7 Practical Tips to Always Be Yourself & Be Confident

Since I was a little girl, I’ve kind of always been a visionary – whether it was buying a house, running my own business, or marrying my dream man – I knew I was savvy and persistent enough to make anything happen. Pursuing my dreams came at a price. My college experience was incredible but outlandish. While the majority of my peers took advantage of the freedoms and fun times college had to offer — I spent most of my time talking to a camera alone in my room, spending hours a day editing, and creating an online community of digital friends.

  

At times, it was challenging to continue moving forward because posting Youtube videos of myself wasn’t received well by my peers and people thought I was straight up WEIRD but my heart really felt for the people watching my videos. I wanted to be a friend or sister to anyone in need and the relationships I was building along the way, kept me going. It’s crazy to think of all the opportunity and relationships I would have missed out on if I would have let a job title, income level, house size, or drive for worldly successes get in the way.

There’s nothing wrong with being unapologetically you and making sacrifices for your passion. That’s why I am so excited to work with Express on their Fit For You campaign. They encouraged me to unapologetically be MYSELF. This is a message I am pumped to get behind. Plus, the best times in my life are lived in a pair of jeans so I am going to show you two of my new favorite pairs of denim. You’ll see a relaxed girlfriend jean that have a nice stretch to them and an ultra flattering pair of raw hem skinny jeans that Jordan said are his favorite jeans on me. Haha. I ended up ordering a size 00 in both but the 0 also fit me perfectly fine. I always opt for the smaller fit to compensate for the denim stretching after a couple of wears.

Express is also hookin’ the Dan Fam UP! Hop into an Express store to try on some jeans and use the code: 1192 to get $25 off your in-store purchase of $100+ now through 9/15/17.

For the rest of this post, I want to show you a couple of my favorite pairs I wore in Los Angeles this past month and then give you a couple of tips of how to ‘do you boo boo.’ All of the sizing details and links are below!

ACCEPT WHO YOU ARE. As much as I want to be the fun chick who goes from one social event to the next, I just can’t. I need alone time, time to recharge and refresh. This means I often have to turn down invites to hangout or be social but that’s just who I am. It doesn’t make me any more enjoyable or fun to be around, I just have to recharge my battery more often that others. I have to accept that sometimes I am really fun to be with and sometimes I just might want to be left alone and it’s totally fine.

CELEBRATE YOUR INDIVIDUALITY. Learn how to express yourself and be happy with who you are. For some it’s learning to love yourself, for others, it’s not hiding who you are or changing things about you to fit in. I fall in both those categories.

DREAM BIG. What kinds of dreams did you have for your life before you lost yourself in the busy-ness of life? What have you since deemed impossible or improbable because of where you are today? Grab a journal! What is your soul aching for? Once you reconnect with your dreams, you’ll have the desire and inspiration to begin to take action.

DIFFERENT IS GOOD. There is nothing special about being like everyone else. If you really want to make an impact on this world, you’ll have to be different and set yourself apart. Be the person that instigates love and good when everyone else is stuck in their own world.

CHERISH YOUR PASSION. Some of the greatest treasures in this world are hidden from sight: love, humility, empathy, selflessness, generosity. Desire them above everything else and remove yourself entirely from society’s definition of success. Your drive, your passion, your dignity – don’t shove these characteristics down. Feel one, and ride the wave!

COMPARISON PUTS FOCUS ON THE WRONG PERSON. You are too unique to compare yourself to other people. Your talents, gifts, sense of humor, heart, and desires, are entirely unique to you and your purpose for this world. Even what makes you laugh or makes you cry, makes you unique. There is no end to the possible number of comparisons. There will always be someone or something else to compare yourself to – so focus on being the best version of yourself.

LAUGH IT OFF. Try not to worry about the worst, especially in social situations. So what if you fall flat on your face? Or said something dumb? Learn to laugh at yourself both when it happens and afterwards. Turn it into a fun story that you can share with friends & family.

GIRLFRIEND JEANS (Size 0) // CREW NECK TEE (S) // SANDALS // EARRINGS //

SKINNY JEANS (Size 0) // PEPLUM BABYDOLL CAMI (S) // HEELS // EARRINGS //