What did you think of Episode 4 of This is Life Unfiltered!? I met Sophie Elgort years ago (as you can probably tell by the cover photo in this blog post) and I instantly fell in love with her strong and inspiring personality, and incredible talent behind the camera. She’s Ansel Elgort’s sister, and Arthur Elgort’s daughter, so for someone who has such a big last name behind her first name- she’s lived up to the talent that surrounds her last name. I’m so honored she could join us for the first interview episode ever, and I hope you loved it enough to leave a review or subscribe!

Listen below!

Xo,

Alexa

Why should you volunteer your free time to help others? Isn’t that a waste of YOUR time? Don’t you have better things you could be doing? Aren’t you supposed to be hanging out with your friends or something?

My first volunteer job was as a Candy Striper for the hospital when I was 14 years old. I’ll never forget my first day of orientation: I was shy, embarrassed to be there, hated my uniform, and just awkward in general (hello, middle school)! My “job” was to answer phone calls in a tiny office, and sometimes deliver things to rooms, if needed. As much as I complained about it when my mom questioned me about my mini job, I felt pretty important.

Throughout my high school years, my mother insisted that my siblings and I volunteer at nursing homes and hospitals. I spent many Sunday mornings making breakfast for the homeless in Downtown Atlanta to volunteer at the local food shelter. It’s not that I didn’t want to do these things, I just felt that because I was in high school, there was always something more important that I should have been doing. To be honest, I kind of dreaded actually going to volunteer. But every time we were finished, I would leave feeling so fulfilled. Like I actually might have made a difference in someone else’s life that day.

Looking back now that I’m older, I am so grateful that my mom had the wisdom to instill the power of acts of kindness into us. I’ve always felt the need to help others, but by actually doing so at such a young age – it really opened my eyes to see what else is out there.

It’s so easy to get stuck in a bubble; I want my kid/future kids to be safe and know what is right and wrong. We get into our daily life and routines and forget what is really going on in the world. I want them to be aware that though they may have parents who love them, feed them, and modern day luxuries… there are a lot of people that don’t have that. A lot of people go their whole lives not realizing that not everyone is like them. Not everyone has a car, or their own bedroom, or all of their meals. Heck, not everyone has a coat or a pair of shoes! On really cold nights, the first thing I think about is all of the homeless people on the streets of Atlanta. Has that ever crossed your mind? It’s time to start opening our eyes to the groups of people who are UNLIKE us.

Are you the type of teen that would go out of your way to help someone in need? What if you saw an elderly person fall in the aisle of a grocery store. Or someone who needed assistance opening the door? Or that kid at the Burger King who is $1 short.

Would you help? Be that person. Be the nice kid. Be the one guy who can’t come to the party because he’s volunteering at the children’s hospital. Or the girl who can’t make the football game because she’s passing out coats to the homeless on the streets on Friday night .

Be the one that everyone else wants to be. Set an example. Whether or not you think so, people are watching. Kids are watching. Your parents, friends, siblings, classmates… they’re all watching. #BETHENICEKID

xoxo, Ashley Dorough

Read more from Ashley here!

Styling by Michael St. Michael (my incredible stylist!!) 

When I landed in Lake Tahoe yesterday, I felt like I was literally going to die. I had a minor surgery earlier this week in LA, and apparently you’re not supposed to travel when you have surgery…ummmm, so in classic Alexa fashion, I figured didn’t apply to me. Well, let’s just say I brought all of my illness onto myself. I spent all of yesterday sleeping at this beautiful hotel, and wound up at the clinic this morning to make sure I wasn’t coming down with an infection. The doctor said I’m just run down and need to take it easy for a few days- luckily, The Landing Resort and Spa is the best place I could imagine ever for getting sick at. I’ve been ordering hot chocolate, sweet potato fries, and lots of water while sitting in the comfiest hotel bed!

I’m always running myself down, and that’s why I find the discussion of mental health and self care so crucial for young adults. Maybe you don’t travel as much I do, but you might find yourself overworked between school and work, to the point where your brain just wants to shut off for a period of time. When I find myself lacking inspiration and motivation, I know it’s time for me to take a step back and just breathe. The world isn’t going to stop if you take some time for yourself, I promise. In fact, you’ll come out the other side more inspired and ready to attack your goals.

What did you think about Episode 4 of This is Life Unfiltered with Sophie Elgort!? 

