Day 40 Without Anxiety
Event Promotion
What's The Challenge?
Promoting an event.
Why The Anxiety?
This challenge involves a lot of interaction with strangers, and as I was taught by my parents and a cartoon hedgehog "stranger = danger" (Does anyone else remember the little cartoon hedgehogs that also taught us how to cross the road?) Promoting an event in a professional capacity is something I've never really done before. Sure I know how to make an event on Facebook and print up flyers, for a social gathering, night out or small school fundraising event, but this is different. I will be posting promotional information through people's front doors, and handing flyers to strangers, trying to get people enthusiastic about the event and generate conversation which will hopefully turn into ticket sales. I can't default to my anxious, head down, headphones in and walk at 100 miles an hour bubble, I will actually have to talk to people, gah.
Anxiety before? 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴⭕⭕⭕
Deciding what to wear today seemed like a momentous and difficult task today, after trying on several different outfits I finally settled on one, only to then have to change last minute after spilling juice all down my front (classy). I had given myself enough time to prepare and was on track until the last minute change which set off the panic in me. I didn't know how long I had to wait for the person I was meeting and didn't know if what I was wearing was suitable (why is wearing the right outfit so important?). I don't like being early to meet someone, I'm not sure why maybe it's because I don't want to stand there alone looking like a lemon, but when it's a meeting about something professional I always like to be punctual. For the door to door flyering I got to the meeting place just on time and we were off and away pretty quickly. For the face to face flyering I was early, there was a large event happening and I felt very self-conscious waiting alone with so many people around. On both occasions, my anxiety reduced significantly once I had met up with and started talking to the individual I was working with that day.
Anxiety During? 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴⭕⭕⭕
Posting flyers through people's doors was easier than trying to hand flyers and talk to people on the high street. I don't envy anyone who has this job but do applaud them for their strength and confidence, It takes a strong and resilient person to stand on the high street for hours trying to engage people in conversation or promote awareness. As we've already discussed in the previous 39 Days Without Anxiety, I am a bag of nerves, I'm not the most confident person in the world, but I am willing to give things a go, and the event that I was promoting was for a good cause.
Let's start with leafleting; the door to door process happened over the course of two days, whilst it was surprisingly tiring work, (no thanks to the heatwave we had) I was grateful for the sunshine and company. The fact that I didn't have to speak or interact with anyone was rather comforting, I felt like I was trying out being a post lady for the day and actually didn't mind. There were occasions however when the homeowners opened their doors or were coming in with shopping and engaged in conversation. It took a few moments before my brain actually kicked into gear and found the word "hello", and yes I did have a few comical encounters with animals too, one dog actually took the flyer from the letterbox straight out of my hand and a couple of others barked. (yes, I'm shameless enough to admit that I did jump out of my skin and run the other way anytime that happened).
The silver lining of handing out promotional leaflets on the highstreets meant I wasn't running away from dogs barking behind doors, creepy people that would stand behind the door and take the leaflet from you or be greeted by some very odd odours after opening the letterbox. However, face to face flyering mean that I had to actually speak to people, at least I was prepared for this though, right? Wrong, (once again a bag of nerves) I felt nauseous for the whole afternoon, I felt awful every time I approached someone. My brain went into overdrive: what were they going to do or say, would I say the right thing? The questions swam around my head and sometimes I just smiled because the words wouldn't reach me in time. Sometimes my mind went to worst-case scenarios, from the possible to impossible armageddon type scenario. On the occasions I actually spoke to people, it was a mixed bag, from having an actual conversation, or a quick run through of who we were representing and the event we were hosting, to being completely ignored or being insulted (British people are not as polite as the rest of the world stereotypically thinks). I really did not feel comfortable doing this activity and was glad when it finished.
Let's start with leafleting; the door to door process happened over the course of two days, whilst it was surprisingly tiring work, (no thanks to the heatwave we had) I was grateful for the sunshine and company. The fact that I didn't have to speak or interact with anyone was rather comforting, I felt like I was trying out being a post lady for the day and actually didn't mind. There were occasions however when the homeowners opened their doors or were coming in with shopping and engaged in conversation. It took a few moments before my brain actually kicked into gear and found the word "hello", and yes I did have a few comical encounters with animals too, one dog actually took the flyer from the letterbox straight out of my hand and a couple of others barked. (yes, I'm shameless enough to admit that I did jump out of my skin and run the other way anytime that happened).
The silver lining of handing out promotional leaflets on the highstreets meant I wasn't running away from dogs barking behind doors, creepy people that would stand behind the door and take the leaflet from you or be greeted by some very odd odours after opening the letterbox. However, face to face flyering mean that I had to actually speak to people, at least I was prepared for this though, right? Wrong, (once again a bag of nerves) I felt nauseous for the whole afternoon, I felt awful every time I approached someone. My brain went into overdrive: what were they going to do or say, would I say the right thing? The questions swam around my head and sometimes I just smiled because the words wouldn't reach me in time. Sometimes my mind went to worst-case scenarios, from the possible to impossible armageddon type scenario. On the occasions I actually spoke to people, it was a mixed bag, from having an actual conversation, or a quick run through of who we were representing and the event we were hosting, to being completely ignored or being insulted (British people are not as polite as the rest of the world stereotypically thinks). I really did not feel comfortable doing this activity and was glad when it finished.
Anxiety After? 🔴🔴🔴⭕⭕⭕⭕⭕⭕⭕
I was relieved it was over, after the posting it was a relief to be out of the sun and knowing the next door I'd have to look at would be my own and after the face to face side, I was relieved I didn't have to approach another stranger or prepare myself for a rude reply. I'm glad we managed to attract some attention for the event and generated some ticket sales however I can safely check this off of things I don't enjoy doing, and hopefully won't have to do again.
Update?
I have no desire to pick up more leaflets and do this again. I do have a new found respect for anyone who does this though, it's a lot harder than it looks. I'm still really pleased I did this, even though I didn't enjoy it, I pushed myself out of my comfort zone and discovered a few new things about myself.
If you have any Challenge Ideas; Please comment down below and let me know.
Remember to check out The Video!
Thanks for Reading
xo
Enjoy Day 40? Why not Read Day 39?
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