Amanda Carrasco

I am reading Arlene Dickinson’s newest book called “Reinvention”. I’m half way through and I love it. I have loved her since I saw her on Dragons Den and wanted to be like her in so many ways. A strong woman entrepreneur.

She talks about when she first started on the show and how intimidating it was to be a role model but then she saw that it was her imperfections that made her a good leader. It made her relatable and human. She didn’t have flashy degrees that made her what she was – she was who she was because she worked hard and was true to herself.

This inspires me because I can can definitely embody those two things – imperfection and being myself. Being imperfect is easy but being true to yourself is harder because you have to let your imperfections show. They are a part of who you are. Leaders who “have it all together” will have more followers, until the armour tarnished and cracks appear – because they will, and then people will be disillusioned. An imperfect leader may not have some people follow because they are disillusioned from the start but those kinds of people will just jump from one “perfect” leader until they fail and then they will find another. Those people do this because they can not accept the imperfections within themselves.

Everyone fails. To fail is to be human. I make a ton of mistakes all the time but I do my utmost to own them. They are my mistakes and I desire to learn from them and grow. I’ll share them with you and I hope you share yours with me so we can grow together. I know that airing my imperfections in a public place, like I have here, has hindered some potential opportunities but I would rather be real and accepted for who I am than pretend.

My degrees don’t make me who I am – which is why I do not want to ever be called doctor. My company doesn’t make me who I am- I built that but it’s not a definition of Amanda. Even being a mom- which is the best thing in the world, does not define me. I am me because of my character and my core values. Take me or leave me, that’s up to you but you know what your getting: imperfections and all.