Gardening in High Heels

cultivate a beautiful life

Be a Twitter Chat Rockstar

Last night, while participating in the #CreateLounge Twitter chat, I got to thinking about what makes for the best chat experience.  I don’t do a lot of Twitter chats, but I try to attend the ones I know and love as faithfully as I can.

Why tweet and chat?  It’s a fun way to interact with like-minded people, learn some new view points and/or techniques, express your opinions, and grow your following on Twitter as an influential user.

In the process of tweeting and chatting, I’ve learned a lot about what makes for a good experience and what needs a little work.  Here are a few essential things to make sure you’re doing during a Twitter chat to be a gracious guest.

Twitter chats are so much fun! Love these tips for being a great chatter.

Make sure you’re using the hashtag

So you sent out a tweet without the chat hashtag.  That’s okay.  It’s a rookie mistake, but it’s still okay.  I’ve done it, the best Twitter chatters have done it, you’ll probably do it.  But use it because it allows the host and other chatters to easily find your tweets in the sea of lost message.

Oh and keep an eye out and make sure you have enough space to include the tag when you’re done making your brilliant point.

Also, don’t forget to number your tweets.  If you’re responding to Q1 (question 1), write A1 (answer 1) before your tweet.

Jump right in

Twitter chats aren’t the place to be shy.  Sure you can lurk around for the first few times while you get the hang of it, but the fun in chats is participating with everyone!

If you have something to say, hit reply and type away!  It always makes me feel good when someone starts a conversation with an answer I provided.  If a tweet does un-replied-to, does it ever get tweeted?

Try Tweetdeck

Native Twitter is hard to participate in Twitter chats.  I like seeing a running list of all tweets using the chat tag, my notifications, and any new topics coming from the host.  For this purpose, I use Tweetdeck when participating in chats.  It keeps me organized.

The only catch is that if you make a new stream (to track the hashtag perhaps) and the account you’re using isn’t the primary Tweetdeck account, make sure your favoriting tweets from the right account!  There was a chat I participated in where all my favorites came from the wrong handle.

You could also use your phone.  It’s convenient because it auto-fills the hashtag and handles, the favorites are always from the right account, and it’s easy to follow your new friends.

Follow interesting chatters

Like I mentioned before, you get the most out of a Twitter chat when you can interact with everyone.  Keep that momentum going after the chat by following the people you had a great conversation with!  I’ve met some great people from participating in Twitter chats.

And you know that you have similar interests because you’re participating in the same Twitter chat.  So if you’re in a blogger chat, most of the people are bloggers….with whom you can create a support network, find and share new content, etc.  See where I’m going here?

Some of my favorite chats are Kayla Hollatz‘s #CreateLounge on Wednesdays at 8p ET, CoSchedule‘s CoChat on Thursdays at 3:30pm ET, Megan‘s #TipsyChat on Tuesdays at 8:30p ET, and Blog Elevated‘s #BlogElevated chat on Tuesdays at 10p ET.

What are your tips for participating in Twitter chats? What’s your favorite to participate in?

Be a Better Blogger is a weekly link up dedicated to helping you be a more intentional blogger. Want to be a better blogger but don’t know where to start? Head over to the Be a Better Blogger page for daily prompts and a weekly linkup to help get the creative juices flowing! Oh, and use #beabetterblogger on Twitter/Instagram/Facebook to keep the fun going even after you hit Publish!

Five Things I Wish I Knew When I Started Blogging

When I started blogging, I pretty much did it sporadically and very not-seriously.  Aside from a handful of accounts, I didn’t realize that you could really be a “blogger” and not “someone who has a blog.”  There’s a difference, people!  I was so not aware that there was the community out there.  If I had known these things from the get-go, I might be in a different place.

5 things I wish I knew when I started blogging. Don't make these mistakes!

It is an investment

Time, money, energy…blogging is an investment.  The more serious you want to be, the more of an investment it is.  Blogging can truly be a full time job, but you also have to dedicate full time energy to it.

Pick where you want to invest and do so wisely.  If you don’t want to commit to blogging every day (like us over in the Be A Better Blogger Challenge!) pick a schedule so your readers know when to expect to see your new posts.  They’re excited to hear from you!

