My freshmen year I was nervously pacing before my audition for jazz band when an upperclassman gave me some advice I will never forget, "You gotta fake it till you make it". Although I had heard the phrase before, it had never really meant anything. But in that moment, it finally made sense. That sparked my interest in so many things. M freshmen year I began taking leaps and trying things I previously never would have even bothered to look at. I auditioned for the spring musical, went out for the tennis team, ran in student government elections and decided that you gotta be in the race to win the race. Luckily for me, I have continued with this principle throughout my high school career. Although sometimes trying new things doesn't always work out, I have made so many memories and learned quite a few lessons by faking my confidence long enough to get through an audition or interview and that has made me the person I am today.
Four years and countless chances later, I have built up a new kind of confidence. I have realized that the best thing to do when you are unsure about something, is to just go for it. I have learned things about myself I would have never known if I hadn't stood on that stage or court or ballot. Now, I have a love of tennis, I decided playing in the orchestra for the musical instead of starring in it is more my style and I am now President of Band Council attempting to use my new found leadership skills to make an impact on the program that has given so much to me over the past few years.
It is this confidence and these experiences that lead me to pursue Up With People. When I first learned about Up With People it seemed like an unreal dream too far away from my grasp. The presenters asked at the end if anyone was interested in applying for their program. It seemed like a stretch, but I figured I wouldn't know unless I tried. I eagerly accepted what felt like a possible passport to the world and quickly scrawled my name on the list of applicants. The application was thick and by the time I turned it in, the dream was fading fast.
Then, amazingly, I got called in for an interview. Picking out my most professional button up and trying to appear much more put together than I felt, I headed down to the Auburn Avenue Theatre and walked right into a room full of laptops, UWP staff and intimidating stares. As it turns out my interviewer forgot he had scheduled something with me and was not even in the building. At that moment I have to admit I couldn't have felt more unimportant.
The other various people asked me to sit and talk with them as someone frantically tried to track down the person supposed to be interviewing me. I took a seat at a table full of staff and began chatting about my hobbies and goals. Trying to hide my nervousness I attempted to make a good impression as I firmly took hold of my 'Fake It Til You Make It' mentality. The bittersweet thing was that they couldn't find my original interviewer (a completely gorgeous Swedish guy I had really wanted to meet), apparently he was stuck in a meeting in another part of town. The bright side is that m new interviewer ended up being the very nice guy I had just spent 15 minutes chatting with. Instead of not knowing my interviewer, I got to interview with Isaiah, a fellow musician from the US who attended the program before college and then went to work for UWP.
Throughout the interview I answered questions about who I am and who I wanted to be. What my goals and ambitions are and why I wanted to join the program. The last question of the interview was about my commitment to attending. He informed me again of the tuition cost and the international aspect of the program and asked if I would be able to attend because it is a competitive program and they didn't want to admit students that were not serious about attending. This is where a crack formed in my resolve. Although I was really committed to going, $18,000 was more money than I had ever seen in my life. At that time, getting Starbucks was a treat for me. I expressed my concern about the price tag, but assured him that I would work my hardest to afford to go.
It was how he responded to my concern that really gave me the confidence to pursue this further. He said, off the record, that I was a perfect candidate for the program and he was confident that I would be accepted, but that the official decision would have to come from their intentional headquarters. Then, he further assured me that he also came from a single parent family with siblings where money wasn't always easy and that at the time of his acceptance he had about $20 in his bank account. He said that he was about to raise the money in about four months with the help of his community and that he didn't want me to not try based purely off of the price tag. I thanked him for his time and consideration and then began frequently checking the mail box as I waited for a response.
After a few weeks, I made it! I got my acceptance and all my fears were erased. I was given an opportunity that I never would have even imagined if I had not tried. I am so grateful that I was able to conduct myself eloquently and articulate my ambition effectively enough to get accepted into this program. Now, as people as me how I am going to pay for it, I simply have faith, and fake my confidence until I am able to make it to my goal.
Thank you for your time and support in My Journey to Up With People! Please check my Donation page and keep looking for new posts! I will be sure to be a little more prompt with my next one :)
