10 Lessons I Learned at Her Conference 2017

If you’re someone interested in writing, marketing, communications, broadcasting or anything along those lines, Her Conference is a great two-day packed event you should look into. This is my third Her Conference and every year it gets better and better. From the line up of speakers to the giveaways, you’ll be sure to have a blast and to leave with some new connections.

If you missed Her Conference this year, don’t worry. It’ll be back next year, but here are 15 important lessons I learned from the conference that I think everyone should know.

Take a Risk

I already knew this, but I never realized how important taking a risk is especially when it comes to working or wanting your dream career. We can hold back a lot not only in our personal lives, but in our work place. You may be scared to apply for that internship that you don’t feel you’re qualified for, but how would you know if you didn’t take that risk? Take a leap and you’ll be surprised by where you land.

“Yes, I can!” Attitude

This falls into taking a risk as well. We don’t know everything, and we, as humans, should keep learning. This means that when you find yourself with the opportunity to apply for a new job that isn’t necessarily your focus or in a situation where someone is asking you to do something you’ve never done before, take that chance and say yes! Why? You can teach yourself something new and learn along the way. You’d be surprised by how impressed people are by those who take on the challenge of learning something new just because they want it.

Planning is Key

To all my bloggers and creators out there, you may be questioning what you’re doing wrong when it comes to your brand. You may feel as if it’s not going anywhere. Your initial launch is key, which means planning is key. You can’t launch something or just dive into something without a plan. This is why planners and those amazing apps that help keep you on your “A” game come into play. If you’re planned out in advance, you’ll feel more confident in your brand development and you can see how things play out.

Start Anywhere

We all have a dream job. Trust me, so do I, but not everyone is lucky enough to achieve their dream job right away. It sometimes takes years to do so. You may find yourself searching

LinkedIn for new job listings that are what YOU want, but the truth is when you’re fresh out of college you won’t get that job right away. This is why it’s important to continuously work on yourself and your skills. Take the job you can get for right now even if it’s at a small office and not really exciting. Building your skills, resume, and demonstrating that you’re flexible in different areas can give you a boost in the future.

Don’t Always Do It Alone

I use to not like asking for help and sometimes I still struggle to, but asking for help is never a bad idea. Surrounding yourself with others who want to help lift you up and encourage your success is key. Not only should we ask for help, but we should also be there to help others as well.

Be Intentional

Be sure whatever you do is with intention. Focus on what you care about, the story you want to tell, and what pulls at your heart. This will change your point of view in life.

Be You

Make sure you’re sticking to your beliefs, staying true, and being authentic. This applies to everything including starting your own business or brand. Don’t measure yourself to someone else! People want to see you for you and, while some people may not like you or what you stand for, there are people who will and they will support you in doing so.

Work Hard, but Play Nice

Work hard for what you love and what you’re passionate about, always. However, be polite and kind to others. This may be hard at times because girl....I know sometimes people can be rude or mean especially in the big city, but try.

Live a Life, Not Curate a Life

We can get sucked into social media and try to portray ourselves to be something we’re not. Take a step away from the phone and go out and live your life. Human interaction is key and you can’t do that by sitting behind your phone and trying to build a life when you can actually be living it.

Network, Network, Network

Knowing people who aren’t even in your field can really be helpful. You never know when you may need their help. Not everyone is good at networking these days, but take little steps into working on it. Attending Her Conference is a great first step for that!

I learned probably 50 more things from this conference, but I think it’s time for you to go to learn it. Check out HerCampus.com and be sure to attend Her Conference next year!

Lifestyle: Simple Steps to Start Eating Healthy

It is no secret that I LOVE food. I could sit here and talk about all the restaurants I've been to, the countless meals I've enjoyed, and all the places I wish to dine in. I'm the girl who would post their bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich on Instagram and caption it "#sexy". While I love food so much, I also realized I couldn't eat what I wanted all the time, mainly because it was unhealthy and causing issues with my health.

