Dove's Campaign

http://www.dove.us/social-mission/campaign-for-real-beauty.aspx

Day 17:
I have showed you some videos in the past from a project called Dove's Campaign for Real Beauty. But what is it exactly?

Well, the campaign was created in 2004 and it's aim is to celebrate different body types of all women. The ultimate goal is to inspire them, and other women around the world, to have the confidence to possess a good self image. 

My goal for you today is to explore their website. You will find many inspiring things that you can hold in your heart and soul for the rest of your life. 

The women in the campaign were definitely affected by it. I can guarantee you that you will feel the same. 

Labels Can Be Decieving

"The Story of Cosmetics"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buSJTzCuFWQ

Day 17: 

This video is a continuation of "The Story of Stuff" that I blogged about in Day 16. This video goes in depth about cosmetics, their effects on your body, and their effects on your self-image. 

"These are super toxic- both in their ingredients and in the message they send about what beauty is." Annie Leonard is referring to hair relaxers and skin whitening creams. 

Many of the ingredients that you lather on your body everyday are extremely toxic. They can be carcinogens or neurotoxins. 

They also send a harmful message to their users: that they have to be faithfully dependent on these products to be beautiful. 

My goal for you today is to watch this video. If you are interested, do a little research on the products and chemicals you put on your body daily. 

You will be extremely surprised as to what a label pleasing to the eye can so easily cover up. 

The American Cycle: Work, Watch TV, and Shop

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GorqroigqM

Watch from 14:00 to 17:00

Day 16:

Today in biology class, we watched this video above called "The Story of Stuff". The purpose of the entire video is to discuss social and political issues and how they are negatively impacting our environment. 

However, the 3 minutes I want you to watch of it discusses consumption, shopping, and the media. The woman in the video discusses the cycle of an average day for American: work, watch TV, and shop. 

Now, working isn't bad at all. But, by then end of the day we are very tired and will watch TV in our free time. Doing this daily makes us see ads and commercials that tell us we are not good enough and the solution is in their products. This alone is a root cause of low self esteem. 

Then, shopping itself is another problem. If you do not keep up with the newest trends and fads, it is made to seem as if we can never be perfect, or even adequate for the matter. 

It is a terrible, vicious cycle that most Americans wrap themselves so much in that they can never just STOP!

My goal for you today is to appreciate everyone's value and not base your opinions of them by their consumption. 

If we can all see the beauty in each other, and not be concerned with the clothes or shoes we wear, and not point out all the flaws that people have, humans would finally be able to sustain the environment and their self concept. 

Work From the Inside Out

"Projecting confidence is much less important than being confident."

~Dana Theus

Day 15:

As much as appearing confident can help you in some aspects of life, Theus makes it evident that this is much different than actually having confidence in yourself. 

Plastering on a façade of happiness will not help your genuine self-image. 

My goal for you today is to start from the inside out. Find self worth within your heart.

 If you are able to do this, it will easily be shown on the outside as well. 

Warm Me Up and Breathe Me

"Help, I have done it again
I have been here many times before
Hurt myself again today
And the worst part is there's no one else to blame"

~"Breathe Me" by Sia

Some Shocking Statistics

Day 13:
Some people believe that in order to be beautiful, you have to be skinny. Models these days are rail thin and skeletal-looking. Because they are the examples of beauty, most people believe they have to look like that. And due to this, many young girls and women resort to eating disorders to conform to this look. 

However, anorexia and bulimia isn't pretty. 

My goal for you today is to look over the following statistics and realize how horrible putting your body through an eating disorder is.

In 15-24-year-old females, the mortality rate for anorexia is 12 times higher than for all other causes of death.

Once someone has an eating disorder, there's only a 50% chance of being cured.

There's a .3% chance that males will develop anorexia.

Depressed mood is present in 50% to 75% of those diagnosed with anorexia.

Over 85% of sufferers are diagnosed before the age of 20.

The ratio of women in the U.S. who have anorexia is 1 in 200.

Be

Approximately 6% of serious cases die.

70 percent of sixth-grade girls surveyed reported that they first became concerned about their weight between the ages of 9 and 11.

Bulimia can begin in girls as young as 9 years old

Clearly, you don't have to kill yourself to be beautiful.

Totally Worth It

Day 12:
Mandy Hale is completely true. Love and respect for yourself is the base to all other relationships with family and friends.

Respect to your body, image, and reputation play a huge role in inner beauty. 

If you are looking for love and sympathy, do not look far. Look in your own heart. Only until you are able to find compassion for yourself will others will feel compassion for you. 

I have a friend who is a gorgeous model and beautiful on the outside. However, she hates her body and has no self respect. It is such a sad thing to see her starve herself and do things that ruin her reputation and hurt her dignity. However, no one has pity or respect for her because she possesses none for herself. 

