As I have told you all before, Social Anxiety was a huge problem of mine upon leaving High School and approaching College. However, this post isn't about what Social Anxiety is or how it affects us - but how I gave it a good old kick up the arse.
The BIG question is HOW? So, here's my step to step of what I did to overcome this.
1. Got a job in a Hotel, involving a lot of social situations and where image is everything. This was my first major step, working in a hotel has made me a better person in so many ways. Even my Boltonion accent is changing as throughout my working experience - I am learning to speak properly. I have found myself talking to anyone and everyone even around college and town - this is due to the fact I have to make conversation within a hotel and engage in the guest's interests.
At first, I was shy and didn't talk to anybody but now it's the most comfortable place to be for me. My colleagues are like my family!
2. Spoke to someone. This is a huge solution in most situations. During my first year of college, I had my private bubble - being a theatre student, a lot of people did their best to burst that bubble but I just pushed them away the best I could. This got the attention of my Theatre studies Tutor - she took me to one side and I was streaming tears and just telling her how I often hid in the toilet and often late to lessons as I wanted to avoid the rush of people in the changeover period. All she told me was it will take a leap of faith to overcome something like this, but it had to be made by me alone.
3. Hosted my 18th Birthday. This doesn't seem like much, does it? It was the most nerve-wrecking day of my life. I invited a lot of people from college, so I had so many worries about nobody turning up and cancellations had me in tears. However, the party was the day I was truly myself with my friends in college those who did everything to pull me through my tough time. They burst my bubble, and I couldn't be more grateful.
4. Applied to become a Live Mannequin for a boutique in Bloxwich. I succeeded with this, and even had a mini photoshoot with Ant Bradshaw. That day was huge for me, as it was an opening there was a lot of people I didn't know - I ended up meeting lots of inspirational girls!
5. I had Pageant Training with Jess Watts, Miss Teen Galaxy Wales 2013. This was very significant for me. My mum didn't book it for the pageant training but rather the training in confidence. Jess brought everything out of me, my best features - everything. I couldn't be more thankful to her for that.
6. MISS BOLTON 2015. This was the turnover! This is what changed me completely from being unconfident to confident! Mark's pageants are designed for you to have fun! They are designed for you to make friends! They are designed to make you feel beautiful whether your Eco dress falls apart or your evening dress keeps trying to fall down (yes, both happened to me) I've said over and over, why pageants are such a good hobby to have - I can honestly say "Pageants made me a better version of myself, they took a socially anxious girl and made her a confident young women" They gave me a dream, a dream to be on the Miss England stage. They taught me to never give up! Girls like Dominique, Lucy, Steph, Jordan, Holly, Leah, Chelsea, Laura, Kelly, Emily - the list goes on - have come back year after year to chase after their dream and to meet other inspired girls! I will never give up my dream of becoming a role model, and showing everybody that ANYTHING is possible...
Besides the only place where SUCCESS comes before WORK is in the dictionary!
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