I answered in the meeting before I had time to overthink how I sounded

Dear Delyara, That was the key. Speed before self-editing. Usually there is a small window where fear gets in. It asks if I’m sure, if this is worth saying, if I sound intelligent enough, if the room will turn, if silence would be safer. This time the question came to me, I knew the answer, and I spoke before the whole internal committee had time to gather. It was not perfect. That’s why I’m proud of it. Real courage in my life rarely looks polished. It looks like interrupted hesitation.