I have debated this move and this blog for several months. However, after this past weekend’s show of true colors, it solidified my decision to just pull the trigger. Enough is enough, which is exactly why I unfollowed Rachel Hollis.

In January 2019, I went out for a girl’s night with my friend Heather to watch “Made For More” at the local theater. It was a documentary about the rise of Rachel Hollis, an author and speaker who was igniting fires and lifting spirits across America. I’ll admit – I sat in the theater and had tears rolling down my cheeks. I immediately went out and bought her first self-help book titled “Girl, Wash Your Face” and devoured it as if my oxygen was at stake.

Why I Unfollowed Rachel Hollis

I joined the thousands and millions of women across the country who cheered Rachel on. We also cheered for her husband Dave when he left his executive gig to work for the Hollis Co. Throughout my time in her communities, I did her 90 day challenges and joined her for lives and all the things. I even went to the Rise Conference in Dallas in July 2019, which was fun in ways but very bad in other ways. I actually wasn’t super impressed with Rachel’s part of the conference; truth be told, I was more inspired by her guest speakers. It was after experiencing the Rise Conference that my doubts about Rachel Hollis began.

Since then, she wrote another book (Girl, Stop Apologizing) which didn’t resonate as much as her first book did for me. She started an instantly successful podcast with Dave, humble-bragging about how amazing their marriage was despite the ups and downs. But then – BAM! They blindsided their entire community with a divorce, and just weeks later Rachel published another book detailing her divorce. She acted like everything was fine on social media and in business, preaching about her amazing marriage and sex life, but all the meanwhile she was getting a divorce and lying through her teeth about everything.

Yeah, I did not buy the third book. It was at this point that I left the Made for More community on social media, but still followed Rachel’s accounts because I wanted to believe she was learning from her mistakes.

But I was wrong; very, very wrong.

Not long after her shocking divorce, another round of drama hit her in her unwashed face. She got called out for misappropriating quotes and mantras of other people (mostly people of color) without giving proper credit. How did she respond? She blamed her team! What?!

Then, this past weekend, she posted a now viral TikTok about how “unrelatable” she wants to be. In one fell swoop, she not only humble-bragged about the media empire she’s built by simply “working hard,” but also alienated almost all of her fan base. It got even worse when she tried to apologize later on, comparing herself to female pioneers like Ruth Bader Ginsberg, Malala and Harriet Tubman. Oh honey, no – bless your heart.

The minute long video basically confirmed my suspicions: Rachel Hollis has morphed into a someone I no longer want to look up to. She has become a high-horse riding megalomaniac who thinks her “unrelatable life” is something to aspire to, and I want nothing to do with that kind of thinking.

The woman who wrote “Made For More” is not the same Rachel Hollis we see before us. This isn’t a positive growth, this is a toxic woman who is destroying her fan base. Her house of well placed cards will come down, sooner or later.

I’m Still Made For More – But Not in the Rachel Hollis Way of Thinking

At this point in my life, I want to lead and live a life that is inspiring and relatable. I want my friends and followers to watch my life and my story unfold and think, “man – I want that for myself!” Or I’ll even take, “dang – that’s not what I want for me but it makes me so happy to see Ashley finding happiness and her purpose in life.”

I want my friends and followers to be brave in the face of fear.

I need my friends and followers to see that I’m human, that I make mistakes and that most importantly: I own up to those mistakes, and grow as a human/woman/wife/mother/friend.

It’s important to me that my friends and followers to know that I work hard and bust my ass for the life I have. And guess what? It’s absolutely attainable; it’s not out of reach for anyone.

Last but not least, my friends and followers deserve to find what makes THEM happy.

I always want to be relatable, because I realize I’m not above anyone else. The only person I’m in competition with is myself. I want all of us to win, all of us to find our purpose in life. I think all of us can be someone that makes the world a better place when we leave it. And THAT is why I unfollowed Rachel Hollis.