The Passionate Voice

Tuesday Thoughts

• Career, Lifestyle

Well hello, there!

I’ve wanted to blog for a few weeks’ now but never knew where to start. Isn’t that something we all struggle with? Where to begin? What to do first? What to stick with? What to love the most? What to get rid of and leave behind? So much has been going on as of late, its hard to know where to start and what to share.

Springtime

There is something about this spring that has awaken me to so many new things. New things about the world around me, about people, but most importantly, about myself. The new greenery and flowers blooming, even the fresh smell of spring has awoken me in a different way than the last few years. I’ve happily welcomed this.

Motherhood/Back to Work #onthecampaigntrail

Its an overwhelming bittersweet time for me personally right now. I’m transitioning from my year off on maternity leave, entering back into not only the workforce, but the campaign trail. Ontario’s provincial election is 23 days away on June 7th. When I began working 4 years ago in politics at Queen’s Park, I knew this election time would come eventually, I just didn’t think it would come this fast. Much like my time with Blake. Where did this past year really go?

Because of the transition heading back to work, it has meant closing the book on being a stay-at home mom for the past year. It has meant starting a new chapter of watching Blake transition to day care. I’m also preparing to move back home to Peterborough for a few week’s while I work #onthecampaigntrail. I promise to blog about this exciting adventure in a separate post.

What the last few weeks has taught me is about sacrifice. Loving what you do for a living, while you have to watch what you’ve did for the past year fade into the sunset. Knowing that while it is hard to watch your child grow up, this is what life is all about.

I’ve been trying to soak up as many friend hangouts, family catch up’s, sunsets on the dock and coffee shop visits before reality sets in next week when I officially go back to work.

I love me some routine

I’ve enjoyed setting up a productive routine for the past little while, knowing full-well that, that routine is going straight out the window now that the campaign has started. If there is something I have learned about myself, its that while I love new things and discovering the unknown, I thrive on routine. Don’t we all as human beings? I’ve learned this the most from watching Blake. He loves meeting new people, taking in new things, not going to bed on time once and a while, but he pays for it a few days later. He sleeps better, eats better and you can tell he’s just an overall more happier baby when he’s in his routine. This is us as adults too, we just don’t like to admit it.

Learning Overload 

I’ve been the type of person that has 100 tabs open in my browser; articles saved to read; and so many random notes about motivational TED talks written down in my notebook but it hasn’t been until recently that I’ve wondered… is it too much? I’m not saying I want to stop learning but at some point, is it too much? If I want to speed up in the areas of my life I want to succeed it, does it mean I have to slow down in other areas of my life that don’t allow me to grow? If anything, Blake has been the greatest reminder for me to slow down.

[Photo Source]

7 Ways to Manage Your Digital Footprint

• Career, Lifestyle, Social Media

If you visit here often or we follow each other on social media, you would have noticed some changes last fall to my photography and branding.

It was just some simple, subtle, yet positive changes that helped to spice things up around here and on my social platforms. Hello, new headshot! 😛 

Its like when I re-arrange furniture in my house when the seasons change, it is the simplest thing to do and the BEST feeling when its done. In the social world, you really always have to be changing it up to keep fresh, continue to evolve and be noticed as you and your brand grow and evolve.

The intended change was good because it made me realize how you have to take continued stock or inventory of your digital footprint. Simply put, you have to keep track of all your social profiles. Sounds easy but it isn’t.

Even if you’re not rebranding, having all of your passwords and log-in information in one place is a good place to start. This made things SO much easier for me when I went to do my rebrand and proudly post my new headshot across all my social platforms last fall.

This blog post can serve both individuals or even businesses and social/digital managers that manage their company’s corporate communications and brands. Here are 7 things I learned last fall with my rebrand for how you too, can easily manage your digital footprint at any point in time.

