How to Show Up (Imperfectly)

I’ve been struggling for the last year and a half on the correct way to “show up” on social media and also this blog.

Sharing my heart and what I was learning used to be so easy, and then… it wasn’t.

I’m not exactly sure what shifted, but anxiety and depression crept back into my life and I went from being excited to share what was going on in my life, to a place of worry about revealing too much or not sharing in the “right way” so I just stopped.

I’ve put off writing this post because I worry that it really doesn’t matter and it’s not really a big deal. As I am writing this post I keep asking myself, “what even is the point of this"?” and to that I answer, I have no idea. Here’s the thing, so many people go about their lives never sharing anything on blogs or Instagram and carry on and have perfectly normal lives. And that’s great. We don’t need to spend every moment of our lives documenting our highs and lows and wins and struggles. But I felt as though my silence lacked honesty. I was too anxious to say the wrong thing, so I just stayed silent.

I’ve always believed that social media could go beyond being a '“highlight reel” and I always craved substance beyond the feed that I (and many other wedding professionals) curated. But when my depression whispered “your voice doesn’t matter” I shut down. I believed that what I had to say wasn’t important and that I couldn’t possibly know how to share what was currently going on in my life without completely falling apart.

I’m currently working myself out of this funk, but I’m still so scared to share anything beyond the pretty wedding and lifestyle photos that I shoot for my business. I’m scared to speak on my Instagram stories because I’m worried that I’ll say the wrong thing or embarrass myself.

So why does this matter?

What I’m learning is that it is important to show up regardless of our fears and worries, because while social media isn’t the end all, our voices matter, and someone needs to hear what you have to say. Someone needs to here what I have to say. Do not be afraid to show up imperfectly. Because imperfect is a lot better than staying silent (not talking ignorance here!)

So here’s the thing, I’m promising to use my voice on the platforms that I have to speak Life and Truth to everyone that comes to them. They will not be perfect (I can promise you that) but I want to share more and let you know that your voice matters, and it’s worth it to show up.