When I got to college, my eating habits only got worse. 2 AM McDonald's was a thing, and, after a long night of drinking, I'd find myself sitting in a pizzeria shoving a buffalo chicken slice down my throat. Now that I have been post-grad for almost two months, I realized after looking at a photo of myself freshman year to now that I needed to change my unhealthy habits. I joined a gym and go at least 3 times a week, but you don't just lose weight by being in the gym. It all starts in the kitchen and with what you eat.

It's not easy adjusting to healthier choices. Not only do you mentally sike yourself out, but your body also experiences withdrawal from junk food. Trust me, every time I leave the gym my body taste buds are craving everything from tacos to dumplings. However, I've found a few different ways that really help to adjust to a healthier lifestyle.

Gradual Switches

Healthy eating can actually have a huge effect on your body. You can't just drop all junk food and then the next day eat 100 percent healthy. Trust me, your body will suffer. You may feel sick, faint and maybe not as productive at first. Instead of going completely cold turkey, make small changes each week. For example, to transition off sugary soda, I enjoy seltzer water. Instead of grabbing a candy bar, I eat tons of fruit! Yes, it won't be easy and maybe you'll have a day or two where you'll cave in, but it's all about training your body to crave the better option. Now that I'm two months in, my body has better cravings. It took me about a month to get back into full swing.

Beginner Switches: Whole Milk to Almond Milk or Coconut Milk, Processed White Grain Sugar to Honey,  Soda to Seltzer Water.

Moderation is Key

Eating healthy doesn't mean getting rid of EVERYTHING you eat. Yes, it means picking more healthier options, but you can still have things you like in moderation. For example, I love ice cream. Instead of eating a huge bowl, I'll treat myself to one scoop instead of four. However, while you can eat in moderation, that doesn't mean eating it every day. Treat yourself over a period of time. I prefer this over a cheat day since it keeps me more motivated to eat good and not binge out once a week.

Water, Water, Water!

Believe it or not, not many people drink enough water. I suggest investing in an insulated water bottle to keep your water cold all day and making sure to have it with you all day long. This means if you're at work, carry it with you. If you're going out to meet a friend, bring it with you. If you're home and relaxing on the couch, have a glass of water close by. Sooner or later you'll realize that you're drinking more water without even having to think about it. It's a natural way to flush out our bodies and a natural beauty product. I've noticed a huge difference in my skin and the way I feel since I've been drinking more water each day.

Fresh Foods

A part of eating healthy is making sure you eat fresh. Try to avoid frozen veggies or premade frozen meals.  Try your best to cook and know what exactly is going into your food. I realized that once I cooked my own lunch, I had control over how much oil I coat the pan with or how much salt and pepper I add. Your body will thank you for this.

Eat More Plant-Based

Now, I know most people think this means going Vegan, but that's not what I'm saying. By incorporating more vegetables into your diet, you will gain a lot of crucial vitamins and micronutrients your body needs. You don't necessarily always need a piece of meat with each meal. Once I started to have at least one plant-based meal a day, my body was thanking me. I had a ton of energy and felt really good. Some of my favorite plant-based meals are Spaghetti Squash, Baked Cauliflower Wings, and Rice and Veggie Stirfry. It's all about the seasoning of your plant-based meals. That's what makes it taste so good!

Which of these tips will you try to implement? 

Cheers to healthy eating! XO

Beauty: My 5 Summer Beauty Picks

Summer isn't my favorite season even though it is my season of birth (August baby, woo hoo!). Yes, I do appreciate the beach and pool days, but I can't stand the heat. If you live in NYC and take the subway during the summer, you know how gross it can get. However, I do love trying different beauty products during the summer. I have some of my holy grail products, but also products that I swap out each season and grow to love. Here are my 5 Summer Beauty Picks for 2017.

L'oreal Paris Voluminous Waterproof Mascara

I sweat so much during the summer that waterproof makeup products are a must! Each summer I purchase one waterproof mascara. This one has to be my favorite so far! I heard amazing things about this product in general and I knew I had to try it. If you want something volumizing, this will do the trick. I personally wear false lashes on a daily basis and I found that this mascara makes my falsies look amazing! I never had any issues with it flaking or smudging either which is a plus for this heat. 

