Interview with Sheena Postell…
One of the biggest misconceptions in the modeling industry is that MODELING will give you confidence. The truth of the matter is that you have to walk in with confidence because modeling is a job and you are being chosen based on the concept of the project. You may go to countless model calls before you get a yes!
So how do you embrace your confidence in an industry that is looking at you on the outside?
We sat down with Sheena Bilonn Postel to discuss her self confidence journey and how she has embraced her beauty in a new and genuine way.
Self-confidence is something that is instilled in us throughout our lives from when we are children. Can you share your self-confidence journey as a child into young womanhood?
Self-Confidence didn’t come so easy for me as a young woman. For a large part of my life, I have seen it in my mother. As she worked a full-time job to provide a roof over my head, clothing my back and food on the table. Her consistency of an authentic work ethic gave me the first glimpse of confidence. It’s something that just clicks inside of you and your hunger for something better and greater fuels that energy of confidence.
As a teenager, I viewed self-confidence in my childhood friends that became parents at the age of 14 and 15 years old. The strength they carried in them throughout their pregnancy and as they traveled on the public buses and trains gave me confidence and power.
When all else fails, you must push yourself because your faith carries you to that next point in life. Self-Confidence came from so many small moments in my life that I can dig deep from any part of my life to help me move forward. It’s funny how life gives you those moments just so that you can use them at any given time in the future.
Was there a person or situation that stands out in your mind that encouraged you?
When I was about 11 years old, I lived in a town called Middletown, CT and my mother and I lived on a street that was shaped like a horseshoe. There were three neighbor’s driveways that I could see by sitting on my front porch.
Every Friday, I would come home from school and play on the front porch and I would watch these women that would come home from work. One mother would arrive with a new hairstyle every Friday and she would do this amazing strut from her car to the front door. Another lady would wash her car and shine it up so bright that she would stare at it for five minutes with a big smile on her face. The other woman would put on her workout gear and walk throughout the neighborhood for an hour.
I know this may not sound like a lot to others but watching these three curvy ladies on my street every week was encouragement. They were different but spoke life into me every week. No matter where you are in life and who you are, you are the only person that knows how to love yourself.
Seeing these three ladies embrace themselves weekly, made it clear to me. Love who and how you are now, don’t wait until you have all your ducks in a row. Grab whatever you have and make it your beauty.
What are five things that you do that help you through those times when you’re not feeling at 100%?
When my mood is low I heavily lean towards a good playlist of R&B and soul music and I love to sneak off to the movie theater to watch a good romantic flick. Another thing that I enjoy doing is attending a painting class because it allows me to focus on the process of a picture being developed. On the other hand, I truly enjoy watching cat videos on YouTube just because they are so cute and they make me smile every single time. Lastly, I absolutely love getting a manicure and pedicure. Giving self-care is very important to me because it allows me to give the best love to myself and in my own way.
The modeling industry is a very competitive industry, how do you balance being ambitious vs the competitive nature of the business?
The industry is very competitive and is changing all of the time but the one thing that keeps me at balance is respect.
I have been modeling for five years and I must respect the craft. The key is to continue to learn, listen and practice. I am always in competition mode with myself because I thrive to be a better version of myself all of the time. If it comes to networking, new poses or learning a new part of fashion. I must have an open mind to receive new information at all times so that I’m in a position to learn and perfect my craft.
Society has very specific definitions of what beautiful is. What is your definition of beautiful and can you tell us about your journey that has brought you to this place?
Finding and learning what beautiful means to me is truly a life long journey. It’s the moment when you fall in love with a song, a boy or receiving an unexpected gift in the mail. The very second when your heartaches because it’s been broken, the sharp pain in getting in your head from crying too hard and the moment when something shocks the hell out of you. Beautiful things are born every second of the day and to realize which second belongs to you.
The moment that happened to me was twenty-nineteen. It was a stage of metamorphosis for me. The time had come to complete a process that I knew was coming but was blind on how this stage would change my every being. My tastebuds began to get extremely damaged but it healed. Now I am able to truly taste when something is bad for my soul and eject it in time before it’s able to be consumed.
My heart began to go through heartache and pain but to my surprise, it healed stronger than ever. It broke in so many pieces and I truly believed it would never repair but it beats longer and stronger than before.
Last was my spirit, it was broken, my faith was tested but I developed a stronger coat of skin.
Bottom line is that twenty-nineteen had to happen, it was a shift the was planned for my life and there was only one way out of the silky case. I CALL IT BEAUTY! Beauty is a combination of pain, headaches, betrayal, brokenness, failure, scar tissue, truth, lies, trauma, depression, loneliness, repair, redirection, abandonment, and tears.
I am Sheena Postell and this is my new definition of why I am BEAUTIFUL.
[divider]PHOTO CREDITS[/divider]
Sheena Postell
IG @mspostell
#mspostell
Photographer
Zakiyah Caldwell Burroughs
Stylist
Carmelita Frazier