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What I've Learnt - Darcy Spinks · WHAT I'VE LEARNT

• 0:04
  SPEAKER_00: In an era of hashtag MeToo, hashtag inclusivity and diversity, the notion of beauty within and without is changing.
• 0:13
  SPEAKER_00: Yet the beauty pageant world is alive and well with more than four million followers on the Miss Universe Instagram site.
• 0:19
  SPEAKER_00: It is interesting to explore the powerful platform, to see what it's advocating, to support female empowerment and development in 2022 with the dawn of a new era.
• 0:28
  SPEAKER_00: So who better to give us an insight than one of the recent winners of the Victorian Miss Universe pageant, Darcy Sphinx, who is competing for the title of Miss Universe Australia 2022.
• 0:39
  SPEAKER_00: She grew up on a cattle and sheep farm and left to Melbourne at the age of 18 to continue a coveted modelling career that began at the age of eight years old.
• 0:47
  SPEAKER_00: She launched her first business at the age of 23, that was a digital marketing and events agency, and is soon to launch her new business in September this year, focusing on ethically sourced clothing label called Ambition.
• 1:00
  SPEAKER_00: It's all about self-love and empowerment, aiming to help both men and women to feel happy and confident in their own skin.
• 1:10
  SPEAKER_00: So, Darcy, welcome to the What I've Learned podcast.
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_00: So thrilled to have you join me.
• 1:15
  SPEAKER_01: Hello, thank you so much for having me.
• 1:18
  SPEAKER_01: Very exciting.
• 1:19
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, very exciting.
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_00: Well, you know, I'm very interested to chat to you because, as you know, we've discussed this, measuring beauty is quite a complex process.
• 1:28
  SPEAKER_00: And winning Miss Universe Victoria is quite a feat.
• 1:32
  SPEAKER_00: How do you feel?
• 1:33
  SPEAKER_00: And why do you think you won?
• 1:35
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, so uh I'm only through the first round.
• 1:39
  SPEAKER_01: So Miss Universe Australia, there's a few different rounds uh to hopefully win the crown at the end and being Miss Universe Australia 2022.
• 1:48
  SPEAKER_01: So basically, the first round is you get selected for Victoria.
• 1:52
  SPEAKER_01: So there's around 30 or so girls that get selected in Victoria and all around the other states as well, like 30 in New South Wales, 30 in Queensland, 30 in uh WA.
• 2:03
  SPEAKER_01: So I was in the top 30, and then recently they did the state final, so where I made it into the top five for Victoria.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_01: So it's very exciting, you know.
• 2:13
  SPEAKER_01: And on the state final, there's a all different rounds.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_01: So you do uh an interview, then you do a swimwear walk, and then you're you're crowned, not crowned, sashed.
• 2:23
  SPEAKER_01: Um Miss Universe Australia state finalist.
• 2:27
  SPEAKER_01: So yeah, it's very exciting that I'm in the top five of Victoria, and there's a lot of prep to be done between now and September when the crowning of Miss Universe Australia happens.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_00: So being in the top five, that's a pretty pretty amazing achievement.
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_00: But tell me, why do you think that you first of all, how did you get to this point?
• 2:47
  SPEAKER_00: And what is it that inspired you to take on this mantle and go on this journey?
• 2:52
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, it's very much a journey.
• 2:55
  SPEAKER_01: I actually have competed before, once when I was 19 and again when I was 21.
• 3:00
  SPEAKER_01: I was very young, I was very shy.
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_01: I've always been very like, I've always been confident, quietly confident, but I guess like I've had a lot to sort of work on between now and when I've competed in the past.
• 3:13
  SPEAKER_01: Because you're 25 now.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, just to clarify your age, 25.
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 3:17
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 3:17
  SPEAKER_01: So I'm now 25.
• 3:19
  SPEAKER_01: And to be honest, when I competed in the past, I really loved the program.
• 3:23
  SPEAKER_01: It's amazing.
• 3:24
  SPEAKER_01: It's very um, you know, it's pushing you outside of your comfort zone all the time.
