Hey y'all! Happy July 1st! It is the beginning of a new month (arguably the best month of the year because I was born on the 27th) and we have made it half way through 2020. What a crazy year it has been. One of the crazy things that has happened for me personally this year is the rescheduling of the international pageant that I would have been competing at this week! It is now set for December 29-January 2nd, a whole six months later. As I am sure you can imagine everyone's plans have been moved around, but honestly I am really excited for the new dates. A lot of people were saying it was cool because we have more time to prepare now, but I personally felt great with the original date; and the reason why is what this blog post is going to be about!
I joined this particular pageant system's sisterhood (International Junior Miss) in 2018 and I immediately fell in love with the people and the system. For the past two and a half years since registering for the Texas pageant for the first time I have been working my little booty off. (To check out my past pageant experiences, click here). And one of the best things I ever did pageant prep wise was giving myself positive affirmations and attainable goals.
For example: an attainable goal for myself for the first pageant I did with IJM Texas was to enjoy my experience in a new system. I didn't go in with my heart set on winning first place because I hadn't been competing for a couple years, and I had no idea what this new system would be like. But I told myself I would do my very best and I ended up getting the first runner up title! I am by no means saying to not set your goals as high as possible, however, I have a habit of being really hard on myself if I don't meet those super high goals right away. So definitely know yourself well enough to know where to set those goals.
As most people know, at the first international pageant I went to I really didn't set goals for myself other than to have a good time, which lead to me being disappointed in the outcome. I didn't really put in the work because I was way nervous, and it showed! I didn't perform my best, my interview wasn't great (and it's usually my best area) and I just didn't feel like I was going to do well. Which inevitable became truth.
After that first year with IJM I knew I could accomplish really great things at my next state pageant, and giving myself those positive affirmations and re-setting my goals onto the Texas title proved really fruitful! I won and I felt great all weekend. I genuinely didn't second guess or doubt myself, and I believe it showed.
The difference between my successes and my failures have been a lot to do with my mental preparation. When you think about something a lot your actions then become in line with the outcome you're thinking on. When I think about how I want to become a stronger runner, I work harder on running. When I think about how tired running makes me and how I am feeling like I'm not getting anywhere, I stop running. It isn't even a truly conscious change for a few days either. It's small excuses or metal talks and then I look up and realize I'm either working hard or I'm not! It's as simple as that.
Another thing that really helped me out was finding and connecting with my coach: Lisa Dean! Lisa is incredible and is so good at bringing people out of their shell and showing them their potential. Lisa quickly became one of my favorite people and a family friend and I am blessed to now be one of her models for her new boutique; Shop Lisa Dean!! (The website for the boutique will be going live this month, and on July 28th we will be doing a fundraising fashion show to kick things off, with proceeds going to various organizations). I seriously believe working with Lisa gave me the confidence to accept that I am good enough to be the titleholder. I always thought in the back of my mind that I could be great, and she was able to pull that right to the front almost immediately. I have seen significant changes in myself and my performance since working with her.
Journaling has been an awesome resource for me throughout my pageant preparations. Getting to see what my goals were at the start of my journal entries, and how they evolved or were expanded to the end of the entries is so fun. It's also nice while going through my prep to check in with any lists or goals I had made and make sure I am on the right track, and even write about what I have accomplished that excited or surprised me. Journaling is also great for setting yourself deadlines. If you date all of your entries and incorporate lists it's a nice way to keep yourself on track, and keep all of your stuff in one place. Making lists on your phone or on random bits of paper is great, but it is scientifically proven that writing things down helps you remember them and this way you are less likely to lose it!
I'd like to continue a pageant-prep tips series so to speak on my blog, so please let me know if you like this post! And comment/message me any pageant questions you might have. With 8 years of experience so far I have definitely tried and tested a few different things! Pageants are truly a huge part of who I am and I can't imagine where I would be without them. I so appreciate every person that has supported me on my journey and every lesson these competitions have taught me. I can't wait to compete this winter at the 2020 International Junior Miss International pageant and go for the crown.
As always thank y'all so much for reading this post, and I hope you have a great day! xx
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