A blogger I followed for a number of years announced her retirement from blogging and, in fact, retirement from almost all use of social media. Over the years, I have seen a number of bloggers leave the blog-o-sphere. And each time I wonder, is it time for me to pack it in? With a blog name of Retirement Transition and hitting my 10-year retirement anniversary (!), the timing also raises the question, is it time to stop blogging?
Yes, this month I am celebrating both my retirement anniversary July 14 (10 years!) and my blogging anniversary – July 27 (9 years!).
It is simply amazing to me that I have been blogging 9 years. I now have 990 subscribers (although about 250 reads/post in reality, which is still amazing to me) and over 400 posts. My blog writing has allowed me to process my thoughts on so many topics, but mostly about learning this new phase of life – retirement living. My blog has been the space where I’ve been heard, where I have found validation, where I’ve been appreciated, where I’ve learned I’m not alone with the tough feelings. I thank my readers and commenters for this!
Anniversaries and other key milestones always encourage me to look back over what has transpired, to see how far I’ve come, and to celebrate a bit. Here’s what I noticed looking back over 9 years of blog topics:
- Most popular post this past year was “How can I feel a sense of belonging?” (link here) With 342 views, this blog response made me realize how the retirement phase of life continues to challenge us with making connections. Along with feelings of accomplishment or utility, these area have been on-going.challenges in retirement for me (and many others).
- Early on, my blog topics were focused on the various life domains and how to work through retirement transition in them. I was using my product design skill set and ended up translating it and many of the early topics into my book (also called Retirement Transition – link here). Blogs like “To Work or Not to Work”, “Learning to Just Be” captured some of my early challenges with retirement.
- Through the years, I returned to many of the life domains as I continue to learn how to live my best life – looking at possibilities, learning how to play, and intentionally creating new friendships. I reapplied or created multiple tools to translate learning into practice, to live the retirement lifestyle I wanted to be living. And I blogged about many of those tools as well – Emotional Awareness, Vision Boards, WOTY, Seasonal Action Plans, New Things Tracking.
- I shared posts about the many things I’ve explored – Tarot, Enneagram, Chakra, Spirituality, Positivity, Happiness, Goddess Archetypes, Imagined Reality. My self-discovery work included working on releasing self-limiting conditioned beliefs, understanding abandonment triggers, hearing my inner critic more clearly, and figuring out my authentic self.
- My first 10 years of retirement included our Trip of a Lifetime (an African safari), (unsuccessfully) attempting downsizing with a hoarder, the (not in the original plan) Big Move to Florida, trying on a couple of gig-focused careers, and yes, publishing a book!
It was fascinating to me to review all my posts and to realize both how far I have come and how far I still need to go! What I have learned:
- Discover joy in simple everyday things – to pause during the day to just watch nature, to slow down and know it’s OK to not be busy, to mono-task (not multi-task)
- Make intentional choices, invest in experiences, and celebrate my life
- Move my body; appreciate my body and what it can do (and stop denigrating it which is an area to work on actually)
- Allow myself to become absorbed – in creating, in researching, in writing. Accept engagement (dabbling) and not worry about mastery (expertise)
- Use my tools! Emotional Awareness, Body Scan, Gratitude Journal, Glimmers
What I continue to work on:
- Being OK with finding life purpose in doing the little things I love to do – things that energize me, things I enjoy, things that bring me flow. (achievement/ utility!)
- Asking “Are my expectations realistic?”
- Reacting less. Stop and take a breath, be aware of my triggers.
- Listening fully to others, speaking kind words, stop spreading malicious gossip
- Acceptance. This word became my WOTY this year (blog link) and it’s both acceptance of myself and acceptance of what is, especially in the areas of connections/belonging.
At the end of this look back, I’m proud of all the topics I’ve discussed through the years. I will continue to blog as long as I can find things to talk about And since I’m still working on how to live my best retirement life, there will be things to talk about. It will be interesting to see where the next 10 years of retirement takes me, what retirement transitions I will face, and if I will ever resolve those challenges of connections/belonging and achievement/utility.
