How can you stop getting in the way of your own success

[Music]

i want you to imagine a plane that is

about to take off at the airport

the weather is fine the sky is clear the

passengers are ready

and there seems to be no obstacle to

make the flight

however the plane doesn’t have an

internal security system

the wings of the plane aren’t well

attached to the fuselage

the tilt steering wheels haven’t been

tested and may fail to work in the air

now do you think that the good weather

the pilot certification

or simply having an airplane is enough

to take off and

ensure a successful flight what about

the internal mechanisms

and security systems of the plane

i am happy that there are more and more

women today

who are aiming high and determined to

get the education or credentials

to get them wherever they want to go in

life to become lawyers

to become politicians or whatever they

aspire to be

but is good education drive or

credentials enough

to get them where they want to go in

life

what about the internal factors that can

come into play like fear

self-doubt or uncertainty today

i want to share a story it is a story

about

fighting the fear of darkness through

darkness the fear of flying

through flight similarly this is a story

about overcoming your fears

doing exactly the things you are afraid

of

like many women my journey also actually

began

when i started putting myself in

uncomfortable situations

i was born and raised in a typical

armenian town

typical community and family where as a

rule

girls are raised to be future mothers

like most girls i was also encouraged to

perform well at school

not to argue to learn how to cook and do

household duties

i was very shy and humble girl who was

even afraid to speak up

but then something changed

i can’t indicate one single event or

dramatic moment when it happened

but when it did i knew it and i started

working on myself

and so my transformation began

it all started with a simple discovery

i could be respectful towards others

while also knowing my own rights and

having my opinions

i could debate and not shout while doing

so

i could argue and not offend others i

could be modest and brave at the same

time

armed with his new knowledge i realized

that i had a simple formula

to help me going forward

if i treat all my fears as challenges

i can transform them into opportunities

that can help discover myself

and my potential and it works

my first challenge was finding my own

way at school

to fight my constant anxiety and

uncertainties over my abilities

i overcame it by becoming one of the

most active students

and finally the president of my school

student council

but i can’t state that i was alone in

this because i had the support of my

teachers

and classmates who believed in me

my next challenge happened at university

you know new environment new people new

fears

and even lecturers who said that

whatever we learn we would only need in

the kitchen as housewives

but i’m glad that i never took this word

seriously

instead i went ahead and co-founded

non-governmental organization with

friends

we now help the young people in our home

region to develop and practice skills as

active citizens

to gain self-confidence to overcome

their fears

and participate in local elections not

only as waters but also as candidates

so this experience brought me closer to

one of my biggest

goals and the biggest challenge that i

have faced so far on my journey

politics in today’s times people would

say that politics in general

and politicians in particular aren’t

really about people

but rather about self-serving ambitions

but i had a different concept of a

political figure since my early

childhood

the reason my grandfather

baikar khachatrian was a high-level

politician during soviet times

holding two positions he was the first

secretary of healing regional committee

then head of a department

in the council of ministers of armenian

soviet socialist republic

throughout over 20 years of his

political career he made many important

decisions

while also successfully dealing with

people from all walks of life

despite his achievements he never spoke

about what he had done

he was never labeled with adjectives

such as arrogant

selfish or unfair

people who remember him describe him as

modest

kind and humble person who never gave

promises but did his job for people

he refused to accept gifts either from

the government or the people he served

because the main principle for him was

never to do anything

that could harm the people or the good

name of his family

although he died before i was born i

have always been proud to be his grand

author

because of the inspiring and amazing

stories that i’ve heard about him

throughout my entire life to me

his image is what i think of when i

imagine

the ideal political figure

it will probably not surprise you if i

tell you that

my parents named my brother after him

and always expected him to follow in his

footsteps

but what is surprising it was me who

ended up being

more interested in politics and when

this became apparent to my family

they were very supportive and encouraged

me to follow my passion

no matter where it would take me i know

that this time i’m facing huge challenge

because i need to fight not only my

inner fears and anxiety

but also people’s negative perceptions

of politicians

but like my grandfather once did maybe i

need to redefine

what it means to be a servant of the

people

telling you my story today is probably

one of the most important steps in my

personal journey to overcoming this

challenge

as i mentioned in the beginning of my

speech i would never succeed in anything

if i had given in to my inner fears

trepidation

or negative perceptions of society

instead of finding a way to be

challenged

and benefit from those things

i know for sure that there are enough

opportunities for me

as a woman to be engaged and pursue all

my dreams without the help of others

i only need to face down my self-doubt

every step of my way

and my journey will end in success

i may be youthful without many years of

experience

but there is one piece of advice that i

can give to people

especially girls and women to follow if

they also want to overcome their inner

fears

it’s all about transforming the fears

into challenges

this doesn’t mean that all your fears

will magically disappear

of course not but no one think for sure

if you face any kind of scary situation

in your life

confront it head on because no matter

the outcome

you will become a better stronger and

brighter version of yourself

so at some point in the future when you

see me in politics

you will know for sure that i’ve

continued to face down my fears

rather than let fear continue to face me