birds of a feather

IMG_2694For many years I did freelance reporting for small local newspapers. I’ve always loved covering an assignment — whether it’s a municipal meeting, community day or a wrestling match — and boiling it down to the most relevant bits and painting the picture for my reader of what transpired.

But because I worked as a freelancer, I had very little interaction with fellow journalists and for many years, I was the only reporter I ever really knew.

So when I started my current job three years ago as an editor of an online news site, it was thrilling to sit down at our first team meeting with 10 other reporters.

“I love being with journalists,” I remember one of my new co-workers and now pal declared as we sat down at a the time, and I recall feeling really intimidated by that statement because surely they must have sensed that I was a fraud.

I felt that I had done an adequate job giving the impression that I was some seasoned reporter but was convinced that the jig was about to be up.

I am having a similar sensation here again at BlogHer.

I really don’t know any bloggers in real life (other than my fabulous friend Barb at Wow, I’m a Widow Now), and yesterday I met tons of real-live-bloggers. Some I’d even read about or followed prior to this big conference. And it was kind of intimidating.

But cool, too, to once again be in the presence of like-minded people. And someone even had read my blog prior to the conference!

But maybe sometimes intimidation is what we all need. It pushes us out of that comfort zone (like being content with publishing just one post a week) and challenges us to do more. To be more.

In less than a few hours I’ll be in a room with over 4,000 bloggers and getting revved up for the next two days by none other than the mega blogger Ree Drummond of The Pioneer Woman.

But I’ve got a cute outfit and a new friend or two, and sometimes cute clothes and a pal are all a girl needs.

If nothing else, I get to stay in a fabulous hotel room, as evidenced by my early morning view from my window above.

 

 

 

4 thoughts on “birds of a feather

  1. “You’ve found your people!” Now settle in and savor every moment of the experience. Sending a hug and a smile. J

  2. Have a wonderful time Amy. You belong there!
    I felt the same way when I attended my first fitness conference last year. Like a fraud. But in the process of meeting people and making friends I realized that almost everyone there was a version of me–except for the presenters, and maybe even some of them. In my opinion the defining difference if there was any, was confidence. Gotta work on that.

  3. Amy, It was a highlight of my BlogHer experience to meet and pal around with you. I loved getting to know you a bit, and your outfits were ALWAYS cute. 😉 Looking forward to reading your lovely blog and keeping in touch! xo

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