What Influencers and Models Can Do More to Give Back

At the end of every year, we stop to reflect on our lives and past experiences. The good and bad memories. The happy moments and achievements as well as our shortcomings, loss, and failures. We roll through the archives of our lives and do our best to create dreams, goals, and plans for the future that will make our experience here a better one. I did exactly that. I looked back at my Instagram from a year ago and couldn’t believe how packed my year was with happy family moments, opportunities to share and teach the message of Healthy is the new Skinny, and traveling to beautiful places around the world. I am the healthiest I have ever been, and through that process, I learned so many wonderful new ways to care for my body. Our company Natural Model Management had the best year to date. We sold our home in Palm Springs and purchased a new one in the Hollywood Hills and a cabin in Joshua tree that we are renovating at the same time. I had a fucking excellent year and had zero to complain about.

I often sit and think, what did I do to deserve such a beautiful life when there are so many who are suffering? Even worse, sometimes I fear that because my life is beautiful, I need to fear the bad things that are lurking in the future. Isn’t it weird that we think that way? I grew up with a single mother, and I didn’t come from money. Everything I have currently, Bradford and I worked our asses off for and built from the ground up. We are beyond grateful for the abundance in our lives, and because of that, we have decided that instead of fearing something terrible will happen or that we don’t have enough, we are going to do the opposite; give more.

I look around at the current state of our country and our world, and it is clear we are in a state of transformation. We have people who want to hold onto old outdated beliefs and systems that are fueled by hatred and fear, working hard to separate humanity for personal gain. I often feel a rollercoaster of emotions from feeling mad to frustrated, and I usually end up feeling helpless. Not in 2019! I am not helpless, and neither are you. As soon as we begin to think that way, not only will we personally suffer, but our world will suffer. I look at my beautiful baby girl, and I realize the future for our children will depend on our ability to take action now. That is precisely what I have decided to do, and I hope you join me!

I have dedicated 100% of the proceeds of the Healthy is the new Skinny hoodies to support a non-profit in LA called Resisterhood. The mission of Resisterhood LA, Inc. is to enact positive change in the greater Los Angeles area and surrounding communities and promote and facilitate volunteer efforts, philanthropy, and fundraising. What does "resisterhood" mean?

RESIST•erhood. We resist complacency.

We can make phone calls to our elected representatives, sign online petitions, and participate in marches, but we believe it's more important than ever to "show up" in our communities. We want to do more than just advocate; we want to participate.

“Volunteering is the ultimate exercise in democracy. You vote in elections once a year, but when you volunteer, you vote every day about the kind of community you want to live in.”

In 2019 I will be resisting complacency by taking action. Over the holidays we raised $1280 from HNS hoodie sales for Resisterhood LA. Hell yeah! It felt so good to know that I could use my resources to help other people doing such fantastic work for our community by merely giving my time!

If we look at Instagram and the advertising platform it has become, it is easy to see an opportunity to give back that I don’t personally feel many have taken advantage of. For those of you who are not aware, models and influencers get sent free products and are paid large amounts of money to post photos of those products. Many then create personal Postmark stores to sell the free products they were sent to make even more money. Don’t get me wrong, money is great, and I am all about making it! But when do we realize that we are only taking and not giving back to the system? Many social media influencers and models suffer from depression, self-loathing, and low self-esteem, which fuels the belief that they aren’t enough, they don’t have enough, and therefore they always need more to be happy. I am grateful to realize that those limiting beliefs are an illusion. That being said, I cleaned out my closet and True’s closet to create an online store to give back! 100% of the proceeds of my store will go to charity! Can you imagine how much good could come from models and influencers doing what I am doing here? The amount of money we could raise collectivity could be astronomical. The beautiful thing is we still get to make a great living, our followers get access to products they may not be able to afford otherwise, and we get to give to those who need help the most! It is a win, win, win for all of us!

I am currently researching which charity I want to donate the store proceeds to and will update each shopper with the total amount raised, where it is going, and how it impacted the lives of those who received it. We are shopping it forward, and it feels good in my soul to finally tap into my creativity and ability to give. I launched the “Shop it Forward” store this morning, and already had 15 orders!

It all started with a feeling of gratitude that nourished the empathy in my heart. That empathy sparked my intuition and creativity which lead to inspiration. That inspiration sparked a simple idea that required me to take action. My actions created an opportunity for others to help give, and here we are on day 2 of 2019 making a difference together.

It is going to be a good year because we are going to live with a beautiful heart and no-one can stop us.

xoxo,

Katie