My Set of Training Wheels

"I choose to reflect so that I may proceed with caution..."

 

We all have had and/or possibly still have a set of training wheels in some way, shape or form...

Let us reflect...

http://youtu.be/LLxhmP_wgWU

Whatever your beginning support may be...acknowledge it, appreciate it and realize the indicator when it's time to take them off!

"Relate past events to present opportunities and realize you're ready."

-GYCGirl...Speaks!

Neglect YOUR Fears

“Neglect your fears and stop sitting on the sideline…this position was created for YOU, so play it!”

 –Success saying, “You can’t win if you don’t play”

“Neglect your fears and nurture your passion.”

-YOUR passion telling YOU that victory is on the other side of fear

Remember when someone would pick on us and we’d say “LEAVE ME ALONE,” then later go play with them again…like it never happened…or maybe you’re that person that once you say it, it is set in stone and there is no changing your mind---“Leave me alone, means LEAVE ME ALONE”!

Whichever one you were or maybe still are…sometimes (that’s your business) but when it comes to fear, we may want to say “leave me alone” and keep going but sometimes/other times when fear knocks we…

            -Get up

- Ask who it is

-UPS says “I have package for you”

-We open the door

-It’s a BIG box stamped FEAR in pretty letters

            -We say, “hmm that’s weird” and bring it inside

-And before we know it, we're digging through that BIG Box of Fear!

…Signed for the package and opened it!!

Fear likes to appear comforting, attractive, and as if it’s on your team…preparing you!

GYC Personal Story:

I could tell many stories from my life where fear came to my door and I signed for the package… sat there with it eating dinner & dessert, etc. but I won’t because I’d rather tell a story of victory.

YOU know why???

…Because many people say that it’s normal to have fear and all of that…when actually, IT IS NOT…fear and doubt are twin brothers and have no business near “normal” YOU and YOUR precious future and next steps toward your goals!

                                               

If fear is supposed to be so normal, then why do so many people have a difficult time neglecting fear so it will die and be conquered?

Now, I’ll tell my story:

I was in one of my favorite college professor’s class during my junior year, and I was having a hard time getting a B and even harder time getting my A (yes I was one of those students!). However, we had one last exam for me to get back in the game!

I studied, and I studied hard…well more smart this time, as in I actually taught myself the material instead of simply memorizing it (which has worked in the past…just not for this specific/particular class).

The next day, I go to class…READY for this exam, I’m confident and bold with my answers…talking to the test and writing notes on it as if I’m in a business meeting ready for war with anyone with anything against me (or my answers)!

I finish the exam with confidence (or so I think…keep reading), the whole class goes on break, I go to the Jamba Juice for some delicious oatmeal because I deserve it…

I come back, and I start eating the oatmeal…

He looks at my oatmeal and me, then smirks

(pause: at this moment, I’m thinking that he is going to ask me about my oatmeal & where I bought it…because he does stuff like that)

and says “Can I see you out in the hallway”?

I don’t care how old YOU, ME, WE get…when someone asks “Can I see you out in the hallway?”---We immediately think “OMG What I do, WHAT Happened??? OMG” (maybe not as dramatic…but close enough).

In this moment, I’m thinking ALL bad things such as:

            +I failed this test

            +I failed this class

+He is going to tell me not to come back because there is NO HOPE…

            ----If it was bad, sad and ridiculous, I was thinking it…

BUT THEN…oh how a “but” & a comma can change a story…and emotions!

I hear my inner voice push through and say, “Keep Your Head Up” and repeated itself, “Keep Your Head Up” because I was walking like Slewfoot came to town just for me!

So my professor and I are out in the hallway facing each other (my heart is beating super fast as I push through to keep my head up)…and he looks at me as he says, “I graded a few of the tests” (I’m THINKING O-M-G-----as my eyes get big for a “quick” second and I force myself to maintain eye contact).

---------------------Are YOU ready for this next moment???

He says, “I graded a few of the tests already and you had one of the highest grades in the class. I called you out here because I wanted to shake your hand and tell you that I believe you are going to do really well in business just keep practicing, and you will do really well.”

------------SHUT THE NOISE!!!! I went to the bathroom and called my mom and did a lil shoulder dance & grinned all the way through class!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

FEAR… CONSIDER YOURSELF NEGLECTED!!!

(Because I will punch you in the face with that same story every time you think you’re going to stop me!!!)

GYC Rant of the TRUTH (yes I know this is an ongoing/run-on sentence):

Fear likes to come when it’s our turn to get in the game, and start talking to us like an old friend…that is an old friend (we don’t talk to any more) for a reason and needs to be NEGLECTED and kicked to the curb…our relationship does not live here anymore, stop sending the UPS man to my door (or whatever mail package carrier you prefer…fear does like to use who/what you already know to twist the facts)!!!

**Use stories of victory over fear to neglect fear…and it will die from starvation**

Declaration: It is not normal for ME to be/live in fear; the fact that it’s here must mean that victory is near!!! So UPS man, you can go away because I AIN’T (yep AIN’T) signing for that package…return to sender!!!!!

