Happy Galentine’s Day to the girl boss!

This Galentine’s Day I wanted to give a special out to any girl boss out there. My girlfriends/girl bosses(both in real life and on Instagram) are incredible. Some of them are bloggers, lawyers, engineers, and project managers. Some of them are going back to school to further their education and careers and some of them balance being a mom with careers. I’m thankful that the women in my life are smart, creative, and incredibly supportive. 

My friend Ribicca from Amro Menor is the definition of a girl boss.

Not only does she work full time as a merchandise analyst, but she takes incredible trips and blogs about travel and fashion. She recently completed a coding program and is looking into graduate programs to further her coding/UX design skills. I’m so thankful that I met Ribicca in college because she’s the first blogger friend I ever made. I’ve looked up to her for both her creative and technical skills.

I’m also aspiring to be a girl boss one day too.

At night, I’m enrolled full time and working towards my Masters of Communication in Digital Media degree. And during the day, I work full time as a project manager at the Boeing Company. And in between, I’m taking photos and constantly writing for my blog Emma’s Edition. (Here’s how I find balance in my life if you’re curious.)

I get questioned a lot about what I’m planning to do with my future as a blogger, business women, and graduate student.  I get questioned why I am even putting myself through graduate school when I already have a stable job. I get questioned about why I didn’t choose to pursue fashion as a career. And I get questioned whether I want a family one day.

So here is my answer: I have dreams of both planning Boeing’s international air shows, running my own marketing/social media business one day, while still blogging, and having a family. It’s my future and I can dream and create the reality I want to live. And honestly, we only have one life so I intend to live and maximize my time here. I hope to leave a beautiful mark on our world and hopefully help others along the way.

These are just a few of my dreams as an aspiring girl boss. So this upcoming Galentines’ Day, I wanted to share:

4 pieces of advice for all the aspiring girl bosses out there

#1. You set your limits and you define your success

I’ve shared this before but I’ll say it again because I truly am a firm believer that we create our own reality. If you think you can do it, you can. And if you think you can’t, than you can’t.

I think the biggest hurdle I’ve faced in blogging is believing that I even belonged in this space. Seeing and embracing myself as a writer, a model, and a creative were all pieces of me that I had to give myself permission to embrace.

Sometimes the biggest roadblocks we face in our lives are ourselves. Sometimes it’s our self doubt or lack of confidence that prevents us from believing we can.  Please give yourself permission to pursue whatever your heart is calling you to do.  Remember you are a girl boss; you define your limits and you can set yourself up for success.

#2. Support our fellow lady bosses

Ladies it’s already a tough world out there. It doesn’t make it any easier if we bring each other down. Whether you choose to buy a product that a girlfriend is selling or choose to schedule a coffee date to someone who reached out to you, these little acts of collaboration and kindness build our communities up. 

Support can even be as simple as reaching out to someone who you think has been killing it their careers, their businesses or their blogs, and letting them know they’re doing a great job.

#3 Challenge the Status Quo

Just because things are the way they are today doesn’t mean they have to be this way in the future. Why can’t we challenge the status quo? Why can’t we question the gender pay gap? Why can’t we envision a future where 50% of our fortune 500 companies are led by women? Why can’t we both technical and creative? Why can’t Filipino-Americans, Pacific Islanders, Asian-American, and other women of color walk run ways or be in front of magazine covers?

Challenging the status quo starts with you.  Being a girl boss means you have to believe the world will be a little bit better with the content, products, or ideas you put out there. When you challenge the status quo, you push yourself and your world around you to question and envision the world differently. Remember that just because change doesn’t happen overnight doesn’t mean it can’t happen. So keep pushing ladies, you can change this world.

#4. Be brave, be bold, and be you.

I don’t know about you, but I deal with my fears of failure and rejection everyday as a content creator and a business woman. I know and you know that we can’t let our fears define our lives.

If you fail, you learn. If you never try, you’ll never know. We don’t grow in life if we don’t try, fail, learn and succeed. The journey in creating ourselves, our futures, and exploring our passions doesn’t happen without intention, alignment, and action.

Whether it’s your education, a new job, or even pursuing love, be brave, be bold, and be you in your next step in life.

Are you an aspiring girl boss? Want to share you one piece of advice for aspiring girl bosses out there and be featured on Emma’s Edition?

Subscribe to Emma’s Edition here and I’ll send you a form to share your one piece of advice to the girl boss community! I’ll be collecting your advice up until Galentine’s Day February 13th!

Shop my look:

[show_shopthepost_widget id=”3006689″]

Thank you for reading!

Love,

Emma

Photos: Holly Phan (Holly also an incredible girl boss. My friend and photographer Holly Phan already completed her bachelors degree and is working towards her graphic design degree full time, while still working part time and shooting for Emma’s Edition).