Blogging has become one of the most famous platforms for people to communicate all around the world. From food to lifestyle, from Do-It-Yourself (DIY) to travel, people blog about anything and everything to share their experience and interests with the followers.
It’s up to the blogger itself to maintain the blog and how to keep it interesting. One such blog we regularly follow is “The Desi Wonder Woman” run by a Dubai-based Pakistani blogger Shehzeen Rehman.
Pakistan Today luckily landed an interview with the blogger herself all the way from Dubai.
Pakistan Today (PT): Tell us about Desi Wonder Woman’s (DWW) journey.
Desi Wonder Woman (DWW): I started the blog initially just as a thing-on-the-side, to document stories of inspiring Pakistani women (hence the name). Slowly, I started writing a bit about other things as well, like shopping picks, travel stories, opinion pieces, which got a lot of traction from readers and brands alike.
Over time, I realised there wasn’t a true-sense lifestyle blog anywhere in Pakistan, like the ones you have all over the world today, and I thought I’d give it a full-blown shot since it was something I already enjoyed doing.
So, organically, it transformed into what it is today, where I talk about anything and everything I love and like. (You also get free food a lot of the times, so not a bad gig at all).
PT: Who is Desi Wonder Woman in real life?
DWW: Possibly surprising, but I’m a huge introvert. Fond of the small things in life and I love food but I love to travel even more. I appreciate a slow life, and value love and relationships above everything else. Also, I’m very clear about what I want from life.
PT: How far have you come ever since you started?
DWW: I have a much larger readership than when I started. I have more blog hits, more engagement, more loving and trusting readers growing every day.
Personally, I think I’m more emotionally mature after having been connected to so many people and valuing all the different kinds of life experiences we all have. Everyone’s a superhero and I’ve developed the compassion to see it.
PT: Tell us how do you maintain your blog?
DWW: It’s a full time job now so I work all weekdays and therefore, also post five days of the week. It’s absolutely critical for me to have content up on every working day and I don’t miss it, no matter what. Of course, I’ll slip in the occasional ‘sick day’ once in a while but other than that, it’s business every day.
PT: How do you get inspiration for new blog posts?
DWW: When you start doing your own thing (any business) I think you pretty much don’t have to grasp for new ideas. They keep coming because your mind is on it all the time, even when you’ve switched off.
I get ideas everywhere: during work, out at dinner, while watching a movie. I always have a full editorial calendar, usually filled out for the next couple of months. Other than that, I always am the most charged when I travel and it just feels like someone’s put me on an inspiration IV.
PT: What is important to keep a blog running successfully?
DWW: I don’t really love the approach of overthinking your ‘strategy’. It makes things too mechanical for me. When posting, I don’t filter anything.
You’ve got to keep it natural like you’re having a conversation. If you plan and process things too much, it becomes apparent in your content.
When a brand asks me to write a certain way, I push back. It has to be their product, their message track, but my opinion and my voice.
I feel it’s more important to keep an eye on not losing yourself within your posts, more than thinking about losing readership. You manage the former, and you automatically end up managing the latter and having a blog with longevity.
PT: Does it ever get difficult to manage your blogger life and personal life?
DWW: Not at all. I’m pretty clear about what I want to post and talk about and what I don’t. When you do a lifestyle blog like the kind mine is, it may appear that you’ve put everything out there. It’s always just a percentage of your life and if you understand how to protect certain aspects of it, you can easily handle the two.
PT: How do you manage to work from home, discipline yourself etc?
DWW: Working from home brings a bunch of challenges, some because of me, some because of others. I easily figured out how to manage myself because my prior corporate life taught me a tonne of discipline and how to manage a lot in a small amount of time so that’s what I already knew, I just had to apply it.
I’m always at my desk by 9 in the morning, never in my pjs while at home, always have an editorial calendar running with an everyday to-do list, understand how to manage meetings effectively so I’m not out running around all the time and don’t have time for desk or shoot work, and I stick to my deadlines no matter what.
When it comes to others, I initially struggled with having stay-over guests at home because my home office is bang in the middle of the house and it can be very distracting to have people around who want to talk to you or make plans with you.
