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The other day in the bus on my way home from the university, I was having a conversation that touched different topics with a friend. I was unprepared when she asked me “Michelle, how confident are you?” It took me a moment before I could answer her question. My cheeks felt warm because I knew I needed more time to discuss this issue.

My first thought was, how do I define confidence? When I was younger, I misunderstood the definition confidence. Nothing mattered as long as I fitted in the crowd. I had a hard time trying to find who I was. Years later, I have come to learn that being confident is accepting and embracing my flaws and who I am as a person. It is the ability to say “NO” without feeling the pressure to apologize to the world for being me. The ability to choose what makes me happy.

I have a better understanding of what confidence means to me. But, I do have moments when I feel less confident. It doesn’t happen often, but when it does, I find it nerve wrecking. Life feels like is totally screwed. I get filled with emotions and insecurities. To avoid banging myself against the wall, I’ve mastered a few things. They help me boost my confidence back again whenever I experience these moments.

Avoid holding myself back and keep doing it.

When I started shooting my blog pictures, I totally sucked and was scared at the same time. After practicing for over a year, I can safely say that I am more confident now than when I began my photography journey. The more I’m out there shooting the more I learn, and the more confident I am. My motto is to avoid holding myself back and keep doing it.

Not to underestimate me

I am guilty of this, but I’m learning how to be more kind to myself. Self-doubt creates room for more insecurities, and that is not my goal. I have a few reminders on my phone that remind me of how great I am. They also remind me of the amazing things that I am capable of doing.

Not to be scared of failing

I adopt so many emotions and get confused when I fail to achieve something. It’s the worst feeling, and it affects me. I am learning how to accept my mistakes and try as much to push away the thought of being scared of failing. The important thing is to get control of my emotions and try it again.

Appreciate and celebrate small wins.

I find it necessary to acknowledge the smalls steps that I have made. It makes a big difference in enjoying the process and celebrating the small wins. I always feel proud of myself which increases my confidence and makes me feel motivated.

So, there you have it. A few of the things that I do to boost my confidence whenever I feel less confident. How confident are you and how do you define confidence? Would love to know your thoughts. Share them in the comments below.

Thank you so much for reading. I wish you a super lovely day.

Love..xx

Pictures take by Axel B.

How Confident Are You?

Sweater: H&M

Belt: H&M

Bag: Seen here

Shoes: Kenza sko Aalborg

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It is a week since we came back home from ski vacation Saalbach Hinterglemm, Austria. It’s funny to say that I keep on dreaming about skiing and feel like I am sliding those mountains slopes. Axel’s Dad and his wife, Fie planned this trip. It was one of the easiest trips we have had so far. We did not worry about booking flights or where to stay.

After almost two and half hours of flight delay at the Billund Airport here in Denmark, we arrived safely at Pinzgauerhof hotel. It was already dark outside, so we did not get to see much during the one-hour bus drive we had from Salzburg Airport to the mountains until the following morning. The staff at the hotel were very welcoming, and I loved the fact that we could have both breakfast and dinner. They did a fantastic job presenting their dinner meal which always consisted of three courses.

I was in awe when I woke up the next morning. What I noticed when I looked out through the window were the mountains that surrounded us. The view was breathtaking as everything was covered in snow. My heart was full of joy, and I was overwhelmed and teary. A new experience was waiting.

Right after our first breakfast, Axel and I decided to go and ski. It was my first time, so I could barely balance my upper body. I registered to a ski school which took four days. My ski teachers were very patient and always keen to give advice whenever his other students or I did something wrong. And even though, I was so scared to ski from the top of the mountains, he made sure that we took small breaks whenever we needed them. And in the extreme snow storm, he would stop and wipe our glasses. Or, if any of us fell, he would come back and fix our ski shoes. All these small things that he did made us feel safe and in the right hands.

The weather in the mountains was unpredictable during the one week we stayed there. It would densely snow in the morning, and the next moment, it would be raining or sunny. During the week, we experienced both rain and snow days. We only had two beautiful sunny days. It was hot and important to use sunscreen else I would have gotten sunburns like Axel did. Regardless of the changing weather, I had a great time.

