Internal Pageant Preparation - The Real Secret to Winning the Crown

I’ve stated before that the one and only thing you have control over with regards to the outcome of a pageant, is knowing you are the best YOU when you compete. How do you go about doing that? I’m glad you asked! Assess Your Preparedness in Each Competition Phase List off every area of competition, then assess each area by thinking about how prepared and confident you feel? If you feel lacking in any area, the best way to build that confidence is to PRACTICE and VISUALIZE.   Your brand image & wardrobe are other areas to consider. You must feel like an “11” with your hair, make-up and wardrobe for others to see it as well. Self-image – which comes from within – is crucial to your success in a pageant or anything for that matter! Dress Rehearsal For the last few weeks leading up to the pageant, when practicing your walk and posing, on-stage question, or personal interview, the best way to prepare is to do it all full-out! Wear the outfit and heels - it wi

I just wrote a blog post about this over at TrueBeautyProgram.com and wanted to tailor this important information on how it can be applicable to winning a pageant. Once you believe in yourself enough to know you have every ability to win a pageant, you need to get yourself into the mindset of not only believing you can win, but to start acting as though you already are the titleholder! What, if anything, would you be doing differently? Would you carry yourself in a different way? Would you walk into a room a different way? You know that scene in Miss Congeniality when Victor, the pageant coach says "Yes, yes, yes. You wear the crown, be the crown, you are the crown!"  It’s funny, but it’s true! You attract what you ARE, not what you want, so from this day forth, do, say, think as you would if you already have the title! 

I just love this girl’s presence! I had the pleasure to sit down and get to know Vanessa Berrueta. She moved from Venezuela to Minnesota just 9 months ago and it is incredible what this woman has accomplished! She recently won the title of Miss Minnesota Latina 2013 and will be traveling to Mexico in a few short days to compete for the title of  Miss Latina US . I wanted pick her brain to see what exactly how and why she has gotten to be the successful, charismatic, positive person that she is. Check out the interview as we talk about her philosophy on life, pageantry and what inspires her. You will be convinced she is not only a wonderful person, but a great representative for the US, Minnesota, women and Latinos everywhere! And be sure to follow Miss Minnesota Latina on  Facebook  and  Twitter !

I know I’ve stated before that it is oh-so important to establish your “why” when competing for a title. The reason for that “why” is the foundation for how to convince and communicate to the judges your unique reasoning for why they should choose you as the winner. How you go about explaining your “why,” is what will make or break you. We all know that to have any chance at winning, we need to be memorable, we need to have the judges fall in love with us and the best way to do that is with storytelling. Science behind storytelling There is scientific reasoning for why telling a story in your interview is your best bet to get the judges to remember you: The brains of the person telling a story and listening to it can synchronize, says Uri Hasson from Princeton: "When the woman spoke English, the volunteers understood her story, and their brains synchronized. When she had activity in her insula, an emotional brain region, the listeners did too. When her fronta

How you feel internally is what will set the tone for your entire pageant experience and weekend. Because of this, you want to do everything you can to ensure you are relaxed and stress free when heading into check-in. Think about the activities you do when you are stressed. What helps you relax? Remind yourself that you are as prepared as can be, there is nothing to stress over. Below are some ideas you could incorporate into your daily routine for the week(s) leading up to the pageant and during the pageant weekend to help you relax: - Take a bath - Drink tea - Practice yoga/Breathing exercises - Run/Strength train/Exercise - Visualize - Meditate Ensuring you are stress free beforehand will enable you to better handle the stress that will come up during the pageant. It is so important to have yourself trained and conditioned to handle the pressures of competing. If you need help with working through stress and to learn how to use the high pressure environment to your a

All of us know that when preparing for a pageant, the pageantry world consumes everything we do, think or even say. We watch videos, train, go shopping, train some more, check out the gossip online, watch previous pageants, attend appearances and so much more. And then if you win, it becomes even more a part of your world as you have appearances once or more a week, and are preparing yourself to compete for the national or International title on top of that. What happens after the pageant or after you pass on your title? Some women run into trouble after all the excitement of the pageant because they have started to attach and identify themselves with the pageant and/or title. You are NOT your title. WHO you are is not Miss Whoever. Life after pageants It is so important that from the start of training and there on, you do not mix your personal identity with your title because something bad will happen once that title is taken away or you're done competing and don’t w