• 3:27
  SPEAKER_01: You're doing public speaking, you're handling high pressure situations, you're attending networking events.
• 3:33
  SPEAKER_01: I grew a lot when I was younger when I was competing.
• 3:36
  SPEAKER_01: And then I've taken, it's been four years since I've competed.
• 3:39
  SPEAKER_01: So I've taken that, those four years just to really work on myself, um, you know, start businesses.
• 3:45
  SPEAKER_01: I have a digital marketing and events agency that I launched uh two and a half years ago.
• 3:51
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm about to launch my second business, which is an ethically sourced clothing label called Ambition.
• 3:56
  SPEAKER_00: So which is uh which is exciting because I like that you're you're you're doing other things alongside this pursuit.
• 4:03
  SPEAKER_00: So how?
• 4:04
  SPEAKER_00: Because obviously in this climate, and and I'm sure you're asked about this all the time, um, the notion of beauty and how it's measured is changing.
• 4:13
  SPEAKER_00: Beauty pageants, you know, clearly sound a little anachronistic.
• 4:17
  SPEAKER_00: They sound as if they're sort of from another era.
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, we know that Victoria's Secrets, for example, they've actually stopped doing those because they found that they set standards and bars and expectations that were not necessarily productive and certainly some would say destructive to the image of women.
• 4:34
  SPEAKER_00: So how do you, because it takes quite a lot of courage to do what you're doing, not let alone go out, you know, to all the different functions and perform in the way that you have to.
• 4:44
  SPEAKER_00: Talk to me a little bit about that and how you've navigated that for yourself.
• 4:47
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, 100%.
• 4:48
  SPEAKER_01: Everything you said, you've hit the nail on the head.
• 4:51
  SPEAKER_01: And I think there's so many different ideas of beauty now.
• 4:55
  SPEAKER_01: Everyone is beautiful in their own way.
• 4:57
  SPEAKER_01: And I suppose I was very apprehensive at the beginning when entering into the pageant world back when I was 19.
• 5:04
  SPEAKER_01: I thought it was, yeah, all only about looks.
• 5:07
  SPEAKER_01: But what the organization is actually all about, it's getting to know all of the girls, um, its beauty and its brains.
• 5:14
  SPEAKER_01: So, yes, you know, it there is beauty involved, but it's it's so much more than that.
• 5:18
  SPEAKER_01: Like there's the interview process, there's the swimwear walk, there's the gown walk, there's so many different sections.
• 5:25
  SPEAKER_01: And I think if you can't speak or, you know, if you're not a kind person, you're you're not going to make it through those rounds.
• 5:32
  SPEAKER_01: Like you have to show who you are, what you're achieving, what you're passionate about, what drives you.
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_01: There's so many other things other than what you look like.
• 5:42
  SPEAKER_01: And I think, yeah, so it's just there's so much more than uh more to pageants these days, I believe.
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that's why I come back for the third round because I've been working on myself and I now know that it is so much more than what you look like.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_01: It's what you're doing and you know, what you hope to achieve and what your message is ultimately.
• 6:04
  SPEAKER_01: And, you know, I guess I for me, I'm so passionate about business and particularly women in business, and I want to be a leader and a voice to encourage other women to step up into their power and just go for it, you know?
• 6:18
  SPEAKER_00: Well, that's what I understood just doing a little bit of the research.
• 6:21
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, what's so fascinating?
• 6:22
  SPEAKER_00: I was looking at like the Miss Universe Australia.
• 6:25
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, that Instagram has four million followers, and I'm like, that's interesting.
• 6:30
  SPEAKER_00: It's still something that people want to see, be part of, and involved in.
• 6:35
  SPEAKER_00: Whereas I, to be honest, until I'd come across you, I thought, oh, well, that's sort of a thing of the past, you know, you do you sort of have this sense that, but in fact, what you're saying is it still has traction, but it's changed.
• 6:47
  SPEAKER_00: So in the time that you've been doing it, even over the last five years, with all of the new focus on it being about who you are inside as much as who you are on the outside, you know, I mean, clearly we still have models and we still have modeling, and we still have a sense that, you know, and even that's changing.
