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June 9, 2024

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In today’s digital age, the online world is filled with countless content creators and influencers, all trying to make their mark. Yet, only a few manage to create real impact, and Zoe is one of them.

With over 3 million YouTube subscribers under the name “zoeunlimited,” Zoe has built a dedicated community through her insightful content on fitness, fashion, dating, and navigating the complexities of girlhood. Her work has even caught the attention of celebrities like Olivia Rodrigo, who stated that she watches Zoe’s videos all the time. In just 14 days, Zoe doubled her subscribers from 1 million to 2 million, when she was creating videos as a hobby outside her 9-to-5 job.

Read through as we learn more about Zoe’s secrets to success as she shares it in detail with Asian Hustle Network.

ABOUT ZOE

I am a multiformat creator navigating girlhood with my Gen Z and Millennial community. My goal is to encourage women to tap into their unlimited potential by thinking critically via my pop culture video essays about beauty, fashion, and confidence.

I grew up in China and Canada and came to LA initially to study Business Economics at UCLA. The different cultural environments I grew up in gave me broader perspectives on the various pop culture topics I’m interested in and inspired me to share that vision with the unlimited community to learn and grow together.

ZOE’S JOURNEY AS A CONTENT CREATOR

Growing up, I’ve always been artistically driven and drawn to creative mediums like fashion, film, and fine arts. Scared of becoming a “starving artist,” I didn’t pursue fashion and studied Business Economics instead, but I always felt like something was missing.

I was very fortunate to discover YouTube as a creative outlet after college and began documenting my life in video format. I always make videos on what I’m interested in at the moment, which was a lot of fitness, college, and even CPA content at the very beginning. Throughout time, I discovered that the central theme of all my content revolves around growth – in becoming fitter, healthier, more confident, more reflective, and so on. My community of mostly women feels like a precious friend group to me and I realized through interacting with them, that many of us are going through similar challenges in our girlhood and there’s much more to share and discuss than just my personal journey.

With that, I began creating my video essay series that served as a discussion ground to think critically about topics many could relate to, including beauty standards, dating, and fashion. Girlhood is such an intriguing and confusing experience in the modern setting, and I just hope to create a community where women feel seen, heard, and not alone when encountering the ever-changing concept of how to be a modern woman. I don’t have the answers but I hope to create a safe space for all of us to explore and reflect!

RAPID GROWTH AND STRATEGIC SUCCESS

Although part of the growth (growing subscriber count from 1M to 2M in 14 days) was extremely rapid, the story before the lift-off was a consistent grind of weekly uploads for 3 years as a pure hobby. The tipping point always feels exciting and amazing, but what truly felt rewarding was 3 years of building something I love.

OVERCOMING CHALLENGES AND CELEBRATING MILESTONES

I’d say one of the biggest challenges was the lack of initial support and understanding from my family. It was painful for me to see something I love doing creating a chasm in my relationship with the people I love, but I’m grateful that we have cleared past misunderstandings and grown close again. I’m so grateful for the community that stuck with me as well as my closest friends who believed in me even when I had a lot of self-doubt, especially during the years I felt judged and not understood.

BALANCING AUTHENTICITY AND PRIVACY

I love and respect the people closest to me and want to protect their privacy as much as possible online. When it comes to my own journey, I believe my community comes with a good heart, and I see them as good friends I can confide in. So even when it comes to moments that aren’t the most glamorous and the failures I’m not extremely proud of, I do want to share that experience if I know someone can benefit from it by feeling less alone or could simply learn from the mistakes I’ve made.

That’s the goal with my Healing Diaries series, where I share some of my biggest struggles including my health, mental health, and dating. I hope to normalize talking about uncomfortable topics and reduce any shame or guilt for anyone going through a similar experience.

BUILDING “UNLIMITED THOUGHTS” AND A COMMUNITY

The most rewarding moments are the ones when I get to meet my followers in person and learn about their journeys and goals. I’m beyond grateful for a community of kind and driven women who have allowed me to tag along with them on their growth journeys. Some are in college, some just landed their third job, some are going through heartbreaks, and some are creating amazing art and inspiring many people including me.

