It's About Showing Up

Upper School Prefect, Bronte, urges us to recognise that our ideas matter, even in moments of fear and doubt.

Each week, our student leaders share their insights with their peers in Assembly.  Here is an edited version:

I would like to reflect on something we often lose sight of as we mature, the uninhibited confidence of our younger selves. When we were little, we didn’t hesitate. We spoke without doubt, raised our hands with confidence, and moved through the world with an unbridled sense of certainty.

We wore pink tutus over jeans, sparkly headbands, and Smiggle backpacks without a second thought. We skipped everywhere instead of walking—because why wouldn’t we? In those moments we were unapologetic, we were (definitely) daring, and we were entirely ourselves.

There was no overthinking, no second-guessing, no shrinking to fit into expectations we didn’t yet know existed. We simply did what felt right, and we did it with ease.

However, little by little, and maybe without even realising it, that certainty faded. What changed?

We grew up.

We became more aware – of expectations, of judgement, of the possibility of failure or social rejection. Our pigtails and JoJo bows were traded for something deemed more acceptable; our unfiltered enthusiasm tempered, our hands raised less, and fewer chances were taken. A quiet doubt lingered at the edges of our ambition, making us second-guess rather than step forward. Hesitation to speak and to try new things emerged.

However, while the tutu-jeans combination may not be making its big comeback, the confidence that once made it possible is. To achieve that same confidence means recognising that fear and uncertainty do not diminish the value of our ideas. It’s about showing up anyway—with intention, resilience, and grit.

True confidence is not the absence of fear but the decision to move forward despite it. It is the ability to listen and collaborate. We may seek consensus or affirmation, but not at the expense of asserting new ideas or our individuality. The boldness we once carried was not recklessness—it was self-assurance, unburdened by the need for validation.

So, I hope you remember that girl—the one who never hesitated, who sought to climb higher simply because she could. I hope you hear her voice if you start to question yours. I hope you let her certainty guide you when the hesitation inevitably creeps in. Reclaim the confidence you once had. Try things, learn from your mistakes, get better, but don’t let your fear force you to the sidelines. Speak up, take risks, trust yourself—because no pearl forms without grit.