Last week, a blogger from another province randomly reached out to me to meet up. She found us on Instagram and liked our content, and she thought that since she was in my city for a few days, it would be fun to hang out and chat. And I am so happy that we did.
Rachel of luminousandwild.com was the sweetest, most sincere and down-to-earth person. I picked her up from her hotel to do some sightseeing, and we chatted nonstop the whole way to Cape Spear, North America’s Most Easterly Point. We saw some bergs, snapped some pictures, and talked about our travel experiences. Sadly, we forgot to selfie! Rachel gave me some of the best advice I have ever received, mostly about blogging but also about how to live a more authentic, spontaneous, and adventurous life. I left our meet-up feeling motivated. So for this, Rachel, thank you.
Connecting and collaborating, I’ve come to learn, is one of the most important things you can do as a creative person, next to being confident and proud of your work. Not only does it help you to gain exposure and boost your reach, it allows you to gain perspective and make lasting relationships. Getting a glimpse (or in-depth exploration) into how others live, work, and play is critical to personal growth.
Rachel said it perfectly while we were driving around St. John’s: “Everyone we know were once strangers”. Don’t let new, wonderfully strange and different people intimidate you. While we were at Cape Spear, we noticed a guy dangerously close to the ocean. We had a little conversation about understanding risk and how far we are willing to go for a good photograph (or just an experience in general). We both agreed we wouldn’t go as far as him! This notion applies to meeting people as well; be safe and aware of yourself. Trust your gut. Don’t put yourself in ANY situation you feel unsafe in, but don’t hide away too far into your comfort zone, because you’ll never get your shot. To get anywhere in this beautiful life, you need to get out there and talk to people— take all the opportunities thrust your way and fully immerse yourself in them.
Can you spot him?
This post, honestly, is a combination of a brain dump about a topic that is important to me, and an excuse to talk about a truly great experience and inspiring individual. Rachel, thank you for my first “meet-up” as a blogger and for giving me a little bit of inspiration. I cannot wait to meet you again!
xoxo,
char
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