How overcoming changed my life by Jocelyn

How overcoming changed my life by Jocelyn - January 2026 Scholarship Essay

The day I stepped foot on the Tampa theater stage, facing thousands of people, I realised I had found my passion. Minutes before I stepped foot on the dark brown wooden floors, I sat in the cobblestone stairway crying. I looked at one of my castmates, and without thinking, the words "Im not good enough" wavered out. I had spent the last 10 months rehearsing, performing, and living in this very character I was about to portray to thousands, yet I still didn't feel good enough. That day was one of the hardest I had ever gone through, not because it was sad or painful, but because I felt like I didn't deserve it. All of my castmates were backstage laughing, and I sat there, alone, isolated, and scared. It wasn't a cheesy speech, nor was it a friend lifting me into their arms, that gave me the strength to walk up onstage.
As I looked at my castmate through watered eyes, I knew what I had to do. It was impossible to give up, and I have never been a quitter, so I went onstage. I looked out at the audience, and I said my first line, my voice wavering just as it had in the stairwell, and they laughed. The audience laughed. I heard it echo through my head as my chest grew lighter. The lights blinding me felt warmer, like a shield from my own tears. The more I spoke, the more the audience's reactions seeped into my skin, brightening my cheeks and lifting my spirits.
The strength I gained that day wasn't from my castmates, my director, or the audience. For a long time, I thought my strength came from that audience, from their reactions, their cries, their laughs, but really, I was strong. I was the one who walked onto that stage that day, alone, but empowered. Because I decided, sitting in that stairwell, that despite feeling like I wasn't good enough, I was going to try anyway. I decided that the only person who controlled whether I was good enough that night was me.
In the end, I have pushed towards my dreams indefinitely, because no matter what, I can do anything I put my mind to. I am strong because I choose to be. That despite the blinding lights, the fear of imperfection, and the constant comparison people put themselves through on a daily basis, the only person who can tell you what is and isn't possible is yourself.
It has been two years since that day, and I have accomplished more than I ever thought was possible. I made a monumental choice that day, and I proved that I was good enough.