We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Tishara Williams. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Tishara below.
Hi Tishara, thanks for joining us today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?
Experience has always been my greatest teacher. I’ve been able to develop my craft by trial and error, ultimately learning and growing from my past mistakes. Being my hardest critic I learn from studying my photos (seeing what I like about poses, what I don’t like about poses) and also other models local and in major industries. I’ve even bought a 1,000 page photo book of unique poses that I’ve never even thought of in order to learn to be more fluid in my movements and expressive in my body. Knowing what I do now, I’d say not being afraid of what others think and being absolutely focused would definitely speed up the process for any incoming models or even seasoned models. The most essential skills to have is patience and consistency because not everyone gets discovered overnight! I think social media plays a MAJOR role on having this expectant behavior that since we post great content we’ll all go viral and begin a great career, when in reality it’s perfectly fine to grow your following organically day by day. Another essential skill to me is consistency! Constantly posting amazing content even when you feel like you’re not being seen because there’s always someone watching! You’re being noticed and it certainly will pay off. Some obstacles that stood in the way of my growth has definitely been my sense of confidence and comparison. Comparing myself to others when in all actuality everyone has their own individual journey, what works for them may not work for you (and that’s okay!) as long as you keep pushing yourself and keep developing you will make your goals eventually. My confidence today is greater than it’s ever been. I used to overthink every little detail about what I post to the point where I’d end up not posting at all and overtime made me feel less confident in myself. Today I’ve learned that you don’t have to be perfect in order to create you just have to put yourself out there and create the platform for yourself! We sometimes try soo hard to be perfect ,which is an impossible goal, when we are made perfectly imperfect. Just be confident in who you are and show the world you don’t have to fit in to stand out.
Tishara, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
My name is Tishara, I’m a creative in all aspects. I’m a experienced runway and print model who also works behind the camera as a creative director. I began my journey in this industry taking TV production classes all throughout grade school and began anchoring on my schools morning announcements. I continued seeking out more roles and eventually got my next chance as an extra in a Flonase commercial after a friend of the family invited me on set. From that point I realized this is where I belong. I joined more organizations where I worked day in and out learning how to properly walk on a runway and learning my angles for print work. From then on I worked with local photographers to start my portfolio and sent my resume to hundreds of agencies in order to actually get paid opportunities as a model. I signed my first non-exclusive contract with my agency and began working diligently to book gigs and audition for everything I could get my hands on. I made sure to keep my portfolio updated with my correct sizes and professional pictures to show scouts I’m willing and ready to work and I pride myself in being the best runway and print model I can be but not limiting myself to just that. I work with companies to promote products and brands. Even as a micro-influencer I help brands connect with their clients on a more personal level and get them to absolutely fall in love with their product. I’d say my personality helps me not only brand myself but also sets me apart from everyone else. When I walk into a room I turn heads with my confidence but I keep them engaged with my charm. I make people laugh, I make them feel heard and I make them feel at home and truly connect to them as an individual. I’m most proud of myself and how I’ve gotten to be so resilient, even at my worst you wouldn’t be able to tell because I always pack a smile and look at the bigger picture. I’m proud of being better than who I was yesterday and prouder of who I’ll be tomorrow. I’m so grateful to God for giving me the strength to face rejection and not feel discouragement. I think the main thing I want the readers to know about me is if you’re wanting a strong minded, resilient, professional and determined person on your team look no further! Im willing and able to put my mind to any challenge and overcome anything that comes my way. I want the readers to know that it takes time to grow and that you don’t have to conform yourself to the standard but MAKE the standard! Beauty comes in all shapes and sizes and the world needs to see just that!
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
I can’t say my journey has always been great, just like everyone else I’ve been in situations that’s tested my strength. When I first started my career and even to date I found myself constantly applying to hundreds of agencies all over the United States hoping someone would give me just one chance to show my talents. After not hearing back or receiving what felt like a million no’s I began to think “maybe I’m just not cut out for this” or “I’m not the cookie cutter model those big agencies want” I began to pray and ask God for opportunity. I constantly prayed and kept applying myself and finally companies began to reach out to me directly and I finally realized I don’t need a big agency to sign me right away. People are actually noticing me, without the huge following, without the big names, I was getting noticed just by being myself and being consistent.
How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?
In my view, I believe society should be more acceptant to artists and creatives. We are all different shapes, sizes, and colors but we are all human. I believe as a whole society, social media especially, should be more understanding of each other and not live to look “Instagram perfect”. It’s okay that you aren’t in your dream house right now, keep working you’ll get there! It’s okay to have flaws, we all have them! Once society is more accepting and less judgmental then as artists we don’t have to conform so much and be much more open to creating peacefully!
Contact Info:
- Instagram: Tisharaxo