The Mrs. International 2019 pageant in Charleston, West Virginia
There is so much I would like to share about this
experience. I gained some incredible friends
and became part of the larger sisterhood that is truly an international
family. I felt like royalty being driven
around the city as part of this entourage of over 50 International Pageant Queens.
It was an incredible, once in a lifetime experience.
My advice to enjoy this once in a lifetime experience – PREPARE, PREPARE, PREPARE!
I did not win at Mrs. International 2019, nor did I even place, but one thing I did do was the absolute best that I was capable of. Of course, I wish the results would’ve been different, but I have no regrets because I did everything I was capable of, and actually found quite a bit more than I ever knew I had in me.
If you have little pageant experience like I did, ask for help! Work with a coach on each category! Realize the value placed on each category and prepare accordingly. Private Interview is 50%, Evening Gown 25%, Fitness 25%. So, if you spent $500 on your gown, you should really spend $1000 on interview and on stage question coaching. If you spend 1 hour a week walking in your evening gown heels, you should spend an hour working on fitness walk and poses and 2 hours on interview skills and platform knowledge.
I went into that week feeling prepared not because I had the most expensive gown, jewelry or wardrobe but because I had prepared. I practiced my evening gown walk (I actually wore out the new Jonathan Kayne’s I had purchased for Nationals). I knew what fitness poses I was going to do and was comfortable with that walk. I knew my platform inside and out because its part of my daily life, I was prepared to think on my feet and show people the real me in a 5 minute interview thanks to Ashley Rae Klinger and Amanda Moreno who I coached with and Laura Schmidt (Mrs. ND Intl 18) and my family who mock interviewed me. Suzy Bootz book Creating Queens is a must read for pageant prep. I certainly still had and do have room for improvement, but I put in as much work as I could to be the best me at that point in time.
Prepare your heart and mind to be strong and KNOW that you are enough to be there and you are a queen, that you, YES YOU, could take home that crown and are ready to start that job! KNOW when you are there that yes, there are many accomplished, driven, beautiful women there but that does not ever take away from your value!
Having prepared, I was able to go and enjoy the week! My directors, family, coaches and friends had set me up to succeed and I had put in the work. I spent the week making friends, enjoying the events, all the comradery, fun and of course the glamour! Getting to wear sequins to breakfast is fabulous! The International Pageant system is what is says it is, a sisterhood focused on service and family. Everyone is helping each other out and truly wants to see each other succeed. I never felt that other woman were comparing or judging me, nor did I feel the need to compare myself to them. We were enjoying this experience with each other and celebrating each other’s successes. Yes, we are all there to win the crown, but we also all realize that only one woman can take it home and for the rest - we will continue to work and strive for the goals apart from the crown, the real work that makes International Pageant such a powerful force for good in the world.
I am so proud of my performance on and off stage during that week, and that was my ultimate goal. Although, I was disappointed (kinda crushed actually) when my name wasn’t called on that stage for the top 15, life did not end, it has not taken away from anything else that I have accomplished. I was sad and tears were shed, but that experience can also be used for good. I want girls and women to know that we can put ourselves out there and give it our best and its OK to “fail”. How else are we ever going to know if we could succeed?! So many times we guard ourselves and are too afraid to try because we might fail. Forget that – try - try with all you have in you and whatever the results are I promise you, you will come out the other side, stronger, better and more purpose driven than ever to accomplish your goals!
Let that light SHINE BRIGHTLY within you!
Jessie Aamodt
Mrs. North Dakota International 2019
My advice to enjoy this once in a lifetime experience – PREPARE, PREPARE, PREPARE!
I did not win at Mrs. International 2019, nor did I even place, but one thing I did do was the absolute best that I was capable of. Of course, I wish the results would’ve been different, but I have no regrets because I did everything I was capable of, and actually found quite a bit more than I ever knew I had in me.
If you have little pageant experience like I did, ask for help! Work with a coach on each category! Realize the value placed on each category and prepare accordingly. Private Interview is 50%, Evening Gown 25%, Fitness 25%. So, if you spent $500 on your gown, you should really spend $1000 on interview and on stage question coaching. If you spend 1 hour a week walking in your evening gown heels, you should spend an hour working on fitness walk and poses and 2 hours on interview skills and platform knowledge.
I went into that week feeling prepared not because I had the most expensive gown, jewelry or wardrobe but because I had prepared. I practiced my evening gown walk (I actually wore out the new Jonathan Kayne’s I had purchased for Nationals). I knew what fitness poses I was going to do and was comfortable with that walk. I knew my platform inside and out because its part of my daily life, I was prepared to think on my feet and show people the real me in a 5 minute interview thanks to Ashley Rae Klinger and Amanda Moreno who I coached with and Laura Schmidt (Mrs. ND Intl 18) and my family who mock interviewed me. Suzy Bootz book Creating Queens is a must read for pageant prep. I certainly still had and do have room for improvement, but I put in as much work as I could to be the best me at that point in time.
Prepare your heart and mind to be strong and KNOW that you are enough to be there and you are a queen, that you, YES YOU, could take home that crown and are ready to start that job! KNOW when you are there that yes, there are many accomplished, driven, beautiful women there but that does not ever take away from your value!
Having prepared, I was able to go and enjoy the week! My directors, family, coaches and friends had set me up to succeed and I had put in the work. I spent the week making friends, enjoying the events, all the comradery, fun and of course the glamour! Getting to wear sequins to breakfast is fabulous! The International Pageant system is what is says it is, a sisterhood focused on service and family. Everyone is helping each other out and truly wants to see each other succeed. I never felt that other woman were comparing or judging me, nor did I feel the need to compare myself to them. We were enjoying this experience with each other and celebrating each other’s successes. Yes, we are all there to win the crown, but we also all realize that only one woman can take it home and for the rest - we will continue to work and strive for the goals apart from the crown, the real work that makes International Pageant such a powerful force for good in the world.
I am so proud of my performance on and off stage during that week, and that was my ultimate goal. Although, I was disappointed (kinda crushed actually) when my name wasn’t called on that stage for the top 15, life did not end, it has not taken away from anything else that I have accomplished. I was sad and tears were shed, but that experience can also be used for good. I want girls and women to know that we can put ourselves out there and give it our best and its OK to “fail”. How else are we ever going to know if we could succeed?! So many times we guard ourselves and are too afraid to try because we might fail. Forget that – try - try with all you have in you and whatever the results are I promise you, you will come out the other side, stronger, better and more purpose driven than ever to accomplish your goals!
Let that light SHINE BRIGHTLY within you!
Jessie Aamodt
Mrs. North Dakota International 2019
