I have a dirty little secret for you.

None of us have it all figured out. Even when we look the part. Even when an ABC News Reporter thinks our story is newsworthy and brings a film crew with her to ask us how we turned our dreams into action.

A couple of weeks ago #Delhi2013 participant, Cecily Jackson-Zapata, and I had the pleasure of meeting Denise Dador of ABC Channel 7 News in Los Angeles. Denise asked insightful questions and did a wonderful job of telling our story. On Monday, we made the afternoon news in LA and my hope is that we helped at least one other survivor feel less alone with this piece: ABC Channel 7 – ‘A Fresh Chapter’ Helps Cancer Survivors Heal.

Am I excited about this opportunity to tell our story? Absolutely. In fact, I’m probably more amazed than you might think. Let’s put this into perspective. I grew up on a gravel road in the middle of Northern British Columbia. (For all of my international friends, B.C. is the most Western Province in Canada). As a kid, our family had a layover in LA once,  and I may as well have landed on the moon because it seemed like the busiest, most intimidating city on the planet. You better believe that little girl had no illusions of ever being on TV, let alone being interviewed on the LA news.

Yet, there I was. Answering questions in my new friend Lissa’s living room and praying I could articulate the story in a way that served the A Fresh Chapter and touched other cancer survivors.

When I watched the piece, I couldn’t help but smile at the magic of television. You don’t see the meltdown I had the day before because the steep learning curve to getting sustainable funding for the foundation had me almost hyperventilating in my friend’s living room. You don’t see me kicking myself for not nailing every single line perfectly. Instead, you see the smiling girl in the pink shirt who seems to have it all together.

Here’s the thing about perfect. It’s an illusion. I know you probably know this, but it doesn’t stop any of us from wanting to get “there”. I spent last weekend at the World Domination Summit in Portland where I heard accomplished people in their field talk about failure and fear. Tess Vigeland, a radio celebrity who recently left her role at NPR Marketplace stood on the stage and confessed to not having the answers for what the hell she is going to do with the rest of her life. Then – something crazy happened – 3000 people stood up and cheered because her fears and imperfections made the rest of feel normal.

Over the last two years of dream chasing and foundation building, here is what I’ve learned: No matter how shiny things look from the outside, nothing is perfect. So, go do the thing you feel you’re meant to do. (You can even click to tweet that.) 

Go take a photography class, learn how to salsa, start a blog, or launch a movement. You’ll never do it perfectly. You’ll probably fail just as often as you succeed. But, as one of my best friends, Molly Huber, said to me on a hike in the North Shore Mountains yesterday, “Terri – done is better than perfect.” Amen to that.

What do you think? Do you believe done is better than perfect? Has someone inspired you to move closer to your dreams, even if you don’t have all of the answers? I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments….

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