One of the questions we answered during our Healthy Living Summit panel was
Do you feel pressure to be like some of the big name bloggers who publish multiple times a day and have amazing photography skills?
I’ll answer the photography part first, because that answer is shorter. 
While I am working on improving my photography, that is mostly for me. Yes, better pictures will help my blog look better, but the real reason we bought our dSLR was to take pictures on our honeymoon in Italy next month!
A slightly more complicated topic is the concept of finding your blog ‘voice.’ I have been reading about it for months, but only recently figured out what my own voice was.
And you know how I found it? By ditching all my preconceived notions about what a healthy living blog “should” be.
Think about it. If we all posted the same things with the same frequency, we’d be very, very bored, right? Who wants to read the same thing over and over? If we can find what makes our blogs unique and what style makes our blogs the best they can be, we’ll all grow as people and bloggers!
So, to have a healthy living blog, you do NOT have to:
- Post multiple times a day
- Post about everything you eat
- Post healthy recipes
- Post about your most recent workout
Basically, as Heather likes to say, ‘Healthy living is MORE THAN food and fitness.’
Figure out what works for you. When I started Savvy Eats, I tried posting everything I ate. And while that works fantastically for some people, it did not work for me… it just stressed me out!
For awhile, I wrote posts that contained tidbits about Smart Food, Smart Fitness, AND Smart Life, and while it was better, that felt forced, too.
A few weeks ago, I FINALLY hit on what works for me. As you’ve probably noticed, I now write about Smart Food OR Smart Fitness OR Smart Life OR the Savvy Garden in one post, rather than all of them.
As soon as I made this adjustment, I noticed a change in my blogging. My posts are stronger, I feel proud of my writing, and I’m excited to blog again. The words are coming more easily to me. I feel like I can tell a story with each blog post, and I am sharing more useful information that my readers can come back to and use.
How can you find your ‘voice?’ Well, there is no direct formula, but there are some exercises you can do to help you on your quest!
- Look back at your favorite blog posts or other favorite pieces you’ve written. What do they have in common? What is it that you love about them?
- To find your voice, you’ll need to set yourself apart from your preconceived notions about blogging. What can you do to set your blog apart? What makes you and your writing unique?
- Figure out what comes easily to you. Posts shouldn’t feel forced. Do the words flow best when you talk about multiple topics in a post, or just one? Do you prefer lists and bullet points, short paragraphs, or a combination of the two? Do you like to tell a story leading into your main topic, or jump right in?
Blogs, like people, are constantly growing and changing. But if we tune into what we need to do to be proud of our blogs, we can each find our own voice.
Have you found your voice yet?
Note: Thank you to the Arnold Bread’s photographer for allowing me to borrow their picture! 
I’m still figuring my voice out, but I did want to tell you after that panel that I had really noticed you gaining a specific voice on here Julie! Gotta say I love it too
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I’ve noticed how strong your posts are- you definitely have your voice going loud & proud.
I’ve gone through a similar thing. I thought I had to post all of my food, and at first, I liked it. But then I realized there are enough of those out there- nobody is going to be lacking if I don’t show you my breakfast. Also, posting less makes my posts more relevant & not just quickly hashed out to have something up there.
Thank you! Very good points
That is such a good post. So true. I feel like I’m just now finding my writing voice in general after writing professionally for the past 10 years. I’m writing a book currently and it literally took me SIX MONTHS to get a first chapter that sounded to me like ME.
Blog writing is no different. There’s alot of trial and error. I’m getting there, but my blog layout definitely needs to catch up with my writing style! Love your layout! I’m about to get Thesis pretty soon, too! Love it!
Love this! I remember us having convos about finding our voice when we first started blogging, and I can definitely notice a change in yours – and I love it. You posts just keep getting better and better Julie!
Aww, this made me teary!
I agree with Jessica. I love the new you.
I have noticed a definite shift in my writing since I started about a year ago. I tried the food thing posting every singe day documenting every morsel of food I ate. I found that I wasn’t enjoying eating anymore. I’ve started writing more story-like posts as well, and I noticed that more people are reading my blog! It’s funny that when you start really enjoying writing, your readers enjoy reading your posts!
“It’s funny that when you start really enjoying writing, your readers enjoy reading your posts!” — so true!!
