Can I be transparent with ya'll?

Ya girl has been feeling allll the feels lately. So much so, it really feels like Issa in the early seasons of Insecure.

Yea we’re there. 🫠 lemme explain though…

So, if you were tuned into last week’s post then you know - my mental health has not been the greatest. Add to that, I’ve been once again in my head about my brand — overthinking how I want to show up on my socials.

This feeling isn’t unknown to me, but I want to get to the point where I’m more confident with telling people (and future brand partners) what exactly my world is in one or few sentences.

I am clear on a few things though.

This is a beverage space. ✌️ 

I love alcoholic drinks and non (even while I’m still configuring this sober-curious journey). I love discovering new beverages to try. I love going to stores and looking in the beverage aisle at all the new, familiar, and yet to try products.

But I also like talking about the experience of drinking. I like drinking in community with others. I like putting people on to new drinks and researching new trends happening in the beverage space. It’s super exciting to me!

But, here’s where things [in my head at least] get tricky. I don’t want my content to only reflect beverages — I also want to bring in other parts of me, like my loves for anime, documentaries, and music. It’s how to fuse all of those loves into cohesive content. That’s where my brain starts asking: do I want a curated brand or MY brand? 👀 

I also want to get in the habit of building my brand publicly and (mostly) loudly. One of the best pieces of advice I got when I first started getting serious about creating content was this: to not be afraid to build in public.

Show the messy. The unsure. The not-quite-polished. The not-fully-fleshed-out. The downright YUCK.

And above all, DOCUMENT. DOCUMENT. DOCUMENT.

That stuck with me.

I like the idea of bringing people into my world. It feels like a secret we all are in on. Seeing something beautiful being built right before you.

Don’t worry though, I’m learning to check these feelings of stress, anxiety, and overwhelm of this as temporary feelings. They don’t have a permanent place here.

I’ve been too scared to fail, too unsure to show, and too in my head to let myself cook. It’s time for a switch up.

The kind of switch up that makes lasting ripples and helps me move strategically.

And since I’m building this brand with you all watching in real time, it only makes sense to pull you in on the process too. That’s why I want to hear directly from you…

I Need Your Help 😆 

Soon, I’ll be sending out a survey right here in this newsletter. It’s going to help me understand who’s actually in this community, what you find valuable, and how I can start tailoring my content to your real interests — not just what I think they are.

I’m aiming to get this survey finalized so it’s ready in the next post [my own personal deadline 😅 ]. When it goes live, I’d for you to fill it out — and as a thank you, I’ll be sending out gift cards for those who do! 😁🤎 

And While I Have You…

You’re about to get an exclusive look at some new branding, I’m super STOKED to share once I’m back in the swing of creating more consistently back on socials.

So here she is… 🤲 

I HAVE TO TYPE IN ALL CAPS SO YOU CAN GET AN IDEA OF HOW ECSTATIC I AM OVER THIS NEW BRANDING!!!! 🤪😁 

Shoutout to Formatted Creative Studio for capturing the vision of what this space will be! I am so in love with how it looks especially the colors, fonts, and ya’ll that glass right there?! chef’s kiss 👌 

Having this logo has very much put the battery in my back to continue to grow and nurture this space I’m carving in the email lane. Giving her a name, a look, coloring, and altogether…a feel is just the start of how I plan on developing this part of my brand.

Telling ya’ll now…watch this space 😈 

One Last Thing…

This weekend I’m excited to be at Culture Con - the biggest creative conference for Black & Brown creatives from all backgrounds. Thee melanin, thee excellence, and the star studded guest speakers in attendance?! OOP! A time will be had!

I’ve been wanting to go to CultureCon for the last couple years, so making this a reality year is the biggest check off the ol’ bucket list! 😊 

Thinking about doing a reflective recap of both days for a post here on Monday, but we’ll see how drained my social and creative battery is. 😅 

Until next time - Angela 🤎