“A smile is the best makeup a girl can wear,” says former society beauty queen Marilyn Monroe; and honestly, she's right, girls don't need to be a size two, look perfect, or wear makeup, but they do need to love and accept who they are, and have a lot of confidence in themselves. There are so many reasons to enter a beauty pageant. Although the stereotype is lots of girls with big hair, too much makeup, fake personalities and perfect figures, that's not even close to reality! (Why You Should Enter? Miss Teen Arizona, 7 Reasons pg. 2) To truly see the reality of pageants, skeptics must be open-minded and erase all their prior knowledge of what the pageantry is about. Yes, pageants are perfection, but that's not the half of it. Unless skeptics have the proper knowledge and understanding, they are unable to understand the judging criteria of a competition. Self-confidence is the first reason to participate in a beauty pageant. (Building Self-Confidence p. 1) Miss Teen Arizona said, “You would never catch me speaking in front of large crowds, or being social at all, until my mother entered me in my first pageant among 213 girls! Talk about life changing! » (Developing Self-Confidence, p. 1) She came away in fourth place and was impressed by the self-confidence she gained from participating in the competition. If she can gain that much self-confidence by entering a pageant, then imagine how many young women could be positively influenced by deciding to enter a pageant themselves. It is a well-known fact that girls are naturally philanthropic; it is in their nature to want to give. Some girls are looking for ways to be able to give, and one of the main aspects...... middle of paper ...... "Quote: A smile is the best makeup a girl can wear :)." Advice of wisdom. April 24, 2014 http://boardofwisdom.com/togo/Quotes/ShowQuote?msgid=406733#.U1m-D8fUVpFWimberly, Cherie. “Why do pageant people enter beauty pageants.” Electronic publication articles. .Abee, Holle. “Are beauty pageants good for little children?” HubPages. Np, and Web. April 25, 2014. .VERYBESTQUOTES. “Beautiful Beauty Quotes ~ For Attractive Lips.” Very best quotes. Np, and Web. April 25, 2014. "7 reasons to enter a beauty pageant..." Lifestyle. Np, and Web. April 25. 2014. .