CeCe's WORDS. OUR SHOES.

CECE TALKS BODY POSITIVITY AND CULTIVATING CONFIDENCE

MY MISSION IS TO EMPOWER WOMEN TO BUILD CONFIDENCE IN THEMSELVES, LOVING YOUR BODY, GOING AFTER THE CAREER YOU WANT, NOT SETTLE FOR LESS

If almost 70% of women in America are considered plus size, and being plus size can mean feeling like you can’t put yourself forward in the world, then that is a problem for the women’s movement as a whole. That’s why I co-founded theCURVYcon with Chastity Garner. It was my way to include women who might feel like they can’t step up in the world because of the size of their jeans, and show them that they can do anything that they want. There’s nothing to be ashamed of about how any woman looks — we all have beautiful bodies.

theCURVYcon opens up Fashion Week to plus size women, creating a place where plus size women weren’t necessarily welcome before. I first met Chastity at a fashion show, and as we talked we established a deep and lasting friendship that became a business partnership. We both realized our followers could be served better, and that the conversation is still on-going for us, and the women we serve.

NOW, I GET TO SERVE THE WORLD AUTHENTICALLY

There’s a saying that plus size women are meant to be doctors, and lawyers, and politicians, and teachers, and raise their families so that this world can be a better place. But for me, what I have today is enough for me to move forward. That’s been helpful to me as I quit my corporate job, became an entrepreneur, and have done my part to make fashion more inclusive.

If I had chosen to settle into that job, that relationship, life would have been fine, but it wouldn’t have been the life that was waiting for me. We all know what it feels like to have something that’s perfectly fine, but it’s not the thing that lights us up 100%. Making the choice to give up what’s easy and search for what is unknown is really, really scary, but that act of being uncomfortable and not knowing is also about dreaming or imagining for yourself. It can be the difference between a person living an ordinary life or an extraordinary life. It’s not always easy but it’s always worth it.

PURPOSE IS VERY FREEING BECAUSE WE DON’T HAVE JUST ONE

Today We Will is such a powerful statement to me because I always feel like today is the best time to do anything that I want to do. I’ve learned over time that things I need are in my hands right now. Any dream that I have, the next logical step, I have everything I need to take it. I get to find new purpose here and there, so it’s ever-evolving for me.

Sometimes people ask me how to make a profit, and I tell them you should find your purpose and the profit will make itself clear.

BUILDING MY CONFIDENCE WAS REALLY ABOUT LEARNING HOW TO LOVE MY BODY

I am constantly working to cultivate my confidence. I think sometimes people think that you get confidence and…it’s like a college degree where you get it, and you’re done. But you have to keep working on it. The more confident we become at the foundation, the easier it is to take risks and pursue dreams, to serve the world, and make an impact.

When I see the looks on the faces of women coming into theCURVYcon, and when they realize that every single store in the building caters to their size range, or that their favorite celebrity who made it into the mainstream as plus size people are there to greet them — it’s beautiful to watch what happens when the playing field is level and you can just be who you are.

Body positivity can mean many things. It’s taking care of my mental health and going to therapy every week. It’s taking care of my physical health. So I go to the gym, I eat a certain way because I love my body, not because I hate it. And body positivity is the way that I speak about myself and others.

Instead of cutting people down, judging people on how they look on the outside, I take a beat, take a step back and see who they are inside. I know I move through the world not by how I look on the outside — good or bad — but based on who I am, and what I have to offer.