On earning a Bold.org Scholarship
I didn’t know boldness could be a virtue.
Bold. What does that even mean?
As a woman, being “bold” has a different connotation. Bossy. Masculine. Aggressive.
Are those qualities I want to embrace?
Not really.
As a young leader, people expect me to lead — in that stereotypical command-like leadership. I am no commander. Nor do I wish to be one. As a woman, people expect me to be passive. I am no person to keep my head down. Nor do I wish to be one.
Being a woman and a leader does not cancel one another.
If you ask me what type of leader I want to be… I will have to redefine leadership — and womanhood, for that matter. I do not wish, as I already said, to boss people around. I do not wish to force people to do things they would rather not be doing. I wish to inspire people to do things voluntarily.
I want to be kind and gentle and strong.
I want power, not over others, but over myself, my body, my mind.
I want to win a Bold.org Scholarship not because I need money to finance my education (sorry, a white lie here), but because my financial problems are not problems. They are challenges.
I challenged myself to study abroad (in seven countries at Minerva University), leave my home country, Brazil, for a horizon I cannot see. I challenged myself to take on full responsibility for my needs as a person and a girl. I challenged myself to find unusual ways to pay for my education.
In a world that attacks me for who I am, where I am from, the language I speak, and even my gender…. I just have to be a tiny bit more creative to believe in my potential. I challenged myself to be who I am. And if this is not boldness, I cannot even conjecture what it could possibly be.
I challenge myself to be who I am.
Call it boldness; call it madness. Who cares?
P.S.: Can we comment on the fact that bold.org has a “dot org” domain?! In school, I was taught that “.org” websites are credible. Bold of the organization to assume they are a real thing. I like that.
P.S.S.: Please check out my profile at Bold.org:
