Preparing for the Crown

Preparing for the crown:

After entering my first pageant at the age of 37 with no experience, no preparation and no understanding of what it takes to win a title, you can imagine the shock and surprise when I placed fourth runner up. I had so much fun and met so many amazing women I knew in that moment I wanted to do it again.  The experience taught me so much about myself. It opened my eyes to things that I never knew I was capable of or ever gave myself credit for.  It was then that I knew I wanted to take this more seriously to achieve a goal of not just winning but finally finding that avenue with which I could share a message - my message. That in our country and around the world we had an epidemic of preterm birth and birth defects. It was now possible to share my story and bring more awareness to something that meant so much to me. I’ll share this story but at a later time.

So how did I prepare? Well, the first step for me was the hardest one. It was finding the deep-down belief that I was beautiful enough, I was smart enough, I was strong enough or just flat out that I was enough. That being on a stage with many other women who are also beautiful, talented, and smart was not a competition with them but more a competition with myself. Could I mentally get out of my own way and shine with more confidence than I’ve ever had? Because to be totally honest, that was the hardest part. Working out, watching my diet, walking and posing practice, interview questions in the car, at the dinner table, in the bank etc. with my husband, kids and coach was nothing compared to the mental blocks I’d have to face.

I was lucky enough to have a very good friend of mine who was well versed in pageants coach me up on what it takes. We worked on paperwork, walking, posing, interview, wardrobe, and all the little details that go into a pageant. Videos, Texts, facetimes, lunches, meetings etc. all added up to a more confident, polished, well-spoken woman capable of letting her light shine. And not just during the competition. The beauty of preparation is that the outcome of the contest truly is secondary. It’s the knowledge, confidence, poise and personal growth gained just through the preparation itself. I am blessed to have won the title and put my heart and soul into preparing for nationals. And while I didn’t win, I did place top 15 and gave it my all.

Could I have done it without that preparation? Maybe. Would I have wanted to? NO! You see, by not preparing I was losing valuable lessons about who I am, what I am capable of and what I want. I’d short myself on proving that I CAN do it. At any age, for any cause. So, if you are contemplating a pageant, an iron man, a marathon, something you’ve never tried, etc. I challenge you to not only step out of your comfort zone and go for it but to prepare wholeheartedly for in the end you’ll be prouder of the work you put in knowing you gave it your best.

I’d like to leave you with a quote from Suzy Bootz – Pageant coach, Author and Champion of women. One of the most amazing women I’ve had the pleasure of meeting.

“I believe pageantry helps us realize the loudest voice we should listen to is our own, the greatest approval we should seek should be from the person staring back at us in the mirror, and the greatest challenge begins with ourselves” Suzy Bootz

Andrea Brower – Mrs. Arizona International 2017