Living in the present…

In a break from our usual topics of discussion here on Design Darling, I thought I’d share an epiphany I experienced this afternoon. Lately I’ve found myself feeling inadequate, wanting more, and thinking I could should be doing everything better/faster/smarter. It doesn’t help that I’m 22 and following bloggers who are 3, 5, 10 years older than I am — young women I admire and who seem to have it “all figured out.”


The fact that I’m lucky to do what I love is not lost on me. I am so blessed to have a successful blog and online business — and I mean successful in the sense that I am proud of both projects and excited for where I plan to take them in the future. But it’s easy to look around and feel like I’m not doing well at all. I live at home to save money. I’m lousy at making time for life outside of work. My inbox is out of control and my parents’ dining room is a mess of boxes, inventory, and packing supplies.


I had a mini meltdown earlier thinking about all the things I could be doing differently. It’s taken me three years to get my blog to where it is now (how envious I am of all the overnight success stories!) and still I wish it were bigger. How do I become one of those young women who affords a gorgeous apartment, blogs original photos every day, cooks homemade meals every night (frozen pizza doesn’t count), exercises five days a week, fills her closet with new clothes, keeps a tidy workspace, makes time for happy hour every night, and gets eight hours of sleep a night to boot?


The reality, of course, is that that woman doesn’t exist. We all put our best selves out there on our blogs, but there are of course bad days (mean comments, technological difficulties, and mini meltdowns alike) behind the scenes. But when I take a moment to count the blessings I have right now — when I remind myself I’m doing the best that I can — I realize I’m actually doing just fine.


All that said, I’m going to make a bigger effort to live in the present and appreciate all the awesome things I’ve got going for me right now. Who’s with me?