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Sandra Omo reflects on 2007 and looks forward to 2008

It has been a very hectic week, I mean year, for me. Hectic with success anticipated, unexpected, as well as dreams not yet achieved. As I take a final look at 2007, I agree that it has been a good year for me. I have bagged more jobs than I expected or prepared for, won modelling competitions, and have even signed a contract with another mainstream modelling agency.

Nevertheless, the jobs I missed – not my fault but definitely my problem – still bothers me and I am determined to have a better strategy.

I hear people talk about New Year resolutions and I wonder what they mean. I know the meaning of resolutions but I don’t get it when people only associate it with a New Year. I, for one, have never had a New Year resolution. I have always had dreams and this heart of mine is constantly bursting with big dreams, and it is with this same mindset that I enter 2008 hoping to achieve greater things – I speak openly about my desires for the New Year, which seems to surprise no one around me.

“I speak openly about my desires for the New Year, which surprises no one around me”

As I was saying, making resolutions is not something I associate with a new year because in this industry that I have chosen to work in it is something we make on a weekly, if not daily basis. As a model, I cannot afford to wait until the new year before I make the decision to cut down on fatty foods, drink less or no alcohol, do more exercises, or to work harder, compete harder, aim higher, etc. Boy, I don’t have all year for such, and no model does.

I have promised myself more rest for the New Year because being the ambitious beast that I am, I have barely paused for any. I have had so many days without nights, and nights without sleep that I do not even know the difference any more. Do not get me wrong, I am a big fan of hard work but it baffles me to see the increasing number of people out there that have actually made a good living without a good life. I am determined not to be in that category, because for me success is best measured in the wealth of fulfilment and health, which without all the hard work is just not worth it. Therefore, for all my achievements so far, I am grateful for my faith in God and my hard work. However, it is the former that has helped me keep my ground in those hard times when I needed to reassure myself of who I am. We all have such times. Having had a good year in 2007 I am looking forward to an even better one in 2008 with a lot of hard work, success, and more rest – and I wish you the same. Or would you rather have the success and rest without the hard work? Ha ha. Whichever one works for you, I wish you a happy New Year from the city of dreams.

Sandra Omo races against the clock to make an important appointment

Have you ever felt like you have made the worst choice although it was the best option? This was exactly how I felt last Wednesday. I had purchased my coach ticket to Birmingham to attend a casting by Levis for the launch of their new range of denim. It will be four days of show room displays, workshops and catwalks with great pay and huge exposure for the selected models. Therefore, it was worth the travel.

Come Wednesday, I was running late due to an earlier appointment. I knew I would have to fly if I was to make it to Victoria coach station before 11 am when my bus departs. Therefore, I decided to use a taxi. “Why didn’t she use the tube?” I can hear someone ask. Well, you know that thing they say about the tube being the fastest means of transportation in London? It really depends on how many times you have to change lines. If it is up to two times for a journey that will take you no more than 20 minutes by road, honey, you are better off by car. A taxi to Victoria from where I was at the time would take fifteen minutes or less. It would have been the perfect choice if not for unexpected traffic that spoilt it all for me.

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Sandra Omo contemplates Christmas presents to oneself

My countdown to Christmas has been so slow lately because am still stuck in the common confusion of what to buy for my loved ones and especially for myself. Come on guys, don’t say I’m selfish, tell me what other time do we have to give ourselves gifts apart from Christmas? This is the thing I like most about this period; it is the only time you can legally lay claim to the right to be loved. Even the law respects this. This is the reason I do not blame people when they say Christmas is not about celebrating Christ but love. Well let us look at it this way. The Bible says that God is love. If we celebrate love are we not equally celebrating God? Ha ha, I bet you never thought about that.

“I spent hours looking around and buying gifts for others but still could not find what I like”

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Sandra Omo discovers that life as a model can be tougher than you think

Earlier this week, my agency sent me to a casting for a hair magazine. I washed my hair, conditioned it and made sure it was shining stars as it was supposed to be the most important thing the judges would take into consideration when deciding. I took my portfolio along as well, as this is normal. After all, what do I have it for if I can’t take it to every casting I go to? A model’s portfolio should be versatile enough to contain at least one picture that refers to any kind of casting you attend. If this isn’t the case, honey your portfolio needs fixing. They always do, don’t they? I have digressed. Well, back to the topic. I arrived at this hair magazine casting and got chatting with other models from the same agency with me.

You know it’s so much fun when you go for castings and meet rival agencies’ models there. It’s even more fun when it’s so clear that your agency’s models are looking more model-like than the other agencies. That is the perfect time to keep chatting about the successes you’ve had over the past weeks. Ok, I have digressed again. Why can’t I just stick to the topic today? I think my brain is suffering from LoCS (Lack of Concentration Syndrome) but I shall pull through.

“Do I really have too many bikini photos in my book? Is there something wrong with a bikini photo?”

At the end of the casting I must confess that I left with a certain kind of confidence. The type you have only when you know you have done a perfect job. During my audition, I could see the approval on the panel’s face. They kept passing my portfolio amongst themselves with each one choosing which picture they liked best. Hours later, I received a call from my booker telling me how much the panel liked me and that I scored high in the judging process. However, I was one of the models who will not be getting the job because I had too many bikini photos in my portfolio. What, was he playing some prank on me, or testing how well I could handle rejection? I mean, I never imagined that a bikini photo would make a difference to a casting. However, this time it did as I guess the panel did not want to see anything else apart from portraits.

After the discussion with my booker, I began thinking about it for the first time. Do I really have too many bikini photos in my book? Is there something wrong with a bikini photo? I, for one, have never considered five swimwear photos to be too much in a portfolio. Well, that was not my lucky day as no matter how much the panel liked me, they just could not book me for the job. This is just like the famous ‘I nearly killed the bird’ story, but nearly is never good enough. So right now, I have discovered another strategy. Does this mean no bikini pictures in my portfolio? No. It just means not showing them in castings that do not require them for now.