I Am Going to Miss Awards Night!
Written by Raisinberry
I was digging in my closet and found a beaded gown wrapped in plastic. Just south of the hanger was a pair of sparkly shoes with a 3 inch heel. Memories flooded my mind of that magical night in Dallas, when the Arena was dark and we raced to our seats… running up the ramp into Section 21, passing the food stand and being greeted at the door with our official program of all of tonight’s winners.
At one Awards night, we got a slender penlight with fiber optic fringe shooting out of it, reminiscent of the flaming bic “give us another song” lighter days. Once we got a mini hand clapper that saved our bruised and reddened palms from non-stop clapping. But tonight we were going to have to rely on our own sweaty palms and get ready for the “greatest night of our lives.”
We squirm in our seats waiting for the music to cue, and the lights to go up. On the screen there is a lone female runner… running to an inspirational can-do music theme. Over obstacles, sweating and strong, she runs holding a torch blazing in the setting sun. BAM! The back of the arena doors open and THERE SHE IS!!! THERE SHE IS!!! She comes off the screen to appear on the floor of the SEMINAR ARENA… running up to the stage under a lone spotlight and singing, holding her torch high!!! She brings the house down!
The music crescendos – all hearts are full! We feel her triumph! We know her dreams! She has made it! She has made it into our hearts and into our minds! She is a champion!! She is US! She is who we want to be!! Applause roars and the pyrotechnics go off and the dancers come out and she finishes her song as streamers and confetti and music herald her achievement!
She can do it because she never gives up! We can too! We collapse into our chairs, teary eyed and exhausted…WOW! We collectively say. WOW! Mary Kay Cosmetics, who has the greatest conventioneer staff known to man, has crawled into our hearts and pulled our strings. And backstage, a production supervisor chortles his delight. Hook, line and sinker. In a 4 minute number, the entire audience has been hooked like a school of flounder, and they didn’t even notice the bait.
We watch our nationals come down the stairs as the gloved and tuxedoed staff personnel lend them a graceful hand. From now till midnight it will be one long fade in and fade out of hand clapping with an occasional trip to the bathroom or snack bar. We know the drill, but there is always that musical number from the dancers that will disrupt our boredom, along with the occasional stair tripping episode that gives us an adrenaline jolt.
We oooh and ahhh the seminar dresses and go slowly mad with the switch off of male and female announcers who chant, ‘Lets hear it for Suzi Quzy…and from Madison, Wisconsin, Joany Baloney! Keep those hands clapping for Floozy Doozy, and from Nashville Tennessee, let’s welcome Gertha Grits! We count up the entire number of court winners in an attempt to stay focused and determine how many are left. Can we make it? And now the top ten!
When the tippy top of Court of Sales get their night in the spotlight, they line the stage and Number 3,2, and 1 stand alone waiting for the Queen to be announced. Drum roll please! Our Queen is Christy Creditmaximus from Stockyard, Kentucky! Applause, applause as we grunt to stand in such close quarters, barely able to, because our feet are swollen, bloody stumps of their former selves.
Christy’s family gets to come out now as she gets her tiara and flowers, and as her National commends her performance, we get to hear a word from Christy, who will tell us all how she did it and we can’t wait! She thanks her Director, her National, her customers, her husband and family, and she proudly tells us WE CAN TOO! YEA!!! Her husband gets the microphone to tell us how proud he is of Christy! YEA! We love him! More applause!! The kiddos are here too! And how cute they are, and we miss our own babies at home! With a mix of tears and applause we watch them leave the stage and get ready for the next long list of names to be announced as the night of spectating dresses and waiting for stairtrips continues.
The Big Girls are up. After the first Unit Clubs parade through, the Trip ($650,000) Directors and extended trip Directors ($800,000 and up) get their on stage applause… and once again, the TOP TEN. The Million Dollar Units stand alone and Number 3 is called… then Number 2 and now we know! NUMBER ONE in ALL OF THE YADA YADA SEMINAR IS… Melody Frontloader!!! Melody hugs her National as they head to the throne!
