Why?

“One of my goals in life is to be happy. In attempting to achieve that goal, I have learned so much; and if there is anything I know that might help you, I am going to write it here.”

Why do I want to write and share parts of my life? When I learn something new, and I believe it would be beneficial for others to know, I can hardly wait to tell everyone. Since the pandemic began, I have especially been pushing my boundaries and getting out of my comfort zone to learn. I have been gathering up experts in different fields - health, beauty, financial, music - to enrich my life. And I want to let all of you know what I have found out. It’s super interesting and exciting.

When I was 15, I learned one of my most valuable lessons ever: People want to connect with your authentic self. I had this huge revelation while running down University Avenue in La Mesa with my Helix High School cross country teammates. Running by a banana tree, I grabbed one of the leaves off the tree, ran up to be in front of the other runners, held the leaf high, and loudly hummed the Olympic song. Then I shouted, “Let’s pretend we are in the Olympics!” It was the first time I let my silly side come out in front of anyone other than my family. I knew it was a risk. They might label me as a weirdo, but I couldn’t stop myself. It turned out all the runners wanted to be silly and laugh and pretend they were in the Olympics. It was my first lesson on being the real, authentic me in the moment, and that lesson has served me well all my life.

The word “authentic” has become quite popular since the genesis of social media, and I believe for good reason. I truly believe when we are authentic and honest with ourselves, leave fear out of decision-making, accept how wonderful each and every one of us are, life is more fun and success follows.

It is definitely a journey, and I know I need to constantly practice “knocking it off” when I’m feeling scared, worried, not good enough, blah, blah, blah. One of my life goals is to be happy. Why not? In attempting to achieve that goal, I have learned so much; and if there is anything I know that might help you, I am going to write it here.

That’s why.