#44 The Naina Redhu Experience : Blogging & Sourcing, The Blogger Rat Race

Hey Allen Claudius, first of all *big hug*. It’s a big deal to share such personal pieces on the blog. It’s nice of you to do so. I for one did not know was a *thing*. I mean, I’ve lusted after branded products that I can’t afford & felt bad for myself when I’ve seen other influencers flaunting their branded product purchases etc. But it never crossed my mind to actually go buy the stuff. I repeat clothes from my wardrobe ALL the time – whether for Instagram or brand events. I run a two person household with what I earn from blogging and photography. ( Don’t quit your day job folks! ) There is definitely this pressure to be seen as someone who can afford “luxury” when I call myself a “luxury & lifestyle blogger”. But that pressure is created in my own head. I know all those footwear brands you wore when you were in school, I wore them too. I didn’t even have that Rs. 5 allowance that you had ?. I’ve never been in debt & I don’t have any loans to repay. Fuck what anyone else thinks about me. I have to live this life, no one else lives it for me on my behalf. One of my goals for 2017 is to stop looking at what anyone else is doing and instead focusing on what I’m doing. No comparisons, no pressure. FOMO hits us all, we’re human. Don’t open your purse to it though. I feel really bad for young bloggers these days. If this is what they have to do, maybe it isn’t worth it (and I don’t think they have to do any of this). Understanding that blogging is a business, there’s revenues, profit/loss, overheads etc. That makes it easier to deal with it like business. Else it can quickly devolve into comparisons & debt. I used to never invite anyone to my apartment earlier because I thought they’d think I wasn’t much of a “luxury” blogger if they saw the state of my pad. But I don’t do that anymore. I travel so much that the place looks like shit regardless ? Everyone’s welcome. I’d rather make the human connection than miss out on it based on some imaginary game of perception. Please repeat your wardrobe, no one worth anything really gives a shit. (Brands love it because their product shows up repeatedly. And brands are the ones paying us. Who cares about other influencers’ perception. They don’t pay our bills. The audience doesn’t care either, short attention spans – I keep getting asked about shoes I’ve worn dozens of times in photo shoots. ) My first reaction to you post was, “THIS IS MADNESS!” But that was probably just my age showing. Good to read that you’re on a better health wagon & find yourself wiser. Again, *big hug*.