We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ashley Duran a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Ashley, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What do you think it takes to be successful?

In my own experiences, I believe what it takes to be successful is to be dedicated and constantly moving forward no matter what challenges life throws at you. Growing up, I did not come from money and lost my mom at the age of 18. I had to grow up a lot faster and change my whole perspective on things. It sure has been a tough journey, but what I realized what it takes to be successful. You really have to believe in yourself, have a vision and keep swimming.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I am a free lance model as well as a cocktail server in Las Vegas, Nevada. When I started modeling, it first became a way to help boost my self confidence, but eventually became a passion. My Modeling provides a service where I influence others to love themselves and inspire anyone to be their authentic selves. Do what makes you happy and try your best not to care what others may think of you. The world can be a nasty place, especially the internet. The way I see it, I hope to inspire a lot more people in sharing more about my story and making them believe in themselves. I am most proud of all the challenges I overcame because they made me into the woman I am today. I am doing the best I can with what I got.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

My mission as stated before is to motivate and make those feel good about themselves. No matter what the circumstances can be, don’t ever give up!

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

My main story I share is losing my mom when I was 18. Since then, I had to be my only support system in paying my bills and providing my needs. There was also a time I had to take care of a sibling. I had to not mentally be strong for myself, but also a relative. It takes a lot of strength and courage to stand up and fight for what you want in life. The best way I can explain what illustrates my resilience is the drive in me. I refuse to let the troubles I faced define me, and the people who knocked me down. I can not give up on myself as I know life has a lot more to offer. I have learned that the higher the mountain, the better the view. I am no where near where I want to be, but I know I am on the way!

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ashduran22/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ashduran22/

Image Credits
Marcus Arbelbide-@48thstreetphotography Trisha Kwan- @beautybytk @allbetterbrows