Do you ever feel like everything is an uphill battle? That you have to work hard for everything in your life? And while you know that life isn’t always fair, you just wish that just for once, things would be easier? I know that I’ve experienced similar feelings and it can feel downright defeating sometimes. However, it’s important to keep moving forward, especially when you are working towards a goal. If you’re looking for a motivational book to read or to give as a gift for someone else, I recommend It’s Your Universe: You Have the Power to Make It Happen by Ashley Eckstein. I was recently provided an advanced readers copy of It’s Your Universe: You Have the Power to Make It Happen at the Disney Social Media Mom Celebration. I’ll admit, prior to that, I wasn’t very familiar with Ashley Eckstein and Her Universe. As a guest of the Disney Social Media Mom Celebration, I’m not required to write about It’s Your Universe. However, it’s a very encouraging book, and I think that others could benefit from her advice, especially since Ashley worked very hard to accomplish her dream. And accomplish her dream, she did!
Prior to reading the book, I had the opportunity to listen to Ashley Eckstein speak while we were on the Disney Dream Cruise during the sea portion of the Disney Social Media Mom Celebration. She is extremely relatable - as soon as I saw her walk out on stage, looking like Alice in Wonderland, I knew we were going to be involved in a great discussion.
It’s Your Universe: You Have the Power to Make It Happen by Ashley Eckstein
Ashley is the voice of Ahsoka Tank in The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebel. She’s also the founder of Her Universe, a clothing line designed primarily for females who love science fiction. It’s Your Universe starts with her childhood and her dream to star in a show on the Disney Channel. She began as a Cast Member at Disney World and worked her way towards designing her own clothing line for sci-fi fans! She explains what prompted her to design her own clothing line - after she was chosen to be the voice for Ahsoka Tank, she quickly discovered there weren’t many clothing options for females who like sci-fi.
Ashley explained what prompted her to design her own clothing line, Her Universe.
During her presentation on the Disney Dream, she gave us interesting statistics. For example, did you know that 45% of women are Sci-Fi/Fantasy fans? And that 85% of women are the ones who make consumer purchases? Yet, there weren’t many options out there for females who wanted to buy Sci-Fi/Fantasy t-shirts.
Making Dreams a Reality
Ashley is extremely relatable. In her book, she explains how she was able to succeed in making her dream a reality. While it’s important to believe in yourself, you also have to surround yourself with a great support system. I also like that she has suggestions for different types of careers. For example, do you want to be an actor but you live in a small town? Ashley suggests participating in local theater productions as a start. Or do you want to be an attorney? She suggests speaking to a local attorney. I think this is great advice for those who might get overwhelmed by the big picture and who need guidance in the right direction.
I also like that It’s Your Universe includes exercises to help you think about your goals and how to achieve them. People, as a whole, are very visual. Just seeing it written on paper puts it in perspective and makes everything a lot clearer. 
Ashley Eckstein has great advice for those who want to achieve their dreams. It’s Your Universe: You Have the Power to Make It Happen is now available at a bookstore near you! Ashley is also currently on a book tour. Arizona fans are in luck - she’ll be in Glendale, Arizona on June 13th at the Hot Topic Store at Arrowhead Town Center. To see other locations of her book tour, you can click here.
It’s Your Universe: You Have the Power to Make It Happen by Ashley Eckstein
Sounds good.