We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Ruth Truett. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Ruth below.

Hi Ruth, thanks for joining us today. Alright – so having the idea is one thing, but going from idea to execution is where countless people drop the ball. Can you talk to us about your journey from idea to execution?

My adventure in food blogging began during quarantine. Like many of us, I was bored and needed something positive to do while we all sat around staring at each other. At that point, I had already begun saving my recipes and sharing them on social media, so a blog sounded like a natural next step.

One day, I decided it was time to start even though I knew absolutely nothing about blogging. And, when I say I knew nothing, I googled “What is a blog?” I am in no way a computer guru, and the technicalities of it all were incredibly daunting. So, I secured my domain and step by step, began to build Rufus For Real.

I literally knew nothing about building a website, so everyday it was researching and reading and educating myself on how everything worked. I studied pictures of food on Pinterest and learned what my food photography style was. I mucked through the technical side of things so people could find my recipes and my story.

In the beginning, I had no intentions of Rufus For Real becoming a business or anything outside of a fun hobby. I was a stay-at-home mom and the blog was something I worked on while the kids napped. However, I quickly learned that I really liked it and very much enjoyed the process of recipe development, the photography, and sharing my creations with the world.

Even today, seeing the progress and achievements, I am still learning. This is a constant learning process in an ever-changing environment. Nonetheless, it has been worth every single second of the hard work. I’ve built something from scratch, by myself, and I’m not looking back.

Ruth, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I’ve always loved to cook and learned from my mom and grandmother when I was young. I grew up on a cattle ranch, so cooking for the cowboys was always an activity I was fully immersed in. The memories of being in the kitchen with two of the most important people in my life will be forever ingrained in me. And, you’ve never lived until you’ve bounced around in the back of a SUV trying to keep the pinto beans from spilling over yourself and delivering them safely to a herd of hungry cowboys!

Growing up on the ranch also gave me a deep appreciation of where our food comes from. This formed the basis of my strong belief that cooking with whole and good quality ingredients is absolutely the only way to go. Food should be simple and delicious, and that’s exactly how I approach my recipes.

My love of cooking grew even more when our two girls were born. I immersed myself into creating meals that were not only kid-friendly and easy to prepare, but were good for us as well. Because of this, developing recipes over the years has become extremely personal. It’s a true labor of love and something that makes my heart very, very happy.

This journey of cooking and good food started in my formative years and is now something I love to share with the world. It’s real food, for real life, that’s real good. And, that is the core of what Rufus For Real is.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

One of the most important lessons I’ve had to unlearn during my journey as a food blogger is to “wait until you’re ready”. If I would have waited to start the blog until I was ready, I would have never started. The fear of the unknown and possible judgement from others was very real to me. I was petrified of putting something out into the world that was not perfect.

I spent months and months planning to launch the blog, telling myself I needed to get all my ducks in a row. Everything needed to be ready. I didn’t want to start something and it not be “just right”.

The fact is, that all my ducks will never be in a row. Most days, I feel like the ducks have abandoned ship and I have a bunch of feral turkeys. But, I got up, showed up, and kept plucking away every single day.

I struggled so hard with settling on a name for the blog. Rufus is my nickname from childhood and, to this day, I am called this by many of the most important people in my life. One day, I decided I had pondered on the name long enough and to just do the thing. Rufus For Real was born and I was off to the races.

If there is a challenge in your life or a hill you need to climb, just start. Even if you’re not 100% sure of how it will work or what you need to do, just start.

Have the courage to begin and find your inner strength. It’s there. I promise. Step-by-step, day-by-day, just start.

Can you talk to us about how your side-hustle turned into something more.

I decided to get serious about Rufus For Real when my youngest started kindergarten in the fall of 2023. Since then, it has grown and turned into something I am so proud of. The website is reaching more and more people every single day, and to say that I’m excited is an understatement.

Rufus For Real started as a simple hobby. It’s now something that provides a wonderful income stream for my family while allowing me to stay home and be the best mom I can be to my girls. I joke with my husband, Blake, that I’m trying to turn him into a stay-at-home dad so he can do the laundry and become my live-in maid.

What the blog has achieved thus far is a testament to consistent, hard work. Anything is possible if you are willing to show up, do the things, and never give up. The sky is the limit. The future for the blog is only looking brighter with every passing day and I can’t wait to see where it will lead!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://rufusforreal.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rufusforreal/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/therufusforreal/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@rufusforreal
• Other: Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/rufusforreal/
  TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rufusforreal