By: Ashley Scott
Rachel Hollis says it makes her “physically sick” when women tell her they don’t have a dream. In her new book, Girl, Stop Apologizing, Hollis is challenging those women.
While Hollis’s first self-help book, Girl, Wash Your Face, is geared toward self-reliance and faith, this book is about becoming a goal-setter. She dishes out motivation to help the ordinary woman realize she does have dreams, and with discipline, can achieve them. As an author, blogger, motivational speaker, and self-proclaimed ‘hustler’, Hollis gives helpful tips and fun anecdotes she hopes will help readers see they aren’t so different from her.
Hollis uses her experiences to back up her advice. Recognizing that she isn’t a certified therapist or counselor, she wants readers to feel like her advice is coming from a friend. As a result, her writing is confessional and relatable… most of the time. For example, Hollis is known for her online presence as a trendy mother and homemaker. While we all may not be able to relate to the backlash she felt from admitting she had a nanny, we all can relate to the struggle for work-life balance and the pressure to be perfect. She wants everyone to know exactly what it took her to reach success, even if that means admitting to something she may be ashamed of. While upper class problems may be puzzling to the average reader, it is evident by her intentions it is a means to an end.
So who should be reading this book? Girl, Stop Apologizing is geared towards a specific audience. Women, first and foremost, but more specifically women who grew up with a conservative background and may be uncomfortable with the idea of feminism. It shocked me when Hollis prefaced a chapter with a disclaimer about the word ‘feminist’, acknowledging that there are many meanings wrapped up in the word, when, in my opinion, there aren’t. It opened my eyes to the fact that there are women out there who have never even considered doing anything for themselves. Hollis’s book is the perfect intro to loving yourself for the reluctant feminist, who is curious about the possibilities of breaking out from defining themselves based on others.
Hollis is a mother of four and comes from a Christian background. For this reason a lot of the advice she gives is most applicable to those who are similar to her. Sections on ‘Mommy Guilt’ and life advice for the Christian woman, and is helpful—if that applies to you. For the staunch feminists and single ladies, these sections may be a little less relatable. However, skippable chapters do not take away from the very real, very applicable advice that can apply to women of any age and life station.
Hollis’s advice isn’t always groundbreaking— tips like getting up an hour earlier every day and learning to be grateful—but she motivates readers in a way that many other advice books do not. Hollis is on your team, from start to finish, and throws formality to the wind. She’s the female friend you need when things get tough. And for the women who grew up without that friend and constantly put themselves last, this is what they need the most. Hollis gives real world advice that will help women who read it take charge of their life in the simplest of ways.
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