Aneela
Meet Aneela, 41, a beauty expert and women empowerment influencer. You could think of her as the “woman whisperer” because she feels most at peace when helping others find their true passions and callings. As a make-up artist, she realized the search for the right lipstick shade went so much deeper, so she took the time to talk them through and help them find that inner fulfillment.
But, Aneela’s gift took time to come to the surface and bringing self-love to herself has been a journey. From grappling with the devastating loss of her mother to overcoming the emotional scars of being bullied to finding clarity on an unforgettable voyage to Paris. . . Aneela’s life could’ve gone in a much different direction. Instead, she took control of the narrative and changed the tone. Here’s how you can follow her advice and find the right path too.
Sometimes You Just Need to Get Over It
“When I’m feeling doubt, I actually talk to myself and I say to myself like, ‘Is this who you want to be right now? Is this the kind of person that you’d be proud of?’ And I’ll say, ‘No, this is not who I want to be, so this is not who I’m going to be.’ And I get myself out of that mode by meditating or meditate or putting on some makeup, or a nice outfit and just go outside. I’m so proud that I got myself out of the bed and did what I needed to do because the hardest part is admitting it. Once you get over that, the rest of it is easy.”
Role Models Come in All Forms
“I lost my mom when I was 10, so I’ll always be wonder, ‘What would she want from me?’ I hold her to such a high pedestal. She’d want me to do the right thing. She’d want me to be stronger. So, through that vision, I’ve created an ideal version of myself that I strive for on a daily basis.”
“I lost my mom when I was 10, so I’ll always be wonder, ‘What would she want from me?’ I hold her to such a high pedestal. She’d want me to do the right thing. She’d want me to be stronger. So, through that vision, I’ve created an ideal version of myself that I strive for on a daily basis.”
What True Moments of Confidence Feel Like
“When you feel confidence, it’s like you’re made of Teflon. You feel like nothing that anybody can say will hurt you. It just bounces right off of you. You’re smiling, you’re laughing, you’re appreciating life. You’re loving the people around you and every second matters. You’re smiling, you’re enjoying—there is no negativity around you. There are no insecurities. It’s a fully 100% positive moment.”
The Self-Talk That Changes It All
“When I’m feeling not so confident, I say to myself, ‘I know I’m strong. I’m very beautiful. I am important, and I have a lot of talent. I’m also very giving. I’m a very kind person. I’m a pure, genuine soul.’ I think about all the positive attributes that I have. I don’t need somebody else to tell me—I tell myself. That helps me remind myself that I have so much inside of me to give. I just want to get up and start giving it. I feel like a lot of insecurities are people that want something from someone else. But once we start giving, we realized a lot of it is the insecurity because we’re holding it on. We just need to give. And, I know it sounds silly, but I always say, ‘I love myself and I love myself exactly the way I am and there’s nothing I would change about me.’ We’re all growing with wisdom, so there’s no reason to get mad at yourself. We all make mistakes, but if you taught yourself to be hard on yourself, you only get worse in it. So, I always forgive myself immediately after something happens. I’m like, ‘Okay, that wasn’t okay, but it’s okay. It’s over. And I still love myself.”
Follow Your Passion—Even to Paris
“I had a really tough life after my mom passed away. I grew up with people bullying me for almost 20 years. It was detrimental for me and although I was so young, I was so youthful. I had beauty, I had my body, I had friends, I had work, I had a career, I had a great degree—I had everything. There was no reason why I should have doubted myself. But when you’re constantly with people saying bad stuff about you over and over and over, some part of you just your brain thinks ‘What am I missing? What’s wrong with me?’ For the longest time I was just thinking, ‘What is wrong with me?’ Then the turning point was when I started falling in love with Paris. I don’t know why. I had never been there. I had never gone there, but my house probably had 50 Paris paintings and pictures—everything had become about Paris. It was almost an obsession. I told my husband, ‘I’m just going to go to Paris.’ And he’s like, ‘Just like that?’ I said, ‘Yes, it’s calling me, and I need to go.’ I got there and saw the Eiffel tower at 6:00 in the morning. Nobody else was there. I looked up and when I saw how tall that tower was and I realized how far I am from my home, I realized how big the world was and how small I made myself. I was thinking about things so wrong—there’s so much more to this world than what I thought. I said, ‘I want to grow—and starting today, I’m going to grow every single day. I’m going to try to be a better person than I was yesterday. And it starts from me’. I came back home; I started my business and I’ve been so happy since. Everybody asks, ‘How are you looking more beautiful as you get older? You’re looking younger.’ But the truth is you have to be happy and you have to be confident. There’s insecurities all around us everyone has them, but we must love ourselves.”
