Sunshine Blogger Award

This blog is a very special one since I was recently granted the Sunshine Blogger Award. Read more about it below.

In different occasions, I shared my thoughts about the experience of writing. Whether it is here on a blog, guest blogging or as a freelance writer, I think we always leave a little bit of ourselves in our texts. The hope is reaching as many people as possible and making a difference somehow.

It was with the sweetest message ever that I was notified by Charissa from Cook With a Shoe that I had been granted the Sunshine Blogger Award. What an honor!

[Tweet “I was granted by @CookWithaShoe the Sunshine Blogger Award. Read more here. #blogging #award”]

The most beautiful thing about such rewards is knowing that for some reason, among all the incredible sites a person visits, they think of you. It is like receiving an unexpected card or a bouquet of flowers.

Of course, it makes things also hard because you are left with a hard decision afterward. Please do check my nominees at the end of this post. I think they were a perfect fit for this award.

A little bit more about the Sunshine Blogger Award. The rules:

Thank the person that nominated you
Answer the questions from the person that nominated you
Nominate some other bloggers for this award
Write the same amount of questions for the bloggers you have nominated
Notify the bloggers you have nominated

The questions that Charissa put together for me (and her other nominees) were the following:

How did you get into blogging?
Who has been the biggest influence on your life?
What is your favorite blog to follow?
What is the best, most productive habit you have?
What is a goal you have for this year?

1. How did you get into blogging?

That is a very difficult one.

The exact reason I started blogging I don’t remember anymore. It was THAT long ago. But I always loved writing.

Maybe because I was a shy child, through writing I could express myself without the confrontation. Even though editing with paper and pen was not so easy as it is with a computer, I could “erase and rewind” as many times as necessary without causing any “damage”. It was a safe escape.

I also love reading. I could spend my days reading pretty much anything one put in front of me: including dictionaries and encyclopedias. And because of a History teacher I had in basic school, I even developed the crazy habit of reading a book from the cover on. Should I call it a trauma?

A lot of things have changed in my life, but I am still shy and I still love reading.

Blogging to me is the perfect mix of technology and writing. And sincerely, maintaining “blogspot” (before Google!) was much easier than “geocities”. Yes, that long ago…

2. Who has been the biggest influence on your life?

As a person, I have to say that it is my grandmother. Even though she passed away almost 15 years ago (the date is September 12th), if she were alive, she would have turned 98 on August 20th, 2015.

She was my everything! We always talk about “twin souls” thinking of partners, but she was my soulmate. I credit to her everything positive about myself and in the way I see life.

But nothing would be possible without my mom. She is such a dedicated and active person.

My mom always surprises me and sometimes I even forget her age. She always pushes me further with her example. She taught me to be a fighter and not to surrender when facing adversities. She is my foundation.

I know I was supposed to say just one person. I just couldn’t…

I’m walking on sunshine…⎜Image source: WeHeartIt

3. What is your favorite blog to follow?

Another tough one.

I read way too many blogs on a daily basis. Content curation grows on you and suddenly, when you realize, you are immersed in the knowledge shared everywhere. It is addicting.

I am not going to try to pick one of my friends because it would be impossible. They are all amazing bloggers and have tons of qualities. It would not be fair.

From all the other sites I visit, there is one, and only one, I even signed for desktop notifications. I want to read all their content as they are published: CoSchedule.

I am not only a fan of their service, but the information they share on their blog is top too. Writers such as Julie, Taylor and Nathan, just to name a few of them, deliver incredible content every single time.

If you haven’t checked them yet, you don’t know what you are missing.

[Tweet “What is your favorite blog to follow? Mine is @CoScheduleBlog . #blogging”]

4. What is the best, most productive habit you have?

Writing everything is my (secret) productivity weapon.

Whether on paper or electronically, I have to write it somewhere. So I can retain and organize the information in a way it will serve me adequately.

I have my mobile office on my Raskog, and all my writing tools are in it. From my planner and post-its to my MacBooks and iPad.

I write about blog ideas, projects, shopping list, payments, absolutely everything you can think of.

I have always written a lot, but once I had an ex-boss telling me to “get things out the head by writing them”. She was guiding me into GTD without me even noticing it. Since then, I don’t leave home without a small notebook and a pen (just in case I run out of battery on my iPhone).

5. What is a goal you have for this year?

My number one goal is to get back at my 100%. My recovery has been a test to my will-power and positivity.

It is not easy to deal with all the ups and downs of my energy levels. I am almost afraid to leave the house by myself because I am not sure I can make it back. My last experience was again painful (literally). It can be frustrating at times.

Of course, that I have my commitments, and I do my best to be active about them too. Still, my biggest dream is just taking a walk like I used to. I want to go for walks without going through excruciating pain on my way back home. Neither I want to lie down the rest of the day out of exhaustion.

My 3 nominees are:

My 5 questions are:

What do you like most about blogging?
What country would you like to visit (again)?
How do you come up with the topics for your blog posts?
When you are not blogging, you are…
What is your favorite quote?

[Tweet “Visit my Sunshine Blogger #Award nominees. Thanks @CookWithaShoe for my nomination! #blogging”]

Thank you, Charissa, for this exciting surprise!

My other awards so far:

Please check the list of link parties I join here.

Sunshine Blog Award

Keep on blogging!

#DebbieinShape

* You can also find me on:
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Twitter (Fitness): https://twitter.com/DebbieR_Fitness
Twitter (Geek): https://twitter.com/DebbieInShape
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/debbieinshape/
Google+: https://plus.google.com/+DebbieRodriguesPlus/
Google+: https://plus.google.com/+Debbieinshape/ (em português)