Hey there. Orianna here from Fortune.

Colin Kaepernick is known as much for his athleticism as he is for his activism. The former San Francisco 49ers quarterback raised his voice against racial injustice and police brutality by kneeling during the national anthem in 2016. At the time, it sparked both significant praise and backlash.

Kaepernick was called anti-police, labeled a “traitor” by a league executive, and received countless death threats. He became the face of Nike, which drove some consumers to #JustBurnIt and set their products on fire.

A decade on, and Kaepernick hasn’t been signed by an NFL team since. But he’s back in business. This time, as CEO of his own new venture, Lumi—an AI literacy startup aimed to help Gen Alpha and Gen Z find their voices and write their stories. And he’s unapologetic about the power of speaking your truth.

If he could go back in time, the one piece of advice Kaepernick would give his younger self is this: Don’t let fear of backlash silence you.

Speaking to me on stage at Web Summit Qatar, Kaepernick spoke about how, early on, it’s easy to overedit what you want to say because you’re trying to “not hurt people’s feelings…But it’s not actually what you want to say.”

Playing it safe, he said, rarely leaves a mark.

🎥 Watch: Colin Kaepernick shares the one thing he learned about being a CEO from the NFL

“When you are true to yourself, people relate to you much better. They feel the authenticity,” Kaepernick told me. “It’s not necessarily going to be always the perfect picture, but what comes out of that is much stronger relationships, much better relatability, and people often start opening up on their end as well.”

It won’t always be polished. But that’s the point. Because in the end, saying what’s true tends to travel further than saying what feels safe—and, as Kaepernick has learned, it’s what builds real trust, real connection, and real impact.

Read his tips for finding your voice in Fortune.

—Orianna Rosa Royle
Success Associate Editor, Fortune

Got a career tip or dilemma? Get in touch: orianna.royle@fortune.com. You can also find me on LinkedIn, TikTok, X, and Instagram.