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What I Learned From My Mini Hiatus

September 8, 2015

Let’s get transparent, friends.

As many of you might have noticed, I took about two weeks off from my blog to focus on moving to my bachelorette pad and making it feel like home.

This mini-hiatus from blogging prompted me to dive deep into my vision for not only my blog but also my brand. What I found was pretty incredible, so I thought I would share with all of you.

A few months ago, I announced I was working toward monetizing my blog. After a little over a year and a half blogging, I know it is right time for me to take the leap and test some of my ideas to see which are valuable and profitable.

You may also remember that I announced I was working on my first digital product: an ebook on Hosting Your Own Twitter Chat. With my experience of starting #createlounge and marveling at all that it has become, I set out to help other creatives start a Twitter chat community of their own.

While putting together the outline, I was thrilled. Everything was coming together and I had multiple *happy dance* moments. Heck, I even put up a Shop page when I redesigned my website to create some extra excitement around the next stage of my blog. I was ready.

But the more I wrote the contents of my ebook, the more I realized how much bigger of a purpose I was trying to tap into.

I do want to build dynamic digital products (because like my favorite #GIRLBOSS friends say, passive income is crucial to your scalability), I also know that services are what give my mission a heartbeat.

I think I’ve known this for a while, but have been nervous about taking the plunge because:

  • I work a full-time agency job that extends well beyond 9-5
  • I felt guilty about taking on clients when I can only give them my evenings and weekends
  • I didn’t want to isolate my loved ones by taking on even more online work

I was tired of having these fears hold me back, so I decided to put them in bed. It felt great, but then I was faced with how to tell my audience. By sharing that I was shifting, I was afraid of becoming the token “build hype but never launch” girl in the blogging world. I was afraid of my audience being turned off that I didn’t follow through with my initial idea. I was afraid people would see me as someone who gives up.

I knew I didn’t want to take down my Shop page without an explanation. That’s not my style.

I needed to say something but didn’t quite know how.

After chatting last week with Callie Gisler, one of my favorite creative business owners, about how nervous I was to break the news to my readers, I could feel her smile through the phone as she said, “Kayla, people honor your transparency. Just tell them. They will love you for it.”

I knew she was right. The best way to tell your audience you’re shifting is to be open and honest and, most importantly, own it.

I can’t ignore what I feel pulled to do, and I don’t want to.

So now as I change my monetization plans, I ask you to understand why I’m shifting and that I am in a period of growth too. Things never turn out quite as we plan, but sometimes they turn out even better. I hope this is one of those times.

I know I have something really valuable to offer which leads me to this: I want to work one-on-one with creative bloggers and entrepreneurs to build sustainable, organic communities with a pulse, a living and breathing extension of their mission.

So what’s in store for me? I don’t want to reveal too much, but I will say I am working behind-the-scenes to build community strategy and consultation packages. While my ebook is put on hold for now, I do plan on picking it up again in the future.

Now as I write this blog post in between making some concrete goals for the last season of 2015, I feel much lighter and excited about what’s to come.

Thank you for your continued love and support.