Fashion, Jewellery and Eyewear Designer, Model, Actresss
@saramary12
During your long career as a model, singer and actress, have you faced any challenges in your career? How did you overcome them?
Even now, everyday is full of challenges. But I feel like it’s the challenges that make your life enjoyable. In particular, balancing parenting and work is always challenging. I've managed to get through it by relying on others for help, and not trying to shoulder everything by myself.
What are the challenges as an actress and performer?
The result and outcome of this career is based on other people’s perspective, so it's tough to identify or judge which is the correct approach by yourself when it comes to acting and performance. It always feels challenging to find the correct answers from the point of view of the mass instead of from your own.
How did you overcome the challenges?
Although it's a tough process, I will face and accept myself, listen to both the good and bad comments, and dive deep into the problems I had in those challenging situations thoroughly. Also, I will communicate with others and learn from their perspective.
What are your relief methods and ways to refresh when you're stressed?
Mountain climbing. Especially before exhibitions of my brand, when I know it will be very busy soon, I make sure to go climbing at least once. When I'm climbing, I don't think about anything; it clears my mind and forcibly disconnects me from reality. Normally, I like being busy and hate to be doing nothing, but it's essential to have moments like that to clear my mind. Because I'm doing so much, having a switch to reset is necessary.
What motivates you to continue doing what you love in your career?
I would say it's self-love. I always have this feeling that "I should be able to do more because it's me," and I feel like that has been pushing me forward. Looking back, I've always had a pretty solid sense of self-esteem as a source of motivation.
How do you think self-esteem can be nurtured?
For every single situation, I will take time to figure out the explanations and reasons behind, because if I compromise easily, it will hurt my confidence. By always giving my 100% devotion, I can accept any results no matter how it is and I can still give recognition to myself.
How do you maintain motivation to become a better version of yourself?
Getting to really know yourself and being aware of your own feelings can help you stay motivated, and work towards the best version of you. And yeah, sometimes it's important to just go nuts and have a blast with your buddies.
As a model who continues to work in the forefront, do you have your own approach to societal beauty standards? How do you reconcile the gap between societal beauty ideals and your own standards?
I used to dislike trendy things. I had a strong desire to be different and cool, wanting to stand out. But lately, I've lost much of that feeling. A big turning point might have been the two years I spent living in Manazuru, away from Tokyo. When I distanced myself a bit from Tokyo and the world of fashion, I started to see more objectively why trends happen and why icons are born, and I've come to love fashion even more.
As a working mom, how do you balance work and personal life? Do you have any advice for other women hoping to start a family whilst maintaining a career?
Don't try to do everything alone. I understand the desire to take care of your children all by yourself, but that's tough. It's better to rely on others when you can and show your vulnerable side. Especially in Japan, it is not common to share negative feelings, like when you feel down or troubled. But I believe it's important to share, even if it is a negative emotion, with friends and family.