Also choose where you want to spend your money.  Sure you don’t need a premium theme right out of the gates, but you probably will want that in the future.  Pick something that can grow with you.  Same with your domain name and your hosting.  Make sure that you have invested in a solid foundation.

It’s okay to stumble and then come back

I’ve “rebranded” myself so many times.  I stopped writing for large chunks of time.  I didn’t have a Facebook page for my blog for a long time.  It’s okay.  You’re learning and growing.  It’s perfectly fine to stumble and come back stronger.

Be authentic

There are days when I feel like I’m still trying to find my true voice here and other days that I say, “Boom, this is me, this is what I sound like, deal with it.”  In my head, I’d like to think I’m a lot more unapologetic than I actually am.  This is why I love Laura and Katy so much.  They are 100% them and it totally come through in their blogs.

But no matter what, be true to you and who you are.  There are posts of mine that I read and I’m just like….that feels awkward to me.  Your readers probably feel a little of that, too.

Find your support group

Get a group of friends together, find communities online, and get interacting!  It’s so helpful to have people to bounce ideas off of and turn to when you’re struggling.  They’ll help you sort through where you want to be, where you are right now, and connect the two.

The SITS Girls is a great community, so is BlogHer, and of course, you can check out what Marissa has to say about finding your tribe so you can make your own group.

Decide what kind of blogger do you want to be

Part of this is why it’s handy to have a tribe.  Maybe you don’t know what kind of blogger you want to be.  Maybe you’re a Seinfeld blog like Katy, maybe you have a clear focus like Kristin.

I wish I would have known what I wanted to do when I started blogging.  I kind of just opened up a blog because I thought it would be fun and filled in the blanks from there.  I mean, there’s nothing wrong with that, but it’s nice to have more of a direction.

What do you wish you knew when you started blogging?

Be a Better Blogger is a weekly link up dedicated to helping you be a more intentional blogger. Want to be a better blogger but don’t know where to start? Head over to the Be a Better Blogger page for daily prompts and a weekly linkup to help get the creative juices flowing! Oh, and use #beabetterblogger on Twitter/Instagram/Facebook to keep the fun going even after you hit Publish!

Be Better on Twitter

There are so many things that annoy me about social media.  It’s really bad actually because my career is as a social media and email marketing consultant.  Maybe I’m just hyper-aware of little things online because I spend all day looking at it.  And researching what to do and what not to do.  And having people tell me what their friend’s cousin’s ex-fiance told them they should do on social media.

Ugh!

I’m starting to spend the most time on Instagram, but Twitter is still getting a lot of air time for me, too.  There are a ton of things that I wish someone would just say, “Hey, don’t do this on Twitter,” so today, I’m being that brutally honest best friend and telling you to just. stop. already.

Do these 5 things on Twitter right now to be your best

Unlink your Facebook from your Twitter!

If I wanted to see what you had to say on Facebook, I would be on Facebook.  But I’m on Twitter, which means I probably don’t care what you’re posting there for Mark Zuckerberg to own from now until forever.  When I start to read a tweet and then see “fb.me/da02fa” halfway through the sentence, guess how many times I click on the link to see what’s gonna come next.

Go on.  Ballpark it.  Exactly, folks, no times.

So please, for the love of all things 140 characters, unlink your Facebook and Twitter account.  If you don’t know how to do that, go to facebook.com/twitter and click “Unlink” next to the accounts that are linked up.

If you’re active on both, you probably don’t need them connected anyway.

Take a breath

Don’t be that person that tweets non-stop.  Live-tweeting and participating in Twitter chats aside, of course.  You have 14o characters – be concise.  I totally get that sometimes a tweet needs to carry over into another one.  That’s cool.  Just don’t abuse it.

Speak your peace

I like Twitter for the exchange of information and quick conversations that you can have with just about anyone on the planet.  It’s also nice to have quick, adult conversations.  I firmly believe that if you have something direct to say on Twitter, say it.  Sub-tweeting is just as annoying (if not moreso) than vaguebooking.

If not, take that shit back to Facebook where the middle schoolers drama queens are and leave me to my adult, mature things like Buzzfeed articles that will tell me which Disney princess I am (Cinderella, BTW).

