This week in thoughts: A hair cut and f*** you to fear...

Or why I'm diversifying my content.

When I started my instagram account in late 2021, and entered into the world of social media, I never for once thought that I’d end up doing it as a full time job. Mainly because I suck at technology, but also because I’m not actually very social; in fact I’d say i’m getting worse as I get older.

I probably speak for a lot of my peers when I say that being an influencer isn’t really something that you imagine ever being when you’re young (I mean, this type of career didn’t even exist when I was at school) because, when you think about it, it’s a bit of a weird thing to do. It’s still a relatively new, and certainly, niche job I would say, despite feeling as though there are influencers everywhere waiting to pounce on you. It’s a job that is often misunderstood.

Whilst I was good at art and english at school and would say I have a ‘good eye’ (is that a thing?) I don’t think I’m very influential at all. Or maybe I am but I’m lacking belief that I am? Who knows. Anyway, fact is; there are people out there who are much better interior stylists, designers, are more naturally stylish and artistic and cool and generally have a far more rounded skill set than me and yet, here I am, doing it. And for the most part, absolutely bloody loving it.

I guess one of the ‘pulls’ of being an influencer (or ‘content creator’ as we prefer to be called) is that essentially, you don’t need any formal qualifications as such, just an idea/s and a voice and a whole lotta passion (probably a degree of narcissism too if we’re honest.) For those of us who maybe missed that illusive job satisfaction train when we were younger, are now fulfilling those creative voids. Finally getting to do the things that we gravitate towards and are good at, feels liberating and natural.

I also never imagined being self-employed but OH MY GOD it is transformative. As someone who has also always struggled with the very rigid structure of a 9-5, is confused by office politics and social expectations, being my own boss is practically perfect.

I pay my way and contribute to our family finances (which is really important to me) but I also have freedom. This work gives me the creative outlet I need to thrive whilst also honouring my energy needs, and self-preservation.

Lately I have found myself wanting to diversify the type of content I share because I am not a one dimensional being. As many of you can probably attest to; I have multi-interests. I love fashion. I love films, books, travel. I adore politics and feminism. I am very rounded. Sure my niche is interior styling, but often when I assess my grid, I feel a little… lacklustre? I love what I do and I am very proud of where I am in terms of my career but the truth is, I want to be able to share more facets of who I am, and explore my creativity in varied ways.

The problem with diversifying content is that your audience often follow you for the one thing you’re best known for. In my case, that is of course, my home and how I style that space. There are even specific areas of my home that are more popular and which I could, if I felt happy to, share every day and to some degree satisfy a portion of that consumer base. Would it get repetitive and boring and feel uninspired? Of course, but it would also (probably, I can’t say for certain) give me better results. I’m well aware of my account’s ‘money shots’; those pieces of content that consistently perform ‘well’ and I could, technically, rehash that. But, do I want to?

The simple answer is no.

Very recently I have shared more fashion inspired content on both my grid and my stories. Over the weekend I revealed my new hair cut and the response was overwhelming (I was still replying to DMs this morning!) And yet I lost a LOT of followers. What does that say? I think it shows alignment. That as I am finding myself fully, and fine tuning my business, that my audience is naturally changing too.

It is, of course a little disconcerting to discover you’ve dropped 300 people overnight, and naturally you question your decisions. BUT. And this is important, would I rather have a smaller, tighter community who enjoy all of the facets of my creative self, and find something in that diversity that uniquely speaks to them, or, a larger but less engaged audience that only want one thing? And moreover, feel dissatisfied with what I am putting out there, and how I orchestrate my art?

It’s a no brainer really.

Art is of course subjective, and I don’t expect everyone to enjoy everything I do, all of the time. That would be foolish. Do I stop doing what I want to do and focus on people pleasing or do I metaphorically grow a pair and strike some balance? My followers are incredibly important to me; especially my ride or die gang (you know who you are) because our relationship is symbiotic. I never take these wonderful humans for granted. Honouring them is essential. These are the (mainly women) who really champion everything I do. They are my tribe, essentially. They enjoy the authentic me, and whilst regurgitating the high performing stuff might’ve helped to grow my account more quickly, am I really offering anything useful?

I don’t consider myself a role model by any means, but I hope I have some sway, in my little corner of the internet, which encourages people to live life fully, and to feel aligned to who they really are. Many of my long term followers know my story (I’ll save that for a separate post) and my somewhat, undulated journey to where I am today. What message am I putting out if I don’t therefore, do what I want? If I don’t follow my instincts? What does that say about art and creativity when we are too fearful to colour outside of the lines?

And so with that in mind, I am going to carry on. Because whilst I may lose followers, I gain so much more personally. When I resist change because of fear, I don’t grow. And neither will you.

Have a fearless week.

Nina x

P.S. Cutting my hair was a scary thing to do but we have to do things that frighten us right!