SAVE YOURSELF FIRST

My time and how I manage it is a topic I don’t write about that often, but in view of the number of question I’m getting about maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad idea. See, my daily routine goes from blogposts editing, Instagram posting, email answering, meetings, presentations, parties and  shootings, to university studies, family duties and « normal » social interactions. However, I always find time for my favorite books (and God knows I do read a lot – I’m at the moment discovering a fascinating period of the English history through the eyes of Charles the Second’s mistresses), Netflix series, little afternoons with my sisters, lazy mornings with my man and coffee reunions with my closest friends. Yes I’m often having rough days and challenging weeks, I do travel a lot and try to keep up my graphic as relavant as possible, doing concessions when needed and adjusting myself to stay available when I’m not, yet I wouldn’t call myself restless because whatever the matter, I come first. My health and my mind are my constant priorities.

In my six years of blogging I’ve seen bloggers that stopped eating what they truly liked because of food trends, others that are too stressed out for their talking point to be anything else then their stress, and some that are so obsessed with their phones and so-called virtual duties that their simple physical presence is vain, for mentally they are always someplace else. Yes, to be a relavant blogger you have to give 100% of yourself to your activity, but it doesn’t mean you have to give up 100% of yourself. It is not a competition for the one that sacrifices the most in the name of success, nor it is a race for the podium of most stresses gals. You can say no – you can decline invitations, discuss deadlines and refuse collaborations in order to stay sane, this won’t make you a bad person or an unprofessional blogger, this will make you a healthy human-being with good introspection abilities. Save yourself first.

As an example, I used to answer to every email I received, but lately I’m getting about a hundred emails per day, half of them being partnership demands and to be totally honest: I only answer to 10% of these, with maybe 1% of positive answers. Does it makes me unprofessional? Maybe, yet if I had to send a personal reply to each demand it would take me about an hour per day, maybe more, and would only generate more emails while this hour could be used on a blogpost or on a long-distance phone-call with grand-ma, and people that don’t get an answer eventually understand that you were not interested. Because honestly, unless you’re the president or Anna Wintour, earth won’t stop spinning because you don’t answer within the polite 48hours.

To quote one of my reposts from this April : I’m tired of people romanticizing overexertion. Exhausted is not the new chic, coffee (though a delicious necessity) is not a food group, and running on fumes is not admirable. Why do we hold pedestals for sleepless nights, break downs and inner turmoil? Are those things really to aspire to? Self care, balance, the ability to know when your body, mind and spirit need to take a step back. Those are things we should admire. We have to stop blurring the line between « commitment » and self endangerment. Because too many people burned out before having a chance to truly shine, and sorry for the bluntness, but my goal is to shine.

Pictures shot by Charles Legrand in NYC

WeAnnaBe jacket

Jessica Choay crop top

Louis Vuitton bag

Givenchy shoes

Cartier watch