• 7:03
  SPEAKER_00: If you look at Fashion Week and you look at the Melbourne Fashion Festival and even the global fashion, yeah, there's just such diversity and there's a sense of so for from your perspective, has that made it an easier journey?
• 7:16
  SPEAKER_00: And and how are you in terms of working with the other girls?
• 7:20
  SPEAKER_00: Is there discussion around these issues?
• 7:22
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, I think that it is openly discussed on you on a regular basis because there's so many different types of girls that are coming into the pageant these days, which is amazing to see, even just for the short amount of time that I've been doing it, like back uh four years ago, there was, you know, all different types of girls from all walks of life coming together.
• 7:44
  SPEAKER_01: And it's just very inclusive.
• 7:46
  SPEAKER_01: And I think it's bringing a different type of girl as well.
• 7:49
  SPEAKER_01: Like Miss Universe Australia isn't just targeting models, like there's so many different types of girls coming in and getting involved and doing photo shoots for the first time, doing these interviews, creating content on Instagram.
• 8:01
  SPEAKER_01: And I feel that it's a really nice group that it's bringing people, it's a really nice group of girls that it's bringing together.
• 8:09
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, so it's really nice to see.
• 8:11
  SPEAKER_01: I think, yeah, when it comes to the modeling, I guess they're not looking for a model.
• 8:17
  SPEAKER_01: They're looking for someone to represent their country and that can speak and that can present well and that likes to go to events and likes to take photos and talk to people and meet people.
• 8:28
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that's what they're looking for.
• 8:30
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that, yeah, so it's so much more than just being a model.
• 8:34
  SPEAKER_01: Like, I don't think they want a model, really.
• 8:36
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah, that's really and that's good to hear, isn't it?
• 8:39
  SPEAKER_00: Because it just opens the dialogue and it opens opportunity for others.
• 8:43
  SPEAKER_00: Um, who like, you know, is there anybody that you particularly are inspired by or that mentors you or that you've seen be successful?
• 8:50
  SPEAKER_00: There's somebody I can think of in mind who was very Australian, very successful as an Australian Miss Universe.
• 8:56
  SPEAKER_00: Is she somebody you look towards and see a trajectory she's ended up being very successful on many fronts?
• 9:02
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, a hundred percent.
• 9:03
  SPEAKER_01: I think honestly, I look at all the past winners of Miss Universe Australia and I really look up to them and I admire all of them because some of them, yes, they may be models, and some of them aren't models.
• 9:16
  SPEAKER_01: They're just genuinely good, kind people.
• 9:18
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that that's what the competition is all about.
• 9:21
  SPEAKER_01: It's just women supporting women and just being confidently beautiful.
• 9:25
  SPEAKER_01: I think that's what the pageant is all about.
• 9:28
  SPEAKER_00: And so I gather that there's an element of there's a strong sense of positivity and a sense of supporting each other.
• 9:34
  SPEAKER_00: And is it, do you find it collegiate?
• 9:36
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, it's competitive, clearly, because you're all up against each other, clearly.
• 9:40
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but is it collegiate as well?
• 9:43
  SPEAKER_01: That's what you're implying, that there's a sense of camaraderie or yes, I think ultimately it is a competition.
• 9:50
  SPEAKER_01: So people are going to get competitive, especially towards the end, you know, when they're about to crown the winner.
• 9:56
  SPEAKER_01: But I think from my experience, all the it's a great way to make friends.
• 10:01
  SPEAKER_01: And I've made some of my best friends from doing the competition because everyone's really excited and they're happy and they're enthusiastic to be involved because it's not only like, yes, we're all working towards the end goal of hope, hopefully winning the crown, but it's it's very it's great for your career, it's great for your image, it's always pushing your boundaries, you're getting stronger and more confident by being involved.
• 10:25
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that's what it's all about.
• 10:27
  SPEAKER_01: Like, if I'm going to be honest, back when I was 19, when I first did the pageant, I wasn't on Instagram.
• 10:34
  SPEAKER_01: I was a model.
