I recently joined a club on the University of Montana campus called Trendsetters at the U, which is the University's first fashion blog. The president of the club, Michelle Dufflocq Williams, was so warm and welcoming that I knew I had to get to know her a little better. And what greater way than through an interview of sorts? Michelle and her sister Aline run a wildly popular YouTube channel that you can find here.

Not only that, but Michelle has a big presence on Instagram, Tumblr, and Twitter and will be launching a blog during the summer that I have no doubt will blow up to incredible proportions. What makes her so successful? Is it her killer style, her friendliness, her sense of humor, or her determination? Now's your chance to find out!

What inspired you and your sister to start a YouTube channel?

Michelle: My sister and I have always loved anything involving being creative. Growing up we were constantly putting on shows for our family, writing stories, singing songs, and making homemade movies. Once we found out about the YouTube community we were instantly sold, but never thought we would be able to be comfortable being ourselves on camera. One night in 2013, my sister Aline was filming herself performing “The Cup Song” from Pitch Perfect on her laptop and I walked in, spontaneously joining her with some harmonies. We ended up spending the night filming various takes, goofing off, and making each other laugh; we accumulated a bunch of bloopers which we then compiled at the end of the cover. We posted it on Facebook and people loved it. As musicians we weren’t too surprised to hear people enjoyed the musical portion, but the way people reacted to our bloopers was truly a light bulb moment. This was when we realized, “Hey, we can actually do this. Let’s do it together.”

What has been the biggest challenge along the way?

Michelle: Working as a team has been a big challenge, but it’s also our biggest asset. It can be very hard to always be on the same page, coordinate schedules, and divide work evenly. There are moments when Aline leans on me, and moments when I lean on Aline; which can stir up conflict sometimes, but it makes us a stronger unit in the end. Balancing YouTube with our other responsibilities has definitely been stressful as well, but the biggest challenge has been struggling to be found on the internet. There are so many people on YouTube trying to do the same thing we’re doing, so it’s very difficult to even be found, let alone have people subscribe to your channel. We try to overcome this by being true to ourselves because there will always be someone prettier, someone cooler, with more money and more time to make videos; but there will never be anyone who can be you like you can.

Did you ever feel like you wanted to quit, or did you ever feel discouraged? Why?

Michelle: There have definitely been moments when neither of us wanted a camera in our faces ever again. When you put your heart and soul into a video that only ends up getting a couple hundred views and causes you to lose a subscriber or two…or ten, it is extremely discouraging. It is especially upsetting when you start to compare your YouTube career to others who are receiving way more views, and are growing their audiences in what seems like overnight. It’s almost impossible to go viral on YouTube anymore. These things can be very hard to deal with sometimes, but looking back and watching the videos we’re proud of, and reading the encouraging comments from our lovely viewers makes us continue to turn on the camera.

What is the hardest part about maintaining such a successful channel?

Michelle: Consistency is probably the hardest part about creating a strong YouTube presence. In order to be successful on YouTube, you have to be consistently uploading while making sure your content is consistently engaging and high quality. This is definitely not easy to do while being a full time student with a job, internships, and involvement in multiple student organizations. You definitely have to love it to even bother entering the YouTube world full-time because the consistency is quite hard to maintain.

What advice would you give to yourself if you could go back to when you started the channel?

Michelle: Don’t do this to be famous because you probably won’t be. Be yourself and invest in that Canon t4i ASAP. Also, fix your eyebrows please.

What are you studying in school? Does it tie in with your YouTube career at all?

Michelle: I am majoring in marketing with a digital marketing certificate and a minor in media arts, which I feel ties into YouTube pretty well. It’s cool because it combines the business side of the industry with the creative side, while at the same time being applicable to many different career paths.

What inspired you to join the Trendsetters?

Michelle: When I was a Freshman I was very lost. I never lived in the dorms and had no idea what I wanted to study so I felt quite out of place. During Welcomefeast of 2013 Bailey Chauner and Turk Helal stopped me and told me that they loved my style and that I should join Trendsetters at the U, the University of Montana’s first fashion blog, which would be launched that semester. I have always loved fashion so I was incredibly excited to join the team. I was the first official member and attended almost every single meeting and photo shoot. I had no idea how much that moment would impact my college experience. Joining Trendsetters at the U showed me what I want to do with my life, allowed me to be involved with my school, connected me with amazing people, and gave me an outlet through which to express my passions.

What is the most rewarding thing about both the channel, and your work with the Trendsetters?

Michelle: I think the most rewarding thing about YouTube and being involved with Trendsetters at the U is the response we get from people. Seeing people react so positively to something you love so much is incredibly special. Life is hard, and if you can make it a little less hard for people, even if it’s only through a five-minute video, that is absolutely wonderful.

Do you want a career that relates to these two projects?

Michelle: Absolutely. In a perfect world I would be able to do YouTube and blogging as my full time job; but right now I’m over putting pressure on it. I’m never 100% sure about what I want to do with my life but I know it will involve social media, fashion, journalism, or all three. I am very interested in perusing social media marketing for a beauty/fashion/lifestyle company, working in PR, visual directing, or the fashion magazine industry. I’m totally one of the million girls who would kill for Andy Sachs’ job as Miranda Priestly’s assistant in The Devil Wears Prada. But no matter what, I think I’ll always have some sort of online presence as a YouTuber or blogger, because I’m a total internet kid at heart.

What other projects do you have in the works?

Michelle: I am currently working towards launching a fashion, beauty, and lifestyle blog this summer which I am incredibly excited about. I am obsessed with the blogging community and have been working on starting my own blog for years. Writing is a huge passion of mine, so I think it will be a lot of fun and I can’t wait to share it with everyone. Aline and I also want to work on incorporating more music onto our YouTube channel. We’re aiming to shoot music videos as well as recording music in the near future.

Where can people find you on social media?

Michelle: I am obsessed with social media! You can follow me on Instagram (my fave) @michelledufflocq, on Tumblr @michelledufflocq, on Pinterest as Michelle Dufflocq, and on Twitter @Michelledw95.

Who are your inspirations for YouTube or fashion/beauty in general?

Michelle: I absolutely love Zoella. She was one of the first “beauty gurus” I ever watched and I instantly was obsessed. I love how she posts anything she wants; from tutorials, to hauls, to challenges with her friends- all while never compromising quality. I also feel like she is one of the only YouTubers who is pretty much the same as when she started out. She doesn’t have overproduced studio quality videos despite her insanely huge audience, continues to post regularly, and has remained true to who she is. I admire that immensely. I also love Estee Lalonde, Alisha Marie, Alex Centomo, Aspyn Ovard, Marissa Lace, Meghan Rienks, and Gabriella Lindley and get a lot of inspiration from them in all aspects of life. Some specifically fashion-related inspirations I have are Olivia Purvis, Julia Engel, Blair Eadie, Selena Gomez, Sarah Jessica Parker, Gigi Hadid, Taylor Swift, and Lilly Collins.

What advice would you give to those aspiring to follow in your footsteps?

Michelle: Putting yourself out there publicly can be incredibly stressful. Some people will think you’re a loser for talking to your camera in your room, or self-obsessed for posting regular photos of you in killer outfits on social media. Try to remember that not everyone is going to like you and that’s okay. Focus on yourself, your work, and being the best at what you do-whatever that may be- and you’ll attract success. However, make sure you’re always doing things because you’re passionate about them, not for the numbers, the money, or the fame. Don’t forget to be involved with things other than school and work, I promise it will pay off even if it doesn’t pay monetarily. But no matter what you do, try to always be involved with at least one thing that makes you feel alive.

If you want some high quality entertainment, go check her out!