When Deshauna Barber first heard the words “You could be the next Miss USA,” she never imagined where that statement would take her.
The Army Reserve officer, motivational speaker, and former Miss USA shared an extraordinary story of perseverance in a now-viral speech that continues to inspire people years later.
At just 19 years old, Barber was working at Target when a woman approached her with an unexpected suggestion: she should enter a beauty pageant. Barber, who was in the U.S. Army Reserve, initially dismissed the idea.
But after meeting the woman for coffee the next day, she found herself flipping through stacks of pageant books and considering a challenge unlike any she had faced before.
Six Years of Defeat—Then Victory
Barber competed in a state pageant six years in a row—and lost every time. Each year, she returned, only to be met with disappointment. After her sixth loss, she called the woman who had encouraged her in the first place.
“You told me I could be the next Miss USA,” Barber recalled saying.
The woman’s response was simple: “Keep working, keep working. Don’t quit.”
Tragically, in June 2015, that woman passed away from leukemia. But just six months later, Barber won Miss District of Columbia USA. And six months after that, she made history, becoming the first soldier to ever win Miss USA in 2016.
A Message to the World: Keep Going
Barber’s speech is a testament to resilience, urging people to embrace rejection and continue pushing forward.
“Do not fear failure, but please be terrified of regret,” she said. “Giving up is the birth of regret.”
She reminded her audience that life is full of doors slammed shut—job rejections, missed opportunities, and countless “no’s.”
But she stated that every rejection brings people one step closer to the yes that could change their lives:
“What I ask of you today is to not take no for an answer. Don’t be afraid of no’s. Be afraid of the possibility of a yes that you never pursued.”
Her story is more than a beauty pageant victory—it’s a lesson in persistence, faith, and chasing dreams despite the odds.
