Lessons from Katy Perry’s life, music, and now movie have taught me a ton about being myself. In fact, I would say without Ms. Perry I wouldn’t be who I am today. If it weren’t for her I might feel uncomfortable wearing this homemade watermelon bikini to work, going to church in my underwear, and never ever would I have met my loving fiancé Snoop Dogg.

OK maybe some of this isn’t exactly true, but I really have learned so much from Katy. She’s totally herself 100% of the time and she inspires me to be the same. (To be myself, not herself, just to clarify.) And her new movie, Part of Me, is all about owning you are too. So, empowerment to max. I haven’t even seen the movie yet (on my to do list for this weekend!) and she’s already inspired me to be myself in these 5 ways.

1.) Believe In You
Sometimes, you have to kiss a few girls, spend a few hazy mornings waking up in Vegas, and melt a few popsicles before you can become a multi-platinum artist. Seriously though, Katy moved around 4 record labels and wrote 70 songs before her debut album One Of The Boys was released. Even when it felt like the only person who believed in her was herself, she kept on plugging away. If that’s not a lesson in being true to yourself and making your dreams come true, then I don’t know what is.

2.) Don’t Apologize When You Can Laugh Instead
Too much cleavage for Sesame Street, you say? How about some more then?! Mwuahahaha! Katy totally rocked her “scandal” by making fun of her slightly racy appearance on Sesame Street in a Saturday Night Live sketch, not issuing some lame Twitter apology. There’s no need for apologizing when you’re just being you. But if anything you do backfires a bit, having a sense of humor about it is key. Plus, poking fun at yourself lets the critics know to back off.

3.) Make Your Own Rules
When I think about whip cream canister bras, supporting gay rights, and singing about s-e-x I don’t automatically think of Christianity. For Katy, it’s a different story. The gal started out as a gospel singer and we all know about the “Jesus” tattoo on her wrist. And you know what, it works for her! As long as you’re true to your beliefs, anything can work, even mixing Christianity and whip cream.

4.) Rock Your Own Personal Style
Whether she is goth’ed out or pop’ed out Katy’s style (and hair color) seem to change from day to day. Now I know when I go out in my undies, dye my hair blue and rock a giant Kleenex tissue as a hat, I can say, “Katy made me do it! . . . sort of. No . . . we’ve never actually met.” Really though, watching her confident and crazy styles has inspired me to make my personal style as daring as I want it to be.

5.) Screw The Haters, Hug The Fans!
It’s pretty obvious from the Part of Me trailer that Katy worked hard and kicked a lot of ass to get where she is today. There isn’t a better example of a girl who has had some serious heartache and even a few haters, but it’s pretty clear where she focuses her energy: her fans. No matter how many roadblocks, jerks, and naysayers there are, there are way more people who love and support you. I may not be a pop diva, but I sure do have a lot of fans. Haters to the left!

This post written in partnership with Katy Perry 3D: Part of Me.

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Next check out 5 Kick Butt Life Lessons From Taylor Swift!

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