Several months ago a wero was laid for some of our New Zealand 小优传媒 team to learn a whaikorero or karanga in preparation for our upcoming noho marae.
Our leaders had the opportunity to practice at Whakatau which were held in Auckland and Wellington before our visit.
These articles are personal reflections of their experience.
In six weeks there will be a Whakatau at the Auckland office. I鈥檝e had a bright idea; it would be a great opportunity for me to step up, be brave, and perform the Whaik艒rero on behalf of the Manuwhiri.
Committing to the wero is now real鈥 time to put the mahi in to learn the Whaik艒rero!
I don鈥檛 want to let the team down or look like an idiot. Both of which feel like real potential outcomes!
As much as I鈥檝e embraced the challenge of learning, I鈥檓 struggling with getting my mouth around the reo M膩ori.
There鈥檚鈥攆or lack of a better term鈥攁 weirdness that happens in my brain as I lay in bed at night or sit on the train. I can recite the Whaik艒rero with ease. I can see the words and hear the words rolling off my tongue. Then I practice them and they sound completely different as I stumble and mumble my way through it!
Confidence is low. Frustration is high.
Why was this so hard?
Why was my mental preparation not matching my performance?
Along comes King鈥檚 Birthday weekend and a family break in Ohakune.
I love walking in the hills and native bush at the foot of Ruapehu. I have a favourite track which is a 12 km round-trip up the Old Coach Track. On my own in this environment, I start reciting the Whaik艒rero out loud to the birds, the trees, and any other creature listening.
Focusing on each stanza, I get better and better. Better at pronouncing the reo, and more confident in my ability to deliver the Whaik艒rero.
Coming back to work and our Group CEO, Dan Tohill, and I have made it a regular activity to run through the Whaik艒rero, providing feedback and support to each other.
More practice required.
A week out from the Whakatau and I feel confident with 80-90% of the Whaik艒rero. One stanza continues to challenge me and it鈥檚 undermining my confidence. Self-doubt is percolating away!
More practice required.
The day before the Whakatau, performance anxiety has ramped up but I鈥檓 determined to overcome the pesky, troublesome stanza. On the plane to Auckland I listen to my recordings on repeat.
A sense of calm comes over me when I arrive in the Auckland office. It鈥檚 reassuring that our New Zealand CEO, Aidan Stoate, is experiencing similar difficulty with the same stanza. I take time that afternoon to repeatedly run through our Whaik艒rero. I feel more and more confident that it鈥檚 going to be okay tomorrow.
Tonight I felt excited yet relaxed. Ready to go. It鈥檚 a familiar feeling. I鈥檇 often feel the same before a sports performance. The preparation and mahi is done 鈥 breathe, relax, trust in myself and enjoy the experience!
My nerves kick-in early. Not because of the Whaik艒rero but because it鈥檚 dawned on me that I also need to sing a waiata. I settled the nerves on the way to the office by running Te Aroha through my head a few times. Knowing that once I start the others will join in was a comfort.
I was good to go. Then our Pouako, Dion, decides Te Aroha isn鈥檛 the waiata we鈥檒l sing. My head starts spinning.
Dion calms my anxiety by assuring me that it鈥檚 not just on me to sing the new waiata. It鈥檚 on those around me to sing to support me鈥 whew!
Leanne starts proceedings, calling us into the office. Gemma responds. The karanga sends a chill up my spine! The sound is amazing, powerful and beautiful.
While Aidan stands and delivers his Whaik艒rero, I sit, listen and feel nervous for him! No need for the nerves鈥擜idan does a great job.
My turn鈥
I stand up, take a couple of deep breaths, and launch into it.
The feeling I have is similar to running onto the sports field at the start of a game, where I鈥檇 say to myself 鈥淭he preparation鈥檚 done, clear the head and trust yourself鈥濃
BOOM. The reo rolls out just as I鈥檝e planned. As I get to the final 鈥淭膿n膩 koutou, t膿n膩 koutou, t膿n膩 tatou katoa鈥 I feel a real sense of achievement, pride and relief.
Fear can be both an inhibitor and motivator. The mindset you take into a challenge will determine which it is for you. Initially the fear of failure and embarrassing myself held me back until I decided to 鈥楾uwhtia to hopo, mairangatia te angitu!鈥 (Feel the fear and do it anyway).