My internet story goes back to 1994, when AOL was first introduced to the public I was ALL OVER IT. I began my writing practice using the internet and used to journal on AOL, then I had a livejournal (who here had a LJ?). I became interested in website management around 2007 when I found inspiration for my own company through the choice to buy a sewing machine and teach myself how to sew. These were all modest and had a private audience.  In 2009 I created a Twitter account and it really opened my mind to people who were very positive and encouraging.  It was exactly what I needed at the time and I became a social media enthusiast overnight.  This significant event gave me a great deal of motivation to start putting myself out there publicly.

I feel the biggest lesson from was that when we are living in a victim state of mind, things are happening to us. Instead, we can, and must choose to live in a creative state of mind with openness to new possibilities so we can actively create our reality.  I had been living in a victim state and had felt really trapped and stuck until I found these tools for empowerment via twitter.

Around the same time as my Twitter beginnings, I began a blog findingshannon.com and I blogged pretty regularly.  Through this medium, I was offered sponsorship opportunities from Mountain dew, Columbia sports wear and others. The author John Gray of Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus visited my blog, along with real estate mogul James Smith   I had coined myself the "snowboarding, social media seamstress" and people liked it.  The blog was a stream of consciousness style with writings about my story and personal empowerment, encouraging others to live with positivity in their lives. I lost my blog and youtube channel around 2014 due to some unfortunate circumstances, but soon after I was back after it- building another site with a hopeful attitude.

They were there the whole time. Twitter may not have been there the entire time I was struggling, but the tools to create a healthy relationship with myself were.  I used to be stuck on putting myself second so along with that, came a lack of vulnerability because in order to compensate, the pleaser has to create a shell to make it seem like they are happy to not put themselves first.  You can imagine the toxic pattern this can create and how this act takes us away from our true selves. Can you think about any places in your life where you are putting others happiness before your own and you are suffering because of it?

It's important to note that Twitter was not 100% full of positivity and encouragement, nor is it now.  I had a shift in my mindset and began seeking out information and people with the kind of attitudes that would help me create a better life for myself and Twitter was full of these kinds of people.  In fact, Gary Vaynerchuk is now blowing up online, and I'm so happy to see this- because I knew about him 10 years ago when he was just getting started.  I continue to believe persistence is so critical to success which is why I work so hard to breakthrough my own limitations and be fearless.  Because it's not persistently doing the same actions repeatedly achieving the same results, it's persistence towards the goal... which requires personal growth.

I wanted to share with you a bit of my history, I didn't just fall out of the bucket yesterday.  I've been at this for a very long time and have learned so much along the way. I've learned to focus on what I want to create and that my unique perspective of seeing the world is what I can share through self-expression.  It's a bit hilarious that I haven't seen anything that I've been doing as "self-expression" until someone recently gave it a name and now it's making so much more sense.     

 

Until next time
Shannon