America’s Next Top Model 8: Top Model Tips

Can you believe America’s Next Top Model is entering its eighth season? The show is still going strong, and every cycle we see a new group of talented girls who all want the same thing - to be America’s Next Top Model. Before the end, though, all except one will be eliminated. What can the models do to help ensure they stay in the competition? Follow the Top Model Tips!

This season we’ve tweaked our tips a little. After seven seasons, even we have learned something about the modeling industry and what top models need to do to survive in it. Some of our rules are the same, but some have been altered and some are brand new. Models and writers both have to roll with the punches!

Tip #1 - Be open to and welcome change. This is one rule that never changes. If you’ve seen any cycle of America’s Next Top Model, you know that girls who complain about changes (especially after receiving their makeovers) are almost always doomed. You don’t like your haircut? Too bad. You should have known coming into the show that you might have to undergo a complete makeover. When you’re a model, you’re not going to look the same in any of your shoots, so you have to be ready to have a different haircut, a different hair color, or any number of changes.

In cycle 4, Michelle had her hair bleached and wound up with burns on her head, but she never complained. She knew she would have to put up with the pain, but she wanted to win, so she did. A season later, Cassandra cried over her short haircut, eventually getting so upset over the changes made to her appearance that she quit the show. She probably wouldn’t have lasted much longer anyway, since the judges hate it when the models whine.

Last season, Jaeda wouldn’t shut up about her short hair, continually saying that she just wanted to look pretty. Her lack of confidence in her new look landed her in the bottom two numerous times. In contrast, season 2’s Catie, who also hated her “boyish” haircut, rocked her photo shoots despite not liking her look. If Jaeda had taken a page from Catie’s book, she would have learned how to make her new look work. No matter how many changes the models are forced to undergo, they have to find a way to make them work. If they don’t welcome these changes, the judges won’t think they really want to be models.

Tip #2 - Know something about the fashion industry. If you’re going to be a model, it’s very helpful to know what you’ll be dealing with in the industry. One of the reasons Yoanna won season 2 and Melrose placed second last season was because they knew a lot about the fashion industry. They knew about other models, designers, and the magazines they could be appearing in. If you want to be a model but know nothing about modeling, the judges might not think you’re really serious about your desires.

Almost every season, there’s a challenge that has the girls giving interviews about fashion or pretending to be news correspondents who have to know something about modeling and fashion. And every cycle, most of the girls fail miserably at those challenges. If they would only do a little studying before applying to be on the show, they could outshine the competition. What kind of model can’t name the supermodels she aspires to be like?

Tip #3 - Practice walking, posing, and working on your flaws. Last season this top only focused on walking, but we’ve now expanded it to encompass a lot of the things models need to pay attention to. Once the typical walking challenge rolls around, there are always a handful of girls who are criticized for not having unique walks. If you’re going to be a runway model, you have to have something that makes you stand out.

However, many of the photo shoots on America’s Next Top Model aren’t on the runway - they’re still photos. That means girls need to know their good sides and what weakness they need to strengthen in order to be the best models possible. Melrose from season 7 and Joanie from season 6 were both good at this. Melrose in particular probably spent hours in front of the mirror, practicing her poses and making sure she was putting her best foot forward. Both girls focused on improving themselves, and both came in second because of it.

Focusing on and trying to change flaws means listening to the judges and taking their advice. If a judge tells a model to work on her smile, she’d better spend some time in front of the mirror doing just that. The judges are there to give advice, and if the models aren’t taking that advice, there’s no point in the judges trying to help them anymore. Lluvy from season 4 is a good example of this - whenever she landed in the bottom two, she listened to the judges when they told her what she needed to improve. Thanks to this, she remained in the competition a few weeks longer. The judges could see that she was trying, and that made them realize that she wanted to be there.

Tip #4 - Personality counts! This tip is one of the most important. With the debatable except of Naima from cycle 4, every past winner of America’s Next Top Model (Adrianne, Yoanna, Eva, Nicole, Danielle, and CariDee) has had a likeable, memorable personality. You can be the prettiest girl in the competition, but if you’re boring or people don’t want to work with you, you’re not going to win. In addition, if the judges can’t even remember that you’re in the competition, your chances of outshining the other models are pretty slim.

Christina from season 4 demonstrates why this tip is so important. She was pretty and took some nice photos, but she never stood out from the group (except maybe for being so boring). In cycle 6, Mollie Sue was branded as boring, and it wound up being her downfall. If there’s a girl in a cycle who you can barely remember or who the judges hardly pay attention to, chances are she’ll be heading home in no time. Take Christian from cycle 7 - she was eliminated in the very first episode because the judges didn’t think she was interesting.

Of course, you don’t want your personality to be bigger than your talent. Season 7’s CariDee and Brooke both had some trouble showing the judges that they had the talent to go along with their personalities. Brooke struggled in some of her shoots, but she was allowed to stick around because she was so likable and showed so much spirit in the challenges. CariDee, however, won the season partly because of her personality. Of course, she had the talent to back it up, but if she had been more boring than the unlikable Melrose, Melrose might have won.

Tip #5 - Focus on yourself, not the other girls. Elyse. Cassie. Michelle. Bre. Jade. Monique. Every cycle we see at least one girl who can’t stop worrying about or messing with another model. If she spent half as much time thinking about her competition as she did working on her own shoots and flaws, she would have a better chance of winning.