Curious Incidents of a Flailing Mermaid

My Awesome Birthday School Visit

Hi guys - I just wanted to share about a cool (I don't think cool is the right word but I don't wanna get too soppy too early) school visit I did today.
Sometimes in my job (motivational speaker) you have days where you doubt yourself. Not because you can't do it, just because you might not feel very motivational because you're down or stressed. Today I felt stressed. My inbox was full of date change requests or "we don’t think we can fit it in" emails. I had two phone calls on my way to my school asking for my time that I don’t really have! Aggh. Then I got to the school expecting to do a practical then a classroom session - all planned out. Only to be told that they forgot the kids had an exam so I only had one hour so could I just deliver the six keys to success instead. Fine…. Plan out the window.

But I am glad, now.

I had a group of year 9 (age 13-14) disaffected and struggling students… maybe knowing this didn't help my mood. But it was the best "pick me up" I could of asked for.
I started off by telling them who I was and what I'd achieved - this was met with choruses of "wow" and "amazing". Then I explained that this was not stuff I ever thought I'd say about myself when I was their age because I didn’t believe I'd be successful at anything - ever. Saying this, I looked at one boy who I saw had a tear in his eye. Before I knew It, he had tears streaming down his face. I jokingly said "don’t cry mate, you'll start me off"… then I regretted it because I didn't want others to laugh. They didn't… a few others said "I feel like crying too". Wow! I'd only been talking five minutes.

So, I started the six keys, relating them to my life story. I spoke about my lack of confidence for People Skills and going from failing at school to my First Class degree for Breaking Barriers - I think this really struck a chord with these guys, too. I tried to relate it all to things they might be going through. They all hung on every word and answered everyone of my questions and discussion points.

Throughout it all, I noticed a girl who had an answer for everything but would not speak up. At the end she came up to me and said "how do you do it?" … I wasn't quite sure what she meant so I asked her. "How do you stand up and speak to people like you're the most confident person ever? What changed for you?" she said. It’s a tricky question to answer, because I'm not 100% sure. But I spoke about finding sport that gave me the confidence to be myself and being able to accept/believe in myself. She, too, was in tears at this point, telling me how shy she was and how she just could not speak up in any situation. Unfortunately, it was exam time so she had to go, so I only had time for a few snippets of advice. But she left nodding , saying "I'll try!"

I was at the school last Thursday too and when the teacher told me who I'd be working with today, I jokingly said "they better be nice to me because it will be my birthday!" (it is - that bit wasn’t a joke).. So, on Friday, the group spent a whole lesson making this amazing card, which I love! I was so touched.

It is days like today that make me realise the beauty of the programme I work on and makes me feel really lucky to have this opportunity. I only had one hour with the group, but it was a worthy hour. Even if we're not feeling it, we can still make a difference.