This one’s for the hustlers, the dreamers, the doers, the risk-takers, and the believers!

It can be hard to find deep and authentic inspiration and connection in a world that sometimes seems shallow, instantaneous, and uncertain. It’s easy to believe that people are selfish and not trustworthy but I refuse to accept that. If I look at some of the girls I’m lucky enough to call friends, I realize that most people are pretty incredible.

I’ve always been about girl power and not the type where I believe girls are better than boys, but the type of girl power where I believe girl’s should realize their full potential, break stereotypes, and not be afraid to chase their dreams. This mindset probably came from how I was raised (thanks Mom and Dad!) but may also slightly be due to my intense obsession with the Spice Girls. 😉

The goal of this blog is to be a source of inspiration and when I think of what inspires me the most, it’s often the people closest to me. My friends are all so different but one thing they all have in common is that they are total bosses and hustle hard to make their dreams a reality. It was because of their encouragement and success that I was brave enough to start a blog!

I spent most of this last week with my friend, Shaé, who I’ve known since middle school. She currently lives in Kenya and runs a non-profit called Kutoa Project that provides counseling services to youth in Kenya who have experienced trauma. Her attitude and determination is unmatched. She had the vision to start Kutoa for a long time and I loved that I was able to watch her bring it to life and really make an impact. If what she is doing doesn’t inspire you, I don’t know what will!

I have a lot of incredibly, amazing friends but I wanted to highlight a couple that have taken a risk and started their own businesses.

Here are 7 inspiring girl bosses:

• 1. Kutoa Project – Like I said above, Shaé created this non-profit to help children in Kenya deal with and recover from trauma. If you ever want to give back and know exactly where you’re money is going, then this non-profit is for you.
  2. Garden Key Co. – Remember my blog post about being single? My friend Rosemary, owner of Garden Key Co., created the imagery for that blog post. She’s an amazing hand-letterer. So good that she started her own business and has the cutest items with her original work on it!
  3. Southern Fried Design Barn – If you ever need any adorable, custom stationary or home goods, my friend Amy owns and designs all of the items for Southern Fried Design Barn. She’s killing it! If you take a look at the link, you’ll see why.
  4. Self Love – Need an extra dose of positivity? My friend Haven is your girl. She’s such a hustler and is in the process of building a paddle board retreat outside of Nashville, TN on top of being a film producer, exercise instructor, and overall boss.
  5. Upward Design – If you’ve seen any videos on my Instagram then you’ve seen the work of my friend Despina. She just recently created a YouTube channel and started her own media company!
  6. SAvery Grilled Cheese – What do you get when you combine a grilled cheese food truck and a mission to end human trafficking? My friend Avery and her food truck in Austin, TX. Her food is delicious and the profits go back to fighting human trafficking. What more could you ask for?
  7. White Poppy Studio – I met Carly almost a year ago in Denver, CO and she has been inspiring me ever since. She’s an amazing photographer but also creates the most incredible paintings! Her creativity is out of this world.

If you want to support some other female bloggers, check out these babes:

• Katy Atkinson
• This is Queso Blanco
• Lavenders Longshot
• Local Satori

Or if music is more your thing, check out these rock stars:

• Kolby Koloff
• MamaDear
• Jill and Kate
• JEMS
• Troika