I’ve noticed that your blog has been quietly re-inventing itself… and I love it.
I keep coming back to your blog to reread all the great info you post as it’s always so well written and helpful!
Thank you!
This post was a great read! I feel a lot better because I used to think that because I didn’t want to write about everything I eat and take pictures of all my food, my blog didn’t measure up to the others. As bloggers, it’s important not to compare ourselves with others. I blog about what inspires me and I know in my heart that wherever I am is exactly “where I need to be”
Ooooh Italy! I was there in May, it stole my heart
I’m sure you have it all planned out already but IF you get a chance go to Cinque Terre. We traveled all over Europe for 3 weeks and Cinque Terre, Italy was my FAVOURITE place of the entire trip!
My voice has been changing a bit recently as I’ve start to take more of a healthy living blogger approach on my blog. I started out as a personal blogger. I enjoy watching my blog grow and evolve but I know that it’s important I stay true to my own voice also!
We’re actually cycling in the Piedmont region for our honeymoon, but we are driving from Rome to Gavi at the start of our trip…it looks like Cinque Terre is on the way, so maybe we’ll have to stop there! Thanks for the tip.
Great post, Julie! I’ve only been blogging for a bit over 2 months and I’m definitely still finding my voice – but I’ feel like I’ve come a long way in some regards. What I do know is that my blog will always have a variety of posts – some days pretty personal and introspective, some days about fun activities and travel…it depends on what’s happening in my life. Your blog is beautifully written with an interesting variety of topics.
Thank you!!
Great post, Julie. It was very helpful because I’m still trying to find my own voice.
Hi Julie, I’m a new reader. (I might have commented before I’m not positive!) Anyway I wanted to introduce myself. I’m Amanda!
My husband and I had our honeymoon in Italy and it was so fantastic. I wish I would have thought to ask for a DSLR or to just buy a DSLR. It would have been perfect for the trip.
Personally, I’m still working on finding my blogging voice. It’s tough!
Hi Amanda, thanks for stopping by! Where in Italy did you honeymoon?
We went to Rome, Florence (only for a day. Took the train from Rome) and then to Venice. We spend 5 days in Rome and 5 in Venice. It was the best trip of my life. I can’t wait to go back!
I have to say that your HLS session was my very favorite!
This topic of finding one’s blog voice is actually very near and dear to me because my blog is so new and I am in the process of really figuring out what I want to be about. I consider myself a bit lucky that I entered into blogging with the “I’ll post when I’m inspired” attitude and sometimes that’s every day or multiple times per day, and sometimes it’s every third day or so. It was reassuring to hear you and others reinforce this at the Summit. Thank you!
I’m so glad you liked our panel and what we shared!
I completely agree with everything you said. I’m relatively new to the blogging scene and I’m still working on finding my voice. At first I was blogging twice/day and keeping a photo journal of everything I ate. I got burnt out, fast. It’s just too much for me at this point in time with mine and my husband’s busy schedule. In fact, just this week I made an announcement about changing my blog. Now I’m going to try to post a few recipes a week plus a Sunday recap of other photos I snagged of my meals. Some meals are so simple, there is really no need for me to talk about all of them!
I think I’m going to like this new format better but I’m still finding my feet and I’m sure the blog will always change depending on the flow of what’s going on in the rest of my life! I think it’s important for bloggers to be flexible with themselves!
I think that ‘healthy living blogs’ have gotten the rap of being ‘oatmeal, running, running buddies, or some form of special diet’. Now that could be a sweeping generalisation…but it’s NOT me. And many of the larger HLB are full-time bloggers w/o kids. So I think that people can try to pine after that lifestyle and/or success and they don’t have the time and/or lifestyle.
With that, I think it’s GREAT that you’re doing your thing. You have to. It’s YOUR blog. Not someone elses. No one is taking scores. When I stopped thinking that my content was too heavy for people, I finally found my wings. Yeah, my traffic isn’t as high as maybe I’d want it to be..but I don’t care.
High five!
I agree that not feeling the need to follow the lead of other bloggers helps open yourself up to your best blogging. I think in the past few months I have more strongly discovered my blogging style and voice. And my blog has grown by leaps and bounds. It amazes me!
