Regrouping, Rebranding + Reinventing

I just got home early Monday morning from the BlogPaws conference in Nashville. Attending the conference this year as both an attendee and BlogPaws Ambassador was a fabulous experience! It was exhausting in the best way possible! I have lots to recap and share with you but that is reserved for a different post.  You can connect with me on Instagram until then.  This post is a long time coming and now that I’ve had some time away to regroup I’m ready to talk about it with you.

Last year, I hit a wall with blogging. I would go to write a post and the words just wouldn’t come out. It was happening not only here but on my other blog, Irresistible Icing.  I knew that this was much more than just a case of classic writer’s block. A few months passed by and the feelings didn’t subside. I kept pushing through but those feelings just kept on coming back. My breaking point came earlier this year when I was so busy that I forgot to sign a contract and lost a really good opportunity. Talk about a low moment. #EpicFAIL! That’s when I knew I HAD to start making some changes!

I started scaling back on how much I was doing. I had to evaluate everything on my plate. I was running three blogs, managing social media clients, working a full-time job as an instructional designer AND trying to fit in some kind of life in between all of that. I realized that I was doing good but not truly killing it in any one of those areas. I won’t bore you with all the details but I dramatically cut out a lot of social media and online “noise.” I also made the decision to shut down my local blog because it just wasn’t aligned with my long term vision.

There was still something keeping me up at night.

Listen To That Small Voice That Gently Nudges You . . .

Since the very beginning of my blogging adventure I’ve wanted to share MORE of my story and help other women feel irresistible. I’ve always wanted to combine my instructional design “day job” of with my side hustle but yet I’ve allowed myself to chase after shiny objects as if I was unconsciously sabotaging myself from what I truly want. That burning desire to share my story keeps me up at night. It’s a constant nagging in the back of my mind that I can’t put into words. When I start to talk about it, it brings tears to my eyes. NOTHING has ever made me feel this way and I’ve been suppressing it over the past 5 years as I dove into a million other online projects that took my focus off of my true passion.

I have to wonder WHY I keep derailing from this passion so I made a little timeline to take a look at some of the big projects, milestones, accomplishments, and distractions over the past few years. Trust me, this doesn’t include everything! I don’t regret any of it (ok maybe the cupcake soap just a little bit lol) because it’s all helped me to see the light.

No More Shiny Objects!

I’ve thought for so long that I needed to keep my stories about binge eating disorder/body image, my obsession with Chuy, client work, and instructional design experience separate from one another.  I don’t silo out my life . . . why am I doing that in my online life? It’s exhausting and I’m doing myself and you a disservice by doing it this way. The thoughts that keep me up at night sound something like this:

• I don’t feel like my blogs and brand are a true representation of all I have to offer.
• I don’t feel like I’m getting my story out effectively.
• I need to stop holding back so much and use my full potential.
• I need to focus more effort and energy on creating my content and products and less time getting people to “like” me. Why invest so much time on any given social media network when the algorithm will change anyways?
• I want to put my two weeks notice in and have a thriving business that I’m proud of.
• I want to have more FREEDOM with my schedule so I can travel more and enjoy life!
• I want to use my pain and my story to inspire other women to look and feel irresistible. 

 

Missing that opportunity earlier this year and reaching a breaking point was a gentle nudge to remind me to start following my heart instead of chasing shiny objects.

I know that I can’t do this alone and I need someone to help me. Asking for help is not something that comes easily to me! I started doing my research and found a branding expert who I absolutely adore, Julie Harris. You know when you meet someone and you just know that they are the perfect fit? That’s how I feel about Julie! She is going to be holding my hand over the next month to figure out this rebranding stuff! She is a true gem.Yes, as Rupaul says I can’t wait to see how this turns out!

A Change Will Do You Good!

As I’ve thought more and more about the rebranding (and my sanity lol)  it’s become SO ridiculously clear to me. Although the clarity has come after a gazillion brainstorming sessions and sleepless nights! The time has come to create ONE brand with one mission – Create an irresistible life you can’t resist.

But then the little fear demons started all their noise with thoughts like:

• Will I lose readers if I decide to rebrand?
• Will I piss people off?
• OMG, will the pet blogging community hate me if I write about more than just pets?
• Will brands still want to work with me because I’m not focused on one “niche?”
• How would I consolidate all of my content into one URL without losing traffic?
• What about my social media accounts? How will I use those going forward if I have one brand?

After talking with some amazing friends and bloggers during BlogPaws, it validated everything I’ve been feeling and that the right (but incredibly scary) decision is to move forward with one brand. A brand that reflects my mission, my obsession with Chuy, my 10+ years of experience with instructional design, and my passion for helping other women realize that they can create an irresistible life.

I’m ready to show the world ALL of my potential and what I’m capable of. I’m ready to be incredibly vulnerable and share ALL of my story. I’m ready to take a chance and see what could happen.I’m ready to finally listen to that voice that’s been politely nudging me all these years.

What Does This Mean For Irresistible Pets?

To be honest, I don’t know for sure what that means for the future of Irresistible Pets. There’s a lot of things to still hash out and that’s what the branding work with Julie will help me to reveal. Here’s what I know for sure:

• I will continue to blog about how to create an irresistible life with your pets . . . although pets may become more part of the story and not the entire story. Does that make sense?
• Chuy isn’t going anywhere! He is and will continue to be my mascot and CEO (Chihuahua Executive Officer)
• I’m not leaving the pet blogger community. I already have my tickets for BlogPaws 2016 in Phoenix!
• The “irresistible” brand isn’t going anywhere. It’s only going to get better!
• I don’t know yet if the name will stay Irresistible Pets, Irresistible Icing, or something that illustrates ONE overarching brand. No matter what, Irresistible will be used in the title…duh!
• My obsession with lots of white space, clean/elegant design, pretty pastels, and pretty things IS part of my brand and it isn’t going away!

Next Steps . . .

This is the biggest decision I’ve ever made for my business. It’s more than just a rebranding . . . it’s a reinvention of my business and ME. I want to have the ability to give it priority over everything else which is why I waited until BlogPaws was over so that I could focus on this and give my branding consultant my undivided attention! Over the next month or so, I won’t be posting new content as often as I’ll be head down in design and development mode. I’ll still be posting daily on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram so let’s connect there if we haven’t already.

Regardless of what the name is, all of my content will still be around. That isn’t going anywhere! While I don’t have all the specifics nailed down just yet, I hope that you’ll continue to stick around for version 2.0. I promise you, it’ll be irresistible!

PS – If you any tips or advice, I’m all ears. Leave em’ down below in the comments!