The Joy of Being a Bawse

From the 2017 People’s Choice Award winner for Favourite YouTube Star to #1 New York Times Bestseller, we seek advice from Lilly Singh on chasing her dreams and what every aspiring bawse should — in this BAC exclusive by Ashvini Nair, a student of IACT College.

Lilly Singh isn’t just a superstar. She’s ||Superwoman|| — which is also the name of her wildly popular YouTube channel. Funny, smart, and insightful, the actress and comedian covers topics ranging from relationships to career choices to everyday annoyances. It’s no wonder she’s garnered more than a billion views.

But Lilly didn’t get to the top by being lucky — she had to work hard for it. Hard. Now with the latest addition to her string of projects and accolades to her credit, HOW TO BE A BAWSE: A Guide to Surviving Conquering Life reaffirms Lilly’s belief that world domination requires real effort, dedication, and determination. There are no shortcuts to success, whether it’s personal or professional.

Ashvini emailed Lilly before her How to be a Bawse Tour in KL to discuss her passion, her educational experience and her advice to everyone; young and old.

What ignited your passion to do what you are currently doing?

When I was growing up, YouTube didn’t exist so I had no idea I’d be doing what I’m doing. From a young age I always loved entertaining and making people laugh, but truthfully never genuinely thought I’d be able to make a career out of it. I feel very blessed and fortunate that YouTube exists and I discovered it when I did.

You already have an award-winning YouTube channel. You also have a lipstick bearing your name not to mention a movie too! What drove you to write this book?

I have been so grateful for the good, bad, and truly unbelievable experiences I’ve had over the past years and I felt a book was the perfect format to share those lessons with others. I’ve learned so much from smart people who I admire along the way and wanted to share those stories with my audience. I hope it will inspire others to see beyond the mentality of “dreaming for their dreams.” I want readers to work for their dreams, conquer life and fight for their happiness.

What do you do when you’re bored? 

In my spare time, which by the way is a rare time, I absolutely love to call over some friends, make some extra buttery popcorn and watch a movie. Bonus points if it’s horror.

What was your major in college, and why did you choose it?

I majored in Psychology and to be very honest, I chose it because I had no idea what else to do. I found it weird that I had to enter university and then instantly decide what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I aimlessly followed my sister’s footsteps.

What advice would you have for a college student chasing an unconventional dream?

When you first start chasing your dream, you’re often starting at the bottom. There is this idea that quick growth is necessary and we are tempted to “use escalators” to get to the top as quick as possible. My advice is to put in the work and take the stairs or climb the ladder. This way you can build a solid foundation instead of spending that energy scheming a way to escalate to the top.

*Images and interviews from FAC3 Entertainment and BAC