How Lauryn Evarts Went From Bartender to Blogging Boss
I had the opportunity to speak with one of my favorite bloggers/girlbosses and was totally blown away by her focus, composure, and her ability to laugh at herself (and her husband).
Lauryn Evarts of “The Skinny Confidential” spoke to Galore about balancing her many entrepreneurial ventures, her biggest wellness tips, must-have beauty products, relationship tips and SO much more. We even snagged a few pieces of advice from her equally successful counterpart, Michael!
Tiffany: What were you doing before you started your blog ‘The Skinny Confidential’?
Lauryn: Before I started my blog I was doing all different kinds of things. I was in the restaurant industry for a really long time. I felt like it was an industry where I could make the money that would allow me to be free and also to have my own time. I was able to do my own thing during the day and then go to work at night. I’m very much about marching to the beat of my own drum and the restaurant industry allowed me to do that. I worked in restaurants from the time I was was 14 as a hostess, then started cocktail waitressing when I was 17, and then from there I was bartending until I was 22. As I was bartending I was building my brand. I knew that I was going to launch “The Skinny Confidential” so I got a degree online and was also attending San Diego State University. During that time I was also teaching pure barre and pilates, I was very into fitness! But nothing was really clicking for me, I was really unstimulated and uninspired, which is why I ended up creating my own job.
T: What was your original inspiration for starting “The Skinny Confidential”?
L: My inspiration for starting the blog was that I was going to San Diego State and I was making all of these modifications to the things I was eating on Campus because there were no healthy options. I was like, I want to share these modifications and this information with other women, and I want to know their tips, tricks, and secrets. I wanted to create a platform where that could be done and I wanted to create a community. I was thinking, how can I cultivate something like that? How can I reach everyone, not just at San Diego State? And that’s when the blog idea came about. From there it took like, a year to launch because I was such a perfectionist about the way I wanted to do it, and I wanted to lay the foundation for the brand as opposed to launching with just a blog.
T: So, where did the name “The Skinny Confidential” come from?
L: It actually has nothing to do with “being skinny.” It was meant to be more like “getting the skinny” and “getting the confidential info.” Like I said, I wanted to create a place where women could share tips and tricks, so that name just really fit what I was trying to do. I also think it’s a really cheeky and controversial name, and my blog can definitely be cheeky and controversial. I honestly just typed out 600 words I liked in the Notes app on my iPhone and just started putting the words together to create a name.
T: “The Skinny Confidential” just sounds right.
L: Thank you very much, that’s really nice of you to say. I think the name of your brand is so important. When people say things like, “Oh your blog is about being skinny…” I’m like, “You obviously haven’t read it.”
T: When did you take your blog full-time and quit all of your other endeavors? Did it take a long time or was it pretty immediate?
L: Taking the blog full-time probably took three years of working every single day, 7 days a week. It’s definitely something that’s been a slow build. A lot of people go into blogging wanting to make money, and for me, that was never even a question. I knew the money was going to come eventually, I just needed to work it. I went into blogging with my head down and I created a strategic plan for the future. It’s never been about the money.
T: Coming from a reader’s perspective, that totally comes across in the genuine content you create and the role you take in the community you’ve built.
L: Thank you! For me, the most important thing is providing value to the audience and maintaining an open communication with them. I let the audience guide me on where they want the brand to go. I’m very much about engaging and listening to my audience, I would have no platform without them so the community is very important to me.
T: So, what does a day in the life of Lauryn look like?
L: A day in the life changes all the time but if I had to give a general day of when I’m home in San Diego, I’d wake up- I’m very particular about the way I wake up in the morning, my husband, Michael, is rolling his eyes at me while I say this because I’m seriously so anal about it. My life just has so much chaos that the way I wake up needs to be controlled or else I can’t function for the rest of the day. I then take a look at my calendar for the day and make sure every moment is planned out, if it’s not everything is total chaos because I’m so disorganized. Michael has really helped me with the organization aspect of things, because you really can’t run a business without it. I then diffuse some essential oils, make a smoothie, throw on a face mask, and then I go work out. I try to make everything very tranquil and relaxed. Because after my morning, it’s just go, go, go for the rest of the day, it’s non-stop emails, text messages, interacting on social media, conference calls, creating content, etc. If I didn’t have that calm morning, I’d go crazy, and I know that about myself. I really try to prevent things from getting too chaotic before it does, as opposed to letting things get chaotic and then trying to fix it afterwards.
T: What music do you have playing while you’re working?
L: Always bossa nova. And if I get sick of bossa nova I throw on some jazz. I have to have a creative space while I’m working and music is a huge part of that.
T: So with everything you have going on, how do you manage your time?
