Beyond Perfection

Have you ever held back from sharing something because you didn’t feel ready?

Perhaps it was because you thought you needed more time, more polish, or more confidence before your story could be told.

On Friday, I shared a personal story on my podcast — one that still stirs strong emotions in me. I talked about the time I ran away for love, only to discover it wasn’t what I’d hoped and it didn’t end the way I expected. It became a story of disappointment, self-discovery, and learning to come home to myself.

Today, I am sharing a very different story — one that happened on a stage, with stitches in my mouth, as I challenged another long-held belief. And yet, it taught me something strikingly similar:

✨ You don’t have to be perfect to be powerful.

In the fall of my senior year in high school, I auditioned for The Legend of Sleepy Hollow at the Minneapolis Children’s Theater. It was a last-minute decision, prompted by a friend.

The timing was far from ideal — just three days after having half of my wisdom teeth pulled. I still had stitches in my mouth and I did not feel like I was in a perfect position to do this. I did not have a song and had only just learned to dance the summer before.

🙄 All the way to the theater, I wondered if I should even show up.

When we arrived we were ushered to the dance portion of the audition. This portion of the audition was a group activity. As we completed it, we learned that the singing portion would be done as solos.

When it was my time for my singing audition, I remember walking onto the stage and silently praying they would have a piece of music I knew. It was still early in my vocal training and didn’t feel confident in my voice yet.

I was hardly the picture of polished confidence. My jaw was sore. My smile was tight. Every word reminded me of how uncomfortable I felt.

But I did. I stepped onto the stage — imperfect, uncertain, and still healing — and gave what I could.

And here’s what surprised me: I was cast.

Not because I looked flawless.
Not because I hit every note perfectly.

But because I showed up.

My presence — my willingness to be there as I was — carried more weight than perfect delivery ever could.

That experience has stayed with me for the forty-five years since I had was there.

There are still moments in my life when I wrestle with the choice to go or not go — to show up or hold back. But this story reminds me, again and again, that courage isn’t about waiting until everything feels perfect.

It’s about choice. It’s about choosing to show up — especially when things feel messy, raw, or incomplete.

Here are some of the questions I’ve asked myself. Maybe you’ve asked them too:
• What does the perfect moment even look like?
• What if it never comes?
• What am I holding myself back from — and is that really more important than living fully?

What I’ve learned and come to believe is:
✨ Perfection creates distance between me and what’s important.
🌿 But when I stay connected to my truth, my story helps me create the life I am passionate about living.

When we allow ourselves to be seen — stitches and all — we give others permission to do the same.

Our voices, stories, and presence don’t need polishing before they matter.
We matter because we are.
Our voice matters because it carries the weight of our truth.

So let me ask you…

• Where have you been waiting for “perfect” before sharing your story — or your hope for your career, your love, or your voice?
• What might shift if you let yourself show up as you are — not flawless, but fully present and rooted in your own story?

This is the heart of Rooted in You.

Rooted in You is a small group experience designed to help you move toward clarity, confidence, and courage.

It’s about learning to trust your voice as it is.
To stop editing yourself into silence.
To remember that you already hold everything you need to begin.

If this message resonates — if you feel that whisper inside to stop waiting and start showing up — Rooted in You might be your next step.

I’ll be opening the doors soon to this intimate, powerful circle where we reclaim our voices and share our stories without apology.

✨ If you're curious… stay close.

Because your story matters.
And so do you.

In the meantime, I invite you to download a Reflection Journal I created for those who joined me for a recent workshop. It’s a gentle starting point for reconnecting to your voice.

Join me next week, I’ll be sharing the story of someone who believed they were on the right path — only to discover that perhaps it wasn’t their path after all.