Since you asked...

Here it is, the latest Ask Me Anniething, where I take questions from Instagram and answer them on Substack in hopes of converting my audience and saving a few lives along the way. Of course, I cannot be held liable if the opposite happens, as this is for entertainment purposes only.

The best thing a 25 yr old who has lost a sense of purpose can do/read?

I have to assume that this purposeless person feels that age is indicative of a “should” in terms of life milestones. Existence isn’t a choice. The idea that you have to justify your existence with “purpose” is something to question. As a way to cleanse yourself, explore nihilism—existentially speaking, not morally. Explore absurdity. If you’re into reading, I’m very into Kafka at the moment, and I find him quite absurd. I suggest Metamorphosis, where a young man turns into a cockroach and can no longer support his family.

If you’re asking this because you’ve come to some sort of conclusion about your own place in the world by comparison to others, with confidence I can say that very few people have a sense of purpose, and age, while it can exacerbate the depressive feelings you’re experiencing, has little to do with finding it. I have gotten to know a lot of different types of people throughout my life quite intimately, and have learned about what brings success and purpose. With the exception of one successful and purposeful person who I’m close with, the same five people who are the most successful, who are the most established—“famous” by most definitions—are also the loneliest. I know they bring a lot of pain to the lives of the people they are closest to. We don’t give ourselves credit for causing the least harm.

I suggest Simone De Beauvoir. It seems like young writers are the most popular at the moment, but when I read a lot of the contemporary bestsellers hyped by Kendall Jenner or whichever influencers’ summer reading lists, I feel the lack of experience and find them dull. A Very Easy Death and A Woman Destroyed give insight into the brain and emotions of an older woman. Same with Eve Babitz. If you think being lost and purposeless is a bad thing, Eve will make it seem fun.

Advice for beauty copy writers?

This goes for any sort of writer—before you write anything, be able to answer the who, what, where, when, why. Who are you talking to? What are you trying to get them to do or think? Where did they come from and where are they going after? When will they read this? Why should they care?

Also, I did a three part series on copywriting with an emphasis on naming here, and here, and here.

Favorite non surgical procedure?

Botox in my traps. I develop muscle easily, hold tension in my shoulders, and love having a long swan neck. Botox doesn’t get enough credit for being an anti-stress tool.

Is the pod ever coming back diva?

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