She knew she was 1 or 2 because Corporate called her to make sure her family would be there. Can’t do the full production number without making sure hubby is there to tear at the audience’s heart strings! Her heart is beating so hard! It’s all too much! She collects herself and thanks GOD for blessing her business and her awesome Unit! She asks them to stand and the house lights go up! Tomorrow we will applaud them again as they come out on stage, but tonight we get a mini version of her speech, where she tells us exactly how she did it! And we can’t wait! They hand her the microphone and she says, “It was just an amazing year! We set the goal last July to do the Million and that’s what we did! I owe it all to my fabulous Unit who stayed focused and kept going even when it didn’t seem like we could make it!
We needed $45,000 on the last day even with double credit, and by 11:58 it was all there!! I can only thank GOD for giving me a vision and a purpose to enrich women’s lives! YEA!! Applause, applause! Her hubby gets the microphone to tell us all how proud he is of Melody! We love him! More applause! Her kiddos say “I love you mommy” into the microphone and we burst into tears! We miss our kids… We want that adoration from our husbands! With a mix of tears and applause we watch them leave the stage, and get ready for the long line of women waiting to get on the buses to go back to their hotels.
Ah, what a night! I got so much out of it. I saw dresses and got swollen feet, and sang to some oldies. I got to pee in a men’s bathroom with my beaded dress hiked up off the filthy floor. My hands got sore and red from all that clapping and since I had to suck down a Starbucks to stay awake, I wont be sleeping well tonight! But no matter—I can’t sleep anyway!
I ruined a great pair of pantyhose ‘cause I had to walk back barefoot dragging my beads on the ground. By the time the bus got us back to the hotel, the elevator lines had a 10 minute wait, and I overheard a woman talking about the NUMBER ONE UNIT in all of Mary Kay. She was so excited to walk on stage tomorrow but wondered how she was going to pay the bill for the hotel, since she and her team “helped” the unit by maxing 5 or 6 of their credit cards.
I love to reminisce. Yes. I surely will miss Awards Night this year… only THIS year… it’s on purpose!
Visit the
“She was so excited to walk on stage tomorrow but wondered how she was going to pay the bill for the hotel, since she and her team ‘helped’ the unit by maxing 5 or 6 of their credit cards.”
The consultants (and xSDs) pay for everything in Mary Kay, including Seminar. Mary Kay Corp has no other revenue source.
Raisinberry, you capture the mood and energy of Seminar so beautifully. This event serves one primary purpose: Fire up the attendees to maximize the haul Mary Kay Corp is able to exact from its own sales force leading up this hollow rah rah event. No outside sales necessary!
LOVED all the cute and witty names!
I stayed until the “bitter end” of those long nights because my NSD told me that it showed respect….it showed respect when I stood for the Nationals and when I clapped nonstop. I am very respectful. But then I started wondering about respecting my need to get away from thousands of loud, some drunk, people at Seminar Awards Night….my need to get good sleep or I would be susceptible to getting sick….my need to take care of me. Once I went to Seminar pregnant and was given the side eye when I said “No More.” I am going to bed….it’s 10pm and I’m pregnant. After that year, I left when my body told me to leave, after showing respect for 4 hours…..It was my turn to be shown respect. Seminar was fun for the first 3-4 years. Then I saw that each one was the exact same, despite me climbing the ladder and earning more things at the top 2%. It was excruciating after a while. I was thankful to the point of tears when I decided I no longer wanted to go when I stepped down.
Gah there is nothing to respect about nationals.
They worked hard! – No, they manipulated a lot.
They are at the top of the company! – By stomping on a lot of people below them and creating hundreds of thousands of dollars of credit card debt for unsuspecting victims.
They know so much about business! – No. They. Do. Not. They know about manipulation. They couldn’t hack it in a real business.
“Are you ready for the most exciting night of your lives???” as the #1 national swoops in from the floor or ceiling or through a fiery hoop. I am so glad I don’t have to fake seminar excitement anymore.
I always penny-pinched, especially on dresses. I saw no need to go all out on a full priced dress that I would wear once, while sitting in the nosebleeds, and drag through filthy bathrooms and buses, especially not when there were consignment shop options. One year I scored BIG and got two gorgeous dresses for $28. One in particular got compliments everywhere. Being the typical midwesterner that I am, I said, “Thanks so much! I got it at a consignment store, can you believe it??” One chick I had never met looked me up and down like she was auditioning for Regina from Mean Girls and said, “Ugh. Don’t worry. When you make director you’ll be able to do better.” Like, girl, I don’t care how much money I’m making! If I can get a dress for $15 instead of $150 (or $1,500), I’m cheaping out!