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Authentic awesome Agathi Yap (@Yappetyyap) is a beautiful human who has words of wisdom to share that are genuine, meaningful, and yet so simple.
However, I feel that what Agathi shares and the actions she has taken – and continues to take – require a lot of courage to execute.
Agathi Yap was born in Jakarta. Spent most of her youth in Singapore. Came to Canada when she was 17 and then after some life-changing events, Agathi moved to Honolulu, Hawaii!
How’s that for a little excitement?
Introduced to me by Lisa Borden (@lisaborden) of Borden Communications (@bordencommunications), Agathi has been nothing but honest and real. When I asked her to answer the question “What would you tell your teenage self?” for my book Get Up, It really hit home.
Such simple advice, that I wish I knew and proudly owned when I was a teen.
As I use social media for the good, I have been following Agathi’s journey on Instagram. I am inspired by her authenticity, bravery, and well, taking the leap to live in Hawaii!
Wanting to learn more about authentic awesome Agathi, I had to ask her a few questions… here we go!
I moved to Honolulu to start fresh and to begin a growth period. I went through a lot over the past few years from divorce to dating again at 40 and getting cancer last year. I’ve been around people for the majority of my life and it was time for a change. It was time to enjoy and appreciate my own company.
Bodybuilding is a goal that I’ve always had on my bucket list. Everything seemed to line up when I decided to go through with it. Why not now? I thought to myself as there will never be a time that I will be completely ready. I am not sure if I would have been able to do it earlier in my life. I learned a lot about myself in the process.
I was an IT Manager at Four Seasons Hotel in Toronto. Then I moved to Book4time to become one of their product Managers. In Honolulu, I am a Senior Systems Analyst with Outrigger.
Life always throws you a curve ball to see how you deal with it. You grow by learning to deal with it. Always try to go in with both feet instead of one foot in and one foot out. That way, you will not have any regrets or what-ifs. Always believe in yourself and your abilities. Listen to your body and do what you need to do.
I try to spend time on the beach and get into the water once a week. A walk along the beach usually soothes me.
I have started working out again since I finished treatment. I am glad that I did because I realized how much I missed working out, as it has been a stress release for me.
“Be Happy and comfortable with who you are first and the rest will follow.”
Growing up, I have always been a big girl. At my heaviest, I weighed 180lbs. I was always scared of how others saw me. Only just a few years ago, I learned that it doesn’t matter how others see you, what matters is how you see yourself. When you are happy and comfortable with yourself, the stress of pleasing others goes away. This will allow you will be more confident to pursue your dreams.
Thank you, Authentic awesome Agathi for sharing your simple yet powerful advice with our readers. I believe that if this advice is practiced, this behaviour can release the abnormal amount of pressure and expectations that one can put on themselves.
Oh, come on. I can’t be the only one. 😉