Last Thoughts:

“If you feed your fears with attention, you’ll be too fat to move forward.”-GYC Girl YOU Crazy

You are BOLD, BOLD, BOLD…that’s what I tell myself when I’m facing great opportunity and fear starts flapping!---And YOU should too!!!

*By the way, I really like my UPS carrier/man…I’m just not signing for ANY packages labeled FEAR---Do YOU hear ME?!?!*

Is the Door Really Closed?: "questionable closed door" Part 2 (My Story)

Avoiding the Open Door

“I do not see mistakes as failures but experience paving the way to success.” –GYC Girl YOU Crazy

Have you ever made a mistake, started to live the mistake, and then finally admitted you were wrong…so you could start over??? I know I’m not by myself!

Although I do not see mistakes as failures, I have to tell my story for you to see my experience as paving the way to success.

Well here’s the story, my story:

Remember how I said that if college was a must for me that it had to be Parsons…and NYC is my dream home? If not, “My Dream is Mine and Yours is Yours” is the place to be…after you finish here of course! However, I’ll give a quick recap: 6th grade was the best, realized my dream and dream college (if I had to go…that’s another post), fast-forward…I came, I saw and graduated from my dream college. Now, lets discuss the in between!

GYC Girl YOU Crazy Timeline aka my own version of what a timeline looks like and the way I’m going to tell this story! This story will have enthusiasm here and there but it is written this way to get straight to the point (10 point story).

“Everyone has an important moment that determines the next moment…often we call it the substance of life.”- Now Speaking

1---Junior year (high school), the year that sets off the possibilities of senior year, and the life after.

            My Junior Year Checklist:

            +Take the SAT, twice was enough (don't judge)

            +Apply to college (only Parsons…fashion design program)

+Last chance to do my best, grade wise, not that I wasn't already but this was year to show off a little more…(colleges rarely look at senior year grades, so I was told)

2---Summer after junior year…lets make it count!

+I went to Parsons Pre-College Design and Management (business) program for 30 days…MY FIRST TIME IN NYC and if I may add, the 1st time being away from home by myself!

+Realized that NYC is really my dream home…I LOVED IT!

-Made international friends and met random celebs, yea that experience came with many interesting stories, anyway.

+I came back home, and wanted to spend the day observing at Paul Cicchini, a high-end custom clothier shop…they let me, so I did, and it was amazing, they are amazing!

3---Senior year, the results are in…

+I didn’t get in, so what now?

++ I applied to 2 other design schools’ fashion design program, 1 in NYC and the other in LA…of course I get into the school in LA that starts in the summer instead of fall. ++

4---Fast Forward: They (Parsons) keep emailing me…leave me alone, the door is closed! Isn’t it?

+The emails say “Keep us in your academic career” and all that jazz!

+Then I realized that I could have possibly messed up by applying to the fashion design program instead of business.

+But I knew it had to be too late, so I started the application for Parsons Paris’ business program-> it wasn’t too late for that (yes, I was all over the place)!

5---In the meantime, I have to go somewhere (out of state!!!), I love NYC but I guess it’s on hold for now…LA here I come!

+They let me in, so here I come…summer session, YAY (and yes I did pump myself up to be excited)!

++ The door was open so… ++

6---Sometimes we can’t see the open doors attached to our dreams and someone else has to open our eyes to see. I told a family friend about the emails from Parsons, and although I thought I was over it, she knew my desire to live in NYC and that I shouldn’t give up.

+My family friend called Parsons to find out what went wrong… "A rejection letter is not always the end but a stepping stone to the next level."-Me

            -I moved to LA in July & started school

            -I realized that LA was not the LA on TV and wondered what “life” I would have here? (I am sure that LA is awesome and hopefully one day I will get to experience its awesomeness but I needed NYC in my life!)

7---I walked through the wrong door because it was open but my dreams preserved the right open door & waited for me!

+My family friend talked to one of the Parsons' admission representatives and she pulled out my file…and there was a sticky note in my file... My rejection file saying, “I should have applied to the business program.”

++ To this day...a sticky note in my rejection file still amazes me, it's not over till it's over! ++

8---Prepare for the right open door

+The rep. said that everything in my file was admissible but I just needed to write the BBA (business program) application essay.

+I had already written the essay to apply for Parsons Paris.

+The door was not closed in NYC but I knew that the door known as LA would not close for me but I needed to close it myself.

            -After all, I did have to make myself excited to go there because I had to leave home after high school & that is the truth!

9---Be Bold, Be Courageous and Walk through the Right Open Door.

+I packed up my short-lived LA life, shipped it home, withdrew from the LA school, and went home to get ready to walk through my right open door!

+The Parsons admission rep. told me to email the essay, "they" would print it out, and present it to the board with the other applicants…and I would immediately have the decision by email!

