YouTube star Bethany Mota sat down with What's Trending at this year's South by Southwest festival to talk about stardom, hard work and how to be true to yourself.
A poster-child for Internet stardom, Mota has a massive YouTube channel and her own fashion line at Aeropostal and has even made the move to television, appearing on ABC's Dancing With the Stars."
If that's not enough for the 19-year-old, Mota recently announced she's invested in BeautyCon, a live event hoping to turn itself into a major brand.
"I started making videos six years ago, and I didn't even know it was possible to do anything big with it," Mota said. "I had no idea it could grow into what it has been."
Speaking in the Samsung Blogger Lounge, Mota said, "I think the coolest thing that I can represent is that anyone can do it. You don't have to be a specific person, and you don't have to audition."
Creative control is a huge benefit of creating content online, according to Mota. "I have all these crazy ideas all the time, and I never have to run them by anyone! I can just do it."
In a milestone for #TeamInternet, Mota was selected to appear on Dancing With the Stars. For Mota, it shows "the power of the Internet."
"It's crazy, and it's all because of my audience," she said. "I owe it all to them."
The YouTube sensation has certainly come a long way, but what advice would she give her younger self if she could?
"Not to limit myself," Mota said. "I think limiting ourselves is something we do on a daily basis, even with small things, like, 'Oh, I can't do that. That could never happen.' Now I'm like, 'Wow, I can actually do this if I set my mind to it. That's a great life lesson that I've learned."