The Terrifying Reason I Had To Leave My Apartment
This was one of the most frightening moments of my life.
I’d like to say it was formative, but I’m not sure how much I learned from it, except for “Take Your Friends Seriously When They Warn You Of Danger”.
So many blogs on YesYesMarsha.com are messages wrapped in stories – the one with the guy who seduced every lady he looked at; the one where I taught myself to stop being shy and became confident; the one where I was a Zombie Nun Queer Slow Dancer.
And so much of networking is about telling a story – the story of What Do You Do; the stories you tell to Industry Friends that bond you together; the stories you hear when you’re asking the right questions.
I thought it was about time I just let you hear a straight up story for the sake of a story. No message, no lesson – just a gripping (true!) yarn, about the time I had to move out of my apartment so that I didn’t get killed…
Shy, Going To A Party and Feeling Nervous? TEN TIPS
I GASPED AWAKE.
After three seconds of confused, soft stillness, everything caught up and my headache came crashing in.
Squinting at the clock – it was 11:30am – I tried to piece together what was going on.
Oh yes. The Christmas party.
I was 22 years old and very, very hungover. The night before…
A Behind-The-Scenes Tour of my Brain Going to a Conference
When I tell people what I do, often they’ll say, “Oh I hate going to networking events!”
Here’s the thing: so do I. They can feel like everyone’s trying to sell you their thing, plus they tend to have snacks at a time meant for dinner, so my hunger gets confused.
But a conference? I bloody love a conference. Have done since I started going to student radio conferences in the 90s, and now love going to ones where I meet other people like me, who are trying to use their powers for good. I love the learning. I *LOVE the meeting people. I love that sometimes, I get to show off a bit.
But, in spite of of all that, I kind of emotionally go through the ringer before each one.
This weekend, I’m at World Domination Summit – which, while it sounds like a Lex Luthor/Doctor Evil meetup, it’s actually talks, meetings and mini-events for 3000 entrepreneurs, who are all trying to make the world a better place.
So, in celebration, here’s a behind-the-scenes peek at my brain, in the run-up to going to, and at the start of, a conference…
Why Your Shyness at a Party Is Actually A Secret Superpower
Harry Nilsson was wrong. One isn’t the loneliest number. It’s three.
When you’re shy, at a party and standing with two people who are talking to each other as if you’re not there, that’s how it feels.
In the summer of my second year at university, I had my first ever experience at a professional radio station. I hadn’t actually applied – an exceptional man called Lenny Love (real name!) had heard my show on student radio, paged me (remember how it was the 90’s?), then invited me to come and help out. (As my introduction to both radio and stand up comedy, this irrevocably altered the course of my life).
I was part of a 40-strong team working on Radio Forth’s coverage of the Edinburgh Fringe – the largest arts festival in the world. All day, we’d charge about watching shows or manning ticket giveaways. In the evening, we’d have a big production meeting, then sardine into the on-air studio for the main program: a three-hour, late-night spectacular, crammed with features, reviews and – most thrillingly – guest stand up comedians, who’d leave us asthmatic with laughter and almost taken off the air…
The Huge Misconception I Held – And Why It Led To Me Launching A Business
When I was 23, I got to experience what it’s like to be a pop star.
I spent a year as the Chair of the Student Radio Association, a sort of union for student radio stations in the UK. I know, I know – it’s hardly joining Spice Girls. Bear with me.
After I got elected at the yearly AGM & conference, a load of us went for a drink. The only thing I’d done as Chair at that point was to stand on stage and give a three minute speech about why I thought I’d be good for the role. My sole competitor was not a terribly serious candidate, and I was voted in by 33 stations to three.
I arrived at the pub a little after everyone else, and plonked myself at the end of a table that had four people sitting along each side. Then, something peculiar happened…
How to Make the Most of Those Magical Chance Encounters – and Make An Impression On A Celebrity
As you may have guessed from the videos, I’m a bit of a show-off. And as one, I don’t love to share the limelight. BUT sometimes, someone comes along who’s so damn wonderful, you want EVERYONE to read what they have to say. One such person is Robert Keller – actor, comedian, storyteller, and first — and possibly last — ever guest poster here at Yes Yes Marsha Towers. Over to him:
Hi! I am so thrilled to be guest blogging on yesyesmarsha.com!
I gather Marsha was called away to some secret location by Austin Powers to save the world, get knighted by Queen Elizabeth II, and maybe replace Sharon Osbourne as an X Factor UK judge.
To begin, an admission…
What Most People ACTUALLY Think Of Your Conversation Skills
When I tell people about the restricting experience that I had for a lot of my life, they often say exactly the same thing: “You! Shy?? No way! I just can’t see it.”
Even though their surprise is more statement of fact than compliment, I always get a little happy bristle. For so many years, I felt like I was behind a glass wall when I went out to places. My friends would all chat away to new people, but I stayed mute.
These were friends who knew that, when it was just us, no one could shut me up. So as well as feeling deep frustration, I got to feel some shame and humiliation.
*awesome*
The reason I never spoke to them wasn’t 80’s-inspired Stranger Danger. It was usually because…
The Weird Belief I Used To Have
Looking back on it, the guy in the bowler hat almost certainly fancied me. But at the time, I thought he was talking to me for a completely different reason.
I was 15 years old, in a warehouse in East London. Techno music and strobe lights filled the room. Two of my best friends were dancing nearby: hot pants, tight tops, arms trailing through the air in front of them. I danced, facing the wall, long sleeves pulled over my hands, shuffling to the music, trying hard not to be seen.
The guy in the bowler hat (it *was* the ’90s) came up to me and started asking me questions about myself. I don’t remember what they were. All that I remember is…
