This year, I had another amazing opportunity to participate in my school's spelling bee. Last year, I had participated and won. I was overwhelmed by all the words I had to commit to memory, the long time I had to study that seemed so short, and the competition that worried me greatly.
If anyone tells you that the pre-bee jitters only last the first few rounds, that's a lie. That's a big fib. A prevarication. A nasty, no good, filthy, dirty, rotten lie. This was the fourth spelling bee I had participated in and my knees were wobbling until my last word. The big audience, small chance and mind-blowing words take over and your brain doesn't work right. Your knees shake, you start to twiddle with your thumbs and sweat is trickling down your back. Unless you can shove off the hardest of emotions, there is no way to avoid the feelings you are going to feel. Unless, of course, you've got some hardcore confidence in you. That's a different story. Just don't let the emotions overpower you. Be careful with what you say, because before you know it, the dreaded bell might ring in your ears and you'll be sitting right back down.
Never let yourself be too confident during a spelling bee, though. You'll start to spell the words that shoot at you too fast and skip a letter or two. You'll think you've got all the brains, but in reality, your brain is busted. Your confidence will take control. You might even spell the easiest of words with an extra letter.
There is also no such thing as "enough studying". The more words you have committed to memory, the better chance you have. There'll be long, confusing words stuck in your study list here and there. You need to get them in your head as quickly as you can. In my case, the hardest words are usually the easiest to spell because I start studying them first.
By the way, the advice I'm giving you? That was my key to winning again this year.
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