Power up this summer
MANILA, Philippines - All it takes is 11 seconds for you to create a good and lasting first impression,” says Marivic Padilla-Catala, international director of John Robert Powers Manila. (JRP).
In less than a minute, the person you are meeting for the first time will have formed an opinion of you based on your appearance, your posture, your grooming, and your clothes.
“And in the next 12 minutes,” she adds, “that first impression is reinforced by how you speak.”
Confidence comes from believing in yourself and your skills.
“The mission of John Robert Powers is to help individuals achieve their maximum potential through confidence building, communication proficiency, and image enhancement,” Padilla says.
John Robert Powers, who founded the Powers System in 1923, is credited for starting the modern modeling industry and the personality development program in the United States.
Powers believed that “there is no such thing as an unattractive person, just some people who do not know how to make the most of themselves.”
The long list of graduates who received the unique John Robert Powers training include prominent personalities such as Jackie Kennedy, Princess Grace of Monaco, Betty Ford, Henry Fonda, Lauren Bacall, Diana Ross, Farah Fawcett, Katie Holmes and Ashton Kutcher, among others.
In 1985, the group headed by longtime Manila residents George Drysdale and Jim Hodge brought the franchise to the Philippines with Tessie Araneta Macasaet as its first director.
Today, the international headquarters of for the region of Asia, Australia, New Zealand, and the Middle East is located in Manila, with Richard C. Upton as president and Marivic Padilla-Catala as international director.
“It is in the Manila schools, located in Makati, Quezon City and Alabang, where most of the programs and materials are developed for all the markets,” Padilla explains. Besides the Philippines, there are 11 other Powers locations in the Asia-Pacific region, in Japan, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, and soon in China and Malaysia. There are 71 JRP schools worldwide with 60 located in North America.
The courses offered are based on a multi-level curriculum that is suited for both males and females in various age groups: pre-teens, teens, young adults, adults and executives. Visual poise, voice communication, figure control, hairstyle, wardrobe as well as social graces are core elements in the program.
“The skills they learn are useful in their career advancement and help increase their employment opportunities,” notes Padilla.
For aspiring models, actors, TV personalities and beauty pageant contenders, there is the Celebrity Program, which includes components such as hosting, runway, photo posing, stage presence, audience appeal and theater work.
And for those running in the May elections, it is not yet too late to take advantage of the Image and Confidence Boost Workshop Empowerment Series for Politicians.
Padilla gets invitations from schools usually before the traditional Junior-Senior Prom to give talks on topics such as basic etiquette and even table manners.
“Often these young students do not know how to behave in a particular social situation so that they become unsure of themselves and easily lose their self-confidence,” Padilla observes. “A basic knowledge of social graces boosts their confidence. Not surprisingly, with confidence, they are able to do even better in school.”
It is said that etiquette is the glass containing the basic rules of politeness. Politeness and good manners are designed to avoid hurting people’s feelings.
“Although a far more complex matter than superficial politeness, civility certainly does have to do with how we humans relate to each other,” M. Scott Peck wrote in his book A World Waiting to be Born: The Search for Civility. “There is a huge difference between confidence and arrogance,” Padilla says. “It all goes back to the Golden Rule. That will never be passé.”
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Enrollment is ongoing for the summer classes.
John Robert Powers schools are located at the 4th Flr., Casmer Bldg., 195 Salcedo St., Legaspi Village, Makati City, 892-9511; ground floor, Cinderella Bldg., 825 EDSA, Quezon City, 927-0465; second floor, JJACCIS Bldg., 1208 Acacia Ave., Madrigal Business Park, Alabang, Muntinlupa City, 659-0052. Visit www.johnrobertpowers.com.
