This can be taken one of two ways. From a marketing viewpoint it could mean that you have no platform for the message you have and you would like to build one. It could also mean that you have problems giving voice to the message you have, usually because of a fear of speaking to others.
This is the kind of situation I am sharing about today. Finding your voice to share your message is a fear filled situation for many people. Its terrifying to get up in front of others and speak passionately about the topic you are suppose to share. People have adopted all kinds of tricks to help them speak publicly with varying degrees of success.
There are some approaches, and mechanisms that can help any speaker get their message out. The first one is know your topic. Be very knowledgeable about it and I would go so far as to say develop a certain level of passion and conviction about it so that you speak with sincerity about your message. Another important point to give voice to your message is understanding what kind of voice needs to be used for your message. Is your topic personal? Then you need to be very personal about what you share. Is your topic factual? Then you need to have done your research, have your facts straight, and honestly, work through your topic out loud so you use voice inflection to help your talk not be boring and dry. Is your topic a story? Adopt the storyteller model of speaking so that your audience is drawn in and can mentally see what you are sharing with them. Finally, know the audience that your topic might draw. You can prepare for your talk based on your audience if you do your planning ahead of time.
All of this being said, the greatest reason people lack the voice to share their message is usually fear. I have stood to share something with a group of people and my knees were knocking, and I was sweating, my heart was racing and I wanted to throw up. My own fear has stopped me many times from sharing with others those messages I feel I have been given to share to help other people. I do fine one on one, but I have always believed I have things to share with a larger audience. It do not lack knowledge, or passion, conviction or preparation. I know my audience as well. That which I lack is the ability to work through the fear and use it in a positive way. One of my favorite movies of all time is Dune. The old version. Paul is being tested and you hear his words to himself when his hand is in the box, I must not fear, fear is the mind killer. How true the words.
I have determined that fear can be overcome carefully and by starting out speaking small and working my way up to larger and larger audiences. Overcoming fear can become a valuable skill set. What I am seeing for myself is joining a book club with people I don't know and putting myself in a situation where I have to talk in front of others and then expanding my horizons by joining a group that works on learning public speaking. From there I can start actually participating in situations where my audience is larger so that my fear either goes away, or is decreased to a level that doesn't make me feel like I am going to have a heart attack.
I have a message, and I need to exercise my voice so that I can share with others those things that are important to me, and that I feel would be of benefit to them. Its time put away fearful thoughts!
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