Do you do look-back at major milestones? What are your biggest insights from one recently (if you do)?
Picture: summer sunset
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I started in 2006 and now have, ad of last week, 5 blogs (media storage full on my daily poetry and picture one). I enjoy writing and find it feels a creative spark as well as connects me with like minded people. I like your blog as it takes an honest look at life.
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Thanks for that Bernie. I too like the connections with like-minded people. I get inspiration from so many of them.
But 5 blogs?!? I can barely keep up with one!
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A couple of them aren’t super active. I do juggle for sure but I am much happier to be on WP than spend time on FB. Bernie
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Yes, 50.000 and it became exhausting because I didn’t expect to reach such a public. I started blogging to stay in touch with my friends and ex colleagues as I was travelling quite a lot, instead friends and colleagues, soon lost interest while perfect strangers got passionate more and more of the pictures and places I posted. It wasn’t even a travel blog, I would say a photo blog, a few writings but it picked up almost immediately. I felt guilty when I closed it but my real life was waiting for me. Now I enjoy reading others, for the moment, it’s more than enough 🤗
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Happy anniversary for your transition and blog. I started blogging in 2018, reached over 50.000 subscribers and then quit because overwhelmed with work, everyday life and the blog it self. I didn’t realized how much I missed it until I opened one for a friend of mine. She’s got a shelter for disable pets in South Sardinia. I am so enjoying reading your posts. Keep on blogging! Flavia
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OMG, 50,000?!? I was kinda happy with my 900. LOL. I’m not in it to be a major influencer, but it’s lovely to hear people enjoy reading my posts. 🙂
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Congratulations Pat on both major milestones! You have covered a lot in your nine years of blogging, and I for one, have found so much of that to inspire me to look at, and at times adjust, things in my own life. I’m glad you’ve decided to continue blogging for the time being.
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Christie, I’ve realized my blog fulfills a need in my life… and as long as it does that, here I will stay. It’s wonderful to know that I’ve inspired others, too! I enjoy the friends I’ve made in the bogging world…and have found inspiration from many there (like you) as well.
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Congrats on 10 years. Considering how most bloggers don’t make it past the one year mark, you’re a rock star.
Do you do look-back at major milestones? Occasionally I do, I hit the 20 year mark in blogging last March and it startled me. My insight is that if you enjoy writing a personal blog it gets into your soul and you cannot stop. I do my own thing which might be why I’ve lasted this long!
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Ally, No one has ever called me a rock star before!
Interesting about it getting into your soul. A good way of saying it. My blog helps me think through things, often things about my own personal development. The writing helps me sort through my thoughts….something I might not do without the outlet on the blog. Then, there’s the comments. Validation, support, challenge, feeling of belonging….all things I need and get. I’m never going to be a major influencer with my blog, but it totally fills a need in my life.
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That is a lot of blogging! Congrats on doing it for so long. It is often hard to come up with a new blog subject. The blog can be a personal journal. I agree that it is neat to look back and see what you have accomplished and how you have changed over the years. Keep blogging as long as you enjoy it!
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Thank you! I often find the writing of a blog post helps me sort through my thinking on a topic, which I’m not sure I would do without the need to get a blog posted! And I find that reading comments, especially on some tougher subjects, makes me feel less alone. So I’ll keep on blogging as long as those things continue.
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Happy Blogoversary! Keeping up a blog is hard work, what with the coming up with ideas and trying to stay fresh. Kudos to you for staying at it. – Marty
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Thanks Marty. I sometimes think my posts are not new ideas…. but I continue to “try things on” to improve myself and live my best life possible.
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I look forward to your current posts and go back and read some from previous years as I work towards just taking one day off during the week! Why is it so hard? We own the business and I could access what I need from home. Guilt, always guilt.
Any way! I think I began one of my two blogs in 2016 and there was a time I only wrote one post a year! I agree with the commenter who talked about trying to find the time to write, and read and comment on other blogs.
