How Blogger Luvvie Ajayi Is Keeping Us Laughing All the Way to the Bank
Luvvie Ajayi of the wildly popular blog Awesomely Luvvie describes herself as a 13-year overnight success. In this profile by xoNecole writer Kiah McBride, we learn Luuvie’s story of how she has turned a blog she just started as a fun creative outlet into a brand that has landed her a book deal, an interview with Oprah, a chance to work the red carpet at The Academy Awards, and countless paid campaigns. Read her inspiring story here.
Answering The Question, “What Are You Waiting For?”
We all know the question “What are you waiting for?” is rhetorical, but sometimes it’s worth answering anyway. Bryanda Law of Quirky, Brown Love recently contemplated the question for herself and realized she has often failed to celebrate her successes — with her blog and even her hair care — because she felt as if she couldn’t because she was always so focused on the next benchmark, she was always waiting for the day she had “made it.” She writes:
With every new mental goal, I felt like I had to wait until I reached a certain level to enjoy myself. I never allowed myself to enjoy the process… I was waiting to celebrate until I “made it” which is a goal that in actuality is unattainable. With the mindset that I had, I would never allow myself to see that I had “made it”.
Read the article here.
12 #WomenWithDegrees tweets that make a powerful statement for women everywhere
For the first time in U.S. history, women are more likely to have bachelor’s degrees than men, with 37.5% of women between the ages of 25 and 34 having college degrees, compared to 29.5% percent of men. But this good news keeps getting better.
Black women are now the most educated group in the country!
The Twitter hashtag #WomenWithDegrees is a proud celebration of this black girl magic and a recent Mic article highlighted a dozen of these girl power tweets. Check them out here.
Weigh Your Words Instead
In this moving personal essay, writer Adriane Tharp reveals the that what challenges her body image most aren’t photoshopped bodies in magazines, but the conversations and comments of other women. She writes:
But I think about all of the women I’ve ever met, and not a single one comes to mind when I try to remember one who loved her body completely. And I wonder if this is where body image has gone wrong—not only in the magazines, in Hollywood, or online. It goes wrong in our conversations, in the way we carry ourselves, in how we shame others rather than celebrate the fact that not every female form is the same.
Birmingham’s Holiday Weekend, the Sidewalk Film Festival
Like most of Birmingham, I’m headed to Sidewalk Film Fest this weekend. With 250+ films to choose from all those options can be a bit overwhelming. Thankfully Christy Turnipseed of Life of a Turnip put together a life of must-see movies for the weekend. Check it out here.
What did you read this week?