Listen to the audio version of this post here.

Going for it.

Some people thrive on competition; you may be one of them. I’ve never really understood that. I hate competition. And I don’t like to be judged.

That’s why I’ve ignored suggestions from my fellow-speakers that I enter Last Story Standing. It’s a storytelling contest the National Speakers Association launched a few years ago. And I’ve just never been the contest-entering type. Why would I? I hate competition. And I don’t like to be judged.

My friend Martina Mathisen was telling me, over lunch, about the story she planned to tell for the contest. It’s a good one. And it kind of reminded me about an experience in my own past.

I’ve talked about it before. I even wrote about it here a long time ago; it’s not a big deal. And, when I told Martina the story about what had happened to me, she jumped all over it. “Why don’t you enter the contest too?” 

Yes, I explained all about how much I hate competition. And have I mentioned? I don’t like to be judged. She really wasn’t having it.

Then when our mastermind group got together, Martina told them her story, for practice. And I went ahead and told them mine. And they pooh-poohed my whole “I hate competition” schtick.

Unanimous opinion: “You have to enter the contest.”

So … I did.

What made me change my mind?

It wasn’t that I suddenly relished the idea of competing against a talented group of other speakers. Or having a panel of judges rate my story and the way I told it. So why would I enter the Last Story Standing contest?

Well, I do think I have a meaningful message to share. My story’s engaging, it has moments of humor. And mainly there’s a point to it, a point worth making.

Also, it’s really past time to get over my aversion to competition, don’t you think? Other people enjoy entering contests. Some of them win those contests. Apart from the ego gratification, they might even win a prize of some sort. And they have fun. It’s kind of silly to spend my whole life avoiding that, right?

And this seemed to me like a relatively low-risk chance to prove to myself that I can do it. I don’t think of myself as a storyteller, but the truth is, I’ve been telling stories for years—as a radio host, as a speaker, and as a friend. I can do this, I thought.

Apparently, I was right—I’m a finalist!

Judges from other NSA chapters chose the six finalists and offered each of us a bit of feedback. Interestingly, I was happy to get that feedback that came from, yes, being judged. It was useful, and not just in the context of this particular story in this contest.

Round two will narrow it down to one NSA-Illinois storyteller who will compete with speakers from other chapters. And then one of the regional winners will wind up on the stage at the national convention, telling the Last Story Standing.

This next round is going to be fun! Instead of submitting another video, we chapter finalists will tell our stories on stage at the historic Skokie Theatre. We’ll be speaking to a panel of judges, of course, and an actual live audience.

It’s going to be quite an evening, with our chapter president, Christopher Carter opening the show. He’s an outstanding speaker and an accomplished mentalist.

And my friend Lynn O’Dowd will wrap it all up singing and speaking … and showing us all how to unleash our inner superstar.

Now here’s the thing. You could be part of that audience. I’d love to see you there and of course I could use some cheering on. Join me?