I do post multiple times a day (bec I prefer shorter posts with a focus on one topic), but I don’t blog about my meals or workouts or what I did that day every single time. I use varied topics and not even 1/2 of my eats appear on the blog. I don’t have a ton of recipes either.
What I do give is a passion for life. I share about all the many aspects that make up health and a fulfilling life for me. I promote confidence and supporting others. I pour out my energy into causes I feel strongly about – like my 30 Days of Self Love (http://www.faithfitnessfun.com/30-days-of-self-love/) coming in September. I do things for ME and it makes blogging so much more fulfilling and REAL.
I really love this topic because I really love talking about authenticity. I read all kinds of blogs, but I think the thing they all have in common is writer authenticity. I can tell if someone is faking it, and I can tell if someone is not enjoying what they are doing. The idea of blog pressure is funny to me … I don’t get why someone would feel pressured to blog about something or in any one way. Success, for me, means writing I am proud of and that happens when I write about something I really want to talk about. I used to feel nervous about posting things without pictures, and slowly I’ve become okay with that. I think any new blogger needs to find his/her own way and try out different things. I always knew 3 posts/meals a day would not work for me, and I was right. When I experimented w/ it back in Feb. or March I really missed the writing part of blogging, which is my favorite part. Now I can honestly say I post exactly what I want exactly when I want.
Anyway, to sum up this lengthy comment … writing voice rocks. I teach it to all my students, no matter how young. It’s what makes any writing good.
Authenticity. That’s the feeling I was trying to get across when I wrote about finding your voice. Way to hit the nail on the head.
phew I so know what you mean.. I´ve hit a rut – I was feeling my own pressure. It was just like you mentioned – I felt like since I´m not posting EVERYTHING then I can´t be a part of the community. So thank you for the post…
Julie – This post was fantastic
Thank you so much for sharing this with us! As a relatively new blogger, I think I am still in the process of “finding my voice” I’ve had a great time “experimenting with my content” & it’s been a wonderful journey so far, and I’m excited to implement some of your tips to see what I find out 
Great topic, indeed!
When I started blogging, I felt a lot of pressure to sound professional and intelligent all the time. I still like writing posts that I consider to be informative, but I’ve also grown into writing posts that are digressive, silly, and honest. It’s been a fun and liberating change for me.
such an inspiring post!! Like you there is just not enough time to post all the time, but it’s really the quality that matters and if we’re happy with it
I try not to compare myself to other popular blogs (try!) because it just gets me down and blogging is something I really enjoy. It’s best for me to post recipes and random life happenings or bike rides and just go with the flow. Yay for your honeymoon! I can’t wait to hear ALL about it! Chris and I have finally started the wedding planning process and we are going to try our darndest to get to Italy with our bikes and forks in hand too 
Terrific recap. I wasn’t able to attend this specific session and this recap is fantastic. I definitely walked away from HLS with a stronger sense of “healthy living” and agree that posts should come naturally. People can smell something contrived a mile away.
I am still searching for my voice. My blog is for me but I want readers to enjoy it and look forward to new posts the way that I do with so many of teh blogs taht I frequent. I would also love to engage people in discussions and if possible, be a motivation to some of them to!!
Thanks so much for the tips and sharing a bit of HLS wisdom with us.
This is a great post Julie!
I agree that finding your voice is something that is always evolving, just in the way that our blogs are always evolving in a way…
I think I’ve found my blogging style, but I think I still need to work on my voice.
No. Not yet. I’ve barely started blogging, but Im sure I’ll find it somewhere down the road.
http://hotenoughforhenney.blogspot.com/
Thank you for this information. I found it very helpful being a newer blogger. I am still finding my voice but the journey is a good one.
I think I have a strong voice, but it is very connected to being a yo-yo dieter. And I wonder what will happen when I am over that and moving on. What will I write about since this is my blog identity?
This is such an inspiring and helpful post. I’m glad Heather (from Then Heather Said) put me on to it. I will mark this in my favouites and refer back to it when I start to feel demotivated or that I am doing blogging ‘wrong’. I am glad to find other people that aren’t doing the ‘here’s everything I ate today’ posts. For a while I felt like I shouldn;t blog at all if I wasn’t going to do that but now I’m trying different things so that I can find what works for me.
Thanks