I must admit that my experience with
my mentor was not light though at times it may have seemed that I didn't do
much. Everything that I did was never a repeat of what I did before. The
physical aspect of my Capstone Project placed me in an environment that had me
nervous on the first day. My greatest challenges lied within being social,
being a leader, and the expression of my abilities in dance. I admit
that I’m not too well versed in the art of hip hop choreography, and I wasn’t
expecting to dance as much. As a matter of fact, I expected that I would learn
how to dance very rarely and that my work would be directly with my mentor. As
soon as my third day came, I was put on the limelight and I was asked to dance
with the crew. My mentor was the one who suggested that I give it a shot, and
so I took the chance that I had. From that experience alone I was able to learn
a little bit about myself in terms of how well I can dance and how I fare in an
environment that I’m not accustomed to.
Dancing with others and putting me
self out there was only the first of my challenges. The other obstacle I found
myself in need or overcoming was being social and being a leader. These two
came hand in hand though separate ideas. As I spent time with Nuff Kidz dance
crew, my first couple of days was spent with my mentor being the only person I
was comfortable talking to. I rarely approached others, but as my time there
went by, people came up to me and I was able to talk to them normally. I overcame
my shy nature and soon enough I was able to talk to these people as friends and
not just people who were involved with my project. The more I went there, the
more comfortable I got. It even came to a point where I would miss my sessions
with them as I waited for the next.
These people were also directly involved
with the leadership obstacle that I faced in my time with them. I was tasked to
do across the floors, a movement that literally brought the people executing it
across the floor from one point to another. At the time that I had to teach it,
I was comfortable enough with some people, but not everyone. My mentor
suggested that I teach what I was tasked to come up with, and I taught them
what I knew. I was nervous at first and afraid that I was being judged, but as
I taught, people did what I did, and I conducted my teachings in calm manner.
Through this experience I was able to take a shot at a leadership role and
teach people what I knew. This was only one experience among many, though this
was a defining moment in my time with Nuff Kidz.
Overall,
my time with Nuff Kidz reaped more that thought I could possibly sow. I spent
enough time there to learn about where my weaknesses lie and what I’m already
good at. The three traits that I went into detail about were the most important
to me, because I wanted to be an outgoing person who was easy to approach and
trust-worthy enough to lead when asked to step up into a leadership position. They
taught me to better myself at my self-expression, and because of this I find comfort
in music and dancing. I was able to grow a lot from my experiences with these
people, and the lessons I learned are definitely worth a life time