It was really sweet when a subscriber told me how one of my videos in the “Unlimited Thoughts” series inspired her to write a final paper that got her an A. That brought me way more joy than hitting my personal milestones. The love and passion for turning ideas into something that others can enjoy watching and perhaps benefit from, make all the blocks and times of doubt worth it.

WINNING A SIX-FIGURE INVESTMENT FROM CREATORDAO

I had a major imposter syndrome moment because I entered the contest without expecting to win.

It was a huge encouragement to be more confident in myself as a creator and a wake-up call to think bigger. An advice I’d share with other creators is to trust that you are way more capable than you think. Do not limit yourself.

LOOKING AHEAD

I wish to continue improving my storytelling and critical thinking as a creator to bring hope and joy that people can feel and pass on.  

Whether it comes to future content projects or a brand that I launch, I wish to uplift my community and support them in building their self-confidence and identity. I’m excited to explore many more unfamiliar areas in content I haven’t tapped into yet, including podcasting, to challenge and expand my own limits.

A MESSAGE OF REPRESENTATION AND EMPOWERMENT

When I first began making videos about pop culture, I felt a little out of place given the limited AAPI representation in beauty, fashion, and entertainment. It is exactly for this reason that I must show up more in this space to bring my unique narrative shaped by my multicultural experience of growing up in China and Canada. 

Authentic self-expression cannot occur without bringing forward the full self, and that includes our beautiful heritage, no matter what that is for each individual. As Lucy Liu said at the Gold Gala “You never know how far just a little bit of support can carry you.”

It resonated with me so much because I cannot imagine how far I’d come without that initial bit of support. I hope to be that supporter for my community and help them break out of their previous limiting beliefs.

FINAL THOUGHTS

It warms my heart to see more and more women and members of the AAPI community daring to dream big, not just in content creation, but in all facets of entrepreneurship. I hope to use my platforms to further support these creators and entrepreneurs, who are sharing the spirit of breaking limits and redefining what’s possible.

CONNECT WITH ZOE

YouTube: zoeunlimited

Instagram: @zoeunlimited

TikTok: @zoeunlimited

LinkedIn: @zoeunlimited

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She Wrote a Book to Help Mixed Asian Children Navigate Through Their Cultural Identities in a Way She Never Did When She Was a Kid

Christine Holmes grew up feeling different from her peers due to being a bi-racial Taiwanese-American.

Christine was often referred to as either the “Asian girl” by her non-Asian friends and the “White girl” by her Asian peers until eventually, they referred to her as “Whasian girl,” which she liked because it represented both of her ethnicities.

She struggled to embrace her cultural background and wished to be fully White. It took her long before she learned to love her identity and cultural heritage, but she did.

Inspired by her personal experiences, she wrote the book “What Are You?” to provide representation in children’s literature for mixed Asian children.

The book touches on her personal struggles with food and language, among other things, and highlights the importance of representation in literature for children who come from mixed cultural backgrounds.

GROWING UP WITH A TAIWANESE MOTHER AND AN AMERICAN FATHER

Christine grew up in Irvine, CA, where the population was predominantly white and Asian. However, there were very few mixed children, which made Christine feel very different from her peers, who were either fully White or fully Asian.

As a child, Christine was immersed in Chinese School, Chinese Choir, piano, and tennis, which made her feel even more different from her peers because most of them were fully Asian.

Christine’s dad, who is White but very much into Asian culture and a world-renowned Master of martial arts, made it very important for them that Christine knew her Taiwanese/Chinese culture. Christine’s mother cooked Chinese food for most dinners, and her first language was Mandarin.

Their home is filled with beautiful Chinese/Taiwanese antiques, and they used to visit Taiwan every year until Christine was in junior high/high school.

