But that’s also what we are doing here as Red Cross Youth delegates from Armenia, going to schools and telling students about the country and Red Cross Society we come from. I know (not just from theory) how nervous one can be when entering a class with bold, well-informed, cool young people. Things get far worse when I remember my own attitude (not: from quite recent experience!) to this kind of ‘guests’ and presentations …

Seems hopeless, doesn’t it? So did it to me. I tried remembering what trainings and manuals on presenting skills usually say: Be prepared! Little nervousness is necessary! And a lot of encouraging staff like that, which in fact didn’t really help. Maybe the best way is figuring out what I as a teenager would be interested in and not only...

Here are some of the things we talked about during our presentations for Norwegian teenagers (and believe me they were a big success!):

• The symbol of Armenia is a mountain that is in Turkey, actually. But even though it’s an objective reality, nothing and no one will make Armenians accept it.
• Armenians have a stronger drinking culture than Norwegians do (and what’s more attractive, drinks are much cheaper!) 
• Whatever it seems, there is ‘democracy’ in Armenia, even though the concept of democracy is interpreted in a ‘different’ way by our government. 
• We have traditions and we do follow most of them (e.g. One-week lasting weddings with 700-800 stranger people invited!) 

A simple innocent question (seemingly) like ‘You speak Russian in Armenia?’, can really offend us…

Now you see, it’s all about not being afraid to be honest even if it’s a lot of laughing at your own self!

Yeah, forgot, a good tip: a phrase like this in pair with my strong Armenian accent can be a helpful icebreaker. ‘Hi. Jeg er Emma. Men norsken min suger som dere kan se, så derfor skal jeg forsette med engelsk!’

Good luck!