Jessica Alba: Nothing is easy. If its easy, you should worry
Jessica Alba is the cover story for the January issue of Good Housekeeping. In her chat with the magazine, the 36-year-old actress talks about the business she helped create, The Honest Company, which, since its inception in 2012, has offered “natural, safe, beautiful and effective products for the family and home.”
Of course, lots of successful businesses have their hiccups on the road to success, and The Honest Company was hit with two lawsuits. In 2015, a consumer claimed that the company was deceptively labeling some of its products, marketing them as “natural” when they included “unnatural and synthetic” ingredients. This past March, the company was called out in another lawsuit claiming false advertising was used to market some of the brand’s cleaning products. The company has weathered the storm and the company was just awarded four Good Housekeeping seals.
If running a business wasn’t enough, Jessica is also busy raising her daughters, nine-year-old Honor and six-year-old Haven. She’s currently pregnant with her third child with husband Cash Warren, a baby boy. And, after baby boy Warren, Jessica insists there will be no more maternity fashions in her future. She talks to Good Housekeeping about her efforts to maintain a healthy work/life balance, overcoming her legal troubles and more. Here are some highlights:
On her inspiration to create The Honest Company: “I was really sick as a kid. I had severe asthma and allergies, and I spent a lot of time in the hospital. My airways would start to close up if I had an attack—it was really scary… When I had my first child at 26, I wanted this new little person to live a healthy life too. I had a really lonely childhood, and I didn’t have a lot of friends. I didn’t want that for my kids… I wanted Honest to be a brand that put human health and safety first and actually worked.”
On overcoming obstacles The Honest Company has come across: “[Dealing with lawsuits] was stressful, but it was a lesson, and it made us want to better convey our messaging. We are always looking for ways to be innovative, to learn and take it to the next level.”
Jessica’s secret to success: “Nothing is easy. If it’s easy, you should worry. You have to fail a few times to find out what the best path forward is. It’s part of learning.”
On how acting prepared Jessica for the business world: “I’m competitive. Being in acting, you [learn to] persevere. ‘You don’t think a woman of color can be a leading lady? Let me show you.’ The constant rejection in acting prepares you for just about anything, but certainly for business. When people tell me something can’t be done, I see a challenge. Just because it hasn’t been done doesn’t mean it can’t be. I just have to figure it out.”
On balancing motherhood with work: “I feared I would lose my sense of self in becoming a mom, but it’s actually made me more true to who I am. It’s good for my girls to see that I have an opinion…hopefully some of what I’m doing will rub off on them. It’s hard, because they’re growing up with more privilege than I had.”
When asked about her future acting plans, Jessica told the magazine, “I did a role in Ted Melfi’s movie El Camino Christmas, but unless I was in control, [going back] would feel weird.” She went on to add, “If I could develop a film or a series for Netflix, that would be cool. I still have my Dark Angel fans, and Hollywood is finally allowing women to star more in action franchises, which is a passion of mine.”
After seeing Jessica act, I’m kind of all for her focusing on her business. But hey, I am impressed by her work ethic and if I ever win the lottery, maybe I’ll buy some Honest Company products. Until then, it’s whatever is on sale at Walmart for me.
Photos: Justin Coit/Good Housekeeping, WENN.com
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