Skip to main content

Winter ABC Day 27: 5 Qualities this Challenge Carved in Me

It's day 27 of the winter blogging challenge. I am just counting down the days. This challenge has truly been a challenge.

When I took up this challenge there were certain undesirable habits I wanted to break. My self esteem had been low when it came to my writing abilities. I needed something to prove myself.

It's been a long month but there's no trial without a lesson

1. Don't procrastinate

Life throws things at you that can pressure you to delay your passions. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak so you tell yourself, tomorrow. But what if tomorrow never comes and your greatest work was today? Through this challenge, I learnt to plan ahead. I told myself that it had to be done, right now, right here.

2. It gets harder before it gets better

The first days of the challenge were quite a breeze. The topics were ice breakers, light hearted and fun. Then mid way it became gruelling. The topics needed insight, facts, objectivity etc. I understand that it's my responsibility as a writer to disseminate the correct information to readers. Some days my phone battery would die on me whilst I was blogging. Other days I didn't have the data bundle to post the blog. And there were others where I was just not even in the mood. But it was a challenge. It was like that assignment that you have to hand in to your professor. Now we are towards the end and we'll,  the challenge is almost over. I learnt resilience from this experience.

3. Practice makes perfect

I have spent months in self doubt of my skills as a writer. This came due to my former employer who was constantly criticising my writing. Often I felt the criticism had condescension, "You can't write deep, intellectual content. You write fluff pieces often entertainment articles," is what I would decipher. Offended greatly was I, but it was my ego and esteem that received the most brutal blows from these comments. I asked myself, "how do I write the so called 'good English', 'business English', 'formal English'?" How do I write deep, intellectual topics that aren't fluff? To be honest, I flipped a middle finger. This challenge taught me that the more that I write, my content will improve. My writing is deep because it connects with my readers. It's intelligent because there's a lot of critical thinking occurring in putting together the blog article. Intelligence and depth aren't always determined by the use of big words. Politicians use big words in their speeches, but alas, the dumb decisions made on a daily basis! Fluff piece my @*#!

4. Share, share, share!

Sharing is caring and with this challenge all the bloggers are part of a community. It's one thing to write a blog post but distribution is crucial. Sharing the links to your blog post requires a lot of work. You are sharing on every platform found on the face of this earth. It's even more important to share fellow bloggers posts. By sharing you show support which in turn forms bonds and loyalty. After publishing a blog post, share like your money depends on it.

5. It's never too late to start

It took me three whole days to decide if I would take part in the winter blogging challenge. I was afraid and skeptical. It was the women within the group that I joined that subtly pushed me. I loved how they supported and encouraged each other. I loved the dedication. I looked up the topics and joined them on day 5. My blogs were all up to date. I learnt that it's not about when you start, it's just starting that matters. Everything else will fall into place. And it did.

I need more challenges that test my stamina. Let's research and see what else can we partake in for self improvement.

Challenge accepted!

P.S. Always write your own love story!

Ciao!

Lady E

Comments

Popular Posts

Single ladies: Wife material

MPV.....my point of view! Single Ladies: Wifen Material *Royal wave*Hey single ladies,your guide is back.The pursuit for Mr Put-A-Ring-On-It is on.Today I would like to make you a get-a-ring-on-it lady. Now following my articles,'Single Ladies Part 3',where I talked about the prince searching for a 'real princess',or 'Queen';and 'Brown Sugar',where the word 'brown sugar' was defined as wifen material,I would like to talk about 'wifey material'.(Whether we are that). How do we single ladies get that ring-on-it,you ask?By being wifey material.My uncle keeps on telling me,'If you want to become Mrs X,you should be a wife.You are a wife before he puts a ring on it'.What he means is that,a man will treat you the way you portray yourself.How,you ask? Ever noticed the difference between a wife and a girlfriend.Now let me break it down for you.A girlfriend usually,takes life in a more leisurely way;unlike a wife,whose focus is mo...

Like A Love Song

The best ever written love song isn't perfect but it works! 'I,I love you like a love song baby,I,I love you like a love song,babe.....',young Selena Gomez singing,and vocalising what we would all take love as...a LOVE song. The love song. Women can only dream about being loved the way Gerald Levert put it,'made to love you', or have 'this love' a la Donell Jones. And I'm not talking about the exaggerated 'catching of grenades','crossing oceans',drinking of lovers' bath waters.But a love that leaves one gasping for air as they try to breathe in,a love that gives one warm fuzzy feelings inside.A love that also stands the test of time,and conquers all. But is the impression we are given by love songs similar to real relationships?Would a man not want to be 'mad' like Ne-yo, or beg you to 'stay' like Tyrese? Some may agree,whilst others would be at the other end of the pole. In the mean time men might find Beyonc...

I Ain't Got My Shit Together

It's okay that I'm not the ideal because I'm a work in progress! I was listening to Brandy's discography and then I resonated with the lyrics to 'Camouflage'. I love the part when she sings, " And God knows I ain't perfect, Tell me who in the world is, All I know is that I'm searching, For somebody to love me with." Yes, then I recall my many arguments with Sagittarius. Always fighting dirty and hitting below the belt. As I have previously highlighted, I asked of him, to step up and meet me halfway. That's what normal people in a relationship do, right? Attempting reverse psychology on me, he would state that I thought of myself as 'perfect'. Whilst I chastised him, not to be condescending, but to make the relationship 'work', but I was the villain. He would be petty and sulk that he's always wrong with me instead of taking responsibility. Sigh! I wish that he chose to understand that I'm far from perfect. I hav...

Dirty Laundry Diaries: Getting Back Into the Groove

Being sexually liberated and being in the moment comes from going outside your head. How does one live in the moment when they are plagued with an ounce of insecurity? There are things that challenge our confidence in things we hope to be masters of. One of these areas happens to be ‘sex’. The discussion about sexual prowess is a very difficult and uncomfortable topic for most. Like who reviews their performance post coitus? Should the sheepish grin or orgasmic face on your partner’s face be the gauge? In an age where, especially women, are being encouraged to own their sexuality, there is still that gap in ‘satisfaction’. While in Africa the emphasis still remains on pleasing a man, the more modern woman chooses to enjoy her own pleasure. We are owning our sexuality from sex toys to whom we choose to have sex with. However liberated sexuality is considered to some extent, not feminine, at times foreign and mostly immoral. But when it comes to sexual pleasure we act...

Riding Solo, Cliques and Friendship

Friends are mirrors, shadows, at times visions, and sometimes ghosts. - The Real Lady E Let's talk about #squadgoals! I have to confess, I'm actually on season six of 'Pretty Little Liars'. 🙈 My grown self should be ashamed! But it inspired me to get to today's blog. I read a post from xoNecole about friendships. Titled, 'Types of Friends You Should Have In Your 30s', I reverted to my article about being in your 30s. In the blog I shared, " Friendships are like a Coca-Cola bottle, as you grow older you know that you will eventually be at the tip." Friendships are like a Coca-Cola bottle, as you grow older you know that you will eventually be at the tip. Watching season six of PLL, we find the 'girls' falling back into bad habits. I still can't fathom their loyalty to Alison DiLaurentis. They feel like they owe her yet it's her crazy relative who terrorised them all through high school. For young women who are supposed t...