Happy New Years eve my friends! I appreciate each and every one of you for being here and sharing this journey with me.

I rounded up my favorite outfits from the past year. Starting with last January on a chilly day and then we move into some of my favorite outfits where I really started to experiment with colors and pattern mixing. There was my favorite color pink throughout my spring outfits; let's not forget the all white outfit that I just loved with just a pop of color. I then headed into summer with plaids and stripes sharing some of my favorite looks from my trip to sunny southern California. August was a memorable month with the launch of The Blog Guild and our launch party. Fall came late and there was plenty of time to transition sleeveless outfits and white denim and I shared both of these looks with a few fun outfits on the plaza. With fall came my wool hat. Then came capes, and me mocking old western movies feeling like an extra on the set.

If there is one thing I can tell you that is a constant on my blog it would be the color pink, and pattern mixing. You can bet that if I can mix the patterns I am going to try the outfit. Sharing style from my perspective and helping you think outside of your wardrobe box to try new things has been my mission from my first outfit post. Trends will come and go and you not always following them is a good thing. Style will always be a quality you possess from the inside out. It's a way to say who you are without having to speak a single word.

Green With Enve

Polka Dot Portofino 

Spring Sweater 

White Out

Pink Suede Shoes 

Tunic Love 

Pink Shorts 

Traveling the Pacific Coast Highway 

Los Angeles Murals 

The Launch Party 

Neon Pink Tassels 

Black and White 

Blush Moto Jacket 

Hot Pink Statement 

How to Wear a Plaid Poncho 

Casual Vibes 

Monochromatic Flutter Top 

If you're like me you have more than the end of the year on your mind.  There's new years eve, sale shopping, un decorating, and lets not forget blogging.  I know what you're thinking.... I can't add one more thing to my plate right now. Well now is the time to  get re-inspired, brainstorm new ideas and type of content you want to deliver to your readers in 2016. 

Today, I thought I’d share some of the items I’ve included in my new 2016 blog plan, and how you can write one of your own.

I broke it down into manageable bites to make it easier to customize it for your own blog. 

Why?  The most important question in blogging.  What is your own personal take away from blogging?  If you answered this with "I want to quit my day job and have a viable income to support myself", or " I just wanted a place to share all my fun ideas and be creative", then you have the why!  When you started blogging it may have looked drastically different than it does now for you so think carefully about what it is you want in the coming year.

Now that you hopefully have the Why...... take a look at your blog and take open notes about what you like about your blog and what you want to see change.  I'm not necessarily talking about designs either.  I'm referring to content as well.   Make a list about what you would change; maybe it's the sidebar content, or your sponsorship, whatever you see write it down. Don't stop just with the visual part either.  Your social media is very important and if you are wanting to step up your game you need to make it part of your blog plan.   Determining the look for your blog in the new year will help you see your blog plan better.

You have the Why; now lets talk abut the what.

What worked this past year for you and what didn't turn out so well? Look for any connection between the why you blog and what works for your blog.  If sponsorship is important and you want to make money then you have a direction. It worked for you!   If you tried it and it wasn't any fun because so much in involved working with brands then you cross it off.  This makes your vision for your blog much easier and you can align yourself with your goals. 

The Planning Phase

Hopefully by now you have a clearer picture of where you want your blog to go and taking it there should be much easier; now to get down to the details.

Mission.  What is the mission for your blog?  Do you have a mission statement? If not you should.  For example a part of the mission statement for The Blog Guild is to create, connect, and collaborate. You can read the entire mission statement here.  Having a mission statement will help with your blog vision.

Creating Content.  Part of your plan should include a list of your topics and categories.  Maybe you have an entire tutorial you want to share.  Break it in to sections and create a series.  Start making a list of all your topics that would be relevant to your blog brand.  Some of mine are fashion, style, beauty, and DIY.  Once you have your categories then break it down even further into sub categories. For example under beauty there could be product reviews,  beauty tips, organic products.  You get the idea.

Taking the next step.  Research the class you would like to take; signup!  Block some time and explore with your camera and learn all about what you can really do with it.  Look in your community for other local bloggers.  We have a fantastic network locally we all connect with; The Blog Guild. 

It's hard to believe that 2016 is just around the corner.  With every one's calendar full with holiday parties and festivities sometimes we forget to take a look at our blog goals.  This is the opportunity to take a look at your blog goals and assess what worked and what didn't.  Having a blog business plan is important and if you did write one at the beginning of the year now is when you should re-visit it.  If you don't have a blog plan well that's okay too, next week I am going to show you how to create your blog plan.

Falling short of your goals doesn't translate into failure.   I think people give in to feeling like a failure for not obtaining the goal.   Maybe you just need to tweak a few things and put that goal onto your new years goals.   I am going to share one of my goals from this past year and yes, I did not reach it.  I set a goal to have 1K instagram followers by the end of the year.  Seemed simple enough right?  Yeah... that didn't' happen. I currently have 905.  Close, but not there.  Life happened and I got busy at work and then forgot to post what was going on... etc, etc.  When November rolled around and I could see that the possibilities of having a 115 sincere followers didn't seem obtainable so I took a look at what I could do differently to help my goal.  Reaching my goal wasn't as important as what I learned along the way.  I took a look at what I was doing and made a few changes and started noticing my following engagement not only changed but grew.  (If you don't follow me and feel so inclined to, you can right here)  Maybe halfway through the year you decided you wanted to work with brands and take your fun blog to the business level only to find out you really didn't want to after all.  That's okay.   But what I did learn was that this is my blog/biz and I will and can tweak the plan along the way as I see fit.  Being able to look at written goals helps you keep track with where you want to be in 12 months. The race isn't the run, it's in the journey. 

Take a break during the end of year hustle and bustle and spend a quite moment with your blog plan and your goals from both the last year and the upcoming year.  But let's also applaud you if you did reach all your goals!  Pop some corks and celebrate, you deserve it!   

As I look back over the past year I can't help but be joyous with where I am today.  Re branding was something I have wanted to do for a while but needed to really define what I wanted my brand to stand for.  I think we accomplished it beautifully.   It stands for everything I love and inspire to share with you.  Clean, simple, and always a splash of pink and a pop of leopard!  It's about the beauty you want to share with the world.  Embracing your flaws and imperfections because lets face it, we all have them and we only begin to truly shine when we don't let it hold us back; rather help us grow.  I appreciate every one of you for supporting me, encouraging me, and making me want to share everyday with you the best I have to give.  Blogging is a lot of work and takes a lot of time to curate and create great content.  Working full time and blogging almost full time has been challenging sometimes; but I would change a thing.  I love my little blog and hope you will continue to ride the ride with me as we head into the new year.  Merry Christmas and I can't wait for an even better 2016!