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Ahtisa Manalo shares how a mindset shift shaped her Miss Universe PH 2025 journey

Article (news)

E. Kristhoff Cagape

Push Team

<p>Miss Universe Philippines 2025 Ahtisa Manalo opened up about the shift in mindset she brought to this year&#x27;s pageant, reflecting on how it differed from her approach the previous year and how it may have contributed to her success.</p><p>In an interview with Boy Abunda, Ahtisa recalled how she found herself overthinking during the 2024 pageant. &quot;This year I made sure I wasn&#x27;t in my head. [In] 2024 I was overthinking everything. I had a plan a year before it even happened. Every single move, every single decision, I overthink, I plan it,&quot; she recalled.</p><p>This time around, Ahtisa embraced a more spontaneous and grounded mindset. &quot;For this year it was sudden that I joined. I wasn&#x27;t even supposed to be here but the opportunity came, a lot of doors open for me so I was like why not take it? I was more feeling, I was more experiencing than thinking and planning,&quot; she highlighted.</p><div><br/></div><iframe class="instagram-media instagram-media-rendered" id="instagram-embed-2" src="https://www.instagram.com/p/DJWgpcVz88m/embed/?cr=1&amp;v=14&amp;wp=607&amp;rd=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com&amp;rp=%2F#%7B%22ci%22%3A2%2C%22os%22%3A3054005.2000000477%2C%22ls%22%3A99011.70000004768%2C%22le%22%3A99229.70000004768%7D" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="" frameBorder="0" height="858" data-instgrm-payload-id="instagram-media-payload-2" scrolling="no" style="background:white;max-width:540px;width:calc(100% - 2px);border-radius:3px;border:1px solid rgb(219, 219, 219);box-shadow:none;display:block;margin:0px 0px 12px;min-width:326px;padding:0px"></iframe><script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script><div><br/></div><p>She emphasized that stepping on stage felt more natural this time. &quot;You&#x27;ve practiced for it so many times, you already know what to do. It&#x27;s muscle memory, so at that time you just got to experience it and like hear people shouting for you, and like living in it.&quot;</p><p>In the same interview, Ahtisa also spoke about a brief mishap when she lost her footing during the long gown segment of the competition. &quot;There were stairs and then I think the <em>dulo</em> of the gown flipped and then got caught in my heel,&quot; she recounted.  </p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/showbiz/celebrities/2025/5/7/ahtisa-manalo-reminds-people-to-be-kind-when-making-comments-2104"><strong>READ: Ahtisa Manalo reminds people ‘to be kind’ when making comments</strong></a></div><p>Despite the fall, she turned the moment into a powerful message during the Q&amp;A portion where she was asked with the question: &quot;They say that a good leader leads by example. Tell us one event in your life when you led by example and the impact it made.&quot;</p><p>Ahtisa recalled: &quot;I was speaking what&#x27;s in my heart... Everyone witnessed it. They were there. I thought that when they asked what is that thing that I could show to everyone, I thought that they were all there to witness my fall and if it&#x27;s not enough that they saw me fall and stood up and still fought for what I wanted, what better answer could I have given, at least that what was going in my head.&quot;</p>

<p>Miss Universe Philippines 2025 Ahtisa Manalo shares how her mindset going into this year’s pageant differed from her approach the year before.</p>

Miss Universe Philippines 2025 Ahtisa Manalo shares how her mindset going into this year’s pageant differed from her approach the year before.