@Fouziya23 24 June 2025

“Who Decides What’s Beautiful? — My Journey from Doubt to Confidence” Am I beautiful — or not? Who gets to decide that? Is there a universal rule that defines beauty, or are we all just trying to meet someone else's expectations? For a long time, I asked myself: “How do people measure beauty?”Someone might say, “She isn’t beautiful enough.” But based on what? Is there a ruler, a scale, or a checklist? Across the world, beauty standards shift like the wind: In many Asian cultures, beauty is often seen in fair skin, V-shaped faces, double eyelids, slim bodies, and long, straight hair. In African cultures, dark skin, natural curly hair, and strong facial features are celebrated as symbols of pride. In the West, a tanned look, slim figure, and bold self-expression are often admired. Then the real question is,Who gave these standards the power to decide how we see ourselves? I’ve struggled with this myself.I used to believe I wasn’t beautiful. I would compare myself to others — their smiles, their skin, their style — and slowly, I started to hide parts of myself. I even stopped smiling in selfies because I didn’t like how my smile looked. I convinced myself I didn’t fit the mold, so I wasn’t enough. But one day, everything changed.I stood in front of the mirror and asked, “What if I smiled anyway?” So I did. I smiled. And for the first time in a long while, I felt something beautiful. Not because my features had changed, but because my mindset had. I realized, Beauty isn’t a fixed shape or color. It’s confidence. It’s acceptance. It’s peace with yourself. And that kind of confidence — it’s a gift from Allah. In Surah At-Tin (95:4), Allah says: “Indeed, We have created man in the best of stature.” That verse changed the way I looked at myself. If the One who created me says I’m made perfectly, who am I to doubt it? Since then, I’ve stopped chasing other people’s approval. I started smiling in pictures. I started loving the person in the mirror. Not because I fit anyone’s definition of beauty — but because I embraced my own. You are beautiful. Not because someone said it — but because you exist exactly as you were meant to. Don’t let society’s ideas define your worth. You are enough. You always were.