Over the holidays I had a rare, unprecedented amount of down time. I chose to spend my time doing absolutely nothing. It. Was. Glorious…

For about three days, and then I got bored. 

We’re talking ‘call my friends just to see what they’re doing’ bored. That only kept me busy for a couple more hours because my friends like to pretend they have lives or whatever. Call me Brian McKnight because I was right Back At One. 

So I did what any tired Zillenial with internet access and a streaming subscription would do: start surfing hoping to find something mindless to watch. 

In my travels, I noticed something interesting. The Kardashians had multiple shows across two different platforms. There was Keeping Up With the Kardashians, The Kardashians, Kourtney & Khloe Take Miami, Kourtney & Kim Take Miami, Life of Kylie, and Kourtney & Kim Take New York. That is A LOT of TV!

At the time, I couldn’t pick any of the sisters out of a lineup except for Kim. I knew someone was married to one of the Lakers and couldn’t figure out how the Jenner family was connected to the franchise. And I knew at one point Kylie Jenner claimed to be the youngest self-made billionaire a few years ago, but it turned out to be an overstatement. This was the extent of my knowledge.

Remember, my search requirements were “mindless and entertaining.” As someone who’s ravenously devoured Grey’s Anatomy all the way through more times than I’ll ever admit without being under oath, such a large content library was incredibly appealing. It also felt like I might be missing out on something. Clearly more than a few people are fans of this family for there to be such an overwhelming number of shows to choose from. 

I was intrigued. So, with nothing but time on my hands I scrolled through seasons until an episode description caught my eye (Kim preparing to host SNL). That, my friends, is how I got sucked into the machine. And it is a machine. 

I’ve heard it said by folks close to me that “all they do is get cosmetic work and take their clothes off.” Even if this were true, the take is beyond passé in 2025, not to mention laced with misogyny. 

Here are some interesting facts that should make even the biggest cynic think twice before judging the Kardashian empire: 

• Keeping up with the Kardashians (KUWTK) ran for 20 seasons on E! before being succeeded by The Kardashians which is now on season 6. 

• The success of KUWTK and The Kardashians have made the five sisters some of the most prolific influencers on Instagram. Kylie, Kim, Khloé, and Kendall each make upwards of $1.5 million per sponsored post. 

• Kim’s apparel and shapewear brand Skims is now valued at $4 billion with approximately $1 billion in annual sales.

• Coty purchased 51% of Kylie Cosmetics for $600 million, valuing the company at $1.2 billion in 2019.

• Ditching traditional ideas of what a tequila brand should be, Kendall Jenner’s 818 Tequila sold an estimated 160,000 cases in 2023. It also became the second tequila brand ever to achieve B Corp certification.

• Estimates are that the family is together worth a staggering $3 billion. 

Not bad at all! These highlights only focus on their commercial success. I think the family also deserves some credit for the momentum behind the prevalence of inclusive sizing now. 

Brands like Good American and Skims demonstrated that companies can make clothes for folks who aren’t model-sized, without losing positive attributes associated with the brand like stylishness or quality. In fact, they demonstrated that there’s a huge appetite for inclusive sizing and built a sense of trust and loyalty with shoppers because they did it before it was cool. 

And still, I don’t think the fact that the Kardashians managed to be ahead of this trend is what sets them apart. 

It’s their emotional intelligence. 

Real talk. The Kardashians. You either love 'em or you… have opinions. But let's ditch the judgment for a sec and be honest about something they're actually great at: emotional intelligence. Yeah, that thing your therapist talks about.

Think about it. We're all trying to adult, right? Navigating messy relationships, work drama, and just trying to keep our sanity. Now imagine doing all that with the entire world watching. That's the Kardashians' daily grind. And they've turned it into a masterclass.

Here’s why you should care:

• Forced Conflict Resolution: Their shows? Basically emotional boot camp. They have to talk it out, face each other, and find a way to move forward. It’s a level of accountability most of us avoid.

• Cordial Disagreements: Remember Kim and Kourtney's Dolce & Gabbana drama? Forget the luxe setting. Focus on this: Kim invited Kourtney over and created a calming environment to work it out. That's moving towards conflict, not running from it. It's a relationship flex.

• Brutally Honest Confessionals: Those solo talks to the camera? That's structured reflection time. They're processing their feelings out loud. It's vulnerability practice, and it's something we could all use more of.

I get it. It's easy to dismiss their drama as Rich People Problems. "Fighting over fashion shows? Please." But strip away the designer labels, and you'll see a family that's mastered the art of navigating complex relationships under insane pressure.

So why don’t they get more credit? Misogyny. Let’s keep it a buck. Women doing anything get less credit than men performing the same task. Oh, and our own biases. Most of us see reality TV for the drama and not all of the emotional labor and skill behind it. Because it’s entertainment first, we’re not watching with our Learning Caps on.

Here's my point: The Kardashians aren't just reality stars. They're experts at emotional survival. They show us how to disagree without burning bridges, how to be vulnerable, and how to keep it moving, even when things get messy.

So, next time you see this family in the headlines, look closer. You might just learn a thing or two to help you level up your own emotional game. And let’s be honest, we could all use that.

The Last Word

Fans always get to have the last word. Give me your take. I haven’t done one of these long write-ups in a while.

What do you think? Do you like the longer style? Would you prefer shorter pieces about a variety of topics? Or, maybe a combination of the two.

Reply and let me know!