• 10:35
  SPEAKER_01: I started modeling when I was, I think it was like eight years old, but I wasn't on Instagram.
• 10:40
  SPEAKER_01: And from being involved in the pageant, it got me onto Instagram.
• 10:43
  SPEAKER_01: And that's how I've gotten to where I am today.
• 10:46
  SPEAKER_01: Instagram is a great tool for your business to meet people, yeah, network.
• 10:50
  SPEAKER_01: And I feel that it's helped me so much.
• 10:53
  SPEAKER_00: It's opened doors for you.
• 10:55
  SPEAKER_00: And it sounds to me like also you've learned a lot on your path.
• 10:59
  SPEAKER_00: What's what's taken you out of your comfort zone?
• 11:01
  SPEAKER_01: I think, look, something I didn't mention before.
• 11:04
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, a fun fact about me, I actually grew up on a farm.
• 11:08
  SPEAKER_01: So I wasn't born into this modeling, uh, going to social events, networking lifestyle, I suppose.
• 11:16
  SPEAKER_01: I was, I just made my way in there, and that's how I've gotten there.
• 11:19
  SPEAKER_01: I've just kept pushing my boundaries.
• 11:21
  SPEAKER_01: I think that going to events and doing public speaking was not something that came naturally to me.
• 11:28
  SPEAKER_01: And I shied away from it to begin with, especially back when I was 19.
• 11:32
  SPEAKER_01: I was very shy and I was like, no, no, no, no one give me the microphone.
• 11:35
  SPEAKER_01: I'm happy to sit back here.
• 11:37
  SPEAKER_01: But now, because I think, you know, back when I was 19, you had to uh do the public speaking.
• 11:44
  SPEAKER_01: It's part of the competition.
• 11:45
  SPEAKER_01: You have to go to the networking events.
• 11:47
  SPEAKER_01: It sort of started, that's where it sort of started for me.
• 11:51
  SPEAKER_01: And then, you know, from when I was 19 to now, when now that I'm 25, I've just continued doing it and gotten and gotten stronger and stronger by pushing my boundaries because I didn't enjoy it at the start.
• 12:03
  SPEAKER_01: Like I mentioned before, I was like, no, no, no, I don't want to do that.
• 12:06
  SPEAKER_01: But because I've continued to do it, I actually enjoy it now.
• 12:09
  SPEAKER_01: And it makes me feel good.
• 12:11
  SPEAKER_01: Like that's where my career is going.
• 12:13
  SPEAKER_01: I love interviewing people, I love networking, I love going to events.
• 12:17
  SPEAKER_01: And I love, I actually do love public speaking now.
• 12:21
  SPEAKER_01: When I'm talking, I know.
• 12:23
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 12:23
  SPEAKER_00: Well, obviously, it's interesting because you can I can hear from you your um enthusiasm that you're you're comfortable in that space.
• 12:32
  SPEAKER_00: And that's something that you have learned on on this pathway.
• 12:35
  SPEAKER_00: And whether you you would have learned it anyway, who knows?
• 12:38
  SPEAKER_00: But it sounds like the pageant space has been a really good opportunity for you to learn that.
• 12:43
  SPEAKER_01: Yes.
• 12:44
  SPEAKER_01: And every girl that I've I have I've encountered by doing the competition says the same thing.
• 12:49
  SPEAKER_01: Like they've loved the whole experience.
• 12:52
  SPEAKER_00: And so, how do we ensure that we don't set impossible standards for young girls?
• 12:56
  SPEAKER_00: And how has social media impacted the beauty pageant industry in terms of clearly there are measures that are about physical beauty, but as you say, that definition is very broad and broadening.
• 13:08
  SPEAKER_00: So, how do we make sure that we send the right message and that young girls, you know, as you say, 18, 19, or even younger, don't feel those measures of beauty are the only form of assessing their value.
• 13:24
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, that's a really good point.
• 13:26
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that even I struggle with this sometimes being on social media because you're following so many people.
• 13:32
  SPEAKER_01: And I feel that we put these unrealistic pressures on ourselves to be doing what those people are doing because everyone's posting their lives online and you're like, oh, that person's doing more than me, and you're constantly stressing yourself out and you know, running yourself into the ground.
