#BloggerConfessions: Week 3- Blog Conferences

Do you have a favorite blog? Of course you have several; and are perhaps even a blogger yourself. Have you ever wondered from time to time how they do it? Or does everything on your end of the screen seem so flawless your perspective on your own life gets a little fuzzy? Well I am here to tell you that blogging is not the perfection perceived- it is most often crazy hours, emails in the wee hours, and balancing on chairs in hallways to get the perfect light. There's a lot that goes on behind the scenes before that URL can hit the internet, and myself and a group of bloggers are here to give you the down and dirty secrets of #BloggerConfessions in a new weekly blog hop that invites you to confess on a new topic each week.

Whether you're looking for a fun hop you can fill an organic content need with(yes, us bloggers worry about that), or are simply a reader looking for the juicy, and often hilarious, truth on blogging- you're invited. Bloggers, feel free to post your response to each week's topic any day of the week (Thursday is the feature day) and link up to the LINKY at the bottom of this post. Be sure to grab the button while you're here! Readers, sit back, relax, and prepare as we demystify blogging one dish at a time!

Week 3: Feeling A Little Shy? Conferences and More!

Prompt: Have you ever been to a blogger conference? With BlogHer 2014 just a few weeks passed, what better time to dish about the behind the scenes craziness that goes on at your favorite blogging conferences. Whether you have a story about your 'first time' to share or just a fond memory, let's hear it!

What happens at a blog conference stays at blog conference, right?

It's actually quite the opposite, right? If there is any conference where people are encouraged to dish every moment, including the down and dirty, it's at a conference designed entirely for social networking and amplification. Sure you go to COMIC Con or D23 and you take a million pictures and Facebook yourself next to R2D2 and Jack Sparrow, but at a blog conference you're not the only one sharing photos of you. There's the thrill of spotting a blogger you've been reading for several years and finally get to gush to in person, *cough Lena Burkut, Way 2 Goodlife* and there's the sponsors who stage elaborate events and activities designed to get your guard down while media and your peers snap away at sharing stations. If you expect to visit a blog conference and walk away without permanent evidence in the Cloud you are in for a surprise, my friend!

It took me 4 years, blogging every day, sometimes twice a day, to get my but to a blog conference. Why? Because I fall into that large margin of bloggers with social anxieties that enjoy being seen and heard from the other side of a computer screen. Let's face it, blogging is a controlled world- it's intended to be a glimpse into our lives, but at the end of the day we decide how raw that glimpse truly is. I can talk up storms in Google Chat or Facebook Groups, but I'm hesitant to own myself in public crowds. It's something blogging has actually helped me with tremendously.

I won't lie, however, when I won a scholarship to #SoFabCon14, in Arkansas, this past Spring I was more terrified than excited. The group of bloggers attending was much smaller than, say, BlogHer, but they seemed much more outgoing and active in general. People were grouping up to plan costumes for parties months in advance, and even sharing their suitcase wardrobes online. I half anticipated I'd die on the first day and never leave my hotel room. Luckily, Alyssa of Giveaway Overload, was my roommate and the perfect match for me anxious personality. While I don't have kids yet, we had a lot in common and spend the majority of the event awkwardly growing together.

Having recently just left #BlogHer14, in San Jose, I can't say I was any more comfortable walking into the 4k+ blogger/writer/entrepreneur event. It was much larger than SoFabCon, but thankfully spread out over more events and a larger space. Once again, having the right roomie saved the day- fearless Kangaroo Mama was the perfect clean and respectful roommate, that helped motivate me to stay active an partake in the conferences events. At one point I caught the above photos of her sitting on the toilet dishing all her #SheetHappens secreted to Angel Soft! You never know what you'll see at a blogger conference! As it turns out, I'm considering charging to be my roommate at the next event; Kangaroo Mama won a Dolce Gusto Espresso Maker prize bundle, and my SoFabCon roomie had also won a several thousand dollar prize pack!

