It's Worth It

“But if we keep holding on
I know we’ll get back to the surface
‘Cause it’s worth it
If we keep holding on
I know that nobody’s perfect
But we’ll work it out”

It’s Worth It – Jackie Thomas

What a ride the first series of The X Factor New Zealand was. I mused on a few blogs prior to the series about what could possibly happen, and the series was much better and slightly worse than I predicted. I could muse through many things about the show and break down each act, each song performance and each one of Daniel Bedingfield’s outfits, but that would take quite a few words. So instead I will pick up on one of the moments of the series which stood out to me.

Jackie Thomas, a 22 year old girl from Greymouth, eventually won the series. And good on her. Personally she wasn’t my favourite but I enjoyed her singing and stage performances. But her voice which nearly didn’t make it to the live shows after she was eliminated in the second round, despite Mel Blatt claiming she could win the show after singing Skinny Love for her audition. But Daniel Bedingfield and the public believed in her and she was invited back to judge’s retreats. Bedingfield then put her through to live shows where she went on to receive top votes in seven of the ten live shows and ultimately win the competition. Where will her career go from The X Factor? Well, we’ll just have to wait and see what she comes out with.

There is a lesson we can all take from her journey on The X Factor and it’s one of second chances. When things go wrong in our lives we don’t often get a second chance to put things right. But Jackie did and she grabbed it. She didn’t cruise through like other acts but rather showed New Zealand she deserved to win. And we were nice enough to not only give her the second chance but forgive and forget she messed up.

We aren’t always given second chances in life. Whether it be a relationship, a job interview or a chance to take an adventure, you may have one chance to do it right. I won’t need to go into detail of what it feels like to miss these opportunities because I’m sure as you read this you are thinking about those times you could have used a second chance – and how it felt not to get it. But what is worse than not receiving a second chance is receiving one and failing to go as far as you possibly can with it; you’ll let down yourself and you’ll let down those who believed in you enough to give you another go. Giving out second chances does not come easily. It’s a risk and people don’t like to take risks. It involves trust and forgiveness which do not come naturally to everyone.

You cannot ask for a second chance and you cannot expect one; you messed up and it’s your fault. But if you are so lucky as to get one then don’t take it for granted. Take inspiration from a girl from Greymouth who won our very first series of The X Factor and proved you can win from a second chance.