Why I Call Myself an Optometrist (Even Though I Don’t Test Eyes)
I’m not an optometrist. I don’t have a clinic, I don’t carry a tray of trial lenses, and I don’t wear a white coat.
But I do share something in common with them: I help people see.
An optometrist doesn’t give you eyes. You already have them. They simply adjust the focus so that you can see the world clearly. They don’t change the world outside — the road, the signboard, the streetlight — they change how you perceive it. Suddenly, what was a blur becomes sharp, crisp, and within reach.
That’s exactly what I do in the Confluent Speaker Mission.
The Blurry Lens of Self-Doubt
Many bilingual, non-English medium professionals walk around with perfect intelligence, deep skills, and great ideas — but with a blurry lens when it comes to English and communication.
The problem isn’t their mind. It’s the lens they’re looking through:
- “I’m not fluent enough.”
- “My accent is wrong.”
- “I can’t express my thoughts the way I want.”
These are scratches on the glass, distortions that make them see themselves as “less than” in a global conversation.
Adjusting the Focus
My job isn’t to hand out brand-new abilities. You already have the mind, the talent, and the ideas. I simply help you adjust the lens so you can see your own potential clearly — and so the world can see you too.
With the right mindset shift (the confidence crown) and the right tools (the fluency crown), the blur fades. Suddenly:
- You hear yourself speak and it actually sounds like you.
- You walk into a meeting and forget about “performing” — you just connect.
- You realize you’ve been world-class all along; the world just needed to see you without the fog.
The Joy of Clear Vision
Ask anyone who’s ever put on the right glasses for the first time — there’s a joy, even a shock, in realizing, “This is what the world looks like?”
For my people, it’s the same moment — except the vision is of their own voice. They realize, “This is what I actually sound like when I’m not hiding behind fear?”
Not an Eye Doctor, but a Vision Restorer
I’m not here to fix your eyes.
I’m here to restore your vision of yourself — sharp, confident, fluent, independent.
So yes, I call myself an optometrist. Not of sight, but of self-belief.
And in this mission, that’s the clearest vision I can give.
