Thanks to social media technology, more and more people are leaving behind the 9-5 life to pursue their own passions. In 2018, we all know someone who owns a business, works from home, or aspires to do so.
As much as working for yourself may seem like a dream come true, it comes with a lot including lack of sleep, a lot of time spent at home, and an emotional roller coaster ride. Show some support for all of their endeavors this holiday season by gifting something that will help progress their boss agenda.
For those in your life who are really living the boss life, beginner or vet, here are 12 gifts that they'll absolutely love and thank you a million times for:
For The Multitasker/Bed Boss:
Lapgear Designer Lap Desk, $34.99
Working from bed just got real – real productive. The entrepreneur who is guilty of lounging while working will appreciate this great addition to their at home work life. (Shop Here.)
Girl Boss Novelty Name Plate Desk Sign, $14.99
This is the perfect gift for the friend that never fails to remind you who the boss really is. Now it's on display for the world to see. (Shop Here.)
For The Forgetful One:
Tile Mate Key Finder. Phone Finder. Anything Finder, $19.99
Being a entrepreneur doesn't mean that you have everything together at all times. This gift will be keep the entrepreneur in your life focusing on business instead of scrambling for misplaced items. (Shop Here.)
For The Friends That Needs A Bit Of Extra Motivation:
Deluxe Law of Attraction Life Planner - 2019 planner, $38.99
This planner is anything but basic. Not only will it help any entreprenuer get super productive. It also includes some great mental health exercises such as gratitude journaling, finding your "why" and other important things to keep every level of boss on the right track. (Shop Here.)
For The Homebody Boss:
Verilux HappyLight Compact Personal, Portable Light Therapy Energy Lamp, $39.95
Need a gift for someone that's always cooped up in the housing working day in and day out? This mood improving therapy light will help to keep them in good spirits. May we add – it's also portable. (Shop Here.)
Gift Tree Custom Engraved Bettoni Pen, $34.95
This is the perfect gesture for the entrepreneur that you don't know on a super personal level, like a boss or colleague. Any entrepreneur would love to write down all of their million-dollar ideas in style. (Shop Here.)
For The Social Savvy One:
Influencer: Building Your Personal Brand in the Age of Social Media by Brittany Hennessy, $13.36
This is the ultimate how-to guide for the social media obsessed entrepreneur that's looking to use social media to boost their personal brand and business. (Shop Here.)
For The Caffeine Aficionado On A Budget:
Espro Travel Stainless Coffee Press, $34.95
A $5 a day coffee habit could be a bit much when you're building a business. Motivate any coffee-loving girl boss (or guy) brew their own fresh coffee on the go using the coffee of their choice. Coffee snob approved. (Shop Here.)
For The “Bag Lady”:
Gonex Women Laptop Tote Bag, $34.95
If always being on the go is starting to cramp her style, this business tote bag is the only gift to give. This stylish tote is compartmentalized to perfectly store all of the important things that any girl boss wouldn't want to be caught without. (Shop Here.)
For The One Who Loves Aesthetics:
TOODOO Desk Accessory Organization Kit 10 Piece Set, $34.99
Much like people, when work spaces look good they feel good. This rose gold desk accessory kit is a great addition to any work space. (Shop Here.)
For The One That Loves Vintage Inspired Things:
Maxtek Black Felt Letter Board, $19.99
You might have seen these plastered all over Instagram and Pinterest. These vintage inspired felt boards are perfect for the entrepreneur who is a sucker for a vintage feel and of course loves to be expressive. (Shop Here.)
For The One That Isn’t A Morning Person:
A Beautiful Morning: How A Morning Ritual Can Feed Your Soul and Transform your Life by Ashley Ellington Brown, $14.99
We all know how you start your day can easily determine the way your whole day goes. Inspire the budding boss in your life with the book that will help guide them with actionable steps to help make every day intentional. (Shop Here.)
'Tis the season! Check out xoNecole's other Christmas gift guides here.
Disclosure: If you purchase something through one of our links, xoNecole may earn a small affiliate commission.
