As someone who is technically considered an “Instagram Influencer,” stepping back from the app over the past couple of months has been a major career shift. It started with just a weekend off and it was such a breath of fresh air, so I decided to wait a week longer, and then figured why not add another week onto my break because honestly I was so much happier and more relaxed without it.
As I shared in my newsletter a few weeks ago, I’m not just spending less time on Instagram, I don’t really want to be an Instagram influencer anymore. I don’t even know if I want to be a blogger or content creator anymore — at least not the way I have been. I wrapped up all of my paid partnerships for the year and am not planning to do sponsored content anymore. I’m ready to change things up, or at least experiment for a while.
My word of the year is intentional, and I’m taking that very seriously. I deeply value and appreciate the community that social media has allowed me to build so far, especially to grow my jewelry business from the ground up with $1,000, no experience and under 10K followers. But I’m at a point now where I want to think outside the box and imagine different possibilities instead of keeping the status quo. So I’m taking a pause for a bit and giving myself that time and space to live a more private life, explore some new business ideas and perhaps revisit using Instagram as a regular human being and entrepreneur, not as an Influencer.
I do feel the need to say that I have so much respect for the Influencer industry — not everyone handles their Influencer career with integrity, but that’s true for any profession. I don’t want my exit from that role to be misunderstood as belittling this big industry that’s enabled so many people (especially women!) to have financial freedom and support their families. It’s just something I personally don’t want to do anymore and I’m going with my gut for now.
If you want outfit ideas or style tips, everything is still here for you on the blog and I have tons of style videos on IGTV and several on Reels. And I also have the active codes page available if you’re looking for a discount on anything. That’s pretty much the extent of what I can offer you right now. Jewelry-wise, I may bring back pieces to my shop later in the year, but for this first half of the year my focus will be on creating pieces in collaboration with fellow designers, and those pieces will be sold directly through their online shops. When those pieces become available, I’ll share directly with my email list and also probably on Instagram.
I’m looking forward to using this time to dream, read, learn, invest in my family, and explore new business ideas. Where I’ll ultimately end up is still up in the air, but I feel good about the direction I’m headed. Thank you for being here through the years and for your support through this career transition.
Yay! So glad to hear this news! I’m excited for you and your family!
Follow your heart. If you exhaled after writing this, it was the best decision for you. I had to make a similar decision recently. The instant relief I felt told me it was the right one.
Good luck with whatever you choose to do. May happiness find you always!
My life has totally improved since I no longer use instagram or facebook. All of it is empty filler which only blocks more important things to come along. And those things which are more important do come! On line photos and comments are fleeting temporal moments that fade from view faster than the memory of them. It’s like feeding the past more than the future at the very cost of selling our souls via algorithms.
Congrats!! I decided to step away from Instagram over 6 months ago and I totally understand this decisions I had multiple Instagram accounts focused on different content and it was basically insane. I cannot imagine being an influencer and feeling that kind of pressure on top of the regular technology/social media pressure. Good luck with everything!! I can’t wait to hear about your upcoming jewelry!!
I love that you are being true to yourself. I have enjoyed following you the last few years! Whatever you decide to do, I’m sure it will be great. Best wishes, NB!
I miss your outfit posts already! I’ve loved following you and learned so much about fashion from your Instagram and blog posts. I hope you find rest and a better career path.
Thank you so much for everything you thought me! As a European woman, I struggled finding my brands, style, and clothes in the US. Through you, I learned a lot and I feel confident again in my style and in myself. Wishing you all the best!
I was just thinking about you and wanted to come on here and say that I don’t think you should quit style because you are genuinely so good at it. So, maybe that means starting a face to face styling business or doing more classes etc or training people to style others but it would be a great loss if you stopped doing it altogether. Also we need your voice about body positivity. So you should find some outlet for that. No pressure but those are the 2 things that are your gifts that you should continue to bring to people – in a form that makes you happy. 🙂
Thank you, Natalie ❤️ I have enjoyed following you on IG and will miss you there. I became an Instagram fan mostly during COVID when my time with my in person friends has been so drastically cut down. Having a small number of IG accounts to follow has felt like a different kind of community and I appreciate it. I hope to see you on here occasionally as you feel lead to share – your talent is a joy to see.
I can appreciate that you want to step away from being an influencer. I have admired your style for a number of years. I hope that you will post outfits to a Pinterest board so we can benefit from your style. Best of luck to you.
I am not an influencer but am trying to step away from instagram too. You are a favorite feed and knowing you are not there as ‘bait’ has made it easier for me to not log on. And as you said, it has been refreshing! Geeze, I didn’t realize how much I was being marketed to :/ Anyway, I guess what I am saying is you have influenced me to give more space to my small kids, my life and my self and that might be the best use of your talents of all.
Well said.
I’m so happy for you and following your dream however, I will so miss your styling ideas…you have such class. Best wishes and enjoy your beautiful family ❤️
As an older folliwer I have so enjoyed ur blog and Instagram. Your authenticity in style and health content has been a wonderful experience. Following your heart , time spent with family will always nourish your soul. Best of everything
Hi Natalie!
I have LOVED watching you grow and change since HS Photography class. You are such a light in this world. I love cheering you on in whatever you do and I find your bravery in always growing and changing to be inspiring! From your original blog in sharing your faith, to your jewelry and style – you are a breath of fresh air Love to you and your family. I can’t wait to see what you do next! 🙂
I haven’t followed very long, but I have been inspired to use what I have in my closet to recreate outfits from your posts. So thank you! I, too, am starting a new journey. I am a public school teacher, and will be retiring in June after many years. It’s both exciting and scary! Best of everything to you and your family!