My goal for you today is this: treat yourself to a reward. Pamper yourself to something more than you usually would. Because you deserve it. 

You are worth it. 

Happy Days Are Here Again

The information today comes from Mayoclinic.com. The following has been paraphrased from the "Self-esteem: 4 steps to feel better about yourself" page. 

Day 11:

I am constantly coining the phrases: "have confidence in yourself" and "view yourself in a positive way". But I do believe these implications need to be defined and broken down, as it may be a difficult task to achieve. 

1. Become aware of the situations that are bothering you. Pinpoint problems at work, school, or home that are causing stress. 

2. Now, identify how you feel about these issues, and what you are telling yourself about them. It is okay for these thoughts to be positive, neutral, or negative. 

3. After, try to counter any negative thoughts with positive ones. Try to shift your irrational, first thoughts into logical ones. For example, try to avoid jumping to negative conclusions, even though it is our human nature to do so. Also, do not put yourself down! Overreacting is natural, but give yourself time to think through things before you make yourself feel horrible. 

4. Lastly, encourage yourself to have positive thoughts. Be hopeful. Be forgiving. Be reasonable. 

My goal for you today is to try to act upon these steps next time a stressful situation occurs. 

Soon, looking on your bright side will become second nature. Sure, we all have our down days sometimes. But, for however many bad thoughts you have, counter them will double to amount of good thoughts. 

Music Speaks the Truth

"You can buy your hair if it won't grow
You can fix your nose if he says so
You can buy all the make up 
That M.A.C. can make
But if you can't look inside you
Find out who am I too
Be in the position to make me feel 
So damn unpretty
I'll make you feel unpretty too"
~"Unpretty" by TLC

Day 10:

TLC brings up a crucial point about inner beauty. Anyone can change themselves to make them feel more 'beautiful'. However, what is on the inside cannot be altered.  Hair extensions, plastic surgery, eating disorders, and makeup are only shallow ways to make your appearance supposedly more aesthetically appeasing. 

I sang this song yesterday at a benefit concert with my friend. As I listened to these beautiful, touching words, I realized the true meaning of the song. 

Go ahead. Change yourself. Put on a facade of perfection. But make sure that you always can look inside of yourself and love who you are. 

My goal for you today is this: watch the "Unpretty" music video. You will witness 2 women who have these amazing breakthroughs. They provide great examples for you. 

You can have an epiphany too. You will realize that you are so pretty inside and out and do not need to change a thing.  

A Spark of Sunshine

 "What you think of yourself is much more important than what people think of you." 

~Unknown

Day 9:

Yesterday's video proved this quote to be true. Our perception of ourselves is very essential. If we view ourselves with confidence, that good vibe will be reflected onto others. 

Happiness is contagious. 

Being happy with yourself reaps many positive benefits. First, other people will accept you. Confidence is something greatly appreciated. Also, your happiness will be an example to others. It can be a chain reaction. 

My goal for you today is this: create a cycle, a great cycle. Maybe give a compliment, or smile at someone who needs it, or lend a helping hand. This good deed will inspire the next person and the person after that to do something good. Your little bit of goodness can affect hundreds. 

Do something great today. You will see how much light it brings into the world. 

Getting an Outside Perspective

Dove Real Beauty Sketches

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=litXW91UauE

Day 8:

"You are more beautiful than you think." Wow. I truly enjoyed this video. I made me realize that we are all too critical on ourselves.

All the women described themselves much more harshly than random strangers did. 

Only 4% of women in America actually believe that they are beautiful. This has to change. And it starts with you. 

My goal to you is this: try to see yourself in a better way and realize that you are more beautiful than you think.

If people see our natural beauty, then why can't we see it in ourselves?

The Qualities of the Heart

Day 7:
I am constantly referring to "inner beauty" and the power of being beautiful on the "inside" while blogging.  For the seventh post, I have decided to explain to my readers keenly what I mean about the aforementioned. There are four key qualities of inner beauty:

Confidence. Confidence in yourself. Confidence that you are a successful person. Confidence that you have made an impact on so many people's lives. The power of being able to rely on the truth in something. 

Determination. Determination to strive to your fullest potential. Determination to care for yourself and others. Determination to be amazing. The power of establishing a purpose. 

Empathy. Empathy for yourself and others. Empathy for the experiences we encounter. Empathy for those struggling. The power of understanding and sharing the feelings with another. 

Love. Love of yourself. Love of your body. Love of your dignity. Love of your family and friends. Love of your enemies. The power of passion and affection.

My goal for you today is this: employ at least one of these qualities throughout the day. You will truly change into a beautiful person. 

