This morning on the school run I was chatting with my neighbour about the Easter break and we were sharing tales of our holiday adventures. I commented that I felt quite bad as I realised last night that I hadn’t posted on this blog since 1st of April. A whole 24 days ago! He suggested that my next blog be titled:
Why bloggers need a break too.
So here we are. It’s nice to be back by the way. I hope that this post finds you well.
I purchased the URL ‘mummyjojo.com’ for this blog in November 2015. Prior to this, I had been blogging on a basic wordpress account for a year or so. I have always been committed to posting regular content because I love it, writing is a great form of therapy and from my days of working in a marketing agency, I am aware that content is king and that google favours it. I spoke recently on the podcast about a quote that I love, by the author Jeff Brown:
We are powerful beyond measure, and so deeply vulnerable at the same time. This may seem like a dichotomy, but it isn’t. We have misunderstood real power. It has been seen as something assertive, non-surrendering, pushing on through. This is not real power. This is simply willfulness. Real power is something else—receptivity, openness, the courage to keep your heart open on the darkest of days, the strength to feel it all even when the odds are stacked against you. Real power is showing up with your heart on your sleeve and absolutely refusing to waste one moment of your life hidden behind edginess and armour.
So why do bloggers need a break too? Well, we all do. This has taken me some time to get the balance right, there is a fine line between passion and obsession. Whist having a passion for something creative and time consuming like a blog allows us to show up and be consistent with it, it is so important to put some solid boundaries in place when your work feels like a hobby. This allows us to feel greater clarity, ensure we make time for connections and also the moments we care about.
Clarity
It can be hard to see clearly when life is turbulent and constantly moving. I was enjoying a cold water swim earlier this morning with some fellow wild swimming lovers and we were chatting about how calm and clear the water was. We also noticed that it is now a tropical 10 degrees, pretty decent after swimming through a Scottish winter. If we were to compare our state of mind to the state of the water, stillness allows us to see things from a crystal clear perspective. We all need this.
Connection
It is so good for us to get away from the virtual world and to connect with people face to face. We remember the importance of energy, eye contact and learning from others. This boosts up our wellbeing and helps with our creativity. Life in 2022 is so fast paced and set up for us to connect even less. From self service checkouts to online shopping to looking down at our screens instead of looking up into peoples faces, we are very subtly being programmed to become socially awkward. We are social animals, we always will be and we need to connect.
Care
Care about the moments. Like so many others, I have been loving watching This is Us and the latest episode (series 6, episode 13) perfectly captures the significance of the little moments and how they in fact turn out to be the big ones. Our screens are our biggest distraction when it comes to being present for those little moments that we really care about. There is nothing quite like some proper screen free time to really take it all in. From the simple moments like watching those you love laughing or dancing to sitting calmly and enjoying some music to jumping into the sea, exploring or enjoying a nice meal. It is good for the soul to switch off and embrace the little joys. To find joy in the being, not the doing. That stuff matters. For bloggers, this can be hard. So often, we want to capture content to use. Finding the balance between capturing content and being fully in the moment, screen and pressure free, can take tremendous self control.
I may not have many blog posts to show for the month of April but I have clarity, have enjoyed connection and I have been present for a lot of the things I really care about. You deserve a break. It’s good for you.
Jojo Fraser is an award-winning mental health researcher, author, podcaster and keynote speaker, dubbed as ‘the Queen of positivity and a kindness advocate. She is a Tedx speaker and a regular contributor on BBC radio. Jojo is known for normalising discussions around our mental and spiritual health, making it accessible and relatable to all. She has quickly grown a reputation for having a huge impact even on the most sceptical of people.
