Tiny House Owner Spotlight: Alexis Monkhouse

Alaska: Let’s start in the present. What are you excited about right now?

Alexis: My business! I started a happiness coaching business and will be opening up my master class, Camp Happy Heart, next month.

Great name! What can you tell us about it?

Alexis: Thank you! Yes, well, camp is this magical place we all go when we’re kids to make a bunch of new friends and have the time of our lives, but as adults, we don’t have a place to have that same kind of experience. I wanted to create something that would bring that childlike feeling of wonder and excitement to adults so they could heal through happiness. 

Alaska: That’s a good point! How do you see adults trying to fill that void now?

Alexis: Concerts? The club? I think the root of the issue is that we look at happiness as an individual problem: if you aren’t happy, it’s your fault. But it’s not an individual problem, it’s a community one, and that requires a community solution.

Alaska: Absolutely! So if we are currently expected to create that happiness alone and without resources, would you say that our happiness is expected to be spontaneous?

Alexis: Definitely! We’re all taught that all we need to be happy is to be a six-figure earner, or whatever and when we achieve that, BAM, happiness. But happiness comes from internal peace, and that’s not something we’re taught to cultivate; it’s something we’re just expected to wake up with. 

So we see a lot of people who work really hard to get the marriage, the house, and the kids, but then they wake up one day and are like, wait- where’s my happiness?

Alaska: So if happiness doesn’t come from fulfilling that checklist, where does it come from?

Alexis: It comes from mindset. Your life could be an exploding volcano, and you could still be happy. Alternatively, you could have all the “right pieces” and be miserable. It’s all perspective. I’m living the same life I was three years ago; my house is still a mess, but now I’m like, I’m so f*cking happy to be here! A few years ago, though? I hated it. I was ready to burn the place down. It’s all mindset, and I think that’s hard for some people to hear.

Alaska: Do you feel like a tiny house has affected your mindset?

Alexis: Absolutely! A tiny house has enabled me to slow down. It’s given me the privilege of not having to work full-time. I have the time to work on my mindset; I don’t have to clean every waking second. Living tiny gives you the time to focus on yourself and change your mindset. Also, tiny living is a mindset shit in and of itself. Once you shift into tiny house mode, it becomes easier to change your mindset in other areas. 

Alaska:  I love that answer! Being able to slow down and make intentional choices is everything. On the topic of intentional choices- I have to say that I love your parenting style! How is a tiny house causing you or allowing you to raise Boss Baby [real name, Nalini] differently than you were raised?

Alexis: My family had some toxic traits. My parents were from third-world countries; they did the best with what they had, but it wasn’t healthy. I didn’t want to give Boss a childhood she had to recover from. 

In a tiny house, you don’t have very much space, but that also gives you more space to parent because you don’t have as much room for other people to come over and give their opinions. I’ve never liked the parent-child dynamic in which the adult towers over the child and just orders the child around. You can learn a lot from children, which is why I feel like Boss and I are just on this journey together.  

Oh, and living tiny helps with the toys thing! I didn’t want to give Boss a ton of toys because I had a ton of toys, and then my parents figured that because I had toys, I was happy, but it meant that we didn’t do very much together. Of course, I let Boss watch TV, so who knows if I did that right! We do go outside a lot more than I did growing up, though. 

Alaska: On the subject of family, your sister lives next door to you in a tiny house of her own. A lot of people have that fantasy of putting tiny houses next to people they care about. Can you tell us about the reality of that setup? Does it live up to expectations?

Alexis: I think people think they’ll hang out a lot more than they actually will. My sister and I can go weeks without seeing each other. Of course, it’s nice to have her close by, but yeah, we definitely don’t see as much of each other as people think we do! There aren’t any negative aspects, though. Tiny houses do help by giving us each our individual spaces.

Alaska: I definitely assumed you all hung out 24/7! I guess you’re busy running a business, though! Unfortunately, we are running out of time, but where can people find you if they are interested in learning how to become happy? 

Alexis: Instagram (@thathappychick_) is definitely the best place to find me! I’m currently accepting one-on-one clients, and group coaching will be starting soon! People can send me a DM if they are interested in either. And I’ll still be keeping up with my tiny house Instagram as well.