“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine as children do. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own lights shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

The above is one of my favorite quotes from one of my favorite movies, "Coach Carter". I have been blessed to grow up with parents who made me believe that anything was possible and not to follow the crowd. They set a fine example of standing up for what is right, even if it meant standing alone. This had an influence on me that is more profound than I could have imagined. So, when I first encountered people encouraging the opposite, you can imagine my confusion.

In my high school, students were expected to be three sport athletes and participate in many other extracurricular activities, but mainly focusing on sports. God didn’t bless me with athletic talent or desire to play multiple sports, but many of my teachers and peers didn’t understand this. I saw the confrontation and belittlement happen not only to a single sport athlete like myself, but athletes who went above what their coaches requested and pursued help from greater sources. Why would anyone oppose bettering oneself?

Highly ambitious people don’t take being told, “no” very well. Whether directly or indirectly, the opposition to our ambition only fuels our drive. As someone who is extremely futuristic, being told, “no” to pursuing one of my biggest goals didn’t set me back. Instead, it made me creative with my resources, analytic of who I kept in my circle, and driven to reach the goal. When I reached the goal, I knew that I had gotten there because God gave me the ambition and strength to not take “no” for an answer.

Recently, I met with a professor to discuss a project. Instead of answering my questions with joy that I was digging deeper than required, I was met with brief answers and an air of superiority. Why isn’t this professor encouraging me to ask deep questions or push for long term results that will impact me after the class is over?

Playing small because someone refuses to acknowledge our potential is the greatest disservice that we can do to ourselves and others, because then we aren't living up to what God created us for. Not fostering the light that we see in others because we fear that they will do things greater than our abilities is selfish. If we have the ability to influence someone, we should always influence them for the better by finding their strengths and capitalizing on them. And if the people who we look to for guidance are discouraging something that we are passionate about, we must find other supporters who encourage us to play big.