Confidence | How Pinterest Can Help + It's Free!

When I started out blogging, I was in my late teens and I had no idea who I was.  I didn't even realize I had no idea who I was.  I just started blogging about my writing and general topics that interested me.  I was stiff and starched and spoke from what I thought was an ivory tower (it was kind of a mole hill).  Ugh!  Who wants to be friends with THAT?

Fast forward to the last six months.  In that space of time I've a) discovered my ideal makeup look, b) discovered my wardrobe look, c) shaken off some of the erudite dust of my blog and become a lot more open and confident with the whole kit and caboodle.  AND I NEVER THOUGHT I EVER WOULD.  But here I am.

"Okay, that's nice, Jenny, but HOW YOU DO DAT."  Oh, I'm glad you asked.  

listen to your preferences!

I recently started an exercise on Pinterest in which I pin JUST the items that really say "JENNY."  Then I look over them and ask myself, "What are the unifying threads here?"  Turns out, they tend to be BLACK + WHITE + GOLD + CHAMPAGNE colours; also, minimalism with clean lines and tasteful pops of elegance.  That's me.  I've finally begun to discover ME!  DO YOU KNOW HOW FREEING THAT IS?  It's the bee's knees!

"OKAY.  We hear you, Jenny, but I like a LOT of stuff.  What if they're all mismatched and DON'T have a unifying thread?"  I've got the answer to that, too.

 edit! edit! edit!

You have to learn to edit yourself.  Like you, I like lots of things!  But when it comes to style and aesthetic, I've learned to be CRITICAL and edit out what DOESN'T match.  No shade thrown on anything else, I'm just here to be a holistic, unified entity - especially online!

here's how pinterest can help!

Start a new board.  This board is YOU.  Hunt down only the images which really speak to YOU.  Cosy bookshop settings?  Vintage lace?  Steaming cups of coffee?  Muted, neutral colours?  And edit! edit! edit!  Pretty soon you're going to see a similarity in the variety of the images you pin.  Pretty soon you're going to know just what to look for.  Pretty soon, you're going to have a clearer image of who YOU are!

drown out the noise

A lot of self-doubt comes from the constant buffeting we take from other people and their images of themselves.  We're tossed about, trying to be one of them, and ourselves, all at the same time - and we just end up not knowing who we really are!  So shut off the noise.  Focus on yourself.  Once you know who YOU are, you're not going to feel that pressure nearly so badly.  You get your self-confidence, you get your own voice, you become a stronger person.  You become you.

Okay, got it?  Now go forth and start your boards!  SHARE YOUR BOARDS!  I want to learn who you are!  I want to see you discover yourselves because YOU ARE AMAZING!

all images via pinterest because where else