Thank you!
Love this so much Natalie! It’s a direction I felt I need to take as well and your encouragement was so needed.
I want to thank you for all your wonderful content – you were the first person I ever saw who exemplified exactly what I wanted to (but didn’t know how) create with my own style. I will forever reference your photos to continue to hone my own closet. I also recently changed the trajectory of my career in order to focus more on family and I don’t think I will ever regret that. Thanks again for being my own personal style icon! 💕
At least now you know you’re not alone 🙂
So excited for you!! Can’t wait to not hear about what comes next for you 😉 Enjoy every minute of this new season for you!
Thanks Angela!
Congratulations on a graceful exit. I follow just a couple of influencers, including you. I appreciated your simple and basic outfit inspirations, but also highly respected that you kept your children’s lives private when you could have used them as content to gain followers. Best of luck to you in your next endeavors.
Thank you for being here and following along!
I don’t personally know you, but having followed you since Jack was born and you were carrying him in your fabric sling, I just have to say how much I admire you for stepping back. It’s not to shame those that are influencers, it’s to have the self-awareness to know what you need to do and step away even when something is going well. I’m happy to have crossed paths with you on the internet. This is a huge inspiration as a young mom to recalibrate and move forward. Needed that. Thank you.
Thank you so much! I’m glad that it’s giving you more freedom to think about what you want for your own life as well.
Thank you for your heartfelt words, experience and sharing everything you have with love and intent. I love your jewelry and while I only have a couple of pieces, I always get the most amazing compliments on them and I smile when I share your info. I have been in full gratitude for all you have shared personally and then a bonus you have helped me navigate some wardrobe “stuckness” I have had. Thank you, thank you for your self love and sharing that with the community and making beautiful things. I am sure this will take you to an amazing next journey, however that looks. Will miss see you!
Thank you!
I love all of this. 👏🏻 Live your life quietly and with intention…it is a breath of fresh air. You don’t even owe us (ie the internet) any explanation, and still have shown how gracious and caring you are by sharing this post. Thank you for bucking the status quo. Looking forward to the occasional newsletters and good luck with your new creative ideas!
Thank you so much for these kind words and for the encouragement.
So, I’ve followed you since probably 2013. Yours was one of the first blogs I read regularly and you were my little piece of our California (and then Texas!) home while we lived in Europe. You truly helped me get a feel for my own style and feel grounded in who I am as a woman. It’s been so fun to watch your blog grow and change into a massively successful business while staying true to who you are. I just wanted to say thanks and wish you all the best in whatever comes next!
I’m so happy to hear this! Thanks for being part of my community all these years and for your support and encouragement as I explore some new possibilities 🙂
You’re so inspirational, Natalie. You have inspired me in so many healthy ways! I am so happy for you. Stay gold💛
I’ve loved your content through the years and will definitely miss you on this space! Onward you go!! Xo
Thanks Gina!
You’re so inspirational, Natalie. I love the words you take time to share with all of us. I support your career change! I feel that makes you even more inspirational on the fact that you’re so genuine and authentic. I will forever keep your blog bookmarked! I tend to go onto it whenever I need a little pick me up. Stay gold. Always rooting for you💛
Thank you!!
I always feel this strange sense of excitement when anyone wants to change their career path. Cheers to whatever is next!
Yes! So much hope and possibility in the air! Thanks so much.
You’ve got this. Whatever you feel you need to do is what you should be doing. Thank you for everything you’ve brought into my life– making conscious clothing choices and embracing personal style seemed too daunting before I found your account. But now it’s time for you to breathe in, breathe out, feel good about what you’ve done and free to move on with intention.
Thank you so much — I appreciate the support and encouragement!
So fun!! I’m also in a career transition, and I know it can be overwhelming but it is also so fun to dream about other possibilities and envision a life that better fits where we are now vs. where we were 5 or 10 years ago. I hope you can enjoy the space to dream and create without the pressure of always hitting publish! Also – I’ll always appreciate the Natalie effect on my wardrobe :). It all feels so much more streamlined but also put together. Thank you for that!
Thank you so much! I officially made this decision several weeks ago and it feels so good to share publicly and now shift gears into exploring some of the new ideas I have. Excited for what’s to come 🙂
Wishing you all the best as you take this time for yourself and your family. You have been an inspiration and such a joy to follow. Thank you for everything you do! Can’t wait to see what you do next… Rooting for you!!!
Thank you, Jen!
Major respect to you for listening to your heart. Hitting pause. Taking time.
May you find great joy in a new season!
Thank you so much, Jenny!
I am so excited for you! I have loved following you and one of the main reasons I kept following was for your authenticity. I love that you are trusting your gut and doing what’s best for you! Hope to see you around again in the future! ❤️
Thank you, Andrea! It’s always scary to make transitions but the worst thing we can do is be afraid to make changes when the right time comes.
Oh Natalie, I admire your ability to pause, reflect, and be intentional, especially when it goes against the status quo. As a follower of your IG and blog for awhile, I want to extend gratitude for what you brought to these spaces. I am not only talking about style but also those facets that connect to humanness and authenticity. Until we (maybe) meet again! Much love, Kelsey
Thank you so much, Kelsey! Truly. I appreciate you taking the time to encourage me with this.