Honestly, when I first saw the headline I thought it was a joke. What? Does anyone know the definition of self-made? Maybe someone should have handed Forbes a dictionary. Regardless, they have predicted Kylie Jenner to be a self-made billionaire before she turns 21. I will attempt to unpack this story, Jenner's legacy in one of the most well-known and powerful families in the world and her rise to success.

First, let us take a gander at the word self-made. According to Dictionary.com the term self-made, "having become successful or rich by one's own efforts." Yes, I do laud Kylie Jenner's ability to use her social media following and her awareness of her own age group to sell makeup products to them. That is commendable. She made $900 million. She used her social media following to advertise her products on multiple platforms. That is a smart business tactic. Because of her following on her accounts, she made some serious bank. That takes dedication to her business. She deserves respect for that.

But what I will point out is that she has come from one of the wealthiest families in the world. So clearly her fortune was not completely made on her own. Kylie Jenner was successful by association in her family for a very long time before she developed her cosmetic empire. Her famous sisters have been making headlines for the past few years in their personal and business lives and have been helping Kylie along the way. That is not something I am criticizing her on, that is what families are for. Her mother has especially helped Kylie kickstart her cosmetics company. According to the actual Forbes article, the writer painted the story that Kris Jenner runs most of the business aspects of Kylie's company. If that doesn't tip the scale in her in the direction of Kylie being aided in her company and less towards self-made, I don't know what will.

Kylie states that she "I struggled for a minute with finding something to do on my own," This pressure came from her famous and wealthy family to start a career in something. She did not have to struggle at all financially, in order to make her cosmetics company a reality. Self-made means making something happen unaided, not your mom making the business calls behind the scenes. Therefore, calling herself made is like me saying I am going to make cookies from scratch but then I use cookie dough from a package.

Forbes must realize that saying she is self-made is taking away from the fact she has had privilege in the past. Financial power and privilege can get someone very far in this country. And adding self-made is an insult to the women who were actually self-made, such as Madame CJ Walker.

Although Jenner has racked up some serious cash from her and conceived the idea for her company, Kylie Cosmetics, she is not self-made. As a society, we can praise the people that have made a name for themselves in whatever industry, such as Jenner has in the beauty industry. But also as a society, we must recognize that certain people have advantages over others and because of this, they cannot be considered self-made.