• 13:47
  SPEAKER_01: But I think that the positive side of social media is it does give young girls or like girls and boys, everyone, a chance to have a voice.
• 13:55
  SPEAKER_01: And I think it's how you use your platform.
• 13:58
  SPEAKER_01: And I feel that, you know, by putting captions, like I doing positive captions and put sending out a positive message to young girls, especially I know that I have a lot of young girls following me.
• 14:10
  SPEAKER_01: And yes, I post my modeling photos and I'm posting what I'm doing all the time, but I love to post positive quotes every now and then because I want I'm real and I want everyone to know that I'm real.
• 14:20
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that that's the positive side of social media, and I think that that's how we should be using it, because you can get lost in the unrealisticness of it all.
• 14:32
  SPEAKER_00: In the unreality of expectation.
• 14:34
  SPEAKER_00: And I mean, look, I know, and as a mother of daughters, and I think the the complexity around that is something that's still unfolding and unraveling.
• 14:42
  SPEAKER_00: And I think if if if Miss Universe becomes a platform for good and for for good messaging, as you've outlined, then that's great because I think the expectation around sizing and beauty and um all of those elements hopefully is changing, but it's slow and it's taking time.
• 15:01
  SPEAKER_00: Um I suppose the real question is also who are that is these judges?
• 15:07
  SPEAKER_00: How do they source them?
• 15:08
  SPEAKER_00: Where do they come from and what it what are they looking for?
• 15:11
  SPEAKER_00: You mentioned briefly what what in the beginning what they're looking for, but maybe in a little more detail, if you can tell me how how do they judge the pageants, you know, other than obviously being reasonably beautiful.
• 15:27
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, actually interesting.
• 15:29
  SPEAKER_01: It's been a journey for me to sort of unravel exactly what they're looking for because as I mentioned before, I've done the competition before, but now that I'm older, I can see it a lot more clearly.
• 15:39
  SPEAKER_01: And to answer your question, the judges are actually sponsors.
• 15:44
  SPEAKER_01: So there's quite a number, a number of sponsors that are involved in the competition.
• 15:49
  SPEAKER_01: And throughout the next few months, like we are to we create content and we're heavily involved with these sponsors.
• 15:56
  SPEAKER_01: And they're all amazing.
• 15:57
  SPEAKER_01: There's some really, really great sponsors.
• 15:59
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and I guess what they're judging us on, they're judging us on who we are, how we interact with people, if we can handle pressure, uh, you know, if we're to go on the morning show, how we would handle it.
• 16:12
  SPEAKER_01: And they, you know, they want to know that they can send someone into a networking event or into an interview and know that they can handle that and speak well and present well.
• 16:23
  SPEAKER_01: I think ultimately they're looking for someone to represent the organization, you know, that's strong, that has a strong message, is confident, is kind, compassionate, all of those things.
• 16:36
  SPEAKER_01: It's a huge role, huge shoes to fill.
• 16:39
  SPEAKER_01: But I think that, you know, there's some great girls that are in uh that are in the competition this year.
• 16:44
  SPEAKER_01: I've got some strong competition.
• 16:46
  SPEAKER_01: But we're all, you know, we're all really happy and we want to represent our country.
• 16:51
  SPEAKER_01: That's what it's all about.
• 16:52
  SPEAKER_01: It's not, you know, it's not just about what you look like, what was spoken about before.
• 16:57
  SPEAKER_01: Yes.
• 16:59
  SPEAKER_01: I don't know, a Victoria's secret model walking down the runway.
• 17:03
  SPEAKER_01: But if you aren't kind, compassionate, driven, um, can speak and you know, all of these different things, they're not going to give you the crown because you're not going to, you know, you're not going to be able to fulfill the what they're wanting you to do.
• 17:18
  SPEAKER_01: You know what I mean?
• 17:19
  SPEAKER_00: It makes a lot of, yes, I can hear what you're saying.
• 17:21
  SPEAKER_00: And I think I suppose for you, what what do you see the crown should you win it, um, as giving you?
