Noel's HQ

Now one of the main vocal points behind Talented Young People is our desire to see a better world for our youngsters to live in and to create a world of more fulfilled young people who have dreams and ambitions that they are working hard to fulfill. So Noel's HQ really struck a chord with us as the majority of the programme was highlighting how everybody can make their own positive difference to the world whilst highlighting people that already were which is what we are all about.

In a year in which we have seen a huge rise in the reports of teenage crime in newspapers and in a year which has seen the launch of the Talented Young People – Youth Manifesto, we believe there has never been a more important time than today to make the big and small changes the world needs.

We need more celebrities and people in power using their positions to help make this a more positive world to live in and it is great to see Noel Edmonds devoting his time to the cause. His TV show showed you how much difference you could make in ninety minutes. After the show had finished he had managed to sign up thousands of viewers to become organ donors as well as getting people to email in with offers of support in goods, services and time for people that were trying to change the world.

We need to fight on all fronts for this world whether it be TV, Radio, Internet or Press. We need to fight to reach people wherever they may be if we are going to change the world and make it a positive place for young people to live in.

I hope there are more programmes like this on TV but more importantly I hope shows like this encourage people to actually do something as it is the people on the ground who can make the real and big changes.


Adam Sibley
Founder of the Talented Young People organisation
www.talentedyoungpeople.com
"Envisage it, Believe it, Achieve it!"
”Shaking up the Youth of Today”

http://www.talentedyoungpeople.blogspot.com

Paralympics

After all the hype surrounding the Olympics who has been following the Paralympics? After all the pages of press Team GB got for their medal haul in Beijing many people are unaware that our Paralympians have already amassed a staggering 42 Golds, 29 Silvers and 31 Bronzes outshining the success of the Olympics.

You won’t see our Paralympic team on the front of every paper when they come back, you won’t get people rushing to see them off the plane and you won’t get people saying they should get Knighthoods, but why is this? Are they less worthy of our support and adulation? NO! If anything they are more worthy as their determination and inner strength is greater than any regular Olympian.

What’s it going to be like when it is in our country in 2012 are companies like the BBC going to make more of an effort to show it just because it is in our backyard and then revert back to their old style of coverage when it goes to another country? When the Olympics were on every time you put on the TV there was something on, when you were eating your breakfast something was on, when you were eating your lunch something was on and when you were eating your tea something was on. Now if you want to watch the Paralympics there is one, one hour show every evening but not on BBC 1 as it is has been demoted to BBC 2.

In a day and age where we should all be equal and not look at someone’s disability, race or physical appearance before the actual person inside, the media seem to be in the stone age as it treats the Paralympics like a second rate sporting event. It’s the media that have so much impact on the way we react and treat each other and with them sending these messages it’s not helping us as a society and the way we treat people.

Have you been watching the Paralympics? We would love to know your thoughts on the event and you can share them by going to:

http://www.talentedyoungpeople.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=559

Adam Sibley
Founder of the Talented Young People organisation
www.talentedyoungpeople.com
"Envisage it, Believe it, Achieve it!"
”Shaking up the Youth of Today”

http://www.talentedyoungpeople.blogspot.com

Stage School

This week I want to talk about stage schools. Watching the new series “Hairspray: The School Musical” got me thinking about Stage Schools as in this series Denise Van Outen is trying to get a regular school to put on a performance of the hit musical on the West End. It’s going to be interesting to see how the young people react to their school being changed in to a stage school type environment and if kids from a regular school can pull it off.

Stage schools for many years have been seen as the place for wannabe actors, dancers and singers to attend in order to achieve their dreams of making it in these industries. They have also been seen as many as a place that is for children from well to do families who can afford the yearly fees and for children with pushy parents who will do and pay anything to get their child to the top.

I know many people who have gone through some of the top stage schools in the country and I know many people who have worked at top stage schools. The majority of these people have spoken highly of their experiences in the Stage School environment. The one thing that Stage School does is make you really aware of the competition and what standard you need to be at to get roles and contracts. The energy in these places are immense as in Stage Schools everyone has the same dreams and are all working hard to achieve them which you don’t get in regular schools.

