Bravery Over Perfection: A Moment that Tickled My Soul
Over time, I've come to realize that being brave is far more important and effective than striving for perfection. Perfection, I’ve learned, is a low bar that has set me up for failure and disappointment time and time again. It’s often the very thing that holds me back from putting myself and my works out there, which, in effect, stifles my growth.
Tony Robbins once said: "Perfection is the lowest standard. Don’t aim, just start, tweak, pivot, and be a good example." My takeaway from this is: the release of perfection will do you wonders — it will clear the way for bravery to unveil and root itself from deep within.
Now let me tell you about this one time I chose bravery over perfection.
"Are you ready, Kate?”
Tita Vicky's voice echoed, sending shivers down my spine, reverberating through every nook and cranny, driving my heart into a frenzy. The moment had arrived. My hands grew clammy and a tight knot formed in my throat that I could barely breathe and speak. It was time to make a choice: was I going to forgo something I believed in and back out? Or face this glossophobic challenge and rise above it?
Three Sundays ago, I chose the latter. I yanked myself out of my comfort zone, and took control of the situation. With a deep breath and a smile, I transmuted this crippling fear into one of sincere excitement.
That evening, I learned a valuable lesson: courage isn’t the absence of fear, but the intentional effort and emotional strength to triumph over it. It’s persisting and persisting until you believe and become it! It’s allowing yourself to be seen vulnerable even when afraid because your purpose and conviction are much stronger than your own fear and anxiety of the outcome.
Now isn’t it so heartening and emboldening to know that bravery can be learned and practiced? And that courage doesn’t always have to look like heroic acts or grand gestures? Sometimes, it’s speaking in front of a crowd or volunteering to take on a challenging task. The good news is bravery doesn’t only belong to a select few; it’s within all of us. Like a muscle, courage just needs to be regularly exercised. Given that there's no such thing as being 'naturally brave' without fear and challenge being overcome, you can exhale knowing that fear is a natural human response—a protective instinct that enables us to survive and preserve ourselves.
Now back to my story! As I stood before an overflowing crowd with Tita Vicky by my side, I tucked my script away and took a giant leap of faith. I spoke from the heart and gushed about how much the Alpha Youth Series meant to me. In that raw and real unpolished moment, I suddenly felt this connection with myself and the audience. I was unstoppable.
This brings me to what makes the Alpha Youth Series extraordinarily transcendent in experience. Not only was it a gentle reintroduction to my faith, but also an exploration of questions I had and didn’t know I had about it. The best part: the Alpha group I was assigned to! We became family, a safe space for one another. There with them I could be my introspective kikay self!
The beauty of Alpha — you don’t need to be anybody else but yourself in order to contribute and make a difference. All that is asked of you is to show up as you are, ready to question, meander, and discover.
With that, as a proud member of Alpha’s growing community, I invite you all to become part of something greater, a larger whole that is, especially if you’re looking to expand and evolve. United by openness, curiosity, and a genuine desire to learn and grow together, I was literally plugged right back into my faith in a way like never before. My Alpha family showed me that I don’t have to achieve anything to have value, I just have to exist. And for that, I’ll always be grateful to them.
For the longest time, I’ve had to validate myself with some kind of achievement every single day. And for far too long, I’ve been taking myself and my life way too seriously. But now I’ve got God, my Alpha family, Tita Menchi, Tita Tina, and Gio to catch me whenever I fall back into my old ways, ready to squash all the gunk and the clunk that might resurface. Thanks to the sliver of hope they instilled in me, the sea of uncertainty in my life has become much more swimmable and surmountable. My journey doesn’t have to be steep or exponential to be spectacular. It can be incremental and gradual! As I continuously embark on this adventure and am guided towards this internal place of growth, renewal, and empowerment, my intention from now on is to unlearn and undo by making this life journey as epically fun and iconic as possible! Tita Tina once imparted: “it’s okay to have fun along the way because fun doesn’t have to be earned!” This realization gave birth to my present mantras:
"I know the best thing is happening to me right now, I’m moving to the side, without disturbing the way, and letting magic and fun happen, I am being renewed."
“I am learning to accept myself for who I am and nothing can diminish me. I am enough, and that’s plenty in itself.”
If you’re reading this and yearning for something more—whether it’s answers, direction or a safe space to creatively rediscover and deepen your faith—come and see what joining batch 3 of the Alpha community can and will do for you!
As Lao Tzu once said, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” Remember, even the smallest step—whether it's a quiet moment of persistence or a bold leap— counts as an act of courage. Here are a few questions I’ve compiled that may help ignite your path towards a braver and bolder you!
Who and what can you be grateful for right now?
What are you learning here?
Can you find hope in the midst of all this?
In light of these three questions, what’s one step you can take right now to say ‘yes’ to yourself? You can move with breath, move with uplifting music, move with scents that promote feelings of childlike joy and excitement, create with your hands, attend a social gathering that’ll supercharge you, and do more mababaw stuff!
Now, take that step and watch it all unfold before you!
Pictured above are some of the people, places, and activities that sparkle up my life with sheer joy!