Talk to people

To me, Twitter is a place for a conversation.  So ask questions and reply to people and share their good content, too.  It’s a two-way street and you need to stop riding the center line so other people can finally get around you.  Also, if you follow me and you haven’t really tweeted but you are following 10,000 other people, that doesn’t really make me want to follow you back, yknow?

Fill out your profile

Kinda like if you have a bunch of people that you’re following but no tweets, having an empty/incomplete bio doesn’t do much on Twitter.  Give people something to relate to and connect with.  Give us a little personality and your interests.  You might even find some cool people to follow just by what they have written in their bio.  I know even if a location is filled in and I see someone is from Pittsburgh, I’m more likely to check them out rather than a random person without any real names/info/etc.

And if you’re a business/blogger, you better have this filled out.  No exceptions, no excuses.

What are your Twitter pet peeves (or tips!)?

 

Be a Better Blogger is a weekly link up dedicated to helping you be a more intentional blogger. Want to be a better blogger but don’t know where to start? Head over to the Be a Better Blogger page for daily prompts and a weekly linkup to help get the creative juices flowing! Oh, and use #beabetterblogger on Twitter/Instagram/Facebook to keep the fun going even after you hit Publish!

I Could Write a Book on Nail Polish

Today is the first day of Emily Levenson’s Project:Food Budget.  I’ll get to that below, but first…

Ever since I was younger, I wanted to be a writer.  I know I’ve said that before, so it shouldn’t come as any surprise.  I haven’t written a book before, but I think I could probably write a book about nail polish, lipstick, and generally other makeup.  I’ve totally let the #LipStockChallenge slide, but I could write about it for days.

There are so many things I’ve learned about nail polish from working at a spa and generally being obsessed with my nails.  I feel much more confident, pulled together, and powerful when I have my nails painted.  There was a time that I could correctly name the polish someone selected for their manicure.

I’m sorry to say that since I’ve been working so much, I haven’t had time to paint my nails.  My poor collection misses me!  Gardening is also so rough on your hands.  It dries them out, makes your nails flake, and stripes the shine from your nails.

While my nails are more bare than normal, I still have much wisdom to impart about nail polish.

Essie Mint Candy Apple dupes and manicure secrets

— I’m not totally sold that matte top coat applied between coats of light or streaky polish will even it out and give you an even application.  But it does seem to help.  I need to work a little on this technique.

— I also know that you should wrap the tip.  I know, I know.  It sounds dirty.  But it isn’t!  It’s bringing the color of your nail polish or the top/base coat over the tip of the nail.  This seals everything in.

— OPI Nail Envy didn’t make my nails envious at all.  I think it actually made the more prone to breakage when I didn’t use it.

— Essie Three Way Glaze is fantastic.  If I don’t set it, though, it does crease when I’m asleep and my hand is resting against the sheets, which is annoying.  But the shine and staying power is worth being careful the first night after a fresh polish.

— You can set your polish with a little Pam.  Run under cold water to wash off the oil and go.

— I’ve heard that you can put Vaseline or moisturizer around your cuticles as a barrier for the color so it’s neat and clean.  I’m worried that it will mix with the polish and spoil its efficacy.

— I’ve been hunting for an acceptable dupe for Essie Mint Candy Apple since I broke my original bottle.  It was after the new formulation of the color so I couldn’t just buy a new one.  And it took me forever to locate my first bottle when I was at Penn State.  The formula available at Ulta now looks blue.  That is NOT minty or appley!

I think I found the best double in Formula X in Unmistakable.  It’s a light, minty, blue-green.  I thought Zoya in Tiana would be good, but it’s definitely more yellow-green than blue-green.  Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in Mint Sorbet is an exact match for Zoya Tiana, though.

OPI in That’s Hula-rious and Gargantuan Green Grape are too green to be Mint Candy Apple.

I’ve also found a combo pack at Target with an Essie Gel-like top coat and Mint Candy Apple polish that looks sneakingly similar to my beloved original bottle.