Stage School’s are brilliant for unmotivated, undedicated and undisciplined people as the environment forces it’s pupils to be all these things with the rigorous hours put in to development of their craft and the pupils being forced to keep disciplined with the hectic timetable of lessons and workshops. Many people who go to Stage School wouldn’t spend half the time they do on their craft if they weren’t in Stage School. The problem is that when you graduate from Stage School and enter in to the workplace you need to be disciplined and motivated as there will be no one there to make sure you are.

Another thing to remember in this day and age is that Stage School isn’t just for people wanting careers in theatre, TV or Movies. Nowadays many TV Presenters and Radio presenters are coming out of Stage School. We now also have pop bands who are formed from members who attended Stage Schools.

I think it is important to remember that going to a stage school isn’t a guarantee of success and they aren’t the only way to break in to performing arts. Stage Schools do however give you high class teaching and time dedicated to your craft that you wouldn’t get anywhere else, they also give you a network of contacts, invites to auditions and people working on your behalf to get you work. So I do believe going to a Stage School can really help you get a career in performing arts but it is your natural talent and dedication that are going to get you there and these are things that you either have or you don’t.

I still believe that if you don’t go to Stage School you still can have a great chance of making it in performing arts but it just means that you need to be on your toes, scouring every source you can for auditions, trying to get your talent to the best level possible and building your own network of contacts. The good thing now is that more and more companies are looking for everyday people and holding open public auditions so it gives a chance to those who don’t go to Stage School.


Adam Sibley
Founder of the Talented Young People organisation
www.talentedyoungpeople.com
"Envisage it, Believe it, Achieve it!"
”Shaking up the Youth of Today”

http://www.talentedyoungpeople.blogspot.com

Back to School

This week many young people up and down England will be going back to school after a six week break which has seen more rain than sun. Most young people will be wishing they had more days off and didn’t have to go back this week but that would be the same story if they went back this week or next month as everyone always wants more.

Over the last couple of weeks parents will have been shopping with their children for new school uniforms, shoes and other clothing wear as well as going to the stationeries to get all the stationery they need for their school year. As well as preparing their children with clothes and equipment for school they will be starting to prepare them mentally for school with bed times reverting back to normal and talks about what is expected of their children this year.

For young people the beginning of the school year can be a mix of emotions, gladness at going back to see friends, anxiety about a new school or a new teacher but most importantly it’s a time to think about their targets for the year and what they want to achieve out of the year. Every year spent at school is a year closer to the real world of optional education and the workplace so with every year the importance grows to do well and to be ready for the challenges after your school years are over.

What I say to young people is to sit down with their families before the year starts and set some goals for the year, goals which are going to challenge you to work your hardest but goals that you can achieve. Once this is done you need an action plan on how you are going to make this happen and you need to stick to the action plan as if the action plan is a good action plan and you stick to it you will achieve results. By having an action plan it gives us something we can look at on a week by week basis to measure our progress. This is important as many people start the school year with big dreams of what they want to achieve but after a few weeks have forgotten about what it is they wanted to achieve and have got caught up in the distractions of school life. It’s easy to put your all in on the first day and get all your homework done but what about in the fourth or the fifth month. School is a marathon and not a sprint.

Regardless of what you pack in your pencil case, regardless if you haven’t got a compass or a protractor as long as you make sure to pack your can do attitude, your action plan and your goals and live by them you will have a successful year this year.

What are your goals for this year? Are you looking forward to the year ahead at school? We want to know your thoughts and you can share them by joining in our discussion topic of the week by going to:

http://www.talentedyoungpeople.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=548

Adam Sibley
Founder of the Talented Young People organisation
www.talentedyoungpeople.com
"Envisage it, Believe it, Achieve it!"
”Shaking up the Youth of Today”

http://www.talentedyoungpeople.blogspot.com