I was watching a runway video on youtube and I came across this comment that was very honest:

“im a designer and a model coach – the secret behind all of this bullshit is:
CONFIDENCE!!
you have to bring from the inside before you can bring it from the outside.”

As I was reading this I was thinking about all the models that pay top-dollar and invest loads of time to learn how to walk for the runway, when really the secret to runway success is one’s own confidence.  Such a simple answer that can be found within yourself, and no where else.  It’s true a model may have to understand how to walk properly, but this still does not make up for any lack of confidence or uniqueness in one’s walk.

When you think about some of the best runway models from the 70’s and prior, many of them didn’t have models to look up to or didn’t bother taking modeling classes.  In fact, some have said their classes were watching actresses in classic films and mimicking these actresses movements.  Maybe that’s why those women had such a charismatic aura about themselves when they hit the catwalk, a charisma I feel has disappeared today.  Why?  This isn’t easy to answer, but it may be partly due to the systemization of the modeling industry.  You take classes that you pay for, you think they will provide you with everything you need to know about modeling or runway, and when you finish you go on your merry way to get the best jobs in the industry.  But of course this isn’t the case in the real world, not with any profession.  This A-B-C way of thinking is very linear, and we forget about the space below and above the line.  It is here in this space where you will find that extra something to not only make you a great model, but one of the best in the business.  So don’t be afraid to step into that unknown space.

If you’re an aspiring model or model in the making I suggest that you take the time to work on improving any characteristics you feel are making you emotionally weak or unsure about yourself.  Only when you have become comfortable with your body image and emotions can you be fully confident on the runway or in any modeling gig.  Finally, and I am saying this with all seriousness, watch and study classic films.  Take note of how the actors express themselves through exaggerated body language. On the one hand, exaggerated acting makes a film seem less realistic and almost corny, but it’s acting…it’s not meant to be realistic.  Remember that any form of entertainment is escapism that helps people relax from the stress of the real world.

If you can incorporate this strong, expressive emotion in your body while walking, it almost takes your viewers to a whole new world where they imagine that they are “you” wearing that gorgeous piece of clothing.  Confident, unique expression is what turns a Model into a “Best Super Model.”

-MANÉ