Hi, my name is Xara, a 27-year-old girl working in an IT company. I’ve always been the kind of employee who keeps my head down and gets things done.
No drama. No loud opinions. No real “presence” in meetings — just efficiency.
And I thought that was enough until it wasn’t.
I had just completed a project that I’d quietly worked on for three months. Late nights, early mornings, skipped lunches.
During the review meeting, my manager said,
“Good job. However, I would like you to speak up more next time. You have value. Let people hear it.”
I smiled and nodded. But inside, I froze.
Speak up? Be seen? What if I mess it up? What if I sound stupid?
Later that week, she sent me a link with a short message:
“You might find this interesting — Pop Institute Pte Ltd.”
I clicked it out of curiosity. What I saw confused me.
It wasn’t your typical corporate training. It talked about clarity, personal truth, emotional tension, and healing. It didn’t make much sense to me at the time, but I trusted her.
So I registered for the upcoming weekend workshop.
I Didn’t Expect What Happened Next
From the moment I stepped into the Pop Institute Pte Ltd session, I knew this wasn’t about work.
There were no PowerPoint slides. No corporate buzzwords.
Instead, we sat in a circle. The mentor asked us to reflect on questions that no one had ever asked me — not even myself.
I sat silently for a long time. And just like that, something cracked open inside me.
People didn’t rush to fix me. They listened. They nodded. I wasn’t alone anymore.
The Lesson I Didn’t Know I Needed
By the end of the workshop, I wasn’t suddenly confident or loud.
But I felt… seen. And something had shifted, not in my skills — in my self-respect.
I started speaking up in meetings. Not with force — but with calm conviction. I shared an idea during a town hall, and for the first time, I didn’t panic. I even asked for a raise — something I never imagined I’d have the courage to do.
I had spent years believing I had to earn space by being useful. Quietly.
But Pop Institute Pte Ltd taught me something radically different:
- You don’t have to disappear to belong.
- You don’t have to shrink to be accepted.
- You don’t have to be perfect to be heard.
Sometimes, all it takes is one room, one question, one brave step into the unknown.
If you’ve ever felt like your best efforts go unseen, or like you’re constantly holding your breath waiting for permission — maybe this is your moment.
I didn’t expect growth to feel like release. But now I know: real change starts when you stop pretending.
And for me, it started at Pop Institute Pte Ltd.