• 17:27
  SPEAKER_00: What what what do you see it as an avenue to to because there's lots of ways, obviously you have a successful modeling career and you have your businesses, but there must be something in this that you see having yeah, potential.
• 17:41
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 17:42
  SPEAKER_01: I guess for me, it has honestly been a dream of mine ever since I was a little girl to be Miss Universe Australia.
• 17:48
  SPEAKER_01: I think that I love my country, Australia, and I would love to be, you know, to represent my country on the international stage.
• 17:56
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that I do have a lot going on.
• 17:58
  SPEAKER_01: So it was, you know, a big decision for me to come back and try one last time.
• 18:04
  SPEAKER_01: But I think that I have worked really hard to get to where I am and to develop, you know, who I am today.
• 18:11
  SPEAKER_01: I'm incredibly passionate about business.
• 18:13
  SPEAKER_01: And I really want to be a voice and a leader for women in business.
• 18:17
  SPEAKER_01: I love, I have actually hosted networking events in the past, bringing women together to share it, share stories and educate and inspire each other.
• 18:27
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that that's why I would love to win, I suppose.
• 18:30
  SPEAKER_00: Because I think it would give you that opportunity and that platform.
• 18:34
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, tell me, do you think um so from your perspective, do you feel that the the capacity for whoever is Miss Universe to open that dialogue and to change the dialogue around that?
• 18:48
  SPEAKER_00: Because clearly there is a definite embracing of making sure that you can engage and speak and and conduct yourself at a much deeper level than, as you say, just looking a certain way.
• 19:01
  SPEAKER_00: Do you think that person and the people judging it, are they also protecting the mental health of those that are involved?
• 19:08
  SPEAKER_00: Is there a is there like a sense that you're being nurtured as well as clearly it's competition?
• 19:14
  SPEAKER_00: So, but you know, that that's really important for a lot of these young women.
• 19:18
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, you're a little older in some ways, but still, you still have to be, you know, do you feel that you're getting that support?
• 19:25
  SPEAKER_01: You honestly do get a lot of support.
• 19:27
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that, you know, for your state, for example, Victoria, there's five girls that have gotten through, and then we all support each other as well because we're all coming together, we're working together, and we're building friendships and bonds together.
• 19:41
  SPEAKER_01: So I think that, you know, that's the support system that I rely on.
• 19:46
  SPEAKER_01: But uh the directors, Troy and Soph, they're so lovely and they really do support us.
• 19:52
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and I think it's ultimately, they actually have a saying that it's um, what is their saying?
• 19:56
  SPEAKER_01: It's something like it's not a pageant, it's a party.
• 20:00
  SPEAKER_01: So it's it's honestly just about having fun.
• 20:03
  SPEAKER_01: Like, yes, we're going on a um national final trip in July.
• 20:06
  SPEAKER_01: It's all about creating content, but it's actually going to be so much fun.
• 20:10
  SPEAKER_01: I've done the national final trips before, and it's just we go out for dinners.
• 20:14
  SPEAKER_01: We're um, you know, we we're going to be at movie world, we're going to go, I'd have no idea actually what they've got planned, but we've in the past, we've done some pretty amazing things and it's honestly so much fun.
• 20:27
  SPEAKER_01: So it's not, it's not all serious.
• 20:29
  SPEAKER_01: I'm I speak very seriously about it because I'm I'm passionate and I'm so excited to be involved.
• 20:34
  SPEAKER_01: And I think because I'm older now, I know why I'm doing the competition.
• 20:38
  SPEAKER_01: But when I was 19 doing the competition, like I wasn't trying to win.
• 20:41
  SPEAKER_01: I was honestly just there for fun and I had so much fun.
• 20:44
  SPEAKER_01: And that's predominantly why all the girls are doing it.
• 20:47
  SPEAKER_01: Like, yes, you know, they're a lot of them do want to win.
• 20:50
  SPEAKER_01: Actually, probably all of them want to win, but they're all having so much fun.
• 20:54
  SPEAKER_01: And they're like, if I don't win, I don't care because it's just the best experience.
