The Limiting Yourself Reflections (ft. Queen Akira)
I wanted to use this blog post to talk about some of the ways we limit ourselves from our own growth. We should find that our life will become a lot more fulfilling when we stop limiting ourselves. There are many ways we do this, without even realizing it. This is what I’ve learned from the following reflections…
Stop Limiting Yourself
My freshman year of college, I felt as though I became the average student. After being an A student in high school, I was adjusting to the jump of being a STEM college student and my ego took the hit. Summer after my first year was rapidly approaching not only did I have doubts about wanting to continue to pursue medicine, but I had in my mind that my GPA would get me ZERO opportunities. As a result, I made the regrettable decision of only applying to one “safe” opportunity that I was interested in. And guess what? That one opportunity ended up falling through the roof for me. I had performed the most classic limitation that we can possibly put on ourselves; I didn’t even try.
Let’s fast forward to my sophomore year… I decided to apply for a position on campus and recommended a friend to do the same because I thought they would also be a good fit for it. After going through the entire application process, my friend was awarded the opportunity, but I wasn’t. I was utterly confused and wondered if their victory resulted in what I had lost. I wanted to mention this occurrence because I wanted to share that uplifting and connecting other people with opportunities does not block your blessings. I know a lot of people who would never share opportunities with their friends for fear that it decreases their own chances. Regardless of who you tell or share that opportunity with if it’s meant for you then it will happen. It’s important that we learn to take our losses gracefully, and in that same breath have the compassion to support and root for someone else who may have got something that we wanted. You don’t limit yourself by uplifting others along the way, you limit yourself by equating someone else’s victory with your loss.
Just as I thought, I have seen the benefit of what writing has done for me. But this isn’t just something that I picked up in college. I thought long and hard about creating a blog. Writing has always been an outlet for me, but fear held me back from sharing this outlet with all of you. I am glad that I finally found the courage to pursue this project, but I only can think about where I could’ve been had I started publishing my experiences sooner. If you have an idea or you’re interested in starting a project of your own, I urge you to pursue it. Don’t let fear, procrastination, or time limit you from what this new venture could possibly do for you. If you’re not doing what makes you happy, then you’re limiting yourself.
Breaking Limitations
Two category 5 hurricanes hit home, and my 16-year-old sister was faced with the tough decision of leaving what she knew or staying and living through the aftermath of the hurricanes. Our mother left the decision entirely up to Akira to move to North Carolina during her junior year. 8 months after moving, not only has she excelled academically but she is one week away from representing our home in her first national pageant here on the mainland.
When making hard decisions we sometimes choose what’s easy for fear that we will regret our decision later. You can’t live your life in fear of constant regrets, or ultimately again, you’ll be limiting yourself. Akira didn’t let the thought of regret from moving win because she saw how much her new challenges made her grow and think differently. She entered a new environment and immediately took advantage of one of the many blessings her new environment provided her with. In her eyes, staying in St. Thomas would have been a decision that limited her from her own growth and the unpredictable path that’s been ordained for her. The move required her to step outside of her comfort zone and be willing to take her own life to a new level.
When we stop limiting ourselves, what we’ve created is a more profound sense of autonomy and ownership over our own lives.
To support Akira Pickering-Haynes on her journey to the Miss Black USA Talented Teen pageant, please visit www.missblackusatalentedteen.org/peopleschoice and vote Virgin Islands for just $1 toward the Miss Black USA Scholarship Fund.
