Annie Berlin’s Guide to Girlbossing

By: Karlee Zolman 

“Gaslight, gatekeep, girlboss”: a term used widely throughout the internet to describe a woman who portrays what is seen as “toxic” behavior. However, girlboss is slowly but surely being reclaimed, and worn proudly by young women everywhere. 

Annie Berlin, an American University sophomore, is doing just this. 

“A girlboss is someone who works really hard to get everything they want to get done in a day and is able to very clearly see their goals and visualize how they can accomplish them. They are then able to have the drive to follow through and accomplish them,” Berlin says. 

During her discussion with Her Campus, Berlin was named some of the key things that being a self-titled girlboss entails. 

Berlin explained that  direct external expression, understanding boundaries, having empathy, compromising, “without being petty about it,” and being able to put others first because you have your life in order. 

These are all positive traits, ones that people might not typically associate with the sometimes negative connotation that has been created around being a girlboss. 

Many people see being a girlboss as being a business woman or work obsessed. Berlin combats this with saying “I think it’s really toxic: the idea of the girlboss being a workaholic.”

She continues that “girlboss is such a spectrum of things, don’t count yourself out because you’re like ‘ugh i didn’t do anything productive today,’ no, that is a girlboss move because you took care of yourself.”

Annie Places a lot of emphasis on doing things to take care of yourself and making yourself feel  confident. 

“Girl Bossing can be as simple as ‘I girlbossed my way into self care and slept for 10 hours’ but it can also be, ‘I went on a run today I’m really proud of myself.” 

Berlin has many tactics to make herself feel like she’s in that girlboss role. 

”The way I dress gives me a lot of confidence. When I’m able to present my best external self it’s easy for the internal parts to come out,” she says. 

Berlin also discusses balance and admires the way that her roommate keeps this balance in her daily life, “My roommate just has this thing where she’s just never in the room. She’s always putting herself out there and doing something. Even when she is in the room she’s able to understand that balance. I really admire the way she’s able to balance self care and getting shit done.” 

Berlin works hard, cherishes self care, and makes time to support others. This is what the new definition of girlbossing is. 

Do you want to be a girlboss too? Well, Berlin’s best bit of advice to aspiring girl bosses is, “You start small and you work your way up.”

• American University
• girlboss
• HCAU