Normally, when I travel, I get so curious to know the city. I can walk for more than 10km a day exploring the hidden corners as well as finding places to eat like a local. This time, I honestly didn’t get time. I skied from morning to evening with small breaks somewhere in the mountains. During the after-ski, I would sit with my ski mates and talk about our experience. I guess skiing is the only way to explore the different places in the hills.

This ski vacation Saalbach Hinterglemm was one of the most dreamlike trips I have experienced in my life. I loved skiing. A huge Thank you to Axel’s dad and his wife, Fie who surprised us and organized everything.

And as always, Thank you so much for reading. I hope you having a great Monday

See you on my next post super soon.

Love..xx

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If you follow me on Instagram, you might have noticed my absence this past week. I took a week to detox from social media. To completely focus and allow me to be in a state where nothing distracted me. It was also perfect timing and opportunity. Axel was away on a work trip in Augsburg, Germany. If you are someone like me who likes to spend time scrolling through Instagram feed, then you and I can agree that social media is time-consuming.

These past few days, I realized that I often don’t get to notice the beautiful things that surround or happen around me. And this is because I am spending so much time and constantly feeding myself with what is going on social media. Or, even checking how many likes I have got from that recent post on Instagram. You see, it’s very addicting and often, some of these things that make me so glued to my screen are not relevant and don’t add so much value into my life.

During my one week detox from social media, I learned three things that I am sharing with you:

Don’t forget to live the moment.

I am very obsessed with capturing pictures and like to share them both on snap chat and Instagram stories. Instead of snapping everything away, I tried fully experience, enjoy and live the moment with all my senses.

The importance of learning something new.

Besides getting all the unfinished work that I have been putting on hold done, I chose to learn to how to play around with lighting when I am out shooting my blog pictures and so far, so good. I’ve also been taking notes of how the light bounces on different buildings in the city. I’m looking forward to better weather for more practice and master light during different times of the day.

Getting in touch with myself

I am constantly thinking of when and what to post on my social media.  My creative juices aren’t always flowing. And, moments like this can make me feel so overwhelmed and completely forget where I am and what I am doing. So, instead of worrying about what I should post, I spent time getting in touch with myself.  I sat by the fireplace mostly in the evenings doing nothing completely. It was at these moments that I enjoyed every single deep breath I took. And now, I feel a great sense of joy in my heart and freedom and hope to continue this way because it’s truly a nice feeling.

My final thoughts: I honestly can’t completely avoid social media.  I use it often for connecting and sharing my thoughts with you especially here on my blog. But, I am going to take full control of how much time I use on social media.

Thank you so much for reading!

Photography by me, Michelle

Detox From Social media - Twenty7bymichelle

Jacket: H&M

Top: H&M

Jeans: H&M

Boots: Seen here similar here

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Hello everyone and Happy Wednesday! I asked Axel to dress up for me this past weekend. The idea was to do a Valentine shoot. I was a bit nervous because he doesn’t like being in front of the camera. He was super sweet, and everything went so well. We both had fun doing this shoot.  The red dress that I am wearing in this post was a perfect choice. I bought it a few months ago and only got to wear it once during new years eve. I’ve always wanted to add a red long or short dress to my closet. It took me so long to find something that I really liked. When I first saw it, I instantly fell in love with the lacy details and the bell sleeves.

We did not have any plans for Valentines as we both had a long day packed with schedules.  Axel believes that Valentine can be any other day and the reason why he doesn’t like to pay so much attention to this day. I like the idea of surprising him with a bouquet of flowers and a cute note. We will have a V-day celebration this weekend. Trying a new dinner recipe and sitting by the fireplace till late, playing games or even going through our old pictures are some of the things that are planned for the evening.  I hope you had a good and amazing Valentine day.

On a different note, I woke up so early this morning for a doctor appointment and some errands in town before my afternoon class. I only had three hours of sleep last night. Honestly, I don’t know what disrupted my sleep. I decided to leave the bed and do my school assignment which went well. I feel tired, but I am looking forward to this gorgeous day in Aalborg, and a bike trip in the city later in the evening to catch up the sunset.  Wish you a super fantastic day and talk to you super soon.

Thank you for reading!

Happy Wednesday ❤

Valentine - Twenty7bymichelle

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ZARA Man

HERS:

Dress: SheIn

Bag: Zara

Sandals: Thrift shop

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