Today we’d like to introduce you to Mouna Doukoure.
Hi Mouna, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I was born and raised in West Africa in Burkina Faso. I moved in United States in 2016 after graduating from High School to pursue my academic career. This is how I ended up here all by myself where I had to learn a new different language. Moving away from my hometown was one the best things I have ever done for my personal development, I’ve grown more confident, competent, and most of all happier. It was a powerful way for me to experience self-growth and further my independence as a young female adult. Embarking on such a huge change pushed myself out of my comfort zone. I studied Business Administration and marketing in school because I always loved social media and I wanted to study something I love. Loving the subject you study is beneficial and you can show your passion through your work and it will give you drive to give your best effort in what you do where the idea of creating my own social media marketing agency MD MEDIA, where I helped businesses and brands grow their online presence by developing marketing strategies. Another big passion of mine was becoming a model. I remember when I was a kid, my dad used to capture every moment of my life. He always took pictures of me when I had my first bicycle when I was going to my first party in school…He always made me feel like a star. I grew up loving taking pictures, I could spend my entire day in my room taking pictures. It was until I moved here that I realized I could have a career in modeling. One day, I was scrolling on Instagram and I saw this girl post with the same body as me talking about how she loved working as a full-time model and how getting signed to a modeling agency has helped her. I was in shock but also very excited to see that this was real and very possible. Of course, I started doing more research on it and here I am two years later after a lot of hard work, patience and faith, signed to my very first modeling agency in New York.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
It hasn’t been a smooth road. One of my biggest challenges was definitely getting noticed by a modeling agency and getting signed with them. Agencies have thousands of submissions every day, to get noticed by them you have to have a very specific look or have something different. For over two years, I was submitting to different agencies but never really heard back from them, or when I heard back they wanted me to have a strong portfolio. So I spent the past two years working hard, building my social, creating content, and shooting with photographers, make-up artists, hairstylists. I would drive to Houston or Dallas just to shoot with photographers. You need to invest in yourself. The hardest thing I hard to learn is not to take rejection personally, I heard a lot of no’s along the way, but not once I thought about giving up. I learned to be very patient and really trust the process and the timing. Another big obstacle was stepping out of my comfort zone. I am a naturally shy person, so learning to put myself more out there was very uncomfortable. I had to really believe in myself and stand for what I believe and want but also go for it.
What are you the most proud and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am very proud of the woman I am becoming. I am proud of the choices I made and the hard work I have done these past few years. I have grown so much as a person and every day, I am learning and becoming the best version of myself. What sets me apart from others is that I truly believe in myself, I am also very passionate and driven person, I will always give one hundred percent in everything I do, I have a strong ability to easily empathize with and relate to people.
So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
Friendships, relationships, time, memories, and experiences are what truly matters to me. These things help me find my purpose in life. It helped me discover who I am and what really matters to me. Whenever I feel like I am losing track of life and myself, I can always go back to these things. Happiness comes from having a purpose in life, loving and accepting yourself and others, and just maintaining good health.
Contact Info:
- Email: doukoure.mouna@yahoo.com
- Website: www.mounadoukoure.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/douks_mouna/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mouna.douks
- Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/Douksmouna
- Other: https://www.curvmanagement.com/mounadoukourecurvmgmt
Image Credits
Jay Brans Martin Framez Tony Redmer Jarrelle Lee