CHALLENGES OF BEING THE “WHASIAN” GIRL

“To my White friends, I was the Asian girl but to my Asian friends, I was the White girl until I got into high school and my friends decided to call me the “Whasian” girl which I preferred since it represented both of my ethnicities.”

Christine felt different from everybody growing up, which bothered her internally. In fact, she had a teacher in her Chinese school that wasn’t very nice to her because even though she can speak Chinese, she couldn’t write Chinese like the other children. This treatment left Christine feeling isolated and alone, until she eventually quit Chinese school altogether.

Her non-Asian friends also often made comments about the food her mom would bring to potlucks or the bags she would use to pack her lunch, making her feel ashamed of her culture. When her mom spoke Mandarin, her non-Asian friends would be offended and ask why she had to speak Mandarin in front of them. She would have to explain that it was sometimes easier for her mom to speak in her native language than speak English. This made her feel uncomfortable, and she would get angry at her mom for it.

At this point, she wished that she was fully White, perhaps because being White and blonde was considered the most beautiful when she was growing up. Her mom used to pinch her nose to make it look “taller” and less stubby like a typical Asian nose. Some of her Asian peers even told her that she was lucky to be at least half White compared to them being fully Asian.

THE TURNING POINT

It wasn’t until college that she fully embraced being mixed and started to love her identity. Christine found herself surrounded by a diverse group of friends who not only accepted her but celebrated her mixed heritage.

“In college, most of my friends were either mixed or of different ethnicities other than White or full Asian. And, they embraced me,” she said.

They appreciated the unique perspective she brought to the table and encouraged her to embrace her identity. For the first time in her life, Christine felt truly proud of her background and of who she is.

WRITING THE BOOK

Christine’s personal experiences served as the inspiration behind her book, “What Are You?” which is a story about her life growing up as a mixed-race individual in a predominantly white and Asian community.

Christine wrote the book when she realized there were no books that represented mixed Asian children. Despite being able to find books for her own children who are half Black, she couldn’t find any for children who were mixed Asian. So, she decided to create something that represented kids like herself.

“I think the part of the book that was most emotionally challenging was writing about the food and how embarrassed I was about my mom packing me Asian food even though I secretly loved it.” Christine admits to feeling a lot of guilt now as an adult for all the times she blamed and got mad at her mom as a child.

REPRESENTATION IN CHILDREN’S LITERATURE

Christine strongly believes in the power of representation and the need for diverse books that accurately reflect the experiences of mixed-race individuals. Having grown up without any books that reflected her own identity, she recognizes the importance of seeing oneself represented in literature.

She saw firsthand how much her own children appreciated books with characters that looked like them and had similar cultural backgrounds. Writing her book, “What Are You?”, she received overwhelming positive feedback from other mixed Asian individuals who wished they had a book like this when they were children.

Despite increased awareness and acceptance of mixed-race identities in modern times, Christine recognizes that children may still struggle with their identity and the pressure to choose one ethnicity over the other. Her book seeks to empower mixed-race children to embrace and celebrate all aspects of their identity.

OVERJOYED BY THE POSITIVE FEEDBACK

Christine initially had doubts about the book’s reception due to her own insecurities about putting herself out there. However, the encouraging and uplifting words from her readers have exceeded her expectations.

“I was featured on a TikTok page, twice, by someone with 1 million followers, who’s sister bought the book for her. She shared that my book had emotionally resonated with her in many ways. It was then that I realized the impact that my book has had on some people.”

HOPE FOR THE FUTURE

Christine hopes that her book will inspire readers to embrace their identity, no matter where they come from. She wants readers to know that they don’t have to choose between different cultural backgrounds and can be proud of their unique mix.

“I hope they embrace their cultural background, and they are proud of their roots.”

By highlighting her personal experiences, Christine hopes her book will contribute to a larger conversation about identity and belonging in our society today, and ultimately help break down barriers and build more inclusive communities.

CONNECT WITH CHRISTINE

Website: publishyourgift.lpages.co/christine/

Instagram: @whatareyoubook  

Facebook:  What Are You? Book

TikTok: @whatareyoubook 

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