• 20:57
  SPEAKER_01: We're we're exposed to so many different sponsors.
• 21:00
  SPEAKER_01: It's elevating your brand.
• 21:01
  SPEAKER_01: So whether you win or you you lose, you walk away with a lot.
• 21:05
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I can hear that.
• 21:06
  SPEAKER_00: You know, you've got some great networks as well, and the sponsors clearly come on board, but but from what I'm hearing, there is a sense that you girls are all being looked after, and there's accountability and there's a you know, which there never used to be.
• 21:18
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that's really important too, because as we know, young, beautiful girls, young girls of any sort can be very vulnerable.
• 21:26
  SPEAKER_00: And that's that's probably the most important is that you're protected and you're nurtured and you're, you know.
• 21:33
  SPEAKER_01: And you're probably getting that from, I don't know if you know much about the modeling industry for girls, but that's not as nurturing.
• 21:42
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, to compare them, like the pageants are actually where I would, you know, have gone straight for rather than modeling.
• 21:49
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 21:49
  SPEAKER_01: Modeling isn't nurturing, you know, you got you are exposed to so much, and that's you know, purely just about looks.
• 21:56
  SPEAKER_01: And I think from a you know, when I was a young girl.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_01: Being exposed to that from a young age is that I've had some you know serious ups and downs.
• 22:05
  SPEAKER_01: But I think I wouldn't be the person I am today if I hadn't been exposed to that at a at a young age because I went through it early and now I'm now I'm you know older and I'm I'm happy and I'm confident in who I am.
• 22:16
  SPEAKER_01: I don't need to change anything about myself.
• 22:18
  SPEAKER_01: But when you're a young girl in the modeling industry, it's it's it's not good because you just constantly want to be something else and you want to change yourself to try and fit this mold that you know I don't know what the flavor of the month is, but you know, they're always looking for something in particular, so it's it's always really hard.
• 22:36
  SPEAKER_00: That's a very good point, actually, Darcy.
• 22:39
  SPEAKER_00: I think that you've raised.
• 22:40
  SPEAKER_00: And I have interviewed a lot of models on the podcast with in varying roles, and I think, yes, it's certainly something that is a work in progress.
• 22:49
  SPEAKER_00: But what I what I can hear from you is that this is a great opportunity, and I'm really grateful for you coming on and talking so openly and honestly about the Miss Universe pageant and also about your journey, which really I'm very excited for you.
• 23:03
  SPEAKER_00: And I wait with bated breath to hear how you do, and hopefully you'll keep us posted.
• 23:09
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, I will.
• 23:10
  SPEAKER_01: It's very exciting.
• 23:11
  SPEAKER_01: The competition isn't at like the national final isn't until September.
• 23:16
  SPEAKER_01: So we have a little bit of time.
• 23:17
  SPEAKER_01: I think it's like, I don't know, we're in June now.
• 23:19
  SPEAKER_01: It's like three months, June, July, August, September, four months or whatever it is, uh, until the national final.
• 23:25
  SPEAKER_01: So there's a bit of prep time.
• 23:27
  SPEAKER_01: So I suppose that for me, that looks like just practicing question answers, um, practicing how to handle pressure.
• 23:35
  SPEAKER_01: And, you know, when you're on a stage, there's a quite a little bit of anxiety that can arise.
• 23:41
  SPEAKER_01: I'm sure.
• 23:43
  SPEAKER_01: So for me, it's learning how to handle that because I know that most people do live with a little bit of anxiety, or most people anxiety will arise when in those high pressure situations.
• 23:55
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that's something I'm working on at the moment is learning how to sit with it and just acknowledge it, but not let it overtake me and overcome me.
• 24:05
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and I think that's that's what a lot of us are all doing in our whatever uh chosen profession or journey we go on.
• 24:12
  SPEAKER_00: At least anxiety is something that people are talking about and owning it and saying it's okay and developing tools and skills around how to harness that is something that I can hear your you're doing.
• 24:23
  SPEAKER_00: But I think from from listening to you, you certainly know how to express yourself.
