Women Activists: Words Of Wisdom From Clinique & Lena Dunham's #DifferenceMaker Podcast

JESSICA: "I don't know if I'm confident. Maybe I come across that way. But, I'm so scared. Like, life is so scary. Like, you have to wake up every morning. I'm gonna cry. Like, you have to wake up and sort of brace yourself and go, 'Alright. You have to make something of yourself.' I mean, it's so difficult. It's so hard. It's so hard. But. Um. And I don't think I'm confident. It's like. I'm just like. I'm just a girl trying. But, I think with me realizing the power of me being confident in myself and saying things without second-guessing myself. And trying to push fear out. And I am a praying person. You know, I'll wake up in the morning and I'm like, 'Alright. This is who I am. I declare it over my life. Let me go out and be great. Let me go out and inspire. Let me go out and be someone different.' And maybe it was this industry that I'm in that gave me thick skin. Because, I mean, when I was primary school, I'd literally be teased for having a sharper nose than a regular black person. I mean, black people have, like, flat noses....And they'd laugh at me for having a sharp nose, and I've always wanted a flat one. So, I've been very conscious of my look. And I'd be like, 'Ugh!' I always would hide my face halfway just to hide my nose so that nobody sees it 'cause then they'd think I'm weird. And then I have a different voice from a regular girl. I mean, most girls have a squeaky voice. Mine is husky and deep. And people would laugh at me for that. And I'm just like, 'Well, how can I change it?!' Then I realized, you know what—when I started doing drama, my voice benefited me because the others had to literally speak from their tummy to get their squeaky voices out. I'd just stand there and I'd do this, and you can hear my voice at the back of the theater. And I'm like, 'Well, you know what? Screw you! You guys have been laughing at me all my life for having the voice that I do!' When, actually, it was created perfectly for me because God knew that I was going be an actress and I need this type of voice in order to do theater. So, the joke's on you. So, I just realized that—you know what—we're all created perfectly the way we are for what we're meant to be and what we're meant to do. You know. You have the hair that you have—it's going to benefit you some way. You have the voice that you have—it will help. You have the teeth that you have. It's for....As you grow up, you will see the use of them. Don't change it. You don't have to." 

[Photo courtesy of Clinique]