L: That’s probably my biggest weakness. I’m very artistic and get distracted very easily. Time Blocking has really helped me, it’s this little dice that I found on Amazon, okay, Michael is rolling his eyes again because he was the one who found it on Amazon, okay, I’m giving Michael cred. Cred, cred, cred. Anyways, it’s a little $15 device that he told me about on Amazon that keeps me on track by forcing me to time out different tasks. I timeblock everything now. I also Google Calendar every single moment in my day.
T: It does not come across as your biggest weakness at all! You seem like you totally have your shit together.
L: Ohhhhhhhhh, I can assure you I do not.
T: How do you manage to stay creative when you have so much going on?
L: I’m not always creative. I probably only feel creative 20% of the time. And that 20% of creativity unfortunately strikes me at night, which is horrific. That’s especially hard because most of my content needs to be created in the sunlight, like social media stuff, pictures for the blog, etc. I try not to pay attention to feeling uninspired, I put my big boy pants on and get it fucking done. Hold on, Michael has to say something.
Michael: There’s a director named Robert Rodriguez and he said that the only way you can start being creative is to start.
T: Speaking of Michael, you were the chill-est bride to ever exist, how did you stay sane and get shit done for the wedding?
L: See, I was the most chill bride until like, three days before the wedding. I actually lost my shit the day before we got married. Like, lost. my. shit. It’s so on-brand for me because I was so cool until the very last minute and then I was like, I need 400 more candles, I need more flowers, the arrangements need to be higher, there needs to be feathers, it was full-blown-blackout-psycho. If I had to do the wedding over again I would have been more meticulous in conveying exactly what I wanted to avoid the day before freak out.
T: What is your biggest relationship tip?
L: At the end of the day, you have to be a team. You have to be committed to the same goal. Michael and I fight all the time, we’re a very normal couple, like, I would not want a reality show following us around all the time. I will say something about Michael that I can’t say about a lot of men- he truly wants me to succeed and wants me to reach my full potential. I know that because I’ve known him since I was 12. Back then I can remember him saying “you’re so much smarter than people think you are.” The success of my brand has never even surprised him because he knows me and because he knows where I want to go. We’re very much equals, it’s not like I’m the woman and he’s the man, we have a lot of respect for eachother.
T: I can’t find a dude I like for the life of me. If you could give advice to a single girl wanting to find love, what would that advice be?
L: Don’t settle. I’d rather be single until I’m 80 than be with someone who’s not right for me.
T: I think that’s my problem! I’d definitely rather be single than settle.
L: I know for a fact that if I wasn’t with Michael, I would be totally single. So definitely don’t settle, don’t waste your time, don’t give your energy. Michael wants to say something again.
M: Don’t be on the lookout for love. A lot of the time, when you’re looking for something, you won’t find it. And that has to do with business, money, fame, etc., too. Don’t look and it will find you.
T: That’s some good advice. Moving on to a health and wellness question… What are 3 things you do to live a healthy life?
L: My number one tip is to look at ingredients. I eat whatever I want 20% of the time. But if I’m at home on a Tuesday afternoon and I’m about to eat a granola bar it better be the best damn granola bar you could possibly eat. But, if I’m out with my friends at a Mexican restaurant, I’m gonna eat chips and salsa and have a margarita. I balance my diet like a check book. My second tip is going to sound really cliché but it’s helped me out a lot recently with my anxiety: yoga. I feel like I go into the studio with a file folder in my head that’s all [messed] up and I walk out and all the files are organized. For me, yoga isn’t about getting fit it’s about improving my state of mind. My last tip is to incorporate little things that make a huge difference, like acupressure matts, foam rolling, ice rolling, collagen eye masks, etc. I like to do quick, inexpensive things that improve my overall wellness. It’s very therapeutic for me.
T: Taking care of yourself is so important. What are some of your must-have beauty products?
L: IT Cosmetics CC cream, caffeinated sunscreen, the Beauty Blender, Watt’s Up highlighter by Benefit, brow tinting, an eyelash curler, and eyelash primer. I really love beauty products.
T: Last question, who has given you the best business advice and what was that advice?
L: My friend Weston told me that I needed to stop working in my business and to start working on my business.
T: What does that mean to you?
L: Instead of me doing day-to-day menial tasks like returning emails, organization, and scheduling appointments, I can delegate and outsource that, and then use my energy to build the brand and focus on the future.
M: Instead of being at the wheel and steering the ship, you’re the guy in the captains quarters letting the ship know where it’s going.
T: That’s all! Thank you so much! It was so nice talking to you both.
L: Thank you! You’re adorable and I’m sure you’ll find someone who’s worthy of you soon hahaha.
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Follow Lauryn on her Blog, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, and subscribe to Lauryn and Michael’s Podcast to stay up to date with the latest Skinny Confidential.
