Friday the 12th marked the second birthday of this little blog. Two years seems like a crazy amount of time, and at the same time, it doesn't feel like long at all. I never thought I'd keep it up this long - when I started blogging it was something to pass the time and focus my mind on instead of feeling homesick. I feel my blog has grown along with me, and I'm no longer the same person as I was two years ago. My confidence has grown, I feel settled, I love my degree and feel very content with where I am in my life (don't get me started on looking to post-graduation future though). So its only natural that this blog has developed and seen some changes over the years.

It's always great to see a new comment on a post, more reads, or a new follower, and watching my blog grow over the last year has made me so happy and proud. I was finally able to tell people about it, and no longer feel embarrassed to say that blogging is my hobby! I wrote a post back when I attempted blogmas about why I blog, and it basically was a long ramble about all the things that make me happy with my blog, as well as some of the worries and fears that come with it. So instead of reflecting in the same way, I thought it would be better to compose a list of all the things I've learnt over these two years, I'd love to hear if you agree with all the points, and I hope it makes any newbie bloggers feel good about what they're doing too.

1. Blogging about what you're passionate about comes across in your post - I much prefer writing and reading posts that mean a lot to the person writing it, as its more sincere and your enthusiasm comes across.
2. Not all posts are going to do well - sometimes it can be heart breaking to see a post that you put effort in to not do as well as you thought, but what counts is that you put it out there and can learn what appeals to your audience. 
3. View counts do not matter. Okay, yes there is importance on viewers for growing your blog but ultimately if you're blogging for yourself then the fact people are reading it is just a big bonus!
4. Don't compare yourself to others. It's really hard not to do it, but it never helps. I've spent too many times wondering why someone has more followers or more views or whatever, but what I've learnt is the key is everyone progresses at their own rate. And sometimes it takes longer to grow than other people, but constantly comparing yourself to others will just bring you down.
5. The blogging community is a great place. It's totally something that I haven't taken advantage of enough. Blogger chats on twitter are great ways to pass the evenings, using hashtags and commenting on instagram posts. You'll find your most loyal readers in the blogging community and make some great friends too. 
6. Promote yourself, if you do care about people reading your blog, you've got to spread the word. Hastags, RTs, shares. Every little helps to get some more views, so don't be afraid to share your posts with the world. As I've already said, the blogging community are really supportive and will read what you share.
7. Don't be afraid to ask for help. There's been some posts where I knew the photography was off, or the content didn't quite hit the mark, but I still shared them anyway with the intention of improving. I admitted to not fully knowing what I was doing (who ever does) and received some really helpful comments and feedback that helped me improve for the next post.