Doing Things Her Way: A Conversation with Noor Tagouri

Read on as Tagouri talks all things breaking barriers, knowing one’s value and the most pivotal moment on her journey this far.

Tell me about your personal style. Is today’s outfit the type of look you feel most powerful in?

We decided to put together a look that felt very clean, very fresh; something that was celebratory and that I felt very myself in. I love chiffon, I love flow, and I love things that are light but also have a sense of structure and construction to them.

I feel most powerful when I am listening to my body and when I'm listening to where I am and what I need to be hugged with, essentially. So this, for me, is a power look. A power look is something that is just speaking to who I am that day. I believe that we are ever-evolving beings and I try to tap into that and incorporate it in my style too.

Is there a legacy that you hope to leave that inspires other women?

It's not specifically what legacy I want to leave behind, but it's the action of creating something in this world that has a life of its own forever and ever and that's constantly being able to inspire and touch other people. There are so many people who do that for us—whether it be your ancestors or people who've inspired you, but it's really the focus of making sure that you're breathing life into your work and into your services.

In your approach to storytelling, you focus on the in-between moments of life. What are those for you? Are there any pivotal moments that didn't necessarily get you the award or the attention, but were really life changing for you?

I started college when I was 16 years old, specifically to get a head start in the work that I am doing. And I had this viral moment with this story that I didn't expect to happen, and the thing that I think transformed everything was when my family and I got together and we talked about like, Oh my gosh, hundreds of thousands of people are now hearing your words and seeing this announcement of a dream that you have. So how are you going to use this to make it about something way bigger than yourself?

That's where everything really took off, because I think that when you are so sure in the thing that you know you want to do, when you are sure of your own light, the way that that light transforms the rest of the world is actually shining it on other people and then teaching people to shine their own. It was never about being of service to other people in a way of doing them a favor. It's always about when we are of service to ourselves first and then when we are of service to others, we are constantly uplifting people and that uplifts the collective. That's the point.

How have you overcome barriers you’ve faced in your industry?

How many times are we put in these spaces where the people in positions of power think to themselves, or actively say, "I thought you would be happy with this." The reframe for me has been really sitting with what it means to value yourself, what it means to know your value, what it means to know your worth, and what it means to ask for what you want—which are all things that we are always talking about—but how do we even get there?

For me, over-communicating has been key. Constantly telling people how I feel, what's on my mind or asking people, like,Hey, how much have you been getting paid for this? I just want you to know this is how much I got paid. To keep people open and knowing that your win is my win... There is no competition here. There doesn't have to be. That's not how I see it.

But the point is: Every time you walk into a room, know who you are, know what you're trying to accomplish, know what your intention is, and then ask yourself if you have the space.

On a day like International Women's Day, what does this day signify for you? And how do you celebrate community?

It's one day, it's a whole month—that doesn't mean that we stop caring about women after that. It's more about: How can we collectively, as a collective consciousness, think about the things we actually need to check in with? And yes, of course, there's so much to celebrate and there's also so much more work to do, and so I take this opportunity to check in with myself and to know: What are the things that I need right now? What are the things I need to be working on? What are the things that the women around me, the people around me, need? What are the stories that we can tell that specifically would be amplified even more during this time—which is an intimate conversation like this—and how can we use that momentum to continue?