Philosophy Purity Face Cleanser

This is my holy grail product all year around, but especially for the summer! This product removes makeup, dirt, and oils your skin collects during the day! Since I sweat bullets during the summer, this makes my skin feel so clean when I come home and get ready for bed. If you wear makeup, this will remove all the makeup your makeup wipe missed! Truly a product I recommend for everyone to try. I also follow up with my other holy grail product the Philosophy Hope In A Jar face moisturizer! I apply this in the morning before sunscreen and at night before bed.

Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Polish

Recently, I had my first gel manicure. I loved it, but the price tag was a bit much for me to be spending every two weeks. I'm someone who would rather do my own nails even though from time to time I do treat myself to a salon visit. Since I loved the gel manicure experience but didn't want to break the bank, I purchased the Sally Hansen Miracle Gel in the color 184 Frill Seeker! It's a great nude pink and looks great on any skin tone. This lasted me two weeks which is the same amount of time any professionally done gel manicure would last. However, this product doesn't require any UV light. Just apply a base coat, the polish and a top coat and it'll be perfect! I use the Sally Hansen Double Duty Base & Top Coat.

Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow Pomade

Another holy grail product for the summer! I've been using this product for two years now and I can't get enough! Like I've mentioned, I sweat a lot and I tend to keep makeup light during the summer because of it. However, my brows are something I always make sure look great before I leave the house. This pomade is waterproof and will last all day long! It won't budge at all or fade away. 

Quai Haircare Treatment Masque

There is no secret I wear wigs as a protective style for my hair because it's always fun to change up my look, but my natural hair underneath has grown a lot since my wig journey. And I still make sure to take proper care of it. Quai is an up and coming brand that I'm in love with. I got a sample of their hair treatment in my Ipsy bag and after using it and loving it, I needed a bigger size. This product leaves my hair feeling so smooth, nourished, and silky. My hair during the summer gets extremely dry and I find that this really helps keep my hair from breaking off. 

What are your summer beauty picks? XO

Lifestyle: 5 Tips to Start Being a Girl Boss TODAY

Girl Boss has been sweeping all social media. Ever since Sophia Amoruso's novel #GirlBoss became a New York Times Bestseller, a hit Netflix show, and a website, you’ll never hear the end of those two words. However, what makes a Girl Boss? What is a Girl Boss? If you ask 5 different women, they all may have 5 different answers. However, most can agree that a Girl Boss is a woman who knows what she wants, works hard to get what she wants, and kicks ass while doing it.

I never saw myself as a Girl Boss until my sophomore year of college. It took me awhile to realize that I had this Girl Boss mindset and that I was influencing other women around me to be their own boss. The one question they always ask me is “How do I get started?” I realized a Girl Boss series here on my blog would be helpful for all the women out there who are trying to jump start their life, get what they want, and be successful. Here are 5 tips to start being a Girl Boss today!

Image Credit

Be a Goal Setter

I used to be terrible at goal setting, but one day I realized that if I wanted to reach my dream life that setting goals were crucial. Goals can always be adjusted and achieved. They don’t always need to be materialistic either. Remember, you can always reset the goal if it wasn’t fulfilled during the given time period. There are 4 categories of goal setting (at least to me): Yearly Goals, Monthly Goals, Weekly Goals, and Daily Goals. These four categories make it easy for you to identify the importance of your goals, the time frame to achieve the goals, and how to plan for your goals.

Yearly Goals: These are the biggest goals. A year-long goal is something you must work on all year long. Typically, people make these goals at the start of a new year, but you can set a yearly goal even 5 months into a new year. Also, a yearly goal can be completed earlier depending on what the goal is. This goal is ultimately a huge milestone.

Ex. Buying a car, moving to a different state/country, building an online brand, going to the gym every week, etc.

Monthly Goals: These are goals set at the beginning of every month and to fulfill by the end of the month. I usually focus on achieving something small that I’ve always wanted to do during this goal period.

Ex. Read three books, meditate each day, eat out less each week, etc.

