How being on TV show The Apprentice was a big test of my nerve

One of my favourite television shows is back on the box this week. I've loved it for years, but I have a special soft spot for it because I appeared on it four years ago.
Katie Bulmer-Cooke.Katie Bulmer-Cooke.
Katie Bulmer-Cooke.

Yes, The Apprentice 2018 hits BBC One on Wednesday night, and like many others I’ll be glued to my sofa with my eyes firmly fixed on the TV.

Over the weekend I tried to make my early predictions for who the front runners might be after reading their snappy one-liners and brief biographies that were released last week.

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It’s a tough call, but I I’m always willing to take a chance on those with a proven record of running their own business, so I’m placing my bets on Camilla, the 22-year-old owner of a nut milk brand.

I’m particularly looking forward to seeing how the guy who says his middle name is Google, because he knows everything, gets on.

I’ve got no doubt that catchphrase will come back to haunt him at some point.

I always remember sitting in the boardroom as Lord Sugar scanned through our application forms thinking ‘please don’t pull any of my quotes out!’.

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As cringey as some of them are, it really is part of what makes the show so entertaining.

This year there is a candidate from the north east that we can all get behind.

Sarah Ann, a 37-year-old director of a law firm, comes from Teesside and says she’s going to be laying down the law in the boardroom, just like she does in the courtroom.

As great as that may sound, I can assure you that the only person that ever lays the law down in the boardroom is Lord Sugar … I should know … I sat in there for ten weeks!

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It’s a very exciting time for this year’s candidates. Being on The Apprentice is such a huge opportunity and it certainly had a massively positive impact on my life.

Whether you’re fired in the first few weeks or make it all the way to the final, despite it being incredibly challenging, you have the chance to learn so much, both about business and about yourself (if you’re willing to learn, of course).

For me it was the biggest test of nerve and confidence, but I’m a big believer in the fact that if you want to achieve things, whatever they may be, you have to wave goodbye to your comfort zone and just go for it.

So this week I’m wishing all the new candidates and anyone else who is putting themselves out there and trying to achieve their goals, whatever they may be, lots of good luck!