If you’re reading this, know that you are enough.
I first considered writing this letter more than three years ago, but I never followed through. Every time I thought about what to write, I felt that nothing I had to say was inspirational enough. I was not wise enough. I could not write something profound enough.
Not enough is a feeling that I have experienced many times in my life. Not popular enough, not a good enough athlete, or not accomplished enough when I was younger. Not smart enough, not articulate enough, and not professional enough as I grew older. The feeling hung over me even as I experienced success. Sometimes I could acknowledge a bit of success, but was I successful enough? Was I accomplishing as much as I could or as others expected of me? Was I enough?
Eventually, I realized that I was striving to satisfy expectations that I only perceived others to have of me. I was comparing myself to others in ways that did not make sense because we are different people. I recognized that I was chasing something that does not exist - perfection.
Many things contributed to these realizations, and one of the biggest was working with amazing students. I am constantly in awe of your resilience, determination, compassion, and creativity, and I am dismayed by how many incredible people who have done so much express to me that feeling of not being enough. They do not always say it in exactly that way, but I recognize it as that same feeling that has chased me. Over time, as I tried to help more people understand that they are enough, I began to understand that it had to be true for me, too.
You are enough.
I am enough.
We do not have to be perfect to be enough. We can be enough without being the best. We do not need to be busy to the point of exhaustion or to succeed at everything we try to be enough.
“I am enough” is not always my first thought. In fact, when I first considered writing this letter for the second time, all those initial thoughts of not being wise, inspirational, or profound enough came flooding back. I wrote a draft and let it sit for several weeks because, once again, I thought it was not good enough.
But I am wise enough to know that those thoughts just hold me back. I am brave enough to share this because I am determined enough to help someone else.
You are enough.
I am enough.
We are enough.
Dr. Carrie Shepler (she/her), Georgia Tech Professor of Chemistry & Biochemistry
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