The Courage to Try, the Esteem to Fail

“Fear and inadequacy and the prevailing themes in my life,” says poet Angela Aguirre. “I have allowed fear to stop my arms from reaching so many times.” No longer.

By ADDitude Editors Updated on June 29, 2023

When people tell me I am amazing, I do not believe them
I smile, give thanks, and hope not to be discovered
I am a fraud

Angela Aguirre does not look like a fraud or a failure. The inspiring young poet has a published book called Confessions of a Firework. She is a teacher. And co-founder of Chingona Fire, a Latina feminist poetry collective. (“A chingona is any woman who chooses to live her life on her own terms,” she says.)

Aguirre is also a woman living with attention deficit disorder (ADHD or ADD), among other related conditions.

In this video, she candidly tells the story of her own empowering journey from the valleys of self-doubt to the peaks of entrepreneurial success. She talks in real terms that young women will appreciate, and holds back nothing as she describes growing up and starting real life with ADHD.

“Fear and inadequacy are the prevailing themes in my life,” she says. “I have allowed fear to stop my arms from reaching so many times.” No longer.