I enjoy your posts – Happy Anniversary and I look forward to more of them!
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Nancy, I love that you go back to read older posts! Thanks for letting me know about that.
As far as guilt, I joke that I was raised on guilt! Seriously, I’ve been thinking lately on what are some of my deeply held beliefs and if those are truly “right” for me now as an adult, at this point in my life. Our beliefs come from our parents in childhood, from society, from our own reactions to events. What is the underlying belief to your feeling guilty? Maybe if you can identify that, you can ask “Is this belief still valid?” Not saying it’s easy. Even knowing what some of my beliefs are, and knowing they are not valid, it’s hard to shift them!
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Hi Pat – happy retirement and blog anniversaries – time flies doesn’t it? I’m coming up to 10 years of blogging in September and often wonder if I’ll stop. I’m certainly less prolific than I used to be, and I participate less in groups etc, but I still find that little thoughts pop into my head that I want to write about – maybe when that stops, or when the connections completely fall away, or when nobody reads my posts…. whatever…. one day I may stop. I like that it keeps my brain active and my keyboard skills a little more up to date than if I wasn’t on my laptop regularly. I can see the appeal in stopping and not being on social media, but I still enjoy my online community, so I guess my time isn’t up yet either. Onwards and upwards into another year!
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Leanne, It’s hard when blogging buddies leave. I’ve seen so many say goodbye, but it was the right thing for them. For me, I still enjoy how pulling a blog together makes me think about things, how the comments make me think (sometimes challenge my thinking!), and hearing what my blogging buddies are up to brings a smile to my face often. While I’ve never met any of them, I do feel like many are friends. Even if my blogging is not (and never was) prolific!
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A happy blogging anniversary.
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Happy anniversary! I had my ten-year retirement anniversary this year too. I started my blog a year earlier as I was contemplating my retirement. When I look back at past posts (which I seldom do), I’m surprised at how many different things I wrote about. Like you, as long as I can come up with topics, I’ll continue. But, even if I stopped tomorrow, I’d leave the blogosphere with so many great friends that I would never have met (either virtually or IRL) if I hadn’t made that first post. I’m glad you’ll be sticking around.
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Janis, I do enjoy hearing about my blogging friend’s lives. Inspiring, heart-warming, thought provoking…. the best kinds of friends. Like you, I will keep on as long as I have something to think/write about!
P.S. I’m pretty sure you were the first blogger I began to follow, and one who is still blogging. Hard to believe its been 9 years!
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Oh, wow, I didn’t know that. I will always remember the first person I didn’t already know who commented on my site. Happy dances all around.
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One of the few blogging groups I still link up with and write with has us writing about blogging for a post later this coming week. I have had such a hot-cold relationship with blogging. It is such a time consuming endeavor. And I am not good at finding time to blog, to visit blogs, to leave comments and to respond to comments. Many days there just aren’t enough hours to get everything done that I want to do and blogging isn’t always at the top of the list. I started blogging because I like to write. But I have found others channels for writing. So my 10th year blogging anniversary is in August – do I continue to blog or throw in the towel?
Will be interested to follow along with what direction your life takes in the next chapter. You have done so well adjusting to life in Florida and flourished I would say. Hope you will continue to do the activities you enjoy and think hard about doing those you don’t enjoy. That being said, I don’t like cleaning the bathroom but I do it!! A necessary evil.
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Leslie – I had to laugh about cleaning the bathroom! I’ve learned to live with a lower level of cleanliness as I hate to dust. Ah well, it’s all about choices. Including blogging. I’ve learned to not be tied to my blog…I’ll respond to comments “eventually” – see how long this one took me. I don’t beat myself up if I miss a week blogging (once a week feels about right for me). I comment when the content strikes me and “like” if I read it and enjoyed it. I only follow about 25-30 bloggers too. Net, like almost everything else… I dabble in blogging. Like I dabble in crafting and gardening. So I’ll dabble a bit more. That all said, it’s nice to see you back in the blogging world, even if it’s an on-again/off again mode.
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