University Advice #1 - Local Area

Hi guys! Sorry it's been a while, I've been busy researching for my dissertation and my schedule is fully booked with assignments and work! I live an exciting life ha, but anyway on with the post.

I have decided to start posting separate posts on advice for university students, from experience I know that it can be overwhelming going to university. New areas and new friends can bring along amazing new experiences for you to get involved in whilst you study. Though it also brings new amounts of pressure from the workload and anxiety, but it honestly will be the best years of your life.

Wembley Stadium - Taken from Wembley Park Tube Station

My first advice for anyone starting university and too any first years out there is don't be afraid to explore your new local area. As you can see from my images I took earlier today, my local area is Wembley.

Most iconic which you should recognise is Wembley Stadium, along with Wembley Arena. Student life can get crazy on match and event days as all the local pubs and bars are full but for some people maybe this makes it better or some choose to stay inside and watch Netflix. 

Wembley Stadium

Wembley Arena

Right next to the stadium, is the London Designer Outlet which includes restaurants and designer shops. Where in my first year, age 19, I experienced my first ever Nando's and Subway!  

London Designer Outlet

If you get to know your local surroundings during your first year it will help you by firstly, being about to meet friends in new places and secondly, it may make you feel more comfort and reassurance. This isn't to say you have to do this but if you are like me and worry a little too much than you should about the smallest things, it just bring comfort just by knowing where you are. 

If you are a student going to university or maybe a student already please comment below any questions or ideas you have that I can include as 'University Advice #2'.

Like always thanks so much for reading! Stay strong and positive!

Love Sam x

Tips for Creating a Blog

Before I started my blog I looked up a lot of different things to ensure I was doing the best thing possible to make my blog the best it can be. Now this doesn't mean this is a guide to having a perfect blog and you'll get millions of views, it's just a few things I found when it comes to creating and writing your blog. 

So I will begin with the first thing I looked up when I started taking my blog more seriously. I found a news article 'Want to become a star blogger?' and of course they included a picture of Zoella (Zoe Sugg) who is absolutely incredible and amazing! But that's enough fangirling from me... 

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Growing an audience

• It's important to tailor social media platforms to your audience. It makes it easier by identifying which platform your readers are using to be able to connect and communicate with them.
• Use a platform that you feel suits your needs as a blogger like Blogger or Wordpress.
• Engage with other blogs by commenting on blogs you admire, this way you might receive more yourself.
• Growing your views isn't easy but it can be rewarding spending time updating social platforms and creating new content you enjoy writing. 
• To grow audience I found many websites that say ideally upload 3 times a week.

There are two reasons why people create blogs:

1. Personal Project: Writing about whatever you can, this way people who can relate to your posts will maybe comment and share their own experiences with you.
2. Career: Focusing on one topic like fashion for example and hoping readers are interested in that and will want to follow. 

This isn't to say these are strict rules and you MUST do these, it's just want I've found but I wouldn't say I have a theme, I just write about random topics. You could if you enjoy two topic try and connect them or even have two separate blogs for each but you wouldn't want to neglect one blog more than the other.

Start as a hobby was the most important advice I found as most bloggers don't earn a full time living. Just see where you end up, blog witting can give you many other skills towards a job you probably never even realised like digital communication or editorial journalism. 

Post ideas

• Write what you love - Make sure it's 'you'. 
• Be different - Try and set yourself apart.
• Write like you talk - your personality can shine through, again just be 'you'. 
• Good content is key - write content that you as a reader would want to read.
• Photography skills - the more professional your pictures look, the more professional your blog seems. This is something I struggle with but I'd love to get a really good camera one day to improve my photography skills which is why for now I use getty images to avoid any copyright issues.
• Research - make your blog bigger by studying others. Don't copy, pick your favourite things from different blogs, come up with new ideas and learn new things. Remember blogging isn't a competition but a fun way to express yourself. 
• Do good - promote what you love instead of bashing what you hate.
• Friends - Most importantly when it comes to your blog posts don't forget to reply to comments and engage with your readers. 

I could go on and on about what I found when researching about blog creating but these points mentioned I feel are the most important and helpful. I also went and looked at the blogs that I love to read for inspiration for my own blog. Once again be careful not to copy but sometimes just by looking at a blog by someone who inspires you can give you the motivation you need to carry on. 

I hope you find this post helpful.

Like always you can contact me on Twitter @girlwithablog16 or via email agirlwithablog16@gmail.com. 

Sam x 

Back-To-School Pressures

I'm not ashamed to say I struggled at school academically and socially. During my first year of secondary school I spent most of the time crying and wanting to go home as I didn't like the change between primary to secondary school.

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So this is why I came up with the idea for this post and also as it is close or for some already the summer holidays. Some of you may be worried about returning or starting at school so if you believe you may struggle with this change hopefully this post will be some help to you.

I found a website that created a survey which 600 people took about their worries on returning to school.

32% said they worry about school work issues the most. This is only a natural feeling as you are now going to be studying at a higher level than you are used too but this doesn't necessarily mean you will find it difficult. Ensure you manage your time efficiently in order to make progress, stressing about it won't make a difference unless you act upon it. To avoid any trouble always start projects the day you get them so you are not trying to complete them last minute.

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3% of people who took the survey were worried about extracurricular activities. This worry means you'll have to manage your time. However, if you are more worried about the social aspect of extracurricular activities there is no need to worry! From my own experiences school extracurricular activities is were you can make friends as they share your interest in that particular activity.

Another high percentage was 30% where people said they worry about social issues. You are not alone if this is where you believe you'll struggle, everyone will be put in the same situation as you. Whether you want to belong to a smaller or larger group of people, make sure you feel comfortable with the people you surround yourself with. The people you surround yourself with will be the people who support you through the ups and downs of school.

25% of people said they worry about appearance issues at school . This is also closely linked to social issues by needing to fit in and be accepted. Never try to hard to fit in, be yourself. In a school full of many people be yourself and not everybody else. The remaining 10% said they weren't worried about anything (lucky).

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Everybody will experience back-to-school anxiety but I can speak from experience that it is never as back as you think. Don't over analyse, everyday will be different and take everyday as it comes.

Hopefully you found this post beneficial. Don't be a stranger, comment below if you have any opinions on back-to-school pressures. Thanks so much for reading!

Like always you can contact me on agirlwithablog16@gmail.com.

Sam x