I used to be really shy.

When I was five years old, my father asked me to come outside with him and pick out my favorite chicken. Excited to be chosen for this special task, I eagerly pointed to Henny Penny. “Good,” he said, “that’s the one we’re going to kill today.” I was completely blindsided.

In that moment, watching helplessly as my beloved chicken met her fate, I made a few decisions that would invisibly shape the rest of my life—including my journey as an author, business owner, and change-maker.

I decided I must not be smart to have this happen to me. I couldn’t trust myself. The world wasn’t safe. And being truthful and vulnerable, meant certain death.

The Authority Trap

Whether you’re an author crafting your message, a business owner building your brand, a professional advancing your career, or a change-maker who wants to drive social impact, you’re embarking on a deeply vulnerable journey.

You’re not just sharing your work; you’re sharing your voice, your perspective, your very essence. But here’s what no one tells you: the biggest obstacle to your authority and impact isn’t your expertise, your strategy, or your platform size. It’s the invisible trap created by your Original Core Trauma™.

For years, I pursued external success while feeling internally divided. Even though I had some success, I constantly questioned whether I had anything worth saying. I worried about judgment, feared visibility, and doubted my authority to speak on topics I deeply understood.

Sound familiar?

When I finally stepped forward to create a larger impact, these invisible barriers nearly derailed me. I’d develop programs, then doubt them. I’d prepare to speak on stage, then panic. I constantly asked myself: “Who am I to lead this? What if I’m exposed as a fraud?”

What I didn’t realize back then was that these weren’t just normal insecurities. They were specific symptoms of my invisible trap that I had become stuck in.