Kim Kardashian slammed for her 'tone-deaf' advice for women in business

10 March 2022, 14:16

Watch the first teaser for the new Kardashian series on Hulu

By Katie Louise Smith

"If only we could all grow up rich with influential parents and then tell less fortunate individuals that they need to work harder."

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Kim Kardashian is currently facing backlash on social media thanks to her "advice for women in business" comments.

Ahead of the launch of their brand new reality series on Hulu, Kim was joined by momager Kris Jenner and sisters Kourtney and Khloé for a new Variety profile where they discussed their family, their lives and their successful businesses.

In a video interview, Kim revealed that she had the “best advice for women in business". The advice in question? "Get your f*cking ass up and work. It seems like nobody wants to work these days.”

"You have to surround yourself with people that wanna work. Have a good work environment where everyone loves what they do because you have one life. No toxic work environments, and show up and do the work."

Kourtney, who was famously screamed at by Kim because she doesn’t have any idea what it takes to run a f*cking business (!), then replies: “That’s so true.”

Some people have been inspired by and agree with Kim's passionate Girlboss comments, while others have branded her "completely tone-deaf".

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A tweet shared by Variety including Kim's quotes was quickly overrun by quote tweets and replies with people flocking to criticise the reality star and businesswoman over her comments.

Many were also quick to point out that Kim and her siblings were born into a position of immense financial privilege, which makes creating successful businesses much easier than someone who does not come from a position of privilege, is starting from the ground, with limited money, a tiny platform, no connections and no staff working for them.

One user wrote: "Holy shit, if only we could all grow up rich with influential parents and then tell less fortunate individuals that they need to work harder. I’m not even doubting that she works hard. But holy shit lady."

Another added: "So many people get up and work hard every single day and will never be able to get even a fraction of the luck or opportunities that kim kardashian has. what a weird take... [sic]"

Jameela Jamil also chimed in, adding: "I think if you grew up in Beverly Hills with super successful parents in what was simply a smaller mansion… nobody needs to hear your thoughts on success/work ethic. This same 24 hours in the day shit is a nightmare. 99.9% of the world grew up with a VERY different 24 hours."

Also: be born rich. Really helps. https://t.co/l0pfHpnxUL
— Soledad O'Brien (@soledadobrien) March 9, 2022

I think if you grew up in Beverly Hills with super successful parents in what was simply a smaller mansion… nobody needs to hear your thoughts on success/work ethic. This same 24 hours in the day shit is a nightmare. 99.9% of the world grew up with a VERY different 24 hours. https://t.co/tvafFIyk92
— Jameela Jamil 🌈 (@jameelajamil) March 9, 2022

Single mothers with 2 jobs listening to Kim tell them the work harder pic.twitter.com/YL6F5GlgPr
— Doctor Dome (@DoctorDome1) March 9, 2022

Kim K is one of the hardest working people out there but hard work is not a very good predictor of success in business. For every success story there are 100 other people working 2 jobs and living paycheck to paycheck.
— Dan Price (@DanPriceSeattle) March 9, 2022

Some have also pointed out that Kim’s advice echoes Love Island star Molly Mae Hague’s previous comments from her interview on The Diary Of A CEO podcast that sparked a huge wave of backlash back in January.

Suggesting that everyone has the "same 24 hours in a day" to become successful, Molly said: “I understand we all have different backgrounds and we’re raised in different ways and have different financial situations, but if you want something enough you can achieve it and it just depends to what lengths you want to go to get to where you want to be in the future.”

Molly was called out for similar reasons to Kim.

Kim Kardashian & Molly Mae telling people to “work hard” after all their success came from pretty privilege is bewildering…
— Septimus Prime 🇸🇱 (@septimusajprime) March 10, 2022

Why is it so difficult for these people to acknowledge their privilege. It's Molly Mae all over again https://t.co/urruYsguyP
— Liam ✊🏾✊🏾 🇦🇬🇲🇸 (@liammakesmusic) March 9, 2022

Ok Molly Mae 😂😂 what is with this privilege aggression when talking about women in business? It is so easy for celebrities to say this when they are surrounded by a team to drive their brand… not cool pic.twitter.com/zoWH7fx85s
— amelia (@ameliahobson_) March 9, 2022

In the Variety interview, Kim also responded to the accusations that have followed her for years – that she's simply "famous or being famous". As well as creating KKW Beauty and Skims, Kim has also been working towards becoming a lawyer and hopes to open a firm that helps to employ "formerly incarcerated individuals to continue the fight for prison reform".

"Who gives a fuck,” she said about the accusations. "We focus on the positive. We work our asses off. If that’s what you think, then sorry. We just don’t have the energy for that. We don’t have to sing or dance or act; we get to live our lives — and hey, we made it. I don’t know what to tell you."

She added: “With all respect, and with love, I’m not, like, being a bitch.”