How to Put Your Best Self Forward

Welcome to my newly re-designed blog. I am so excited that my friend was willing to help my blog put its best face forward! I love her. Sometimes we know that something is great but intuitively we know that it could be even better.In life and in blogging there is always room for improvement. Thus now that my friend took care of the blog I have dedicated these past few weeks to reflect on life and rid my mind of clutter to put my best self forward. Here's how you can do it too!

1) Search the Internet for Answers: 

Source: marthastewart.com via Lizbeth on Pinterest

Penelope Trunk saved my life, I found her through HuffPo and we have been in a relationship ever since.She doesn't know it, but she planted the seed for this blog and my journey as a writer, influenced my last salary negotiation and has played a role in my marriage. She shares intimate details of her life and inspired me to share my own story without fear of judgment.

Her advice led me to discover other quarter-life crisis self-help gurus like Alexandra Robbins who wrote a book on how to survive and conquer your quarter-life crisis. These books gave me hope in some difficult moments and so did Penelope.  Finding Penelope Trunk on the internet changed my life. If you are strategic you too can find life altering sites on the internet! It''s very silly advice but it's also very easy to do.

2) Shake Things Up:

You cannot keep doing the same thing and expect different outcomes. I know this because I have tried it and trust me it FAILS every time. When I was depressed, sulking around at home and complaining about my life did not make things better. What made it better was seeing a therapist, getting a dog and doing a series of other things that did not just occur as I slept in till 2pm on a weekend. If you feel lost you will need to make an effort to find whatever it is you're looking for, a new job, a new relationship, a new apartment, etc.

You can start small, for example in the past few weeks I cut inches off my hair, and tried to change my hair color. I didn't say you had to go crazy here, baby steps are fine. I also decided to spruce up my social life by attending events I would normally not attend because i'm too tired, too busy or too lazy to attend.  I attended the FAWN You Tube channel launch and a movie screening for Girl in Progress (which you really should see) At the second event I even networked and asked someone to meet me for coffee! Step out of your comfort zone, you may meet  people or get a cool gift bag filled with fun make-up!

Here I am shaking things up at the You Tube channel launch with my shorter hair, and hot pink pants (an unusual wardrobe choice and yet another way I was shaking things up) See I have proof that I am taking my own advice! 

3) Focus on the Positive: 

I was in the middle of March Madness (the work kind not the basketball kind) and I noticed a crazy increase in my blog's traffic. I then realized the Forbes.com had picked up my latest article for The Daily Muse!! Here was my advice on Forbes.com. One year ago, I wasn't even writing and now here I am on a major site that was accomplishment HUGE for me. It also proves that searching the internet for answers and shaking things up really does make a difference when you're lost. I started this blog to shake things up and challenge myself and I did it by searching for cool bloggers on the internet. I have encountered so many amazing people and really discovered a whole new side of myself, the writer. I usually look at past blog posts and focus on typos or how things could have been phrased differently. I am now trying to focus on this small victory and using it as motivation to keep writing. (Just found several typos here too, Ugh)

4) Don't Worry About Feeling Lost:
These past few weeks have been crazy and I have been reflecting a lot about what I want for this blog and for my career. Whenever this happens I usually turn to the Patron Saint for Lost 20 Somethings, Penelope Trunk. She writes eloquently about being lost and urges readers to embrace being lost because personal growth looks a lot like being lost. I have felt lost so many times I am now in the running for a lost 20-something medal of honor for personal growth, and it is VERY frustrating but I try to remember this little nugget of advice I found on my new obsession Pinterest.

Source: coolmemories.tumblr.com via Betsy on Pinterest

So go ahead and embrace the discomfort of being lost and put your best self forward!
How are you shaking things up this spring? When was the last time you felt lost and what did you do about it?

xoxo
Betsy Aimee

Invest in Yourself, Just Make Sure There's a Return on Your Investment

Everyday we are confronted with a myriad of financial decisions...
"Should I stop for coffee?"
"Should I eat the lunch I made at home or hit the nearest burger joint?" Guess how I usually answer  that question, :)
"Does the dog really need a new outfit?" Rational Answer: No!
"Should I shop around for gas or just go to the nearest place when I run out of gas?"
"Should I agree to loan (insert name of friend/relative) money?"

In case you're wondering these are actual decisions I have been confronted with recently.

In this era of consumerism and where people are always looking for the next best gadget- Ipad 2/Iphone 101 anybody? - to keep up their image, it is very difficult to make decisions about how to spend money that can be truly unique and independent as we are constantly being subjected to targeted marketing that was designed specifically for us based on age, race etc.

And then there's the stuff we search for late at night....

Exhibit A- I have been obsessing over You Tube make up tutorial and beauty videos. They are inmensely addicting to someone like me. I have loved Make-Up ever since I was old enough to dig through my mother and older sister's make up. Now that I have emerged from the valley of the shadow of Depression I have re-discovered my love for face painting.

These videos are the budget shoppers guilty pleasures.  It's great to learn about beauty products and they prevent you from having to buy products that are overpriced, inadequate or who do not keep their marketing promises.
Yes of course, these videos help me save money!!
I think they could if I didn't have a compulsive need to buy things.

See below here is my newest nail polish purchased on a late night binge at my local drugstore. After all glitter polish will continue to be a top trend in 2012.

If we could graph the incidence of cosmetic product purchases after I watch these videos we would see a direct cause and effect relationship. I wont tell you what I have purchased in the past few weeks for fear of judgment (but I did post a picture of everything above) and also because I havent completely abandoned the idea of starting my own You Tube channel to share my "hauls" in the hope that I will soon become the next You Tube sensation.

I am fascinated by this phenomenon as these You Tube beauty experts are gaining momentum and cosmetic companies are definitely taking notice. In this video, one of the gals I enjoy shows off the drawer of the stuff that gets sent to her by cosmetic companies. I would lie if I said I wasnt jealous

I wouldnt publicly admit to following her but there's this young gal who has over 100 million hits and has recently hired a PR firm to represent her and is clearly trying to capitalize on her You Tube fame by coining herself the "Fashion Icon of the Social Media Generation."  Her readers sometimes  argue about her credentials as a fashionist/beauty guru in their comments section but she's clearly making a living this way. 

But there's more to this a few years ago it would have seemed outlandish but these young gals are actually good career role models because they are doing what they love and turning it into a profession and incorporating into their lives.  They are also following Penelope Trunk's advice and branding themselves as experts. in their fields by using social media and creating a following.

 This is something that all of us could learn from to advance our careers and the importance of investing time to pursue what we love. Investing in ourselves is key to getting ahead whether that means buying cosmetics and uploading videos, seeing a career coach, or my favorite investing in a killer wardrobe that will help make you more confident at work. 

Where does that leave me and my potential You Tube Channel idea. I have a lot on my plate and I look fat on camera but I will definitely keep considering the Yout Tube venture. Mostly because then my cosmetic obsession can be considered an investment in my future! Doing something you love is never a waste of time because it contributes to your personal happiness an that is of course the best investment money and You Tube can buy.  For the time being please keep reading this blog. I promise to share the goodies as soon as they start coming in....