10---The end of July, expected arrival for freshman is the end of August…

+I got in…with a month before everyone/I am supposed to be there…I got in!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

+And the journey continued as I walked through the open door designed specifically for my purpose and me!

++ If ever there was such a loud Girl YOU Crazy moment…this was it! (So much negative Nellies in my ear, directly & indirectly)++

GYC Commentary: Sometimes we do force access “Yea this door was open, it was busted up like that when I got here” or an all time favorite “stutters: ‘See what had happened was…’” Placing ourselves in a place we were never supposed to be. In life we will find that there are many mistakes posing as an open door, and we will go through them because it’s available right now! However, if we hold onto our dreams no matter the mistakes, we’ll find that the right open door is waiting on us.

GYC Personal Commentary (even though this entire story is personal…):

I was at the right door with the wrong purpose, left and went to the wrong door because it was available but the right door was waiting on me to open it when I was ready with the right purpose. Okay let me try again: I was at the right door but didn’t have the right key, the door wasn’t closed, and I needed to know why I was there so I could have the right key to gain access.

-Lauren Alicia GYC Girl YOU Crazy Creator

Picture Everybody in Their Underwear & You’ll be FINE…

Picture Everybody in Their Underwear & You’ll be FINE…Really???

When I was a little girl up until the 6th grade, I was terrified of speaking in front of the class, school, large crowds (20+), etc…I would burst into sobbing tears and hope that I could go back to my seat (who wants to hear someone try to read and cry???? They did!)! I tried all the tricks, my mom said, “Picture everybody naked or in their underwear” and I’m thinking “What GOOD does that do???…Since they’re not!” Long story short, THAT DIDN’T WORK!

I couldn’t figure it out because I was full of joy, laughter and very talkative on all the other days…but as soon as it was my turn to present something/anything, like a set alarm clock, the tears went off! The next day, everyone would say, “What happened?” “Why were you crying?” the list goes on and on. However, I did not respond because after all, doesn’t everyone have a little stage fright (let me be)?

Someway, somehow, I had to find out what was wrong, why does getting in front of all these people that I see everyday make me nervous to the point of crying!?!?                  

“The thing that challenges you the most could be the thing that you are destined to overcome and conquer.” –Your Inner Confidence Speaking

I’ll be completely honest, the 6th grade must have been the year that I opened the gift of confidence, rejected the possibility of rejection, stood my ground, presented with no tears and began to fight fear…yep, it was a major year!

From that up until now, which is several years and presentations later, I’ve watered down public/presentation/crowd (fill-in-the-blank) speaking, I’ve compared my own, and I have to say something amazingly CRAZY and profound about it, Ready???…

Public Speaking is Just Talking, a conversation where you get to do all the talking, and people have to listen or at least pretend because you have the stage/floor/platform (whatever you wanna call it) and until you sit down & be quiet, they have to listen!

BUT, let me give out some instructions on how and why to water down public speaking to just talking. Quick Comment: I have presented some not so hot presentations since the 6th grade (ha!) and it was a result of not being sure of the things I’m about to say!

When I present,

  +Is there a Purpose and do I know it? The silliest to the most boring topic has a purpose for being presented, if you can’t find it, define it or in other words make it up, create one. This is NOT LYING but giving a topic a reason to be presented, there is a difference!

  +Is there something about the topic that I can be Passionate about? Find a specific area of the topic that speaks to you, something that relates to you in some shape or form. If you ARE interested, they’ll be interested, or at least grow an interest. When you find a topic or part of a topic that interests you…TALK ABOUT IT! No one wants to listen to you be bored about a boring topic, trust me, YOU CAN MAKE IT INTERESTING!

  +Do I know the Purpose and understand the topic enough to be Passionate and have Confidence when I speak? Know what you know, believe it, and then tell about it! We talk to our friends about everything and nothing without even thinking about it, know the topic you’re presenting the same way so you can just talk about it like in a conversation!

  +And if I know and have all of the answers to the previous questions, will I promise myself to be Bold, stand or sit up straight, feet on the ground, and defend what I’ve presented because I know what I know and I’m not backing down???? Let me repeat myself, “I know what I know, and I’m not backing down,” once you have decided to be confident you can’t take it back (well, you can but confidence just looks a whole lot better), give em’ good eye contact and a smile  when you’re done (teeth or no teeth, you decide)! Enjoy yourself and have fun!

***Oh and please, please…please don’t end with “I’m done” “That’s It” “That’s All I Got” “I’m Finished, Can I Sit Down?” it's like taking a shower before playing in the mud, just unnecessary! Silence, “Any Questions?” or “Thank You” is the perfect way to end your amazing speech no matter who you are!

GYC Commentary: The thing that challenged me the most became the thing that I overcame, conquered and enjoy doing because after all, I know what I know & I’m not backing down plus public speaking is just talking!

+++If there is a lesson in here, anywhere from experience…is to pursue and conquer that thing that challenges you the most, the thing that embarrasses you that embarrasses no one else, something you wish you were proud of but makes you nervous at the mention of it, etc.