Let These Inspiring Young Women's Stories Encourage You To Face Your Hesitations

Most of the time, we see our favorite celebrities shining and smiling, dressed to the nines on screen, and usually living seemingly perfect lives. With that said, it’s hard to imagine that these sought after stars can have life struggles and setbacks of their own, especially when they’re adored and looked up to by millions of people around the world. 

“A recent study showed that more than 9 in 10 women hold themselves back in some situations. In the Philippines it was found that 96% of Filipinas say they’ve experienced self-doubt, which at some point disabled them from achieving their goals. Fear of being judged is the most common reason for Filipinas to hold back whether it’s about their career or a relationship. It was with this in mind that we at Pond’s are shedding light on the #SeeWhatHappens stories of our own ambassadors confident ladies whom you’d never guess would have hesitations and self-doubt,” shared Pond’s Senior Brand Manager Kristine Rey-Domingo.

This week, we attended the first-ever Pond’s Women Speak Forum held at Maybank Theater in BGC. In this event, Pond’s ambassadors Kathryn Bernardo, Heart Evangelista, Nadine Lustre, Gabbi Garcia and the newest Pond’s girl, Ylona Garcia talked about their personal stories to let other girls know that even the most confident of women have their own inner hesitations they have to overcome. To find out each of their personal stories, scroll further.

Heart Evangelista

Despite all her accolades, Heart, a woman that many girls look up to—admits that there are some points in her life when she doubts in her own abilities. “As you go through life, you really don’t know what’s going to happen, and you overthink about stuff—and that really makes you hesitate with everything that you do, it’s really hard,” she says.  

However, self-doubt really exists to help us recognize that we’re not always right. “I guess we have to remember that perfection is not in this world—it just doesn’t exist. You just have to set that aside then it changes everything for you.” In the end, Heart chose to be brave and decided to make art her outlet and form of expression. Now, the world remains in awe of Heart’s constant evolution and success as an actress, artist and style icon. 

Nadine Lustre

Nadine has come a long way. From teeny-boper roles, we witnessed how she evolved to becoming the daring, stylish celebrity she is today. During the forum, Nadine revealed that this was really her all along but was so scared of messing up a showbiz career that had expectations. “Well, a lot of people don’t know this but I doubt myself a lot. I always ask my self: What if I can't do it? What if I fail? What if I make a mistake? But then, at the end of the day, you’re gonna learn from those mistakes. So it’s okay to make all these mistakes because at least you’ll learn from them.” Today, Nadine has carved her own name in industry because she was brave enough to be herself.

Gabbi Garcia

Gabbi revealed that there came a time when she found herself questioning how she could standout in an already-crowded acting industry. “I have a lot of fears and I really have second thoughts in this industry that we’re in. I’ve experienced a lot of rejections, judgements, and bashing online.” But according to Gabbi, she didn’t allowed her fears to limit her and decided to jumpstart a career in singing, which gave her diversity and dimension. Today, she finds herself recognized and sought-after in both fields.

Kathryn Bernardo

Kathryn is one of the biggest stars who would seem unlikely to feel self-doubt. But to our surprise, Kathryn confesses how much inner turmoil she had in saying yes to the rigorous acting requirements for her latest film “Hello, Love, Goodbye.” “It was really hard for me because just like any other actor, I’m scared to fail and I’m scared not to meet the expectations. And this project is all about my firsts, first team up with another partner, first project without DJ—it was really a struggle to me.” But today, she is in great joy that she faced all her hesitations as the film is undoubtedly one of her most acclaimed career milestones.

Ylona Garcia

Joining the Pond’s family is the multi-talented teen star Ylona Garcia. With a flourishing career, it’s hard to believe that once a upon a time, this young lady experienced self-doubt. But then, with self-doubt in question, she challenged her self and reflect inwards. “Always look at the bigger picture. I mean, no matter what you’re going through, no matter what you see on social media, when you look at the bigger picture, the world still goes round,” she says. “Never compromise your dreams, aspirations, your resolve as an individual to the standards of the society—just do what makes you happy."