Sharing My Story.

Manvi was one of our interns this summer who recently shared her story at Coffee #1. She posted her experience of sharing her story on Linked In:

Last Friday, I had the incredible opportunity to share my story at a Touch Network event✨

I found out about Touch last year when I applied for an internship with them. I was lucky enough to get selected as their Outreach & Marketing Support Intern. Upon joining the internship, I was working with Kate Woods, who encouraged me to share my story if I ever wanted to.

And to be very honest, I was quite hesitant about that at first. I didn’t think I had anything important enough to share. Sure, I had had my fair share of struggles, but that was nothing compared to what other people had faced. Who was I to go up and “inspire” people?

Though, when I attended my first Touch event, I was left amazed. I heard three different people share such distinct stories about their lives. And although I didn’t have even remotely similar experiences, I found myself relating to many of the things they were talking about. That’s when I realised what the organisation really stood for. It formed this environment for people to come together and really learn from each other. To know that whatever they’re facing in life – it always does get better and you’re never alone.

So, on Friday, it was my turn to do the same. I talked about my life’s journey – about having moved around all my life and how I combated the feelings of loneliness and not belonging. I won’t lie… I was nervous. As a business school student, speaking publicly has become somewhat of a strength. So speaking in a filled coffee shop shouldn’t be a problem. Except I’d never spoken about myself. I’d never been so open and so vulnerable.

The response was something I didn’t expect. I had so many people come up to me and tell me that they related to my story. That they’d faced something similar. That I’d given a voice to many of their own thoughts. For me, that was the biggest achievement.

A massive thank you to Debra Carter and the rest of the Touch team. The work you do is so important and I’m so grateful to have been a small part of it❤️