Weekly Goals: These are goals set for each week. These normally aren’t very big goals like a Yearly or Monthly goal. It’s what you want to accomplish within a week.
Ex. Pamper yourself, finish cleaning the closet, etc.

Daily Goals: These are goals or tasks that you set each day. I write my daily goal list each morning or the night before. You write at the top the most important things that must get done today and then the least important that don’t have to get done today and can wait a different day.

Ex. Pay Bills, Doctors Appointment, Do Laundry, etc.

Once you set goals, you will begin to feel as if you are completing more in your day to day life rather than just coming home and binge watching Netflix for 5 hours. This keeps you busy.

Get Organized

I will admit, I’ve always been a disorganized mess. However, I realized this only happens when my life is crazy busy. Getting organized isn’t just making sure your room is clean, but it’s also making sure your day to day life is organized. Get a planner and make sure to write down what needs to get done every month, week, and day. Set time for yourself to do various tasks. For example, go to the gym for an hour, read for 30 minutes, etc. If you have an iPhone, the reminder app is great for alerting you when to start a certain task. Putting a time to everything will help you keep moving, make most of your day and feel productive. You also will find yourself feeling less crazy.

Also, be sure to write out a routine you want to follow and implement into your life. Routines help you feel organized and once you nail the routine, you can do it in your sleep. Writing down the routine and looking at it each day will get you adjusted to what needs to get done. For example, my morning routine is to wake up by 8:30, eat Breakfast and check emails before 10, go to the gym, etc.

Target Your Strengths and Weaknesses

No one is perfect. We all have weaknesses that we want to improve on. Take each week to focus on improving one thing about yourself. This could be as simple as taking the time to check in with family or focus on being a better listener. You’d be surprised how much you’ll improve. Don’t ignore that you have issues. For example, maybe your weakness is that you tend to get jealous or bitter over someone else’s accomplishments. Then you should work on focusing on your life goals and not the achievement of others.

Always Seek Opportunities

There are always opportunities out there. Part of being a Girl Boss is knowing what opportunities to go for and which can wait. I’m a huge advocate for attending conferences (One of my favorites is Her Conference), attend networking events, apply for internships or certificate programs in your spare time. It’s important to keep learning and to take building steps to whatever your dream life or career may be. It may seem impossible, but remember everyone starts somewhere. The more experience you have, the better.

Balance is Key

Being a Girl Boss isn’t always about working 24/7. You have to learn to balance time for yourself, time for your friends and family and simply just time to enjoy. It is possible to do it all even if you have some days where you’re so stressed and just want to curl into your bed. A good way to balance life better is to purposely block off time or days of the week to focus on things outside of work. For example, my Saturday’s are for time with my friends during the day and family at night.

These tips may have sounded obvious or boring to you, but believe me when I say that these are crucial steps to focus on in order to become a Girl Boss. 

What would you like to see next in this Girl Boss series?

Fashion Trends: Bold Shoulders

Summer is approaching and high temperatures are starting to make an appearence. The weather here in New York has been mainly in the high 60's or low 70's with some nice sunshine or the ocassional rain. Personally, I've been loving the last bit of this weather before the crazy high heat kicks in (I'm a summer baby, but the heat can be annoying and gross).

In this weather, I've been playing around with one of the latest trends - the off the shoulder top. Personally, I think anyone can pull off this style. Shoulders are beautiful and this top just puts them in the spotlight. 

Top: Primark

Jeans: Old Navy 

Shoes: Steve Madden

Backpack: Primark

Sunglasses: Primark

Necklace: J.Crew

I recently fell in love with Primark now that there is one I can easily access thanks to the MTA. Primark has amazing prices, but quality, trendy pieces. This store is a lot more inexpensive than Forever 21 which says a lot since I'm personally a huge Forever 21 shopper. This top is cotton which is comfortable. The openness at the bottom of this top allows my skin to breathe. This was one of the various patterned off the shoulder tops they had in Primark. It not only looks great with jeans, but high waisted shorts as well.

