Open Your Mouth

I kept saying to myself ,"Diggy, Relax, your not  dumb." 

I don't know why, but for as long as I remember, I've always been afraid of talking in front of people. Big groups, small groups, and even my friends. I can recall in 7th grade when I was required to give a speech to my history class. I chose the german soccer player Franz Beckenbauer because he was one of my long time idols. I did all the research I possibly could, with this vision in my head that I was going to talk for hours on end about my topic. My dream didn't go as I had planned. I stepped up to the podium, got through the first couple of lines, looked up at my quiet audience, and suddenly froze.  I remember asking myself (and I still do this today), "Diggy, Talk, You know what to say!" I could feel my face getting warm and my legs becoming weak. "And now you know more about Mr. Franz Beckenbauer." I had only read about 2 facts before ending my speech way below the time limit.

Now I'm 18 years old, and I should be able to give a speech without having a panic attack. Well, last friday I had the chance to test my skills. I was going to be speaking with two of my potential college professors about a possible art scholarship. Remembering 7th grade, I decided to come up with a plan to hopefully impress them and not ruin my chances. Here was my Plan

Step 1: Don't think about what I'm going to say and pretend its just a normal conversation.

Oh Yeah, and be completely, 100%, Diggy Whiz.

...

Thats It. 

I went into the photography room with the professors, laid out all of my favorite creations, and Then the Q and A Began. They would ask me a question about one of the pieces, and I would return with my answer. Easy, but not for long. The questions started gettng slightly more complicated, but surprisingly I kept on answering with without making myself look stupid. 

Before I knew it, things were coming to and end. He reached out to shake my hand and told me "It was a pleasure talking with you," and that he was "IMPRESSED with what I had to show." I packed up, thanked them again, and walked through the underground tunnel system with a big smile on my face. I had just done exactly what I had dreamed to do in 7th grade. 

I know this was a really silly issue I had, But conquering my fear made me feel really good inside.    :|

Hopefully I will receive good news from them in the future, but for now I will just have to wait...

Whiz