Everyone likes a snoopy post – or at least, I know I do!
For a while now I have been wanting to talk more about blogging as a career and how to chase your dreams, and to share more of these helpful posts on WoW. While the site started out and will always be a travel blog, I would love to transition into some more inspiring content that can help my loyal readers similarly follow their own dreams + aspirations, be that through travel, blogging, career goals, or lifestyle goals.
I recently posted a full video tour of my office on my Youtube Channel if you’d like to check that out first! But otherwise, here’s a run down on my office and how to start blogging from your bedroom!
Setting Up Your Creative Space
One of my all time favourite things to do is spend an hour (or a day) on Pinterest. Since my mum now tells me she is on Pinterest, I can’t imagine anyone else out there reading this blog is not… so i’ll skip over how great (and terribly addicting) it is!
Before I started shopping for furniture for my creative space, I already had a fair idea of what I wanted it to look like based on my pinterest boards. I personally get a good feeling from white interiors, as they have a way of making any room feel decluttered, and with so much going on all the time from being away travelling 90% of the time, it’s so nice to come home to a space that feels much more calm (and cosy)!
Then, it was time to go out and source some furniture and a few little furnishings to make my desk feel inspiring (more on that later). Being that I live in a fairly small town, it was pretty difficult to find exactly what I wanted with so little to choose from. As fate would have it, good ol’ Office Works (an office supplies shop for ye Americans) had a desk that suited my needs: spacious, white, and simple.
Then, the chair. Everyone knows a good and comfy chair is essential in any office space, or at least that’s what I told myself when I forked out more $$$ for the chair than the actual desk! This little bucket chair not only looks good (and coincidentally matches the desk), but it also has a cosy little leather cushion in-built in the seat. Fancy!
Surround Yourself with Inspiration
As a creator (writing original content, sharing photos and videos from my travels), it’s important to always feel inspired. I recently read a great book which encourages readers to study their inspirations as subjects and draw your ideas, attitude and inspiration from them.
So, who inspires me? This book collection gives a pretty good indication.
Paris Women
The evolution of women’s role in society truly fascinates me and that alone is a huge inspiration… but I think more than just that, women around the world can draw a lot of inspiration and motivation from French women. I even went so far as to write a post about what we can learn from French women who admirably do not sexualise the body, do not treat as age as a bad thing, and strut with confidence. And so, I bought this book to celebrate that (you can buy it here).
Audrey Hepburn
Not only is she a fashion icon, but moreover the late Audrey Hepburn had a fantastic outlook on life, particularly as a strong female figure. My favourite quote? “Happy girls are the prettiest”.
Coco Chanel
Coco Chanel was one of the most inspiring and influential fashion designers of the 20th Century, but more importantly for me, she was a woman who never took no for an answer and worked hard for what she believed in. My favourite quote? “A girl should always be two things: classy & fabulous”.
Mary-Kate + Ashley Olsen
And finally, MK & Ash. I’m not sure if it’s a generational thing, but for me, these girls were always the most influential teens to look up to as I was growing up. Nowadays the girls have built a business empire and their business savvy expertise are what I admire most about them. This book is an insight into who the girls are as people & as business women. (You can buy it here).
Those Little Reminders…
And of course, it can’t be all business!!!
While I like to keep my office strictly business in order to stay productive, there’s something to be said about those little human touches – be it a card, an old movie ticket, or a photo booth photo with your girlfriends. The people who love you are the most inspiring in your life — so be sure to make a place for them also.
“The best thing to hold on to in life is each other”
– Audrey Hepburn
Blogging From your Bedroom
So, you’ve seen inside my office, now how exactly does one start blogging from their bedroom!?
My strongest piece of advice would be to just start – because you’ve got to start somewhere. Whether you’re starting out writing 1-2 articles per week as a hobby after work, or whether you’ve quit your job to start blogging full time… both are equally worthy of a “blogging from your bedroom” office setup.
When I first started blogging I would do so on my bed, in my lounge, in a beanbag, etc. etc. Then when I was travelling, I would find myself in cafes with free wi-fi, skimping off their power plugs, and ordering x1 cheap coffee to last hours of wi-fi time (haha)!
Nowadays, I’ve found more of a structural routine. As a travel blogger, I’m obviously away more than I am at home… but that doesn’t mean I shouldn’t have a system in place to keep up with work! When I come home from any trip I’m eager to start editing photos, videos and stories, and posting about my trip before the next one starts. While I first started travelling non-stop (without going home for 12 months), it now works better for me to have short breaks every month or two, in order to keep up!
The moral of the story: do what works best for you. Don’t be afraid to change your way of working when you feel it is time to do so, the people who truly love following your journey will follow you anywhere!
Your Tools are your Secret Weapons
I’m asked at least a few times a day “What camera do you use?”. For frequent readers of this blog, you will already know exactly what camera that is and perhaps exactly what lenses + settings I use!
But for those of you who don’t know, these are exactly what secret weapons I have in my carry-on case right now:
Olympus PEN E-PL7 (still my fave)
Olympus OMD E-5 Mark II (still figuring it out)
GoPro Hero 4+ Silver (action/adventure photography)
Bose Noise Cancelling headphones (headphones on, world out)
Macbook Air (mobile office)
Battery Box (Gives me enough charge for another full laptop lifespan)
DJI drone (my new toy – haha!)
