I attended the TEMPO Milwaukee Mentor Awards Luncheon last year as a scholarship recipient. On behalf of the organization and Mark Sabljak, publisher of the Milwaukee Business Journal, I was awarded $5,000 to put toward my education.
The scholarship was validation for all I’ve worked hard for in life. I didn’t believe I deserved it at first –there were hundreds of qualified candidates who, in my mind, worked harder and achieved far more than I did. But it’s funny when you take a step back to look at all you’ve achieved. When you take a moment to think about and write down your personal inventory of accomplishments, you begin to see the person others see.
To have my work recognized by others was truly humbling. And to be in a room surrounded by those I aspired to be? Even better.
Fast-forward almost a year later. Just when you thought the recognition and honor couldn’t get any bigger, it did.
Jennifer Dirks, president and CEO of TEMPO Milwaukee, reached out and asked if I’d speak at the Mentor Awards Luncheon this year; apparently the blog post I wrote last year went viral in the office. I immediately said yes – no hesitation. What an incredible experience it would be, and was.
I was asked to share what the scholarship meant to me and how it has advanced my career. Easy enough, right? But when I finally sat down to write the speech I struggled. I knew what it meant and I knew what I wanted to say, but I’m not the kind of person to "toot my own horn." It’s hard to write about an accomplishment that still feels like a dream.
The week leading up to the event I was a nervous wreck – just ask anybody who was around me. Speaking in front of a crowd of 475? Not nerve-wracking at all... Sharing a stage with Christy Brown, CEO of the Girl Scouts of Wisconsin Southeast, and Peggy Troy, president and CEO of Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin? No pressure...
When the day finally came all my worries went away. I realized I wasn’t nervous because I was excited. I got to share my story with others, and give guidance to those around me. I genuinely meant every word I said. This speech wasn’t for me. It was for the past, present and future scholarship recipients and the mentors who have made an impact on our lives.
My advice?
The scholarship was validation for all I’ve worked hard for in life. I didn’t believe I deserved it at first –there were hundreds of qualified candidates who, in my mind, worked harder and achieved far more than I did. But it’s funny when you take a step back to look at all you’ve achieved. When you take a moment to think about and write down your personal inventory of accomplishments, you begin to see the person others see.
To have my work recognized by others was truly humbling. And to be in a room surrounded by those I aspired to be? Even better.
Fast-forward almost a year later. Just when you thought the recognition and honor couldn’t get any bigger, it did.
Jennifer Dirks, president and CEO of TEMPO Milwaukee, reached out and asked if I’d speak at the Mentor Awards Luncheon this year; apparently the blog post I wrote last year went viral in the office. I immediately said yes – no hesitation. What an incredible experience it would be, and was.
I was asked to share what the scholarship meant to me and how it has advanced my career. Easy enough, right? But when I finally sat down to write the speech I struggled. I knew what it meant and I knew what I wanted to say, but I’m not the kind of person to "toot my own horn." It’s hard to write about an accomplishment that still feels like a dream.
The week leading up to the event I was a nervous wreck – just ask anybody who was around me. Speaking in front of a crowd of 475? Not nerve-wracking at all... Sharing a stage with Christy Brown, CEO of the Girl Scouts of Wisconsin Southeast, and Peggy Troy, president and CEO of Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin? No pressure...
When the day finally came all my worries went away. I realized I wasn’t nervous because I was excited. I got to share my story with others, and give guidance to those around me. I genuinely meant every word I said. This speech wasn’t for me. It was for the past, present and future scholarship recipients and the mentors who have made an impact on our lives.
My advice?
Be proud of yourself. You are one of hundreds, maybe even thousands who qualified for this scholarship. But you were chosen. Take advantage of all the opportunities it gives you. Network with those in this room, meet with your scholarship donor, bring it up in interviews. I was asked in almost all my job interviews about this scholarship. TEMPO is a highly respected organization, and this scholarship isn’t given to just anybody. Make sure they know why you earned it. "Never stop doing your best just because someone doesn’t give you credit." In life, you never know who is looking at your work. And because of that you try. What you plant now will be harvested later. And just remember, don’t stop until you’re proud, and then do a little more.
I had dozens of people come up to congratulate me afterward; Mark Sabljak said if I didn’t get hired on full-time at GMR after my internship there would be dozens of others who would snatch me right up. I was even doing work at Colectivo later in the day when a lady who attended the luncheon stopped to compliment me. People I’ve never met before were touched by what I had to say – talk about another humbling experience.
I opened my speech with a quote my dad told me (I later found out they were Jimmy Buffet lyrics – shocking). He said, "Take it all in, it’s as big as it seems. Count all your blessings, remember your dreams." As I was standing on stage, in the spotlight, in front of hundreds I did just that. And let me tell you, I've never felt more confident or accomplished than I did in that moment.
I opened my speech with a quote my dad told me (I later found out they were Jimmy Buffet lyrics – shocking). He said, "Take it all in, it’s as big as it seems. Count all your blessings, remember your dreams." As I was standing on stage, in the spotlight, in front of hundreds I did just that. And let me tell you, I've never felt more confident or accomplished than I did in that moment.