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.
we ask ourselves,
“who am i to be brilliant,
gorgeous, talented and fabulous?”

who are you not to be?

you are a child of the universe.
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 were born to make manifest
the Glory of the universe
that is within us.

it’s not just in some of us;
it is in everyone.

as we let our own light shine,
we unconsciously give other people
permission to do the same.

as we are liberated
from our own fear,
our presence automatically
liberates others.

- nelson mandela, 1994 inaugural speech