Overcoming Shyness
Reading yesterday’s paper, I came across a story that seemed eerily familiar. In the Daily Southtown, freelance reporter Cheryl Dangel Bartolini wrote a lovely piece about a senior student at Andrew High School in Tinley Park.
“Grace Mooney said she’s always considered herself a shy person.” she wrote. “So when she was invited to attend the National Student Leadership Conference for Business and Entrepreneurship at Northwestern University last summer, she was hesitant.”
The rest of the article documented the young lady’s 10-day stay at Northwestern University, where she made friends with people from all over the U.S. and discovered how to be more assertive.
Reading the article took me back to my own experiences with the National Student Leadership Conference (NSLC).
Growing up, I was shy. I had friends, but I wasn’t very assertive and was always hesitant to respond in class for fear of having the wrong answer. Going to an all girls high school helped me start to crack that shell, but it was my time at the NSLC that pushed me to find my voice.
I recall receiving some kind of mailer in school inviting me to NSLC. I was a junior in high school (17 years old). I barely read through the brochure before I decided I really wanted to go. There was an opportunity to spend 10 days in Washington, D.C. plus a four-day excursion in New York City. I had dreamed of going to New York since I was 12, and here was my chance.
I brought the brochure home to my mom, who was a little skeptical. However, I reminded her that this came from school, so her skepticism slowly lifted. I’m not sure what made her agree to let me take this trip, but to this day I’m so happy she did.
I was able to pick between three programs: Business & Entrepreneurship, Law & Advocacy or Medicine & Health Care (FYI: There are now 18 programs, including Culinary Arts, Journalism and Sports Management, to name a few). I wasn’t into science, and I didn’t have a “go get ’em” attitude just yet, so I chose Law & Advocacy (a 10-day experience at American University) with a quick sightseeing trip through New York beforehand.
Long story short: I saw the musical Rent in New York, printed out my Polish family’s arrival information at Ellis Island, saw the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia (and ate a cheese steak I thought was gross), ran a ropes course in Virginia, walked around the Inner Harbor in Baltimore, participated in a mock trial in Washington, D.C. and had the time of my life.
I spoke up in team meetings and during the trial. I helped with opening and closing statements. I made friends from all over the country and still keep in touch with some on Facebook.
In the end, I gained a confidence I didn’t realize I had. I am a much more outspoken person, although still quiet now and then, and the memories from the National Student Leadership Conference will undoubtedly last a lifetime.
You went to NSLC? That’s amazing! I heard about it at my high school but had no clue what it was. Now that I look at it, it seems like quite the opportunity. Good for you!
Missed seeing your blog on TCW. Glad I found you! You tell such great stories. Inspiring.