An Influencer's Influence: The Election Edit

Let your voice define you.

I've been wanting to write this blog post all week but haven't found the right words or mindset until now.

As of last week, history had been made and the election of one man has caused distress to ripple throughout the nation. It's scary to know that people can be divided so easily based on labels of differences. The progression us millennials have pushed for for so long has only resulted in retrograde.

As influencers, this shouldn't have been the case. Throughout the past few months these candidates have been campaigning for, I rarely saw any bloggers voicing their opinions on what's happening with the world. I know it's a rule of thumb in social media land to always be positive when speaking to your audience but there's a time when we need to be real and that time already happened.

It wasn't until it was almost too late that the blogging community spoke out. Sometimes I wonder if it was because the election was a trending topic or if people were honestly opinionated about the change.

I had apologized in my stead for not utilizing my platforms and the power I had to express my opinions about the world and encourage others to make a difference. I felt like I've taken a backseat too many times on global issues and felt guilty that I couldn't be a leader when I needed to be the most, especially because I didn't vote. I felt like I didn't have the right to tell my followers to vote if I didn't set the example myself.

I didn't vote mostly because I wasn't properly educated on how to do so but I also blame myself for not taking the initiative to research how.

I never really talked about politics either because I didn't want to deal with the controversy or negative comments. I felt like that really kept me from growing as an influencer. How can I have the goals that I want if I'm not willing to allow myself to be vulnerable?

I feel like times like these really show which bloggers are the real deal versus the ones who are just here for the instant gratification for their face (and or body.) That says a lot.

You have a voice and you have people that are willing to listen whether you have 10 followers or 100k. It's a shame if you were to ever take that for granted and not use your influential power to its fullest extent.

Let your voice define you.

Top via Dresslily / Pants via Hudson / Boots via Zara / Watch via Daniel Wellington

Youtube | Facebook | Twitter | Lookbook | Instagram | Bloglovin

Photography by Justin Quebral