Daphne is from Brooklyn, New York, where she was living at the time of her interview. Her days were spent “planning, writing [ideas] down, scheming on the next big idea, the next big goal, the next big dream.”
Daphne’s Most Likely To Is: Most Likely to Smile
Listen to “Conversation 19 (Daphne)” on Spreaker.
Daphne shared some of her childhood memories of Haiti:
“I remember the food, I remember the ambiance, the family…being around such vivid culture. It was just so beautiful. Whereas in New York, you’re basically just hustling, hustling, hustling, hustling…back there it was about culture. It was about family. You got to enjoy life for what it was.”
She talked about the importance of a smile:
“I’m at this point in my life where I realize that no matter what you’re going through, a smile can change a lot. It can change how you’re feeling. It can change a lot for anyone, anybody, including yourself.
I always say that your smile is contagious so if you smile at the next person, they’re going to smile at somebody else. A simple smile can change a day. A smile can change a life.”
We talked about who she’s following on social media:
“I think right now, the most important I follow are people in my age group and people [who] are a little bit older than me. I follow a lot of people with visions, a lot of people who are dreamers. People who are doing things. I call [them] the visionaries, dreamers, and the doers.
I follow a lot of people [who] are really passionate about their dreams, and they’re doing everything they have to do to achieve those dreams.”
Daphne discussed her path of personal growth of the past few years:
“At that point in my life, I wasn’t where I needed to be. I knew where I wanted to be, but I wasn’t there mentally…honestly, looking back on it, I can say that I wasn’t in love with myself. I was in love with what people wanted me to be, not who I wanted to be.
I realized I’m destined to be ‘Dafna’, you know, I’m destined to be me. And I’m not like every other girl. I’m not like every other young woman. I have to be me, and I have to go down my own path, do what I have to do for myself, follow my own rules…because at the end of the day, when everybody leaves you…who do you have? Yourself.”
We talked about the roles that love, passion, and giving play in her life:
“Love, passion, and giving… [they] work hand-in-hand. If you have love in your heart, you should be able to give. If you’re working towards something, and there’s somebody else coming along the line working towards that same dream, you should be able to give to them…
If I’m trying to get to Point B, and I see somebody struggling to get to Point B, I want to make it to Point B before I help that person. It shouldn’t be like that. It should be…you help that person, and you guys both make it to Point B. Whether it takes 10 days, whether it takes 10 years, but you guys will both make it there.”
Daphne spoke about what she sees in her city, and in our country, at this moment:
“I’m seeing a lot…a lot…A LOT of young people just doing their thing! …Oh my goodness, I have girls that graduated from college, girls that are in dental school, girls that are just doing so many good things.
It’s just amazing to see, like, ‘wow I used to go to school with these girls. I used to play double-dutch with these girls. We used to play Barbie doll…and now these girls are living their dreams.”