#ThisLittleGirlIsMe

Inspired by so many stories I read, this is mine.

This little girl grew up in NYC but didn’t learn English until kindergarten and then stopped being a child when she was old enough to be translator for the family at age eight. Her parents worked every day to make ends meet to give their children a better life in America.

This little girl spent years in a one-bedroom apt with seven other people and then moved to a house in a low-income black and latino neighborhood. She was made fun of for looking different, for speaking Chinese, and for doing well in school.

This little girl then left everything she knew to go to a fancy boarding high school on a full scholarship and lived another kind of not belonging. Of still looking different, of still being different, and now of having no means.

This didn’t stop her. She got everything she could out of that education and did the best she could to navigate the world when there was no one to tell her about how things really worked.

She graduated from Wharton, went to a big four firm and a major bank, then NYU and spent the next 15 years building her career in real estate. By many measures, she was succeeding but this little girl found herself further and further away from becoming someone she recognized.

This little Chinese girl broke all the stereotypes and the world didn’t like it. She was not quiet. She was not subservient. She did not need saving. She was loud. Defiant. Self-sufficient. She had strong opinions.

But this little girl, after spending her childhood being made fun of for being different, felt the intense need to fit in as an adult. She wanted to be just like everyone else. So she could climb the career ladder just like she’s supposed to. She did everything she could to not stand out. To not be different. To succeed. In exchange, the world gave her just enough to keep her quiet.

But her story doesn’t end there.

This year, this little girl finally found her strength to walk away from doing what she was supposed to do to fit in and to get ahead.

This little girl finally stopped caring about what the world thought of her choices.

This little girl finally found her voice to start talking about the things that matter to her. Things that made her afraid and that still make her afraid.

This little girl won’t be quiet anymore. This little girl is me.

Why am I sharing this? Studies show that around the age of 11, little girls stop being who they are and start becoming who the world wants them to be.

To my own little girl and to all the little girls out there, don’t ever stop being who you are. Use your voice. The only people who matter are the ones who want you to become exactly who you are.

Because girls feel more confident about their futures after hearing from women role models, I encourage all the amazing women in my life to join the #thislittlegirlisme campaign by #InspiringGirlsInternational to mark #InternationalDayoftheGirl 2021, 11th October.