The First Person to Believe in Me as a Writer? That Was Me

#openbook

Who was the first person who ever believed in you?

We all have stories of people who’ve inspired, motivated, and given us that little push when needed. But today, I want to share a slightly different story with you. A story of self-belief, resilience, and a sprinkle of stubbornness. This is the story of the first person who believed in me as a writer.

Spoiler alert: it was me!

Now, don’t get me wrong, external validation is great. A pat on the back, a compliment, or even a simple “I loved what you wrote” can work wonders. But before any of those words of affirmation came my way, I had to face the blank page with just one person cheering me on – and yep, you guessed it, that person was yours truly.

It wasn’t always easy. In fact, let me paint a little picture for you: there I was, late at night, laptop glaring back at me with that hauntingly empty Word document. My internal monologue was a mixtape of “What am I doing?”, “Is this any good?” and the classic, “Why did I think I could write?” Sound familiar? But amidst all that chatter, this tiny, persistent voice kept saying, “Keep going.”

And so, I did. I kept going. Every word I penned down, every sentence I structured, was a testament to that little voice. That voice of self-belief.

Waiting for someone else to validate our dreams can be lengthy and unfruitful. Sometimes, the first step, the most essential step, is to believe in ourselves. To recognize our passion and give it the space it deserves in our lives.

I won’t sugarcoat it. It wasn’t always rainbows and sunshine. There were days I wanted to chuck my laptop out of the window. But then, there were also moments where words flowed like a river, moments of pride, moments where I re-read what I wrote and thought, “Did I really write this? Wow.”

Over time, others began to see what I saw in myself. Their words of encouragement and appreciation became the cherries on top of my self-belief sundae. But that core, that foundation, was built by me.

So, to all the budding writers, artists, entrepreneurs, or dreamers out there, remember this: the journey starts with you. Be your own cheerleader, your own advocate. Believe in yourself even when doubt tries to overshadow your aspirations.

Because the truth is if you don’t believe in your story, who will?

Here’s to writing, dreaming, and, most importantly, believing.

Let’s keep those keyboards clicking.