ASHLEY BIDEN
“Hurt people hurt people. And if we don’t break that cycle, if we don’t heal, the hurt will continue. The real flex is staying kind no matter how cruel the world gets. That’s kind of been my mission recently, to stay kind, to stay grounded, no matter how much the world tries to hurt me or my family.” ELLE
JENNA ORTEGA
“I am so fearful of disappointing the people in my life, or even people in public. I want to live up to people’s expectations, which is something that I need to get over, but I’m also scared that, I don’t know, maybe someone will get to know me too well and realize that I’m not all that.” ELLE
Before I was always into the quick fix of healing, going to a week-long retreat or a course for trauma, say, and that helped for a minute, but it didn’t ever really get to the nitty-gritty, the deeper stuff. This time I realized that 12-step treatment was the best thing, and it was about not being ashamed of that. The community made a huge difference. The opposite of addiction is connection, and I really found that in 12-Step.” Vogue
LEVAR BURTON
“Your failures are more important than your successes because you learn more from them. Everything happens for a reason, and it’s all purposeful and perfect. So, where’s the perfection in I didn’t get what I wanted? I discovered that it wasn’t supposed to be mine, but the process that I went through led me to exactly where I needed to be.” People Magazine
“Pity people that speak ill of others because while some of us are dancing, the others are too afraid.” -People
KATY PERRY
“You really grow into who you are the longer you get to live. I understand mental health so much more. We all have negative conversations going on in our heads, but you have to take the wheel back, and I definitely did. I’ve faced my past and found love and compassion for myself.” People Magazine
TARAJI P. HENSON
“Life is hard; you’ll hear a lot of noes. But keep loving yourself. It all works out in the end.” People Magazine
LIDYA JEWETT
“Being adopted makes me welcoming and inclusive to everyone regardless of their family structure. I don’t think anyone else gets to define what a ‘correct’ family looks like. The correct family is the one where there is love. safety, and encouragement and where you are allowed to be who you are meant to be.” GL
RUTH RIGHI
“I’ve had to deal with microaggressions my whole life and it’s time more young people talked about this issue. Because of my race, I’ve had people make some uncomfortable comments. They’re not always blatantly offensive, but they just make me feel less than. I wish I’d spoken up then about how those comments made me feel, and I want to empower more people to do that today.” GL
ALICIA KEYS
“In my creative process, I always start very insecure. I’m like, is this right? How is this landing? Do I feel good about this? I have to live in that insecurity for a bit, and then, as time progresses, I get more confident. And I’m like, you know what? I love this. Then I start to feel more swaggy and confident. Once your soul is cared for, you become everything you need to be. And you can spread that as far and wide as you want to.” ALLURE