But I gradually learnt the art of saying no and continuing no matter who was there – my work hours are my work hours and therefore, there are no leisurely afternoon lunches or movie breaks during that time. Not with guests staying over or with friends who want to hang out during the day.
PT: About your pictures, did you learn photography or was it trial and error thing?
DWW: I trust in the power of the internet and I’ve learnt everything thanks to Google.com.
PT: How to take a perfect Instagram picture?
DWW: Just be yourself, whether it’s you in the picture or a brand you’re talking about. There are no rules for a perfect Instagram picture. I don’t like perfectly curated images, it should just have life and a spirit behind it and you’re set.
PT: Since you have a huge fan following and share a lot about your personal life, how do you handle all the criticism and judgment?
DWW: Interestingly, I still don’t get quite a lot of it. But I don’t let it take up my time anymore. The blog is my ‘home’, there’s no room for toxicity here.
I used to respond to mean or judgmental comments with humour, but now I just let them be. It just feels like a very unproductive use of your mental space.
Of course, if someone’s excessively nasty, there’s a fantastic option called ‘block’ that can prove to be very therapeutic. *wink*
PT: How do you know if a blog is successful or not?
DWW: I really don’t like ranking people or things especially when it comes to success. It’s all so subjective. A very tiny blog with a 1000 people following could be making a much bigger difference within that small community versus one that has a million people on it but only talks about superficial things.
I like blogs that are honest, that know who they are and always create fresh, authentic content. That’s plain and simple success to me when you can be who you are.
PT: What challenges have you faced while bringing up your blog game?
DWW: Blogging still isn’t a legitimate career on our side of the world. Most brands don’t want to take you as a profitable channel of influence while compensating you fairly.
‘Freebies’ are considered payment. Most bloggers are satisfied with this model as well. This made my work very hard in the beginning because here I’d be ready with a project proposal for an interesting campaign with unique ideas and the brand would want to give me a goodie basket with very set parameters of what they’d want to talk about because most other bloggers were ready to do it.
I’ve now found my trusted partners who understand what I do and how I do it, but it does continue to be a challenge. I refuse to work though where freebies are considered valuable compensation for your intellectual property and/or where they want to hijack your writing spirit.
PT: What is your biggest achievement so far?
DWW: Knowing what my personal code of life standards is and having the respect of a lot of people for my work.
PT: What/Who inspires your style?
DWW: I really don’t feel that I have a ‘killer’ style worth talking about, but I do find life in colour and things that aren’t so new. I don’t shop high-end, I love getting things on a bargain, love stealing things from my mom and have a strong relationship with chunky silver jewellery. Anything that can fit within those, inspires a look for me.
PT: What current trends (local/internationally) you like/dislike?
DWW: I’m not one to follow trends because not everything looks good on everyone so it feels like the more intelligent choice to wear what looks good on you even if it’s from 1965. But I’ve always loved fringe, tassels and big silver jewellery so I’m glad they’ve come/been around for some time now and I can pretend to be on-trend while they last.
PT: Who has been your inspiration for the blog?
DWW: Anyone who has an appreciation of the small things. With a tiny corner in their heart for the love of chai and travel.
PT: Tell us something about yourself that our readers in Pakistan would love to find out.
DWW: I have an unhealthy fascination with chai and have about 8-10 different kinds of tea at my place at any given time. Also, I can eat at all times. Even when I’ve declared that I’m full and can burst any second, give me ten mins and I’ll be ready for another meal. My husband saw the cat from The Secret Life Of Pets cleaning out the fridge and instantly said ‘That’s you!’
PT: Any tips/tricks for newbie bloggers?
DWW: Find your own voice, learn how to use the internet to look up and learn things you don’t know how to do (everything you need is right there), don’t copy content from other bloggers and respect your readers.
PT: What’s in store for DWW?
DWW: I have some really fun projects coming up particularly in home décor and travel. And since, I’ve lately expanded into doing videos too, I’m working on some really interesting content around that.
PT: Anything you’d like to add in the end?
DWW: Have great respect for publications that consider it worthwhile to have a conversation with bloggers so thank you PT for making me a part of your story. I can split an imaginary cookie with you.
