BUILD YOUTH CONFIDENCE WITH THE GET UP
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I remember the first time I touched a Runway.
I was a 14-year-old freshman with no Runway experience whatsoever. I wasn’t the most confident, especially since I just began high school. I took a marketing class called DECA as an elective that year. As they do every year, DECA put on an annual fashion show that allowed graduating seniors to utilize all the skills they learned throughout the time that they have been a part of DECA class and the club.
I knew participation was going to be a class requirement but I didn’t know how I would be a part of this show comfortably. All of my uncertainty shifted when a fellow track team member who was a senior in the class asked me to be one of her models. So I took the challenge! I practiced walking at home, in the hallways at school, and of course on the actual stage in the auditorium.
When it was all said and done, after attending a fitting in the rain on a weekend, getting my hair braided for the occasion, putting on a little bit of makeup, and hitting those three poses at the end of the runway, I can honestly say that show helped me in so many ways become the person I am today.
As a full-time, multi-agency represented working model, some of my best skills and qualities developed from me walking in my first fashion show. Here is the top attribute today’s youth can gain from participating in fashion shows:
Confidence.
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It takes a lot of guts to get up on a stage in front of complete strangers, dressed in clothes you don’t own, with makeup you didn’t do yourself, and strut down a Runway while people take photos and videos of you. As crazy as it sounds, the best way to build confidence is by putting yourself in situations that require confidence! But if you want that confidence to really take root it’s best to build it when it’s honestly the hardest to do so – When you are young.
Participating in fashion shows as a tween, teenager, and young adult allows you to really get into the fun parts of modeling without having to worry about being singled out. At fashion shows like The Get Up, which is put on by the Jason Taylor Foundation, South Florida youth from middle school students up to this year’s high school graduates are able to build a sense of community.
They walk with the support of other South Florida youth, wear the latest fashions from some of their favorite retailers, and enjoy a night of lights, cameras, music, good food, and great people. When this annual fashion show comes to a close, all of these students get a plethora of photos and video showcasing how amazing they are. This not only gives them an instant boost of confidence but it gives them confidence that exudes throughout the next school year and brings them back to strut down The Get Up runway again.
If you are a tween, teenager, or young adult reading this article and you’d like to take your confidence to the next level, submit to be one of the models at this year’s The Get Up fashion show which takes place on Sunday, August 11 at 6 PM. It’s free to apply!
If you have a friend that is in that age group or you are a parent of a South Florida youth and you think they might want to walk at a fashion show but may need convincing, check out this video from last year’s fashion show.
For more ways to participate in The Get Up or if you have any questions, please email the Jason Taylor Foundation at info@jasontaylorfoundation.com, visit the organization’s website at www.JasonTaylorFoundation.org, or follow on social media sites including Facebook or Twitter and Instagram: @jtfoundation99.
About Lola Chél
Lola Chél is an internationally published fashion and beauty model based in Miami, Florida. She is on a mission to educate and elevate other models utilizing her successful career in the modeling industry. Through her blog LolaChel.com, she has helped 1,000’s of aspiring models grow thier careers. If you would like to get a jumpstart into the modeling industry visit LolaChel.com to start your modeling career in 7-days and join a weekly newsletter with paid modeling jobs all for free.