Xo,

Alexa

Everyone who knows me knows I have literally no family. Besides my parents and my two uncles who live in Texas, I’m pretty much an only child. On the mention of Texas, my heart goes out to everyone who was in the terrible attack yesterday. I woke up this morning to seeing the headline, and my heart sunk. I love Texas, and America. Right now, I feel like nowhere is safe, and that’s an incredibly scary feeling. At the end of the day, you can’t worry about the unknown. It’s important to always be away of your surroundings (to your best ability) and live EVERY moment to the fullest.

 I have one older sister but we have a major age gap between us (15 years!) so we’ve never been at the same life phase or lived in the same city. A few years ago, my sister moved to Turkey and got married to her (now) husband, and she had the most incredible and insane wedding. A few months ago, she gave birth to the cutest little boy, and my mom and I finally flew out to see him! Having family in a different state, let alone country, can be rough. I’ve learned how important it is to surround yourself with genuine and real people, and family is just that.

My dad treated me to this Topshop leather jacket for my birthday, and I wore it all around Zurich this weekend. Primarily because I didn’t bring an actual jacket with me (I needed enough room for chocolate, not clothing!) but also because this jacket is a great layering piece. I hate bringing bulky jackets around with me, but a leather jacket will never fail to look incredibly chic and stay perfectly packed away when you’re trying to make room.

This Wednesday, Sophie Elgort will be on This is Life Unfiltered to talk about all things social media and the photography world. If you’re not familiar with Sophie, you’e probably familiar with her brother, Ansel, or her father, Arthur. I’ve been having so many incredible podcast interviews over the past few weeks- I’ve never been so excited for you guys to hear these incredible life stories!

Xo,

Alexa

I spend more time on Netflix and YouTube than I do in front of a TV screen. Because of that, I leave it up to social media to teach me everything I need to know about what is going on in front and behind of the TV. I came across Veronika Obeng on Instagram, and immediately took to her story. I’ve never watched Second Wives Club, which is the show she appears on, but I didn’t want to talk with her about the show when I met up with her: I wanted to talk with her about what it was like growing up in a small town, becoming a reality star, and raising kids in this day and age of social media. She made Gabe and I laugh more than we’ve ever laughed in an interview before, and I felt instantly connected to her passion and drive for success and living in Hollywood. Here is what I learned from my hour with Veronika:

What’s meant to happen, happens. 

Hailing from a small town, Veronika always knew she wanted to escape and do something major with her life. Similar to my dream when I was a kid, she knew she wasn’t going to be one of the girls to get pregnant and go to college down the street. Once she moved to LA, she realized that everything you see on TV and online is fake, for the most part. In the third grade, she made a pact with her close friends that said they all agreed to escape their small town as soon as they were all old enough. She’s the only girl who ended up leaving.

Her advice for young entrepreneurs: 

Dream big. Anything in this life is possible. She grew up on a dirt road with an alcoholic father and a mom who worked on a factory 100 hours a week. If someone doesn’t believe in you, don’t hesitate to cut them off. Life is too short to be surrounded by negative people. It’s important to be fearless, and not be afraid to start small. No one becomes successful and wealthy overnight. It’s not always going to be easy, but life wasn’t meant to be easy.

On being a young mother:

Veronika’s parents were highly religious, and she says her mother barely talked to her when she had her child. Having a baby in high school was incredibly difficult for her, but she learned that discipline is key to becoming successful, regardless of if you have children or not. Don’t hesitate to continue to prove people around you wrong.

Veronika was adamant about young adults not having kids in high school. “The world is magnificent. Life is magnificent. Taste and smells and experiences. The mind is a rubber band when you stretch it it can never go back. I was a small town girl before you pull the trigger.”  She says you won’t be the same person at 25, so give yourself time and space to grow and change.

On one thing people would be surprised to know about her: 

“I’m an amazing cook. I cook almost every night.”

On the things that inspire her:

“Myself. Even if your parents say they don’t believe in you, who cares. Parents aren’t there during your first final in college. I’m different in the sense I would hear my mom tell these stories and she was obsessed with what else there is out there. My mom was different from other moms, and I really learned how to truly let go of negative souls from her.”

On social media in 2017: 

“This generation stares at a phone. My daughter couldn’t get home one day because her phone died, and she was calling me freaking out. I asked her how and why she didn’t know how to get home- I was completely confused on how difficult it could be for a smart girl to make her way home! This generation needs to be grounded and learn how to experience life. When Instagram and what not is gone, what are they going to have?”

