What is beauty?
Is beauty only for the model types?
What makes you beautiful?
Unless you’re one of the supermodels of the world, which I’m guessing your not, as I doubt they’d ever read this blog, then you’re probably like the majority of people. You probably talk down to your reflection in the mirror, it’s pretty common, which is why when I saw this video I wanted to share it with you as it has a powerful message inside.
So, has that changed how you feel about your face?
I believe everyone is beautiful. Ever seen a makeover? Everyone can also learn to dress in a way that makes them look better with a touch of care and attention and a few guidelines too.
What are you going to do now?
Why not write a list of positive traits about your physical appearance. In fact, rethink and reframe what you have been seeing as a negative trait into a positive one.
Beauty is more than skin deep, that is something we all know. But also feeling positive about what is on the surface helps our confidence to grow.
Every time you berate yourself, stop. Then say something kind to yourself instead. What are you waiting for?
Another great way to help you feel better about the skin and body you are in, is to write a letter to your body (you can read my example here).
There is so much research that shows that wearing clothes that make you feel good, that you feel flatter you, has a positive psychological effect on your mood. So if you’re not sure what suits you, if you want my professional opinion, why not join my 7 Steps to Style program which will assist you in discovering all the elements of clothing and style that work for you.
Alternatively, you can download free this starting point – your Body Shape Bible, which gives you tips on how best to dress your shape, which clothes will flatter, which elements of design to avoid in your garments and outfits.
What a marvellous talk Imogen ! I laughed and even got teary eyed.
Me too! Such a good message.
Every time you berate yourself, stop. Then say something kind to yourself instead. What are you waiting for?
–An end to patriarchy.
The fundamental reason women are obsessed with the issues in the video is because of the ecoonimic and social powerlessness of women relative to men. There is a reason that you don’t hear men discussing whether are not they are handsome or well-dressed in the same manner, even though some men acknowledge that they’re less good-looking than others and some do care about careful grooming and dressing. Unlike men, women are taught from birth to criticize and belittle themselves. A frequent target is their looks which are given disproportionate importance.
There’s a wonderful Twitter parody account called @manwhohasitall that addresses these issues every day. Here are a couple of recent Tweets;
“Saturday is dad’s pampering day! Pamper yourself by catching up on what’s wrong with the way you eat, look, speak and breathe.”
“MEN! Accentuate parts of your body you like, e.g. soft elbows to draw attention away from problem areas, e.g. grating voice”
https://twitter.com/manwhohasitall?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor
Even if you think about issues all the time as I do, this account never fails to amuse me in pointing up the sexism of the world in which we are immersed.
I’m not anti-makeup or anti-stylish clothing, I subscribe to this blog, but it is absolutely ridiculous to suggest that women have a special self-image problem without discussing the society that creates and nurtures the problem.
I partially agree with READER about the influence that society have on our view of ourselves, but I think it is also very important to always remember that we have a CHOICE as to whether we are going to let ourselves be influenced by “their” negative chatter, or not!
By viewing ourselves as victims of a society with a certain view, we are giving away our power to them – by choice! We can only create change in the world, if we ourselves become that change.
If all of us decide to stop reading their negative articles, they would eventually be forced to abide by what we are willing to pay for. However we are often to blame ourselves for the predicament that we are in, because instead of emailing the Editor of a magazine and telling them that we are not happy with the trend of their articles and therefore we are going to stop buying their magazine/newspaper – we keep buying it – by choice again. (Or even worse, we buy it out of habit and never consider the impact that our choices have.)
And then it is also up to us to ensure that we bring our children up in such a way that they will be able to be the trendsetters for a generation with a new paradigm.
May you enjoy a peaceful day and make empowering choices!