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During the Los Angeles tour stop, which spanned three dates on May 21, May 23, with the finale on May 24, xoNecole had the opportunity to test out the glosses included in this soft launch, as SZA revealed in a statement that "this is just the start of other lip products, including plans to launch stains, liners, and creams all inspired by SZA's “infamous layered lip combinations.”
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So, what is included in the first Not Beauty launch?
The current Not Beauty products available are lip glosses that come in three shades: In the Flesh, Strawberry Jelly, and Quartz.
During my visit to the first LA Not Beauty pop-up activation, I not only had the chance to purchase all three glosses but also took a peek inside the blow-up log tent. Inside, fans got to experience SZA’s love for nature and her fascination with bugs, which are prominently featured in her performances for this tour. At one point, she even had human preying mantis prancing across the stage y'all.
There were blow-up photos of the beauty that is SZA for fans (myself included) to take photos, but in wooden-like tree trunks were a deeper dive into some of the ingredients featured in her products and their benefits.
For example, the glosses feature Hi-Shine Lip Jelly and Shea Butter as key ingredients and some of the listed benefits included are:
- Shea Butter - “A powerhouse ingredient, offering both functional and nourishing benefits.”
- Hi-Shine Lip Jelly (featured in the In the Flesh shade) - “Formula glides on with perfect adhesion to the lips without stickiness).
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What are in the products?
Featured in an orange package, with images of a bug and flower on the side, the back of the box reads: “It’s NOT BEAUTY, it just works. Developed by Solána “SZA” Rowe.
As someone who never leaves home without a good lip gloss, I loved how compact the wood panel packaging is. Perfect to slip into my purse, or in the case of the show at SoFi Stadium, into my pocket when I’m not carrying a bag.
Because I’m a sucker for a good black and brown lip liner and clear gloss combo, I decided to wear the Quartz flavor on night one of the Grand National Tour LA stop, and it did not disappoint. I’ll admit, it’s light weight feel made me nervous because it felt like there was nothing on my lips. However, when I checked my lips in my compact mirror several times throughout the night, I was shocked to find that my gloss was still intact. I only reapplied once out of the habit of looking cute and applying my gloss, but not necessity.
Here are some of the ingredients featured, but not limited to, in the Quartz flavor.
- Polyisoubutene
- Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea)Butter
- Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil
- Mentha Piperita (Peppermint) Oil
- Tocopherol
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Lip prep
I’m a simple girl who loves to stay true to her roots. So ahead of the show, I stopped by a local Inglewood Beauty Supply store and grabbed a Black and Brown shade lip pencil for just under $2 a piece.
Shading the outline of my lips with the black pencil first, I used the brown to lightly fill the inside of my lips before applying my Quartz Not Beauty shade gloss.
How to apply
There’s truly no right or wrong way to apply lip gloss (in my opinion), with this being a brush applicator sort of product, I simply untwisted the top and swiped the gloss around my top and bottom lip generously.
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Results
Again, my Not Beauty Quartz product stayed on my lips from the start of the show, which began with a fire DJ set from LA’s very own, Mustard, to the conclusion when Kendrick and SZA reunited on stage to send us home to their duet, “luther,” featured on the rapper's GNX album.
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xoMAN started as an Instagram Live series and is now a full-cast production, with Walker as the host. Initially, she was skeptical about joining as the new host of xoMan. Not because she doesn’t have the chops to thrive in the role, but because coming in on something that wasn’t her original idea initially seemed daunting for the media personality.
However, since she loves a challenge, the CockTales: Dirty Discussionspodcast host embraced the task with an open heart and mind.
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“I was like, this is a cool concept, so I’m so glad that they decided to turn it into a podcast,” Walker tells xoNecole. “It’s been interesting to take somebody else’s idea and try to turn it into a thing, put it together, and bring it to fruition. I am anxious, nervous, and all things, but above all, I’m excited.”
When xoNecole's managing editor Sheriden Garrett approached Walker to take on the position, it felt like fate. She had previously attempted to get Garrett on her CockTales platform about six or seven years ago due to her expertise in the love and relationship space.