On making the decision to go to college:

“You should go to college. I learned there will never be a replacement for an education. Degrees are still very necessary, even though all these kids are getting rich overnight. Do you know plastic surgeons come out making $700k a year? I advise my child to go to college, but I was also lenient on taking a gap year, if they desires. College makes you grow, and you come out more remarkable and wiser than before. It’s easy to think you’re “special” and don’t need an education, but let’s face it: you need to learn more than how to follow people on Instagram”.

Hope you enjoyed this special Influencer Intro!

Xo,

Alexa

Read the full post here. 

1: Find your sweet spot

Many of us wake up sometimes, look in the mirror, and feel like we aren’t good enough. Since I struggled with an eating disorder when I was younger, I have more than a few hours every week where I don’t feel 100% satisfied with my body. Since I know that the negative thoughts I have surrounding my body aren’t healthy thoughts, I’ve made it a weekly goal of mine to constantly work on my strengthening my mind and my body. It’s OKAY to not always be okay.

2: Don’t compare yourself to others

In the current day and age of social media, comparing yourself to others is inevitable. I spent way too much time when I was younger focusing on other people I wanted to look like instead of focusing on being the most confident version of myself. My best piece of advice for avoiding all of the negative feelings that social media stems is to keep your vision clear. Fill your feed with strong and inspiring people, like Ashley Graham and Iskra Lawrence. The more positive your feed is, the more inspired you will be ALL of the time!

3: Talk to your parents

When I was younger, I avoided talking to my parents at all costs. What I didn’t realize is that my parents truly want the best for me, as much as I wanted to avoid talking to them in public at all times. If you don’t have one person you feel comfortable talking to when anything (good or bad) happens, then it could be beneficial to find a hotline that you can call or a therapist who accepts your insurance. There are many free 24/7 hotlines that you can call depending on what you’re dealing with. At the end of the day, if you need to sit your mom down and have a nice cry, you’ll probably be surprised at how much better you’ll feel afterward.

4: Never give up on your dreams

I hear the word “no” multiple times every day. Just because I’ve got a substantial career from my blog doesn’t mean that I’ve made the mark that I want. If I had given up on my blog the minute I heard my first “no”, I wouldn’t be where I am today. Your dreams become your destiny, and following them will give you the life you dream of. Even if your parents or your friends don’t support what you want to do, remember that this is your life: proving people wrong is my life motto.

Xo,

Alexa

Wearing Crossroads Trading top and Macy’s skirt

I missed my little blog! I’ve been living it up in Hawaii the past few days with my boyfriend, and being back in rainy LA kind of sucks! I’m always talking about how important mental health days are for the body and the brain, which is why I wanted to escape for a few days to a magical island. We stayed on Maui, but I have to say I was pleasantly disappointed about what Maui actually turned out to be like. Don’t get me wrong; the acai is super fruity, the poke is fresh, and the mountains are incredibly beautiful, but I was expecting more than just that.  Unfortunately, I have a tendency to always be wanting more. Maybe it’s just the way I think, or the way I was made to be, but a part of me is never happy with what is.

On This is Life Unfiltered today, Brenna and I talked all about what we wish we knew when we were younger. I have so many pieces of advice for teens, and parents, about growing up and learning to truly embrace and love your body and your mind. I regret wasting so much time when I was younger over analyzing my body, because we were all given bodies that were made just for us. I wasted days crying about boys who weren’t worthy of my time- which I know most girls, and guys, find themselves doing because we simply can’t help who we like. As you get older, you realize that the good guys are the ones who stick around through the bad, the ugly, and the phenomenal, and the rest just aren’t looking for what you might be looking for.

Listen below for the rest of my tips (trust me, these ones are solid) and don’t forget to subscribe and leave us a review on the iTunes store!

Xo,

Alexa

I know it’s not Halloween yet, but apparently the LA crowd likes to celebrate Halloween before the actual holiday. Can you even consider Halloween to be a holiday?

When I got invited to the party, I only had about 72 hours to prepare an appropriate look. I’ve honestly never put much thought into Halloween, because my birthday is 15 days before, and (obviously) that’s the only important holiday I can keep track of in the month. Birthdays are the most important holiday in my book! I came across Yandy through one of my friends and decided to pitch them the Halloween story. Luckily, they replied and offered to send me a costume of my choice! An event like a Halloween outing or party should inspire you to truly embrace your spirit animal, since you have a full day and excuse to be someone totally different. I decided to choose the Poison Ivy costume from Yandy,  which is a costume totally outside of my comfort zone.

