5 Lessons Learned from Yara Shahidi

This year’s June issue of Harper’s Bazaar Arabia features 18 year old actress and activist Yara Shahidi.

Yara’s interview with Harper’s Bazaar leaves the reader dumbfounded at the prose and eloquence with which she expresses herself. She seems well beyond her years and what she has learned in her own life thus far can serve as beneficial life lessons to others.

Here are 5 lessons from Yara Shahidi that we can take and share on our own journeys.

1.Being Compassionate

During her interview, Yara states “Being multicultural, you can’t help but be interested and connected to the world around you. My family is from all over the world, so how can you not care for people around the world too?”

She conveys this message with action. “She set up Yara’s Club in partnership with The Young Women’s Leadership School that brings high school students together to discuss social issues and how to take action.”

For someone at such a young age to express care for people in such a way that she would like others to learn how to lead the world in a compassionate direction is a huge milestone for the human race as a whole.

2.Creating a Strong Community

She mentions her family’s support in her industry and says “The idea that you’re supposed to figure out the best move for you is overwhelming. You need to gain guidance and have people that are there for you.”

This is important advice for a generation where we are driven to believe that everything is about “me, myself and I” and riding solo.

Yara offers an approach that translates to gratitude for the ones who have helped her while also proving to be of support to others through her understanding of what it means to need a shoulder to lean on.

3.Unity-Equality

Her mindset regarding equality is well-evolved. It surpasses unity and provides a clearer take on what true equality is. She says, “How we operate, our moral code, who we are in general, being close to family, respect… It’s really universal in a way that blurs both sides.”

When asked if she “Can she deconstruct what part of her is Iranian, what part African-American?”

She answered, “No, I don’t see much of a ‘this is my black side and this is my Iranian side’, because I come from a family of socially-engaged humans, and it’s hard to identify because of how similar both sides are.”

This is a very unique mindset that allows people to understand how bonds between people are formed. We are used to pointing out and separating aspects of our lives that are part of one culture and part of another culture when we could take our unique lineages to seamlessly merge our positive influences.

As Yara better puts it “There’s a certain separatist movement happening versus understanding how connected we are. So much of what we believe stems from similar origins, so it means you can relate to one another if you really listen and pay attention.”

4.Importance of Education

After hard work and recommendation letters from Michelle Obama and her AP Calculus teacher, Yara will be attending Harvard University this autumn. She describes the importance of education by saying:

“Education is crucial because I understand the privilege I’ve had in how particular education has been to me. My realm of possibility seems so much larger. In the broader sense of the word, this last year has been so much about learning and growing, so I’ve been a student of many teachers this year, especially my parents. I’ve been receptive to learning and receptive to the world around me. Also entering my adulthood has meant there have been moments that I’ve had to learn from and continue exploring – it’s required me to learn new skills.”

She also shares advice she received from her mom, “‘There is nothing more interesting than an interested human.'”

Her take on education is as someone who keeps an openness to ways in which she can grow and get the most out of life. This is someone who is not only enjoying her life but making full use of what she can accomplish for herself and others.

5.Strong Sense of Self

Something we all should consider, Yara has created a mission statement for herself. Her mission statement is “to be in a community, to be with people, and to help and broaden that community.” She strives “to not have lived a self-centric life.”

She brings up banishing insecurities:

“I’m learning and constantly reminding myself that while there are so many barriers connected to our identity, I have to be really cognizant to realize I’m not one of my own barriers, if that makes sense? There’s so much happening and whether you look at culture or politics there’s so much to deal with just to get through the day, so this year has been reminding myself that I shouldn’t be preventing myself or putting up barriers for myself. You’re self-critiquing in a way, and I find myself doing that and it’s really unnecessary in a world where people already tell us what we should and shouldn’t do.”

When asked what those barriers are, she responded, “They’re personal – just things like ‘maybe I’m not worthy of this space that I’m in’, or ‘my voice isn’t valuable’. Moments where you second-guess yourself… I think it’s called ‘imposter syndrome’.”

Yara Shahidi’s self awareness is on a whole other level, especially for someone of her age. Her wisdom reaches far beyond her years and she has proven to be a great role model for just about anyone. We hope to see and hear so much more from her in the future. Yara Shahidi’s empowering words, maturity and compassion are all the qualities of a Bleu Bombshell.