#SkillsForAll - Why following your dreams is nothing to fear

As Evelyn Piros rises up the ranks in the hospitality industry, she pinpoints her experience of skills competitions as the catalyst for her checking into a new career.

Having started out as a receptionist with Nordic Choice Hotels – one of Scandinavia’s top hotel chains – the 24-year-old has swiftly moved on to become a company trainer and, from this summer, a deployment coordinator. And Evelyn credits the silver medal she claimed in the hospitality category at last year’s EuroSkills in Gothenburg for giving her impetus and elevating her ambitions.

“It’s taught me to trust my own judgment in different decision-making processes,” she explains. “I’ve come to the conclusion that, if you can’t beat fear, do it scared!”

“That was my motto throughout EuroSkills, which was so intense that it left my head spinning. But what I learned has stuck with me, and it’s encouraged me to take chances I wouldn’t have dared to take otherwise.”

Evelyn believes a pivotal part of her EuroSkills success was her ability to stay focused and act decisively, and says, “It inspired me to start living that way as well – to dare to fail as well as attempt to succeed.”

“Together with the new, broad knowledge I’ve gained about the hospitality industry, and the people within it, it’s made me a better person. Working with people on a daily basis in the way I do changes you, and it’s shaped me into someone who is kinder and believes in honest communication, and who realizes that hard work pays off.”

As World Youth Skills Day, 15 July draws nearer, Evelyn – who classes herself as “a true believer in doing what you love” – suggests that youth looking to identify their career path can do so by asking themselves just one question, “Would you love to do it so much that you would do it for free?

“If the answer is no, the likelihood is that you are pursuing someone else’s dream. It’s hard to come across something you love, and even harder to find the courage to dare to do it.”

“But the confidence you get from doing something that you may be scared about will make you want to do it again and again. And I believe the world would be a better place if more people took a leap of faith and dared to do what will truly make them happy.”

You can create your own WorldSkills experience as part of the social media team at WorldSkills Abu Dhabi 2017.  Enter our #SkillsForAll World Youth Skills Day video contest and get a behind the scenes look at what it takes to put on the world’s biggest skills competition. More details…