Corinne Olympios calls post-'Bachelor' fame 'stressful': The 'influencer grind,' 'mean' castmates and more

Corinne Olympios has a lot on her plate these days: Between her newly-launched podcast, So Random, an animated book about a girl who goes on a reality show, weekly "Bachelorette" recaps and multiple businesses, it's easy to understand why the former "Bachelor" contestant called life after the show "stressful."

Olympios, who is far and away the most memorable star to emerge from the franchise in recent years, recently sat down with AOL.com's Gibson Johns to talk about her life two years after competing for Nick Viall's heart.

"I feel like I haven't really admitted this yet, but it's been very stressful," she explained. "I don't even know where to begin. It's very different from my old life. I'm so thankful for this new life, and I'm really thankful for the businesses that I was able to start, but [...] I don't want to care what other people think, and I'm really trying hard to do me all the time."

And, though it sounds simple, remembering to be herself after "The Bachelor" hasn't been easy for her. For many of the most notable alums of the show, staying connected to former cast mates by posting about them on Instagram, appearing on spinoffs and engaging in short-lived relationships with one another is a must. But Corinne wasn't interested in that. Though she admits that "you gotta play the game" after the show, she doesn't really hang out with anyone from the show anymore.

Plus, though she admits that she is on the "influencer grind" herself, she disagrees with the most "Bachelor" alums' all-your-eggs-in-one-basket approach to building a career after appearing on the show.

"I've turned down trips with the girls for work stuff, and these girls are off just going on trips and this and that and it's like, do you think in five years Sugar Bear Hair is still going to be paying you to post on your Instagram? I'm just wondering," she said. "Like, make something of yourself! You know what I mean? I'm such a strong believer in making your empire."

See photos of Corinne Olympios:

"I'm very conscious of doing my own thing," she went on. "I think the girls kind of got it after a little bit. I mean, I'm not invited on trips anymore and stuff like that, because I never went and I never wanted to just make them my entire life. We had lives before this! It also was very cliquey, and I felt like some of the girls were kind of mean, and I just don't associate myself with that and I'm better off on my own than with that."

And, at the end of the day, the outspoken star believes that she has grown as a person because of her willingness do remain independent and do what she really wants to do.

"I really see how much I've grown as a person over the past few years because, I'll admit, I was really just a hot mess," she explained. "I was just stuck in this, like, funk. And I really got my shit together and I became a really successful young woman and I'm proud of myself."

Watch our full interview with Corinne Olympios below:

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