How Shame Almost Made Me Quit Before I Ever Started

Shame has a sneaky way of sounding like the truth. It whispers things like:

• “Who do you think you are?”

• “You’re not qualified.”

• “They’ll find out you’re a fraud.”

• “People like you don’t get to do things like this.”

And if I’m being honest, I almost listened, in fact there are some days I have to remind myself not to listen (spiritual warfare is absolutely real!)

When I first dreamed of relaunching Swag Fashion Co., I was excited, but I was also terrified. Not because I didn’t believe in the vision, but because shame kept trying to rewrite the story God was authoring in me.

I could still hear the echoes of the past:

• The voices that called me a failure before I ever had a chance to try.

• The mistakes I made that I thought disqualified me from doing anything meaningful.

• The guilt I carried for not getting it right sooner.

Shame doesn't just show up in obvious ways. Sometimes, it disguises itself as “humility” or “realism.” But underneath it all is one core lie: “You are not enough.”

But here’s what I’ve learned:

God never needed me to be enough. He just needed me to say yes.

Yes, to the calling, yes to the community, yes to showing up scared, and yes to letting my scars be seen, and still believing I could be used for something good.

So, I am no longer hiding, and I am no longer rehearsing what disqualified me and I am going to stand on what redeemed me.

Rebranding SFC with Swag Fashion Co., LLC wasn’t just about launching a business. It was about dismantling the shame that almost kept me from showing up at all.

If shame has ever tried to silence your dream or shrink your purpose, please hear me:

• You are not the sum of your lowest moments.

• Your mistakes are not your identity.

• God delights in using the unlikely.

There’s room for you at the table, even if you feel like a mess. Especially if you feel like a mess.

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If you’re finding pieces of your own story in mine, I’d love to invite you to subscribe. I write daily for people like us, those who’ve been overlooked, underestimated, and yet… are still standing.

Up next:

“What I Didn’t Know I Was Healing From”

(A look at childhood survival skills that quietly followed me into adulthood)

Because healing is messy. But you don’t have to do it alone.

Giving up is never an option,

Andrea