I needed a smaller backpack for the summer. This bag from Primark was only $18 and fits a lot! For the price, you can't beat it and the quality doesn't feel cheap at all. I can easily fit my resuable water bottle, my touch up makeup bag, pack a lunch container for work and a light sweater. There is even a pocket inside and outside of the bag for me to put other items. It's easy to just have a backpack while walking around the city and for me to carry more items, especially when I go to work.

Sunglasses can be pricy depending on where you're shopping. I try to get the best deal for mine, but not ones that can be cheap and break easily. I got these sunglasses to test them out since theywere only $4.50, but I was surprised by how super sturdy they are! I've dropped them multiple times and almost had them squashed at the very bottom of my backpack, but they didn't get ruined at all.

I've worn this outfit twice so far just because it looks put together, but it's super comfortable! My Steve Madden sandals are my go-to just because the taupe color goes with a lot of my outfits. I'm a huge fan of Steve Madden shoes because they're stylish and have great support. These shoes don't hurt my feet while walking around and trust me, if you live in the city you know we walk A LOT!

How do you feel about the off the shoulder top trend? I personally love it since it allows the shoulders to be more in focus.

Fun Tip: Add highlighter to your shoulders and collarbone to make you glow in the sun! I've gotten many compliments on my skin whenever I do this.

XO

I Graduated! What’s Next?

Two weeks ago, I graduated from college. After 4 years of stress, all night sessions in the library, and constant involvement on campus, it’s all over. How does it feel? Well, it’s a bit of a mess, to be honest.

You probably expect me to say it feels AMAZING! Trust me, it does, but it’s a lot more than that. I’m incredibly happy it’s over, but I feel like I lost a huge part of what I’ve known for the last four years. Manhattanville College was my home. I lived on that campus, I worked three on-campus jobs, ran a club and participated in plenty of them. Manhattanville was my life. Everything I did and everything I knew was on that campus. I was in this comfortable bubble that gave me all the opportunities I needed in order to succeed, to enjoy and to simply learn.

Now, I’m back home in Brooklyn. I love, love, LOVE being home, but what am I suppose to do now? I don’t have all the things I did at Manhattanville to keep me occupied. My closest college friends don’t live in the city and I can’t see them every single day like I used to. Nothing is the same anymore. It’s time to embrace change.

Change is something I’ve never been good with, but I will say I’ve grown to accept and appreciate change over the last four years. Naturally, like any unemployed college graduate would experience… I had a mini panic attack. For the first week out of college, I stayed home and slept off four years of exhaustion. I caught up on my favorite YouTube videos, I ate a bunch of home cooked food (I missed my Mom’s cooking so much!), and I only went out for simple errands. Then one day, I bought a bottle of wine, ran a bath filled with Lush products, put on a face mask, and sat in the tub to think about life. Yes, for two hours I sat in a tub with the sound of Ed Sheeran’s voice in the background and thought about what the hell I'm supposed to do. Sounds a bit scary, right?

I needed to regroup. I had to rethink, plan and figure out what comes next. I already made the decision to take a year off before graduate school. In this one-year period, I want to accomplish things I couldn’t even think about when I was at Manhattanville. Such things like getting my license and getting a car (even though I embrace the subway more than any other form of transportation), traveling aboard, shedding off the weight gained thanks to all the dollar beers consumed, and simply to live. I want to know what life feels like without school dictating everything I do. If you think about it, school guides us. It makes us plan, makes choices and it has guided us for a majority of our lives from the time we’re 4 years old in Pre-Kindergarten to college. Now it’s time for me and only me to dictate my life.

So, what’s next? To answer your question, what’s next is my time to live. It’s my time to be with myself in this big world and to learn how to continue learning without school. It’s a chance for me to build strength and be more comfortable in doing things alone (which can be hard in NYC). While it’s terrifying not knowing what’s coming next, I’m excited to take this ride with great hope that there is a brighter scene at the end of the tunnel.

Senior Photos: Tara Murphy @taralaurenarts

New Beginnings

A new chapter! Look out for my first blog post tomorrow!

XO