The Cycle Ends Right Now

"You, with your switching sides
And your wildfire lies and your humiliationYou have pointed out my flaws again as if I don't already see them
I walk with my head down
Trying to block you out 'cause I'll never impress you
I just wanna feel okay again

I bet you got pushed around
Somebody made you cold
But the cycle ends right now
'Cause you can't lead me down that roadAnd you don't know, what you don't know..."

~"Mean" by Taylor Swift

Day 6:

There are many experiences that people encounter which results in bad thoughts about themselves. The example which Taylor supplies is bullies hurting her self esteem. However, she points out that these bullies were hurt as well and just passing on the pain. 

However, low self esteem is manifested by your own thoughts and views about yourself. Try to see yourself in a positive light because after all, you play a very important role in the lives of people around you. No matter what you think, you are loved by so many. 

My goal for you today is to be like Taylor and stop this vicious cycle of hurting people's image of themselves. As Eleanor Roosevelt once said, "No one can make you feel inferior without your consent." 

Beautiful Bare

 “We really need to start questioning the products we are putting on our skin and not just assume that the chemicals in them are safe. We have no idea what these chemicals do when they are mixed together, the effect could be much greater than the sum of the individual parts.”

~ Richard Bence, a biochemist conducting research on popular makeup

 Day 5:

It is incredibly insane how dependent women are on their makeup. At a young age, girls begin playing around with eyeliner, mascara, and lipstick. In middle school and high school, teens are not even able to step out of the house without makeup caked on their faces. By the time college rolls around, girls have a huge makeup bag overflowing with Bare Minerals, Loreal, Clinique, and Mac products.

Makeup may make you feel beautiful. But in actuality, it can be really harmful to your body in ways that you could ever imagine.

Recent research has found that a daily ritual of makeup application allows for 5 pounds of chemicals are entering your body a year.

 Bence says, “If lipstick gets into your mouth it is broken down by the enzymes in saliva and in the stomach. But chemicals get straight into your bloodstream, there is no protection.”

 The average woman applies 175 different chemicals daily and 60% will be absorbed into the body. Many of these chemicals have been associated with skin problems, hormonal conditions and cancer.

My goal for you today is this: the next time you go cosmetic shopping, choose the organic companies. Or better yet, go beautiful bare.

Fierce as a Lion

Day 4:

I cannot help but smile when I see this picture. At first, it appears to be a lighthearted joke. But then, I looked deeper into the meaning. The creator of this image used a comical way to capture our attention. 

This tiny feline looks into a mirror and percieves himself as a majestic lion. 

This is the epitome of how we should view ourselves. We are such amazing, incredible people and deserve more to see ourselves as just the 'cat'. 

My goal for you today is this: make yourself known for your charm, smarts, or charismatic personality. That will stick with you forever. 

Because no matter how we look on the outside, we are as beautiful as a lion on the inside. 

Confidence is Key

"True Elegance and Beauty starts with your mind. Embrace the idea that you are better than you suppose. Reach for a greater purpose that challenges your menial perception, with that, Elegance and Beauty will flow." ~Christel Tait

Day 3:
Confidence.  You have to realize that you are so much more than you make yourself out to be. 

My goal for you today is this: to put on a smile. It is scientifically proven to change your mood into a more positive one. Due to the muscle contractions of the smile, the brain becomes immediately boosted into happiness. The boost will then be maintained as people smile back at you.
Don't judge yourself. Accept who you are. There is only one of you. You are special in every way. There are so many qualities in you that people admire. 

Plus, I would rather be confident than be beautiful and hate myself. 

Appearances Aren't Everything

Day 2:
What may look like an apple actually turns out to be an orange.. Though this might seem strange, it proves a point: Outer appearances do not represent what is actually inside.

This symbolizes the same for people. Our appearance, weight, health, and sexuality do not define our character or inner beauty. 

Familiar the old adage: Don't judge a book by its cover...? Well, it is so true.

My goal for you today is to see past the outer façade of people. Look beyond your makeup and clothes, and find your true beauty. Because that it what is more important. 

Plus, an orange is way sweeter than some old Granny Smith!

No Wonder

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=EBiA5d77HTg

Day 1:
"No Wonder our Perception of Beauty is Distorted" as the video says.The magazines and billboards with flawless-looking woman in them make us seem as if we aren't as good or beautiful as them. However, being a size zero does not define beauty. It only defines fake, outer appearances. 

This blog has been created to provide awareness for the fact that each and everyone of us is beautiful in our own way. For 30 days, I will be providing inspiration to those out there who feel that they aren't beautiful. My goal for you is this: Look inside yourself. Find a quality that you are proud of. 

That's your inner spirit sparking.

Inner beauty is right there. It will not be too difficult to find. Because each of us is beautiful in our own way. 

Mirrors and clothes and makeup don't define you. Loving yourself does. Because that can never be photoshopped.