“I was like, wait, y’all listen to the show? And you want me to host a show where I’m only talking to men? And I’m listening to them and not giving them a hard time? I say that because sometimes I feel like, on my show, I may come off like I don’t even like men," she says.
"I love men, but it can be frustrating sometimes on that platform, social media, and other places when they continue to regurgitate the same rhetoric about what I like to call Twitter topics, like constantly talking about who’s paying as a man, as a woman. You should do this. You should do that…It’s been cool hearing the stories with the men we’ve spoken to so far at xoMAN, hearing these stories, and hearing them let their guards down.”
A Howard graduate, Walker almost didn’t enter the world of media after listening to advice from elders who said she would make a great lawyer because she loves to debate topics and sometimes argue (haha).
"It’s been cool hearing the stories with the men we’ve spoken to so far at xoMAN, hearing these stories, and hearing them let their guards down.”
After traveling to the nation’s capital to study political science, Walker soon discovered that her only motivation for becoming an attorney was the potential income and witnessing how boss women like Erika Alexander’s Maxine Shaw character on Living Single would look in their suits as career women.
“I realized that this was for real,” she says, studying law at Howard. “This is a lot of work, and when you think about what you do, I was like, this is not a performance, and I just wanted to talk. I wasn’t trying to defend anyone.”
A visit to a fair showcasing the different organizations on Howard’s campus, combined with her affinity for celebrity gossip and entertainment news, ultimately led Walker to explore a radio career. Soon, she auditioned for a show and landed the gig. By the spring semester, she was on the radio, ultimately leading her to switch her major to journalism with a concentration in broadcast news.
Soon after earning her degree in the field, Walker decided she didn’t want to do anything related to hard news. Instead, she became involved in lifestyle content. She used her friends' love of hearing her stories to motivate her to get into podcasting.
The rest is, as they say, history.
“Before podcasts became what they are, I was in a living room with a microphone before ultimately moving to a studio and refining the show. I loved it and knew people were listening because I monitored the analytics and everything," she explains.
"When we decided to do a live show, the show sold out in two weeks, and I was so nervous. I was like, 'Are we ready? Are we gonna be able to sell out this venue?' We didn’t have any sponsorship. We were still independent and had to front the money for everything.”
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“When they sold out in two weeks, not only did I price my tickets too low, but I thought, wow, we’ve got something. I was like, people spent money to hear me and my co-host talking about our shitty love lives. This is wild, all from an idea in my head. It made me feel like I was on the right path and encouraged me to stop doubting myself. I have imposter syndrome," she reveals.
"Even to this day, I’m constantly biased. But it’s like, if not me, then who? And, like, why not me? If people can do it with way less and way more. I’ve been trying to encourage myself and other people to eliminate the doubt that we have in ourselves so we can do whatever it is we want to do. I love it. No matter how many sleepless nights I have, I will continue to have bags under my eyes until the end of time because I’m enjoying it.”
"I have imposter syndrome. Even to this day, I’m constantly biased. But it’s like, if not me, then who? And, like, why not me? If people can do it with way less and way more. I’ve been trying to encourage myself and other people to eliminate the doubt that we have in ourselves so we can do whatever it is we want to do."
In between garnering a strong social media presence for her work as a podcast host, lifestyle influencer, and beyond, Walker has managed to use her many gifts and talents, like cooking, and most importantly, giving a strong opinion about the things she does (or doesn’t) believe in to carve out a lane of her own.
As she embarks on this chapter as the host of xoMAN, where she has already spoken with actors Devale Ellis and Skyh Black and Dear Future Wifey podcast host Laterras R. Whitfield, Walker hopes that it encourages people, especially women, to look at their male counterparts from a different perspective.
“I hope that anyone listening can listen to the first few episodes, hear how different each man is, and learn to let down whatever preconceived notions you have about me or a specific man, whoever it is in your life," she says. "Just listen, talk to them, ask them how they feel, and listen with an open mind, without thinking that you already know what the answer is.”
“I just hope that people learn to, again, not put people in boxes and make the other person, whoever it is, men specifically for this show, but sit down and talk with an open mind and listen to understand, not to respond. Help someone feel safe.”
xoMAN officially launches on Tuesday, June. 17.
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