• 24:28
  SPEAKER_00: And it's a really good insight for our listeners because there is a tendency for people to be a little dismissive of the pageant world.
• 24:35
  SPEAKER_00: And while this may not change some listeners' views, what I think it does is it just opens a door and gets people to understand that it is as it's not just face value, basically.
• 24:47
  SPEAKER_00: And it's important to hear that it's a that it's a it's a deeper journey for yourself and for others who are doing it.
• 24:54
  SPEAKER_00: And tell me, one thing I was curious about is at 25, do you have a boyfriend?
• 24:58
  SPEAKER_00: And if so, how does he feel about what you're doing?
• 25:01
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, so I do have a boyfriend.
• 25:03
  SPEAKER_01: His name is Brody, and we've been together for a year and a half.
• 25:06
  SPEAKER_01: He is really, really supportive with everything that I do.
• 25:10
  SPEAKER_01: It's not, you know, every day that your girlfriend is, you know, doing a competition like Miss Universe Australia and is modeling and posting so frequently on social media, but he actually takes half of my photos.
• 25:23
  SPEAKER_01: So he's really supportive.
• 25:25
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, that's great.
• 25:26
  SPEAKER_00: So he's actually a photographer, or he he obviously, yeah.
• 25:30
  SPEAKER_00: So that's great.
• 25:30
  SPEAKER_01: Well, that helps.
• 25:32
  SPEAKER_01: But I've I've trained him well.
• 25:35
  SPEAKER_00: That's great.
• 25:35
  SPEAKER_00: Well, no, it actually does help because, in a sense, you've involved you in the process.
• 25:39
  SPEAKER_00: And also you would hope that he would support whatever endeavor you chose.
• 25:44
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and so you're saying he doesn't feel threatened by the fact that there's lots of people looking at you in your bikinis or in a beautiful whatever.
• 25:51
  SPEAKER_00: He's very comfortable with all that.
• 25:53
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, he's very comfortable.
• 25:55
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I can see how some partners wouldn't wouldn't love that.
• 26:00
  SPEAKER_01: But I think that that's why our relationship works so well is he's so supportive and he we trust each other.
• 26:06
  SPEAKER_01: We have openly communicate all the time.
• 26:08
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I'm like, I'll come home, like, oh, something's really stressed me out today.
• 26:12
  SPEAKER_01: I don't, I don't really want to post this, I don't want to post that.
• 26:14
  SPEAKER_01: He's very like calm.
• 26:16
  SPEAKER_01: He's very relaxed and he's very supportive.
• 26:18
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that having a partner like that when I am, when I do have a career that is so high pressure and I'm always pushing my boundaries and trying to do more and be more to come home to someone that's so calm and relaxed and you know wants me to succeed is yeah, I feel like it's really important.
• 26:38
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, well, it certainly helps, doesn't it?
• 26:40
  SPEAKER_00: Because he also, you're also quite public in what you do, and so he has to be comfortable with that too, because there are certain people who who find that quite threatening or unnerving.
• 26:51
  SPEAKER_00: So sounds like you and Brody have got that sorted, but well done to you getting him involved.
• 26:55
  SPEAKER_00: That's smart.
• 26:57
  SPEAKER_00: So I want to thank you so much, Darcy, for your time and energy, and I wish you all the best on your journey.
• 27:05
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you for having me.
• 27:06
  SPEAKER_01: It's been a delight.
• 27:08
  SPEAKER_00: Absolute pleasure.
• 27:10
  SPEAKER_01: All right, good luck.
• 27:11
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you, see ya.
• 27:13
  SPEAKER_00: Bye.
• 27:19
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks so much for listening.
• 27:21
  SPEAKER_00: The What I've Learned podcast will now be coming to you weekly with new episodes released every Tuesday.
• 27:27
  SPEAKER_00: I'm blessed to have so many wonderful guests coming on the show.
• 27:31
  SPEAKER_00: So check out my What I've Learned Instagram for updates.
• 27:34
  SPEAKER_00: Meanwhile, stay tuned, kind, and curious.
• 27:38
  SPEAKER_00: Love dear.