I arrived in New York on a Thursday.  I was so anxious to get there and finish the job.  Wonder where I got that?  “Finish the job.”  The year before the Baylor University Women’s Basketball team won the national championship, they made it all the way to the Sweet Sixteen.  The following year, Coach Mulky-Robinson told her team that they had to “go back and finish the job.”  They adopted “finish the job” as their slogan the entire year. And they did!  They won the NCAA Women’s Basketball championship!  And even though I am just beginning, and the goal is an individual one, I want to make it to the end.   That is my ambition.  To make it to the finish line.  To be the next Apprentice!
 
I  feel that I am here for a reason, Lord, and that I have much to learn and a lot to give by being on The Apprentice.  I pray that I will let go and let You direct the adventure.
           
The first meeting with Mr. Trump and all the other contestants was surreal.  I had to keep reminding myself that I was really there, thinking: “This is real.  This is starting.  This is not trying to get on the show.  Roxanne, you are really on The Apprentice.” 
 

We all arrived separately at Republic National Airport where we waited for Mr. Trump.  No one said a word.  I looked every candidate in the eye hoping to capture a glimpse of who they were inside.  I could hardly believe that this was the beginning.  George and Carolyn, two of the executives who worked with the Trump organization appeared and led us to the jet pad where Mr. Trump was waiting.  After inviting us all in to his jet, and introducing himself, Mr. Trump introduced George and Carolyn and told us they would be assisting him in evaluating the tasks we would be performing.  Then Mr. Trump asked us to introduce ourselves.  And that was surprising, too, because everyone was throwing out their credentials left and right and it was quite something -- there were restaurant owners, millionaires, venture capitalists, high- tech managers, immigrants, some who had pulled themselves up from nothing—you name it.   All were extremely qualified.  And I was just trying to get a handle on it, trying to get a grip on the whole event while it was happening.  I didn’t want to miss a thing.  I didn’t want to forget a single moment. 

After introductions, Mr. Trump picked two people, Tarek and Allie, to lead the first task and pick their teams.  I had a flashback to my elementary school playground when I prayed to God that I wouldn’t be the last one picked for the game.  That prayer is the first prayer away from the bedtime or meals that I remember praying passionately.  I knew that Tarek and Allie were choosing who they thought would be worthy to be on their teams.   I wasn’t picked last. Thank you, God.    Allie chose me for her team which was the beginning of what would be a life-long friendship.

As soon as the teams were picked, we were given the task and it was “Bam, here is your first task.  Go do it.”  We piled in the van and headed to Sam’s Club to sell memberships.  And it was business school all over again. You have people talking – just to show you how knowledgeable they are.  Nine people trying to show they were influential on this task.  So it was very interesting.  And I just kept thinking:  Am I really here?  What does all of this mean? Do I belong here?  Am I worthy?   It took a while for my thoughts to get to: Yeah, all these people are qualified, but you are qualified, too.  You belong here, Roxanne.  Then I knew.  I belonged and I intended to stay a long time. I breathed a prayer of thanksgiving as we approached our destination. 
 

The task was fairly straightforward. The team who sold the most Sam’s Club memberships won.   Two team members would be in the blimp, circling overhead advertising the event.  All the others would be selling.  I really didn’t want to be in the blimp; it’s hard to be a part of a team if you are up in a blimp.

Don’t get me wrong, it would be awesome to ride in a blimp.  I remember going to Arizona State University games with my family and seeing the Goodyear blimp up above.  At times that was the highlight of the game, so to be given the opportunity to ride in a blimp was tempting except my goal was to compete and not hover over Sam’s Club in a blimp. 
 

Thankfully, I was not assigned to blimp duty.  Brent and Stacy had blimp duty.  I would be on the floor selling memberships to strangers.  I had never sold anything that way before – cold sell.  I prayed that my natural skills and my experience with customer service as a Jazzercise franchisee would be ample preparation.  After initial plans were designed and assignments given, Synergy— the name we picked for our team -- headed to the Trump Tower to explore the Suite. 

 
The first time I walked into the Suite with my teammates – the newly formed Synergy – was a mixture of tentative emotions.  Since we had already started our task, my mind wouldn’t let me enjoy the Suite one hundred percent.  But it still was exciting. It was an awesome palatial suite.  The Victorian-designed space was huge! We walked through the famous wooden door and started exploring the rooms.  All were spacious and elegant -- first the sitting room, dining room, and living room, all beautiful.  There was the game room, the fitness area, with a basketball court and exercise equipment. The kitchen was fully equipped and had two huge tables where the eighteen of us ate most of our meals.

When we started traipsing through the bedrooms, it was like negotiating a maze.  What caught my eye was the balcony just outside the bedrooms.  You could see nearly to the river on one side, and up to Central Park, then gaze on midtown.  All from that magnificent terrace.  The sounds of New York City filled the air. The balcony would soon become my haven for prayer and for a needed reality check from time to time.

When I went to pick my room, I learned that the four other ladies, Allie, Tammy, Stacy, and Andrea, had paired up as roommates earlier in the day. I was so focused on the task I didn't think about roommates.  This left me, four men, two rooms and a cot.   Sean and Michael quickly paired up.  The cot was a reminder that if we lost, in a few days, one of us would be gone.  I thought about volunteering for the cot for a few minutes, but finally decided that I didn't want to get fired and never have slept in an actual bed in the Suite.  So I picked a bed knowing I might have to share a room with one of my male team members.  Pepi didn't want Brent to be stuck in the cot – and the blimp -- all on the first task, so he took the cot.  I started life in the suite with Brent and a framed picture of his wife as roommates. 

Though I was in awe of our terrific living quarters, I was so immersed in the task that I couldn’t think much about it until later.  On the morning of the task, I started out okay.  But after a while it got easier, because selling Sam’s Club memberships wasn’t too different from what I had done every Sunday with Untitled, where I greeted people and tried to make them feel comfortable.  It was just talking to people and I loved doing that. The task completed, we were directed to meet with Mr. Trump.   When we were all gathered together to find out the results, my heart was beating fast.  I wanted to have a win behind us.  I wanted to stop holding my breath and just relax.  I hadn’t had the courage to unpack my bags and really move into the suite.  I didn’t want to unpack and then repack because we lost or even worse because I was fired.  So for the entire week I lived out of my suitcase.  Crazy, I know.  All the others had unpacked their things as soon as they arrived, but I waited. 

 

George and Carolyn reported to Mr. Trump and to us the results of the task.  Our team won by three memberships!  In that moment I released a little bit of the anxiety and gained a little bit of confidence.  When we returned to the suite after we had won the first task, I felt free to unpack.  As I started to put my things away I realized that I hadn’t unpacked because of a lack of faith but rather I just wasn’t ready.  It wasn’t time.  But now I could move into what I hoped would be my home for a long time. 
 

I was so excited that we won and of course I wanted to reach out to my family and friends, but I couldn’t because of show confidentiality.   I did talk to my sister and when she asked how I was, all I could say was “fine, now tell me about your life.”  Rochelle loved it because I had to listen to her without talking.
 

It was just the beginning of a frantic, exhilarating, unbelievable experience. 
 

Thank you, God.  I’m so grateful to be here and be in this position.  Each day is so new and different.  I want to prolong this experience as long as I can.  I keep telling myself of all the opportunities, not only for myself, but for other people as well.  I need to go back to baby steps and prayer, enjoy the moments, just be present, just be grateful to be here.  Everything I have is because of you.  You are giving me strength, courage and confidence to help me follow your will. Thank you, Lord.