The Journey of a Model Who Started with Street Snaps and Expanded Her Activities

My professions are model and influencer, and I also work for a job agency. As a model, I appear in magazines, do fashion shows, and walk the runway. As an influencer, I appear in videos, do PR work, and various other things.

I actually wanted to focus solely on modeling. However, there aren't that many modeling jobs available. So, in my free time, I started doing job support work and SNS work, and now I'm doing a variety of things.

It varies greatly from month to month, but when big jobs come in, it's the influencer work. However, jobs like job support, which are daytime jobs, provide a stable monthly income, so I use that as my activity fund.

I've always loved fashion, clothes, and accessories. But I didn't know where to buy them. When I wanted to learn more about it, I was scouted by a magazine. After appearing in the magazine, I studied fashion a lot, and that's how it started.

There was a street snap feature in the magazine. About 11 years ago, I used to go to that street snap every month. At first, I was only featured very small, but as I kept going, I became friends with the staff. They asked me to appear in a shoot for a feature, and I thought, 'Let's do it!' That's how I started getting called.

It starts early in the morning, like 7:30 AM, and ends in the evening, so you're tied up for about 11 hours. It's fun, but it's long, like you're losing a whole day.

For modeling work, like a runway show, you prepare for half a year, right? The moment you succeed or present in front of everyone is the most fulfilling. You've been working hard, and even though your appearance time might be just 2-3 minutes, you've been putting in effort for half a year. For magazines, the day of release or when you hear the feedback from others is very joyful. When someone says, 'I saw the magazine,' it's heartwarming to know they've seen it.

We're in the SNS era, so even if magazines don't sell well, I use SNS as a weapon. I post on SNS, inform my followers, and they buy the products. It's like I'm promoting and getting support from them.

Weight management is tough. For example, for advertisement models, if the brief says 'someone with a sharp style' or'someone with cleanliness,' you have to fit that description. So, I always have to maintain my body. To look fresh, I also pay attention to my hair and skin quality.

As a model, you meet new people and places every day, so there's always a fear of making mistakes. I'm nervous every day. But if you do your research and prepare in advance, you gradually gain confidence. I think everyone feels the same. There were times I worried about not fitting the company's image or if I could pose beautifully, but the more you do it, the more you get used to it. I think going to many different sets has helped me with that.

I've had cosmetic surgery, and the before and after are like two different people. I had monolids and very small eyes, barely open. But looks are important to some extent, and for a major feature in a magazine, appearance matters. So, I started paying attention to my looks. Then, I started getting full-page features in magazines, and I thought it was worth it. Some people say, 'You're hurting the body you got from your parents,' but people dye their hair and get piercings, right? I think many people have complexes about their looks, and if that's holding you back, if you want to boost your self-esteem, investing in beauty is totally fine. It keeps your mind clean and boosts your confidence.

For example, if I sleep for 8 hours out of 24, and I'm awake for 16 hours, I might be thinking about work all that time. I love it. Both modeling and my regular job are fun, so when you're juggling multiple jobs, time feels insufficient. I always might be thinking about work. Most of my friends are also models, so when we meet, we end up talking about work. 'This clothing is trending,' 'Let's go buy this clothing,' or with influencer friends, 'This is trending now,' 'This place is Instagram-worthy, let's take a picture,' 'Shall we shoot a video here?' It always ends up being about work. It's fun, and because I love it, I can do it all day, and my mind is always filled with it.

I love ramen and McDonald's, especially hamburgers. But I haven't eaten them for 2 years since I started this job. The trigger was the runway. Once you start appearing in front of people and in magazines, you can't gain weight. So, restraining myself from eating what I want is really tough. But I watch ramen videos every day. I really watch YouTube videos of ramen every day, reminiscing about those delicious times and restraining myself. I think once a year, I'd like to eat, but given my personality, it's better if I don't. Once I start, I can't stop. Right now, I love my job, so I can restrain myself.

I wanted to be popular. When I thought about what I could do to be popular, I decided to improve my fashion sense. Improving your fashion sense makes you look cool, right? But then I thought that just looking cool wasn't enough, so I started paying attention to my appearance and did various beauty treatments. And then I couldn't stop.

I think it's something I've dedicated my life to. When I'm working hard, it's very tough, and if things don't go well, it's painful. But when things go well, it's fun. In life, you fail more than you succeed. There were times when I earned a lot and times when I had no money. When you have no money, you have no peace of mind and feel anxious. But when you have money, the money you have also gives you peace of mind, and your choices increase. I think experiencing both was good.

I'm teaching young people, around 19-20 years old to late 20s, how to edit videos and other things. For those who want to start as influencers, I teach them video editing and other things. I'm doing it now, and I find it quite enjoyable.

What I strongly believe is that you should have confidence in yourself and believe in your own value. There are many people who take on work without thinking and end up being taken advantage of. I don't want that to happen. You have value, and your time has value too. So, I want you to value yourself.