After eating one too many Magnums to acquire free Gold Class upgrades, it was about time to appreciate another Gold Class experience. There is nothing better than enjoying a dessert wine & a hot chocolate in the cinema!  I pressed the button to start my seat reclining in preparation for the commencement of “Julie & Julia”.

Julie Powell’s goal was to make her way through 524 recipes from Julia Child’s “Mastering the Art of French Cooking” – all in 365 days. She didn’t know if anyone was reading her blog (apart from the one comment from her mother), but regardless, she set herself a goal.

I absolutely loved this movie, and I’m compelled to make comparisons rather than write a review. I really connected with Julie’s character (played by Amy Adams). I can really relate to where she was coming from. She needed to create more meaning outside of her job.

I know the feeling – without a creative outlet, you feel like you are wasting your time. You have that feeling of ‘time flying by’ but you have nothing to show for it. I also needed a creative outlet after coming home from the 9–5. Julie found her passion in cooking,  and found tremendous inspiration from Julie Child. For me, my goal its to be financially independent so I can develop my true passions (can I go as far as saying developing my life’s purpose?).

Julie’s results were inspiring. Although she was faced with criticism, she didn’t let it crush her dreams (*spoiler alert*  – her ultimate idol – Julia, did not approve of her journey). Julie not only developed a true passion for life, but found the strength to be herself. This is a clear demonstration of the amazing power of words – to inspire and influence others.

It’s almost laughable that before seeing this movie I had no prior knowledge of this story, however, apart from the obvious differences in the niche – I could find a few similarities. Unknowingly I’ve almost picked the same taglines – 365 days is my challenge as well! Her headline is “what could happen”. My headline is “will it happen”.

I really appreciated the contrast between the two people Julie & Julia, and the contrast between the two mediums – both the offline publishing world and the online blogging environment.  In many ways, the struggles were the same. Regardless if it was trying to find a publisher or praying for blog comments and growing a list of followers, both characters saw their goals through to completion.

Seeing a movie like this has only made me more passionate about following through with my 365 day challenge – what can I do to knuckle down and produce the results that I desire?

My Next Challenge:

So far I’ve identified two opportunities that I will develop to a level that I’m satisfied with before tackling anything further:

• Developing a niche blog site with article & video marketing (I can’t reveal anything just yet!)
• Promoting an affiliate offer using Yahoo advertising (thanks to Frank Kern for the awesome free video).

So don’t hold your breath for a sequel called “Julie, Julia & Joel”. I’m not a cook, and I don’t intend on blogging about the cooking niche, but I do intend on finding the steps to reach my goal.

If you’re new to blogging, and you feel perhaps that you might be wasting your time, or you’ll never build up a list of followers – think again. Watch this movie – get inspired and set your own challenge in your niche. Who knows what might be around the corner?!