“The way a girl feels about beauty, starts with the way you feel about yours.”
Dr Colinda Linde’s tips:
You can choose the body image legacy you leave for your daughter, by actively choosing your relationship with your own body.
The positive can be passed down just as easily as the negative; influence goes both ways.
She is watching and listening; when I see myself in the mirror, when I walk about my body, am I sending out a message of self-acceptance or disappointment? She will model her own conversations with her body and beauty, on what I demonstrate in my daily actions.
How she feels about the way she looks, has a direct effect on how she feels about who she is.
Nearly three quarters of girls (71 %) feel pressure to be beautiful, but are less likely to let anxiety about looks hold them back if they feel they have a positive role model. With a troubling 8 out of 10 women saying they dislike at least one aspect of their physical appearance, Dove is asking all women to make a difference to the lives of the next generation by ensuring their own beauty legacy is a positive one.
Source: Dove Girls’ Self esteem Research 2010 and 2013 | Global Dove Research: The Truth About Beauty Revisited (2010)
On 3 August 2015 Dove released an inspirational new film which illustrated how important it is for women to see the beauty in themselves so that they can pass on a positive beauty legacy to the girls in their lives.
What is your Beauty Legacy?
According to Clinical Psychologist, Dr Colinda Linde, women tend to talk more gently and in a kinder fashion to a younger person than they would to an adult and certainly more than they would to themselves. Focusing on what you would like to tell your younger self will start the journey to developing your beauty legacy.
Share your self-esteem insights with the young girls in your life and start them on their own beauty legacy journey.
How to use the #BeautyLegacy kit
Developed by Dr Colinda Linde
Write down positive messages and affirmations on post it notes – what are some of the things you would have liked your younger self to hear?
Collect these notes in the #BeautyLegacy jar and pass these onto the next generation of girls in your life as examples of positive affirmations.
When having a negative thought you can feel inspired by the positive messages filling up your jar.
Post special messages around your house to remind yourself or the girls in your life of the #BeautyLegacy you’d like to leave behind e.g. leave your daughter an uplifting note on her lunchbox.
Create a dedicated notice board for pictures of achievements e.g. an essay or story written, a hike completed or when she tried something she was scared of etc.
Your Beauty Legacy jar can be passed down to create a positive beauty legacy for the next generation.
Visit Dove South Africa and download the self-esteem educational programmes and fun interactive activities.
Help the next generation feel beautiful and share your positive beauty legacy story: Twitter and Facebook or Dove
