Don't Trade Authenticity For Approval

This time last year I had little hope for my internet career. I'd put a lot of eggs in one basket, working with a brand who let me down and knocked my confidence more than I should have allowed. I started 2018 intending to give it another 12 months and then potentially return to a full time regular gig.I assumed that by now I'd be ready to scale it all back and up my hours in the office in January but in spite of the fact that my 'numbers' (readers, viewers, followers etc) haven't really turned around, my outlook has changed completely.I've worked with some cool brands on more interesting and relevant campaigns. I've written a BOOK (more on that later), I was just on the radio (quite exciting) and I've already got stuff lined up for the new year that's a lot more 'me' than the opportunities I've had in the past.They say (in media, especially) that you should 'adapt or die' and for a couple of years I was really stuck between the part of me that wanted to stay current and keep growing my audience and the part of me that just wanted to make content that I wanted to make. The moment I stopped forcing myself in a direction I was bored of, things started to change.If you're a 'character' online then okay but if you're a real person then reinventing yourself is exhausting. There will always be a new take or a fresh way to present what you want to say but I'm never going to be the chameleon that I need to be in order to 'keep up'. It's not worth trading my authenticity and becoming something that would have a broader appeal. I'd rather be myself and let the chips fall where they may!