We asked folks a question that led to many surprising answers – some sad, some thought-provoking and some funny. We’ve highlighted a cross section of those responses below.
Channing Muller
I keenly remembering being told, ‘don’t be so emotional’ or ‘you’re too much.’ As I got further into adulthood though, I came to realize that my emotional nature is precisely what seems to resonate with people. Read More>>
Biz LaChance
When I was younger, I foolishly took advantage of the self-love I gave myself. When I was younger I was, not necessarily confident, but I was comfortable with who I was. I was optimistic. I was very…maybe even arrogant. I knew who I wanted to be, and I was that person. I lacked self-doubt. Read More>>
Liz Foulks
As a kid, I thought I was too sensitive for this world (and maybe, sometimes, I am). I picked up on every emotion in the room and carried it around with me, which at the time felt like a weakness. I really believed it would hold me back somehow. Read More>>
Ashley Maven
I was the scapegoat within a family of a parent diagnosed with narcissistic personality disorder and the other parent diagnosed with borderline personality disorder (who had strong narcissistic tendencies). My entire childhood I believed there was something deeply wrong with me. That I was the problem, that I wasn’t skinny enough, pretty enough, smart enough, or valuable enough. Read More>>
Hannah Lang
Growing up, I always believed that success meant following a traditional path — go to college, get a steady job, get married, start a family before 30, and check all the “normal” boxes along the way. There’s nothing wrong with that — I actually did go to college and spent nearly a decade working in banking and finance. Read More>>
Michael Glaspie
As a young child my mom was a single mother and she struggled financially. She worked multiple jobs to make sure that my sister and I were taken care of. Just like many of us, she didn’t receive any formal training on how to manage her money or how to grow it. Read More>>
Brendan Kelly
As a child, I absolutely bought into the traditional script for a successful life: go to college, get a respectable degree, land a secure job, and build a life with a white picket fence. I saw my future as a straight line, and I believed my purpose was to follow that well-paved road without any detours. Read More>>
Tiffany Storey
as a child, I was taught to shut up and listen, don’t talk when adults are talking and nothing I said mattered unless it was an emergency. I was essentially a voiceless child, fighting for my life to try to be a normal kid; despite having all these feelings of insecurity and doubt. Read More>>
