If you were told you had won R100,000 what would you do?

Did you just come up with a lot of grand, exciting ideas? Maybe you thought about buying a 2-storey house, or the latest car, throwing a big party, or taking your friends on an adventure and travelling?

Or, if you could do just one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be? Would you play netball, sing, become a scientist, cook or start an NGO and help your community?

Whatever you answered with can help you work out what your dreams are. Dreams are the things that get you excited and that you want to do for the rest of your life. So, go for it, go for your dreams! Ah, this is where a lot of people start to hesitate. As much as you want to go for your dreams, sometimes this little doubt monster starts telling you all the reasons you cannot do it. Have you felt that too?

You are not alone; having that feeling of doubt is normal and it is okay. Girls are often judged for how they present themselves to the world, so it is particularly difficult to put yourself out there because you are afraid of judgment. That is okay! Go for it anyway.

“As a little girl, I was more on the chubby side which meant I was never anyone’s crush and definitely not one of the popular girls – I also wasn’t sporty. I did unfortunately grow up with body image issues and self-worth issues.” Those are the words from 16-year-old Lilly Tzingakis, who has recently published an incredible fantasy novel called ‘Missing Pieces’. Although Lilly’s self-esteem was not the best growing up, she did not let that voice be the loudest one in her head.

Lilly is only 16 years old, balancing school, friends, family, with that little doubt monster in her head. When Lilly was asked about how she knew she could write a book she said she didn’t! She originally thought she couldn’t, and her parents were worried about her mental health as she was still in school, and they were not sure she could handle the pressure. Throughout the process of writing Lilly said, “I had many a moment of doubt and intense imposter syndrome. I think however, that deep down I knew I could write a book because of my unyielding passion for literature, my subtle stubborn streak, but most importantly because of the strong support system of people I have in my life.”

Being in school and going for your dreams can be hard because you have different voices in your head telling you, their opinions. Some voices say you can do it, others say you can’t do it, and some of those voices are from people you love. So, what do you do?

You must listen to the voice that tells you that you are good enough. When you decide to go for your dreams while you are still in school, you must make sure you are disciplined to get your school done, and in your free time work step by step towards your goal. You do not have to do everything at once, and most of all be proud of yourself for starting your journey.

Soon, Lilly will be selling her novel in cities all over South Africa and her friends and family are so proud of her. She knows that every girl out there can do it too and she wants to “encourage young women to be gentle with themselves. So often we are our own worst enemies, our own harshest critics. Be kind to yourself because we are all made exactly the way God intended.”

So, if you are ever feeling in doubt about yourself, or whether you can go for your dream or not, look yourself in the mirror, remind yourself that you are awesome, and go for it.

Tell us: if you won R100,000 what would you do? What are some of your dreams?