Sticking to a food budget is hard, but I love the accountability with Project:Food Budget

Now that I’ve gone on about nail polish, I’m going to go on about budgeting.  Today is the first post for Emily Levenson’s Project:Food Budget.  I do my grocery shopping on Tuesday morning (after this is published) so I can’t really say how I’ve done so far.  I have made a meal plan (and will try to stick to it..unlike some of my past weeks!)  I am setting myself up with a $50 per week budget at the grocery story and other places where I buy food to cook.

I’m going to try to be intentional with the bill and track food as well as things I purchase at the store that contribute to eating in (storage bags and aluminum foil for example).  I will not include toiletries, greeting cards, etc that I can also buy where I shop.

For that reason, I’ve also decided not to include eating out in the budget because a) I rarely do it and b) if I do, it’s usually with Jonathan, so that’s more of a “date/entertainment” expense than a food expense.  Are you joining in to track what you’re spending?

Follow along with these other budgeting babes!

Emily Levenson / McGinnis and Bean / Rainaldi.org / Red Pen Mama / Erra Creations / Eryn Says… / Seeking White Space / facepalmmama / Gardening in High Heels / Melissa Firman / Copy & Post / Rachel Olive Miller

What could you write a book about?

Be a Better Blogger is a weekly link up dedicated to helping you be a more intentional blogger.  Want to be a better blogger but don’t know where to start? Head over to the Be a Better Blogger page for daily prompts and a weekly linkup to help get the creative juices flowing! Oh, and use #beabetterblogger on Twitter/Instagram/Facebook to keep the fun going even after you hit Publish!

What I Learned from Blogging Every Day

Guys, I’m so excited today.  I wanted to keep writing every day and Katy and Meghan are so fantastic, that they were like, “Hell yeah, we’ll keep going too!”  So we’re launching a weekly link up dedicated to helping you Be a Better Blogger.

If you know anything about me, you know that I want to bring people together and make connections.  I love that this is encouraging and elevating other bloggers.  Part of that support is sharing what we’re learning.

Blogging every day is a huge undertaking but it is possible to do well. After a month of every day blogging, I'm sharing what I learned in the process.

Planning is your friend

I know that I should have an editorial calendar and a list of posts that I’m committed to at the beginning of the month.  The closest I’ve gotten to that is having certain themes for the days that I posted.  It helps so much when you have a plan.  Using Katy’s prompts in May was so helpful because it allowed me to focus my thoughts when I was writing.

Ride the creative wave

For me, much of blogging means spending time figuring out what to write about and then actually writing it.  There are times when I didn’t have a post written for the next day and I’d be sitting here at my computer saying, “Okay, brain, what’s it gonna be…wanna give me something good now?”

When you get the creative spark to write, do it.  And write as much as you can to get yourself ahead of the game.  Even if you end up using a different post (I’ve had 3 different posts written for today), at least you have some writing that you can pull from later.

Batch posts

This is another thing that I know is necessary but never really did.  Write everything, then work on figuring out what photos you want to take, then go in and edit them all, and finally add the correct tags and information to them.

This helps so much when you can just open up Photoshop, load in a few post’s worth of photos, and plug them into the post.  Then schedule away.

Schedule your social media

When I get busy, the first thing that goes is updating social media.  That’s why scheduling is indispensable for me as a blogger.  I can write my posts and then as I’m scheduling them, I’ll queue ’em up for Tweetdeck.  That way I know that I’m taking the necessary steps to have a successful blog without stressing too much during the day when I should be focusing on work.

Comment, share, and support other bloggers

I’ve always tried to comment as much as I can, but blogging every day takes away some of the time to read other blogs.  This is something I want to work on more for the following month.

It’s also so valuable to have a network you can turn to for support and inspiration.  If you’re out there supporting other bloggers, you’re racking up good karma points.  It doesn’t go unnoticed!

Most importantly, keep learning, it’s okay to make mistakes, your job is never “done”

There are so many things that I learned from blogging every day for a month.  It taught me a lot about time management, having a clear plan, and that batching posts is your friend.

What tips do you have for being a better blogger?

 

Be a Better Blogger is a weekly link up dedicated to helping you be a more intentional blogger. The linkups will happen on a weekly level over on the BBB page. Link as many of your posts as you’d like! Join us as we support each other to be better bloggers!

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