember this quote by Kenji Miyazawa “We must embrace paid and burn it as fuel for our journey.”
10. Share what you have learned: As you take this journey of self-advancement, you will certainly learn a thing or two along the way. I believe that what we have learned, we must also share with others. Although this post may be titled “Secrets of a Charmed Life” there is nothing “secret” about it. The formula for a charmed life isn’t something that’s hidden from people, in fact, if you really pay attention, you are receiving signs and messages to uplift and advance you all the time. It’s just a matter of believing in yourself and trusting that you will end up where you need to be in life. As you go along on this journey, take a moment to stop and share your knowledge with others. It’s almost like leaving a trail of breadcrumbs behind so that you do not get lost along the way and so that others can also find you and see the direction you have headed.
Now, to help you guys remember these little lessons, I have created a lovely free printable with a book mark, some journaling cards, some page tabs, and deco flags! Like I said above, you will need a lot of inspiration for your journey, and I hope these small reminders help you stay inspired. For best results, I suggest printing these on 98 bright, 32lb paper or a nice heavy card stock if you have it handy! If you enjoy this printable, I may start making more of these sorts of things and including them in my blog posts as little mementos that you can keep with you in your planner, a notebook, or on your inspiration board! Make sure to let me know what you think and what sorts of printables you would like in the future, and of course, make sure to share this in your social media! I would also love to see pictures of these journaling cards and deco items at home in your planners and notebooks, so please make sure to upload a picture to Instagram and tag me!
It has been quite a while since my last real What’s in my bag post! I know I did the back to school version at the end of the summer, but that was more of a hypothetical on what I would carry with me if I was going back to school! Even so, I know you guys are like me and love a great bag and just have to see what is inside. Handbags are just one of those things that I think women are just naturally curious about. On on hand, they are a very personal item that houses the important items that get us through our days, and on the other, they can be a fashion statement of our personality and taste. I know anytime I see a new What’s in my bag post, I immediately feel the need to reorganize and reflect on my own handbag status. I find myself questioning how my own bag and it’s contents are working for me. Do I still like the shape? Is it the right size for my needs? How does the size of the bag work with my body frame? Am I happy with the hardware? Does the brand represent me and my aesthetic values? Ultimately, it leads to the question of do I want a new bag?
I know some of these questions may seem a little intense or overly analytical, but if you’re a person who is spending a few hundred dollars (or more!) on a handbag, I think these are important questions to ask yourself. Even if you don’t normally purchase “designer” handbags, I still think these sorts of questions are important because at the end of the day you are spending money on a fundamental item of your wardrobe, and when it comes to purses, the sky’s the limit when it comes to available variety. So, that’s why I wanted to share with you a very helpful little Style Guide to Handbags that was recently published by Rue La la. If you’re thinking about a new bag or just want to get a little more information and history on styles you already own, I definitely recommend checking out this free reference!
Now, back to my bag and what’s inside because I know you’re dying to know! Well, for about 6 months now, I have been carrying the super chic Phillip Lim 3.1 Pashli!t It is by far the most expensive bag I have ever owned, and was definitely a purchase I put a lot of thought into. According to the Rue La La Handbag 101 Guide, I would say this bag is somewhere between a Tote and a Satchel, which happen to be two of my favorite styles of handbag because you can just fit so much into them and look chic doing so! One of my favorite parts of this bag is the material, it’s a highly durable, almost pebble style leather that wears beautifully and really holds up well to the daily grind.
You can stuff quite a bit into this bag and I really do a good job at pushing the capacity limits! Since this is my “Blogger” bag, I use this to carry around not only my necessities, but also important tech items like my DSLR (not pictured) and my Macbook Air for working on the go! I carry my DSLR in a microfiber camera bag by Mod, so it’s protected while traveling, and my Macbook Air sleeps in a Michael Kors sleeve!
Since this bag lacks any organizational elements or a variety of compartments, I end up carrying most of my necessities in pouchesfrom Forever 21. I use one for general necessities and one for beauty!
Of course, I absolutely can’t leave home without a few essentials, like my iPhone 5 and my new Filofax Original Fluoro Pink planner, that keep me organized and on task when I am getting down to the nitty-gritty of my blog to-dos!
So, of course to go along with this post, I also filmed an updated What’s In my Bag video! Make sure to check it out if you want to see more exact details of the contents of my bag as well as the contents of my pouches! Make sure to check out the Rue La La Handbag 101 Guide online as well– it’s a great little resource for handbag lovers, so make sure to share it with your friends!
xoxo,
This post was created in conjunction with Rue La La to promote their new Handbags and Purses Guide. Thank you so much to Rue La La for creating this guide and for giving me the opportunity to share it with my readers!