7 Ways to Manage Your Digital Footprint

  1. Create and maintain a locked password document (that requires a password to get into the document). This should contain all of your social media platform passwords. This is an easy way to keep organized, period.
  2. Establish and set your brand guideline. This will ensure you execute your brand with consistent colours, fonts and look/feel across all social platforms you use. It is best to create a mood board and then a brand board to always refer back too. I’ve provided my latest rebrand branding board below for your reference 🙂
  3. Once you’ve set your ‘look and feel’, hire a professional photographer to capture your brand – it’s a wise investment and some of the best money you will spend!
  4. Have a consistent logo/photo/headshot across all of your social platforms.
  5. When/if you decide to change your logo/photo/headshot, take the time to update your bio and descriptions with the same consistent wording and put this across all of your platforms.
  6. Update your website or your blog at the same time to reflect any of these new changes and introduce your new rebrand.
  7. Review your analytics on each of your social platforms and website/blog to determine what platforms are working best for you. When you rebrand, its a perfect time to add new platforms, change the function of existing platforms or decide altogether to stop using certain social platforms if you find you’re not getting the ROI for the value you’re putting in. Your followers on each of your social platforms will tell you a lot about what they consume from your brand.

If you have questions about your own social media profiles, need help in rebranding or want to know more about the analytics behind your social platforms,let’s get in touch!

The Sunday 7

• Lifestyle, Travel

Oh, Sunday’s. 

1. We saw Nelly this past week. Like the rapper. Who say ‘Hot in Here.’ Yes, it was epic. Like circa 2004 epicness that made my high school-University self sing WAY too loud. It was the best $45 I’ve spent in a while. It reminded me how we need more of those random nights out with friends that turn out to be the best nights.

2. I have a day in Toronto planned for some work-related things and meet-ups.. a day in the big city sans babe is what my heart needs right now.

3. This tote has my heart swooning. I’m just wondering if it’s big enough to hold all of my stuff.. and Blake’s stuff :S

4. Now that Spring may be here (the last two weekends have been sunny and made me hopeful here in Guelph!), I’m wondering where the Instagram spring stickers are now?!! Come on #Instagram!

5. If we’re talking about Spring, a good ol’ ‘Spring clean’ of the house is necessary. I found this handy list of one item you can do each day for a month to get your place clean super helpful.

6. A place we forget to clean that we use daily? Our smartphones. I used this list to give the iphone a good clean tonight!

7. Talk about a fun-filled week, we celebrated the upcoming nuptials of my girl Mac at The Fancy Design Co with a girls night out. It was wildly fun, I wouldn’t expect anything else from our group of friends. A night out with the gals celebrating one of the best people I know was SO needed after a week of Blake being sick with a cold. We had dinner at Gilt in Kitchener and oh yum, was that menu amazing.

{Photo Source}

Processing Random Thoughts

• Career, Lifestyle

I’ve found this week to be draining for some odd reason. I alluded to this yesterday on Instagram.

I’m not sure if its the lingering hangover from Daylight Savings time or a flurry of ideas that are sitting in my brain. Regardless, that aching feeling of wanting to get the ideas out is enervating. I shared the photo of paint splatter as a way to try and capture what I {think} my brain looks like on the inside right now. I was glad to hear from other on instagram who could relate.

And so, to find a solution, I figured I would share some of these random thoughts. The thoughts that are swirling around in my head. Expect some blog posts to come from these:

Positivity. This is the basis to the world functioning better. There can’t be enough of it in the world and I’ll admit, some days, the realist in me sets in more than the optimist. I’m not sure if research supports this (send me any papers you find if it does!!) but am I wrong in saying that millennial’s seem more positive than baby boomers (cue the tomato throwing now, I’ll duck). It is so refreshing (regardless of age) when you sit down at a table and have a meeting or conversation and sharing of ideas when it is all positive. Positivity, or the lack there of sometimes, is why I sometimes question if more millennials are not pursuing careers in the sector I work in, Agriculture. So many thoughts on these two ideas – millennials being more positive and positivity within the sector I work in and how millennials view it.