Once it was delivered, I decided to contact ULTA and see if they’d be interested in doing my makeup for the party. I couldn’t believe they were interested, primarily because I’m a lifestyle blogger and everyone knows how terrible I am at anything beauty-oriented! They ended up hiring an artist that specializes in Halloween makeup, and even went as far as finding an artist who designs her own Halloween accessories. She came prepared with leaf eyebrows and tons of green makeup to match my costume. The West Hollywood store has a beauty counter with hair stylists, makeup stylists, nail stylists and brow stylists, so this isn’t just your average makeup store. I spent about 2 hours in the ULTA West Hollywood store on Saturday to get my makeup down before I headed to the MAXIM party! What do you think of my makeup and look? Is it totally crazy? What are you being for Halloween this year?

Don’t forget to listen to This is Life Unfiltered below and write a review! 

Xo,

Alexa

Boohoo shorts, Topshop leather jacket, Nordstrom choker, Christian Louboutin heels, Banana Republic top

This is Life Unfiltered, my podcast, aired yesterday, and I’ve been getting some of the sweetest comments in my DMs on Instagram! If you haven’t had a chance to listen, click the link to hear the first episode! Each Wednesday at 7 AM EST, you can expect a new episode. If you like it, please subscribe + write a review. Feel free to email me your ideas for other episodes, or people you’d like to hear on it as well!

After I published episode 1 yesterday, I had a different podcast interview with Neale Godfrey. If you’re not familiar with her, she’s an incredible financial expert, writer, and expert on all things finance and kids. She interviewed me for her podcast that will be out around November 8th. I was excited to talk with her about teens and finances, because I’ve posted about that topic on my site before and it really interests me. Since I’ve managed to make my blog into a full-time career, I’ve had to learn a lot about finances that I didn’t expect to know at my age. Things like stocks, savings accounts, and writing my taxes (and checks) have become second nature to me over the past few months. You’re never taught about handling money in college or high school, which is why I think it’s crucial to educate parents and teens from a young age.

Since the Harvey Weinstein situation came out in the media, there has been a lot of additional talk around women in the entertainment and business industry. I’m disgusted at Harvey Weinstein, and his team, but I can’t say I’m surprised. Since I was a kid, people like Harvey have been around, and no one in this messed up business puts a stop to people like that. Like I always say, there is so much that goes on behind the scenes the people watching the TV or reading the magazine don’t see. Terry Richardson is an incredibly famous and successful photographer who has been (openly) assaulting and abusing girls at his photo shoots for years, yet he continues to create “art” with no repercussions. When will this behavior end? There are situations that occur outside of the public eye, in massive corporations and at small startups, that include a power struggle between men and women. Remind me why women still make less money compared to men?

Today, I got an email from a college asking me how much I charge to speak. After speaking with Neale yesterday, I finally feel like I have the voice to be strong about how much I require to participate in an opportunity. Asking for money in general, or a raise if you work at a corporate company, can be terrifying. I’m always asked by other young girls how I go about getting myself sponsored and finding paid gigs for my blog: and I tell them that I go about it by not being afraid of the word no. The minute you start being afraid is the minute you begin to loose sight of your worth.

Xo,

Alexa

Ahhhhh, it’s 4 AM in Hollywood right now! And I’m awake, too excited to sleep because my podcast, This is Life Unfiltered: HAS LAUNCHED! I’m so freakin’ excited right now, because I’ve been working on this project for months. I’m the kind of person who puts my ALL into any project I take on, and this is a project similar to my nonprofit: it’s kind of like a little baby. Something like this doesn’t “become something” over night, and things like scheduling, filming, and editing take weeks to bring to life. I appear on TV for a living, and so much of what I do is  about getting dressed up and talking in front of a camera. A podcast is the opposite, and y’all get to hear my voice for an entire hour, instead of watching me talk. If you like my TV segments, then you’ll probably loveeeeee listening to me talk every week for an hour!! I hope this podcast brings light into a very shady, and confusing industry, but also inspires you to continue to follow your dreams. I haven’t had an easy life, but I’ve managed to follow my dreams and never, ever, say no to someone telling me no.

P.S. To be totally transparent; my co-host and I have decided to go separate ways. After the first four episodes, it’ll be my best friend, Gabe and I taking on TILU. You guys have known Gabe for forever: he’s been my best friend since the beginning, so I’m looking forward to taking on a fun business adventure with him. I’m talking to Vine star Lauren Giraldo on Sunday, Natasha Bure on Monday, and some more guests over the next few weeks. Stay tuned, and subscribe!

Welcome to #TILU, the podcast. 

Xo,

Alexa