[Ny Minute Now]

The first 30-day Blog Challenge I did was inspired by a few online resources I'd read on giving one's blog a boost. But, for the most part, I was in the middle of my sabbatical and was caught between a dilemma of not wanting to be idle and not really having a full-time job to keep me that busy. True, I was still doing my online copy editing work for a luxury hotel group, along with my weekly beauty column, and of course, this blog. Yet, I had nagging thoughts of, "What am I doing now?" and I wasn't quite ready to get back into the daily grind of office work. I was also still recovering from a lumpectomy and had a wedding coming up in a couple of months—not exactly the best time to make new major decisions in terms of one’s living situation.

So, I started the 30-day Blog Challenge. Oh, now I remember: I'd also read a former boss's blog about how one can create a habit by doing something for 30 days straight (the original theory, I believe, was 21 days). I was toying with the idea of getting up daily at 5am and doing some morning workouts. The early-morning thing never quite materialized but I did manage to complete all 30 days of blogging (read it here or visit the spin-off site, 30-dayblogchallenge.com). What a challenge, indeed!

It's been a year since and I'm truly happy about having done that first round because so much has sprung from that Challenge: from the blogging series for Cosmo.ph, to my own baking blog at Yummy.ph, the online home of Yummy Magazine. I also did the Inspiration Series here at Ny Minute Now. Along the way I also discovered some online revenue streams; if you look at them individually, they’re not much, but they somehow add up. Now, I have some ongoing and upcoming writing and editing work online, assignments that are actually capable of letting me afford to mull about and explore the city while I await my next full-time job, which is just so amazing. I couldn't be grateful enough.

In celebration of all of that, and so it begins. In the words of former Good Housekeeping Philippines editor-in-chief Jing Lejano in a recent comment, "Clang, clang! Round 2!"

Watch this space and thanks in advance for reading!

Labels: 30-Day Blog Challenge, career, food, freelancing, New York, New York minutes