What if we don't finish first?
Heeyyy Good Girls,
Next month (4/14/20 to be exact) will make one year since I launched my Good Girls Finish First platform. A few weeks ago, I woke up and decided to throw the brand's name out the window!
I know...I know....it's weird that I say this now after preaching about us Good Girls finishing first for the 11 months, lol but allow me to explain what led to this change.
This time last year, I was so hype to finally launch my blog….my brand...my baby. It was exciting to share what I'd been brainstorming on, and day dreaming about, for so long.
There was a nice high I rode on, feeling accomplished and inspired to create uplifting content. Now, as much as I would love to give an inspiring testimony of how productive I was...I’m actually here to tell you that as quick as I took off, I crashed and burned!
In true social media fashion, I became an expert of just making ish look good for the gram. (Consistently posting your highs, venting to the group chat about your lows, and eventually just taking a “mental break” off and on for months). This is the vicious cycle so many of you have also experienced. I see it on my TL and story all the time, and I am here to tell you YOU’RE NOT ALONE!
This roller coaster of creating and maintaining a side hustle can be a beautiful nightmare. Some days you feel motivated, others days you want to throw your phone out of the closest window. That’s where accountability comes into play, and if you don’t have that person/team in your corner then you should re-evaluate who you vent to.
For me, it’s my close friends and fiance’ that allow me to vent, but then challenge me to stay solutions oriented. Having a circle of accountability is vital if you're not the type of stay 10000% on track.
Last year, there were so many times I could feel bae’s side eye glaring at me, when I started to complain about anything regarding GoodGirlsFinishFirst. He would quickly remind me that I was just making excuses and the real issue was that I stopped putting in the same effort I started out with. As much as I hated to admit it….he was so right!
Eventually, I decided that I needed to be honest with myself, and figure out the root of my issue. I was lacking the focus I once had in creating new content and couldn't really pin point why. Perhaps, my attention was dispersed to too many other things going on in my life.
2019 was a year of huge change for me. I don't think I ever gave myself time and space to sit and process it all. My entire life shifted in just seven months: I moved to a new state, went from a long distance relationship to living together, started a new job, (then quit) started another new job in a completely new career field, got engaged, also had to find a new church, nail tech, hair dresser, etc...all while still traveling in between and trying to save money. WHEW!
I never considered how all these happening changes so fast could negatively affect me. Since these were all the things I used to pray for, I just thought of the change as positive, not realizing that I needed to take time for myself to really process it all and figure out how to maintain balance in this new life. If not, then there would always be something lacking....whether it's my blog, my job, my relationship, etc. Everything in my life needed to be prioritized and balanced.
This is what led me to rebrand the old name. With everyone trying to find their way to success, it can sometimes feel like a race. If that were the case, then some of us Good Girls wouldn't finish first. Most of us would be so fed up, barely making it across the finish line, with one shoe on, and our hair sweated out!
That's why we can't be in competition with each other. We just have to focus on doing our best and reminding ourselves to keep going. As Good Girls, we have to embrace our imperfections and push forward knowing that year round...it is always our season!
No matter what pit stop you're at along your journey, I pray that you'll never be too busy to stop, reflect, and speak life into yourself. I also want to encourage you to celebrate others' achievements, we have to hype each other up for the big and small wins! Staying positive and uplifting others should come natural, you don't need a reason. There's never a bad time to be positive, it's always Good Girl Season!
On a final note, I want to point out that it's okay if you have ideas and later decide to reinvent them. It's also okay if things don't all come together on your time. For example, I planned to do a grand relaunch, with a new logo, promo video, color scheme, etc etc! But after a lot of setbacks, I realized that your content doesn't have to be perfect, it just needs to be authentic. So that's what I'm focused on. Thank you for your continued support, stay tuned for more of this rebrand!
xoxo,
Shay
Be sure to give your thoughts in a comment below or on IG. I would love to hear your feedback!