Why We’re Starting With the Mirror: A Letter to Every Girl Who's Ever Questioned Her Worth

I Didn’t Always Know How to Love What I Saw in the Mirror.

Growing up, confidence wasn’t something I carried easily. I was quiet, shy, and often commented on for not having the “best” physical features, even by my own mother. I didn’t feel like I measured up to the beauty standards that surrounded me. I didn’t excel in school either. I would’ve described myself as average but never good enough to be noticed.

And when you grow up feeling like you didn’t matter, it’s easy to believe you’re unworthy of love.

I didn’t realize it then, but those quiet insecurities followed me into adulthood. And when I became a mother, especially to four daughters, I began to see how deeply those patterns were still alive in me.

At first, I thought I was doing everything “right.” I loved my girls with my whole heart. I supported them the best way I knew how and gave them all of me. I made sure not to comment on their appearances, because I knew how damaging those words could be. I didn’t want to be that mom.

But on the other side of that, I also found myself quick to get frustrated when they didn’t get things “right.” When I felt like I was failing at motherhood, I projected my own self-doubt onto them; whether it was their schoolwork, their behavior, or their emotions.

Without realizing it, I was modeling the same patterns I had grown up with: perfectionism, pressure, and not feeling good enough.

That was my wake-up call.

If I wanted something different for my daughters and for them to truly love themselves and walk through life with confidence, I had to start with myself. I had to go inward and do the hard, messy, beautiful work of healing. I had to face the stories I inherited, the silence I swallowed, the shame I carried.

My healing journey became about more than just me. It became about them, too.

Through movement, reflection, and deep self-work, I came to realize, my lack of self-acceptance wasn’t random. It had roots. It came from moments in my childhood I brushed off, the comments I internalized, and the expectations I tried to meet to feel worthy.

And as I began to heal those parts of myself, something powerful started to happen.  My girls began to bloom in their own ways. I watched them look at themselves with more gentleness. Be more comfortable in their own skin.  I saw them begin to use their voices more boldly, hold boundaries more firmly, and stand just a little taller.

That’s why Her Mirror Project was born.

Not as a brand, but as a movement.

A space for girls to grow up learning how to love themselves early on.
A space that offers tools I wish I had when I was 8, 10, or 12.
And a space that reminds women, too, that it’s never too late to heal or reparent the younger version of ourselves.

We start with the mirror because that’s often where the self-doubt begins.
But it can also be where the self-love starts.

A single reflection can hold years of judgment…
Or become the moment we decide to speak to ourselves with kindness instead.

To Every Girl Who’s Ever Questioned Her Worth…

To every woman still learning how to believe in herself…
To every mom doing the deep inner work to break generational cycles.
You are not alone.

The work you’re doing? It ripples out further than you know.

Let’s raise a generation of girls who don’t have to spend years unlearning who they are.

Mirror Practice:
Tonight, try this simple practice. Either with your daughter or by yourself:
Look into the mirror and say:

“I am growing. I am glowing. I am more than enough.”

Even if it feels silly.
Especially if it feels hard.
That’s when it matters most.

Join the Movement

Her Mirror Project is a growing community rooted in love, reflection, and empowerment for girls and for the women guiding them.

Follow along.
Share with a mother or daughter in your life.
Take this journey with us.

Because together, we are changing the reflection—for good.

Hong Founder of Her Mirror Project