Here’s Why Paige Spiranac Says It’s O.K. to Feel Insecure

The SI Swimsuit legend opens up about the importance of working through moments of self-doubt.

Paige Spiranac was photographed by Yu Tsai in Hollywood, Fla. / Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated

When we think of the picture of confidence, women like SI Swimsuit legend Paige Spiranac instantly spring to mind. Whether she’s creating content for her 5.6 combined Instagram and TikTok followers or crafting elevated golf content on Passes, Spiranac’s bubbly and self-assured personality always shines through. However, even the golf instructor and former Division I athlete herself has occasional moments of insecurity.

We recently sat down with the content creator and two-time brand model to chat about her Beauty Evolution over the years, and Spiranac opened up about feelings of self-doubt and how to deal with them. The Colorado native noted that while social media can often bring about insecurities in her line of work, she has chosen to ignore the noise and instead “embrace [her] imperfections.”

“It’s O.K. to feel insecure. It’s O.K. to have those feelings, but ... [you have to] continue to fight every single day to work through those insecurities. That is the most important thing,” Spiranac told us of her outlook. “ ... There’s been certain moments in my life where I feel really good about myself. I feel that I look good internally, externally, I’m confident and in those moments, those are the times where I receive the most hate and I receive the most pushback and you have to realize that a lot of people who haven’t gone through that journey of self-love and feeling good about themselves, they don’t want other people to feel that way and so they try to dim your light.”

Paige Spiranac was photographed by Yu Tsai in Hollywood, Fla. Dress by Maria Lucia Hohan. Shoes by Dolce&Gabbana. Jewelry by Melinda Maria and Charlie Lapson. / Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated

In order to fight through feelings of insecurity, Spiranac will do something more productive, like work out, hit the golf course or go to therapy. She encourages other women to likewise do something that makes them feel better about themselves when these feelings of self-doubt crop up.

“I think that all women can relate to this feeling of constantly feeling insecure and constantly feeling like you’re not good enough and that you’re comparing yourself to other people,” Spiranac stated. “It’s a battle every single day, and when you wake up, you have to choose when you look in the mirror: to embrace those insecurities or to try to overcome them instead of having them overcome you.”

So, the next time feelings of doubt creep up, take a page out of Spiranac’s book and do something productive to change your state of mind.

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