15/07/2026
People see me speaking on stages, starting conversations with strangers and connecting with people easily.
So they tell themselves:
“He can do it because he’s confident.”
“It’s easy for him. I’m not that type of person.”
But what they see today is not where I started.
When I first arrived in New Zealand at 14 years old, I was the shy, quiet kid who could barely speak English properly.
I was often excluded by my classmates and only 1 or 2 were willing to even speak to me.
I was even bullied and teased for how I looked, how I sounded...
To make things worse, I paid to join a football club, showed up to trainings but the coach wouldn't even put me on until the last 15 minutes or sometimes not even...
But somewhere during those years, I realised something:
I could continue protecting the identity of being introvert and quiet,
But it wasn’t helping me build friendships, create opportunities or become the person I wanted to be.
So I had to adapt because I hated feeling powerless more than I hated feeling uncomfortable.
I learned how to speak up, lead, network and put myself in situations that terrified me.
What people now call my “personality” was built because I could no longer accept all the compromises that came with staying small, silent and afraid.
And the truth is, I am still a very quiet person.
Most days, I would rather have peace, privacy and space than be surrounded by people.
But when the situation calls for me to become bigger, louder or more visible, I show up.
It is easy to look at someone after they have developed a skill and assume they were born with it or to label them an extrovert than to acknowledge the years they spent confronting their fears.
Morale of the story...
We can become different versions of ourselves when the mission requires it.
We can keep protecting the identity that makes you feel safe but when that identity is stopping you from building the life, relationships, career or opportunities you want, perhaps it is time to question it.
Are you ready to rise beyond your personality to answer the calling on your life?