More Than Enough: Claiming Space for Who You Are (No Matter What They Say)

by Elaine Welteroth

Research tells us that, on average, a girl’s confidence peaks at just nine years old.

We don’t need to have all the answers. But our job is to keep on dreaming and trusting enough to put one foot in front of the other.

I noticed that no one made eye contact with me. And because no one was acknowledging me, I didn’t talk much. And because I didn’t talk, I felt like they thought I was stupid. It became a self-perpetuating cycle that I was too paralyzed by anxiety to break.

She was early evidence that a truly confident leader stands in her power without using it to make others feel small.

When you occupy space in systems that weren’t built for you, your authenticity is your activism.

For generations Black men have been trained to surrender, to apologize, to appear as “nonthreatening” as possible, to smile, to assimilate, to overachieve, to do whatever you can to remind White people of their humanity—but even then there are no guarantees of safety.

We all feel fear when we’re about to do something great.”

Instead, we repeatedly ask children, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” As if one answer, one dream, one career path can define you throughout your whole life.