Yes lots go on at blogger conferences, but, perhaps nothing as important as the lifelong connections that are made hugging and greeting between those badges. Super blogger Alicia Gonzalez, 24/7 Modern Mom, showed me what it was to be Mom and Roar when she was determined to attend the event with all 5 kids in tow. This woman is a rock star ya'll! And she even won a Ferrari (okay, that's not a Ferrari, and she didn't win it, but you never know what you'll find at a Blogger Con!) I suppose this blogger conference thing gets easier with each go- but, for me, it's the people you attend with that rally make the difference!

Link up your Blog Conferences #BloggerConfessions anytime between now and next Thursday!

Prompt for Week 4: (8/14) Blogging Nightmares- Okay, it's time to dish about that sponsored post, blog hop, complicated recipe, or just generally rocking post that almost didn't happen. We want to hear about computer mishaps, missed flights, Blogger mysteries and that time when your perfect post was much more of a quest to tackle than anyone could have ever known!
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I'm Enough- And So Are You! Make Your Mirror Magical Today

Momma Told Me: Magic mirrors aren't real.

Kids can be cruel. But have you ever considered that the child inside you can be a bully as well?

When we're young we're most impressionable, and the filters that take decades to develop throughout our lives are often not yet in place. We blurt things out without a second thought, and make observations that can be painfully blunt. We close our eyes and we dream of talking unicorns and becoming perfect dancing ballerinas. And each and every young girl grows into a beautiful woman that retains that childlike spirit inside them. But how much of our fantastic dreams of yesterday, and unrealistic perceptions of reality impact the adult eyes we view ourselves with? Does the child inside you question the reflection of the woman on the other side?

Don't get me wrong, having ambition is great. However, as strong modern women, we can often get lost in those goals and dreams and turn them into negatives, talking down to ourselves without even knowing it. And with all the negativity built into the world around us, it's hard not to get caught up in the perceptions of success and beauty. I recently realized I have been doing a great disservice to the inner me. There were times when we couldn't even make eye contact.

You see, I experience great anxiety in large groups; especially those of my peers. See, that's a big mistake of mentality in that sentence, alone- we are ALL peers. Have you ever heard of  'I am woman, hear me roar?' Grouping ourselves into brackets of lifestyles or success only helps feed the critic inside us all. Realizing that our peers are made up of over 3.4 billion really help cut down on the expectations we hold to ourselves. In fact, I challenge you to eliminate ALL expectations. You are uniquely you, there has never been, and never will be another. Understanding and accepting this then logically states that you are the best you that will ever be.

But back to the story- I recently attended a very large conference with over 4k women (and a few curious men,) and found myself so full of anxiety on the first day I almost didn't leave my hotel room. I changed my clothes at least 5 times, and walked with my eyes downward through the convention center. Every step I took I judged myself even more. My hair wasn't done as nice as that woman, my shoes weren't right for my skirt, my blog wasn't big enough to compete with the celebrities before me. Isn't it funny that every layer we put over our lives, leads us to judge ourselves even more? But who we are is not the car we drive, the clothes we parade ourselves in, or the proucts we choose to buy.

When we strip ourselves down to that naked vulnerability we all fear so much, it's ironically empowering. When we stare into that mirror and make eye contact with ourselves we can at last have that long overdue conversation with ourselves. Suddenly, it becomes easier to see the beauty inside, the us that is truly there. And, when you stop taking the time to anticipate the unsaid words of judgement around you, your inner child is more open to the praise and celebration that is right in front of it.

No, we don't have enchanted mirrors, a-la-fairytales, to reassure us of our beauty- but I've got a secret- any mirror can be magical when your reflection is staring back at you. So today, take the time to close the door, and spend some time with just you and yourself. Tell that inner child about all the amazing things you have accomplished, let all the amazing confirmation from your family and friends be that echo of support and affirmation. Look into those eyes staring back at you, they are strong, they are one of a kind. You are the only you, and therefor the best damn you that there will ever be! You are amazing, and strong, and beautiful- you are enough.

What Daughter Says: The magic isn't in the mirror, it's in you- change the voice you hear today!

Nee a little more inspiration? Check out the real life message of The Mrs band, and their mirror experiment!