Millennials. In keeping on this same topic, I am one. A millennial. I talk about them a lot here on the ol’ blog. And they seem to be a conversation starter. Scratch that, its all people have been talking about for the last 5 years or so, since it became apparent that we as a generation weren’t going away. When people recognized that we’re going to leave a profound impact on this world and not to mention, we have surpassed baby boomers as the largest generation now. Well, at least in the US according to this article. Millennials seems to be at the forefront of many of the conversations within my social circles and network recently for some reason. Especially when it comes to career conversations. Things like the role of millenials on Boards; what millennials value that differs from baby boomers; and is the workplace ready to evolve to these values. Either way, I have lots to say from my experience (both professionally and personally) so look forward to blog posts upcoming!

Motherhood. Is it OK to feel that you want to go back to work earlier than expected once you realize your baby can now breathe, eat and sleep on his own and perhaps doesn’t need you like he use too? Blake’s crawling away from me tells me that he is going to be just fine come May (his first birthday). Also child care, why doesn’t anyone talk about the beast that is finding child care? :S

Personal Brand. Ok, one more millennial thought. It seems that every millennial has or wants too establish their own personal brand along with maintaining their role/jobs within a company in their 9 to 5 job. This can be done, but with a bit of sacrifice on the millennials part and the company depending on expectations. Where previous workers/generation were so loyal to their company’s brand, are workplaces ready for this millennial “selfishness” as I’ve heard it called? And even more, are workplaces OK with millennial’s side hustles perhaps taking the spotlight away from the work millennial’s do in their 9-5’s?!

Creativity overload. As a creative entrepreneur, how do my fellow CE’s quiet your thoughts? How do you stop, or should I say, harness, the creative ideas waterfall that can come on the most random days? Do you write everything down on paper and pen? Put it in your iPhone notebook? How do you orgnaiz the thoughts? How do you tell your brain right at bedtime to stop thinking and put the ideas to rest? Literally. I would love to hear your tips!

Productivity. I am almost done this book and it is hands down, one of the best books I’ve read in a while. An easy, simple yet thought-provoking read, it has calmed my mind as a women but also fueled my motivation to want to do better, but in a more efficient way. Grab your copy, you won’t be disappointed!

[Photo Source]

The Sunday 7

• Lifestyle, Travel

  1. After spending the last 7 days in 25+ degree heat in Jamaica, to say I’m ready for spring is an understatement. I’m just thankful after returning today that we didn’t have to dig ourselves out from under snow. Our recent getaway was the reason why I was quiet on social media and boy did it feel good to disconnect. It reminded me that I can function in my own head, away from all the distractions. And when I chose to use my phone or laptop, it was on *my* terms. Such a liberating feeling! I’ll be sharing more about our trip on instagram this coming week 🙂
  2. The only way I’m curing my Caribbean hangover tonight is by watching the Oscars. I love me some red carpet fashion & awards #Oscars90
  3. Back to spring being around the corner, daylight savings time is this coming weekend AND the other sign that spring is close by? All the maple syrup festivals across Ontario are starting to take place including my local hometown Warkworth Maple Syrup Festival this weekend. Can’t wait!
  4. It was the best feeling changing my laptop desktop wallpaper calendar to March. Here are some cute ideas for your desktop wallpaper here, here and here.
  5. While on holidays, I finished  Joe Biden’s book, “Promise Me, Dad.” What a gut wrenching, page turning read it was – so good! I’m now re-reading Simon Sinek’s “Start With Why” which I have already dog-eared so many pages.
  6. The only other thing that made coming back from Jamaica somewhat bearable? Getting my Spring issue of Magnolia Journal in the mail… oh, and a Big Mac 😛
  7. And just to make my travelling heart feel a bit better about getting back from a much-needed trip like Jamaica? My mind is already wandering, thinking about possibly planning a solo spring trip to somewhere like New York, Chicago or Montreal. Seems like a lot with a young babe but I’m feeling so inspired by travelling #Wanderlust