How To Talk So As To Always Be Understood

Garth Beyer

There’s a universal voice out there.

Some refer to it as being human, others consider it vulnerability. Personally, I don’t have a name for it, but I do know it involves stripping all thoughts of being something you’re not.

In terms of pitching for clients, I want to be excellent and place a lot of stories. PR pros are told we can accomplish this if we follow a pre-approved pitch email and phone script (given some flexibility, of course, but not much).

The times I’ve had the best pitching experiences is when I’ve stripped down the layers of scripted professionalism. The times I’ve had the most heart-to-heart conversations is when I’ve stripped away the fear of appearing weak. The times I’ve written the most resonating blog posts have been when I’ve written in the universal voice.

When you’re speaking in the truest, most intimate voice about your life, you are speaking with the universal voice, according to Cheryl Srayed who wrote the story Wild.

When you speak in that voice, you will always be understood.

 

Stay Positive & Give It A Try (And Try Hard, You Will)

Rather Than What’s Next

Garth Beyer

I’ve gotten in the rotten habit of always thinking about what’s next.

I love checking projects and assignments off because it means I get to work with the next thing, but that, in a way, prevents me from moving forward faster.

Instead of always seeking the next thing, sometimes it pays off more to do more of what you’re doing, but differently.

Perhaps you’re in a job that is repetitive and it’s frustrating that you haven’t been promoted or asked to do different work. You can let your desire (and ultimate inability) to progress eat at your passion or you can direct that passion to experiment with what you have in front of you.

Simply because you’ve been blogging for a year doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll get your book published. Maybe it’s time to blog differently and see if it resonates more.

When we are facing a barrier to what we want next, we can either let it destroy us, drain our energy, and make us question our direction or we can think about things differently, experiment with our work, and find a way to improve what we think is “good enough.”

 

Stay Positive & Doing Things Differently Might Be What’s Next

Repeat Value

Garth Beyer

When you’ve got wisdom, share it again and again.

Think of your wisdom, content, and information like a live music concert: the crowd is often more excited when a song comes on that they know. (That’s why I steadily remind readers that people die standing still.)

When you’ve got what you think is wisdom, but is really information that doesn’t resonate, cut the energy to it. If there are ideas (music, art, campaigns) you have to force the crowd to feel, you’re not fulfilling your potential.

Repeat the value and let go of the content that people aren’t cheering for.

 

Stay Positive & Earn An Encore

The Inevitable Scarcity Effect

Garth Beyer

If you think the scarcity effect doesn’t play a role with your product or service, you’re wrong.

If there are two cookies left in the break room, we’re unconsciously motivated to desire one even if we didn’t want a cookie to begin with. Have you ever heard someone say “I had a sweat today and I’m not even sweet-tooth kind of person.” Scarcity played them.

If only five people in your organization could try a new product out – one you wouldn’t normally use – you would still sign up to try it out.

There is a shortage of grapefruit La Croix in the office today and all the sudden it’s my favorite flavor La Croix. Damn scarcity effect.

People don’t have a choice but to be victim to the scarcity effect. Are you leveraging it?

 

Stay Positive & Make Your Product/Service Scarce In Small Ways

Talking Points

Garth Beyer

In the moment of indecision, of wondering what people want to hear, in trying to please the boss in the room, we forget the talking points we are most moved by.

What happens in most presentations is they get filled with the expected.

Informative, sure, but expected.

The presenter goes through the motions and about three-quarters into the keynote, they’ve finally slid in a slide about what they are most passionate about. And you know what? That’s the most moving part of the presentation.

Not because of any build up to it, but because the energy of the presenter finally gets noticed.

People like Sasha Dichter and Simon Sinek aren’t phenomenal speakers because they practiced how to speak publicly. What makes them special is they’ve practiced how to speak publicly about points that completely move them, energize them, fill them with an incredible need to share. (That’s why Sasha paces and Simon uses so many hand motions and vocal influxes.)

Instead of putting the expected talking points in your next presentation, send them out earlier in an email and dedicate your presentation to what moves you most.

 

Stay Positive & Focus On Resonating, Not Feeding An Audience The Basics

Trust Your Struggle

Garth Beyer

Trust Your Struggle Graffiti

I’ve talked about The Struggle before. It’s that time between seeing something you want to make in your head and that moment you realize while attempting to create it, that you aren’t skilled enough.

I’ve had too many of these moments to count, and what got me through them was following a piece of advice that a building told me (graffiti). “Trust your struggle.”

You have to trust that despite your inability, your struggle, and your frustration, that you will gain something monumental out of it. The majority of Struggles I’ve gone through, I have learned the lesson immediately after it’s completion (sometimes poor completion, but lesson learned, regardless).

Other times, it has taken awhile. When I was struggling through NaNoWriMo (writing a novel in one month), trying to force myself to write until it was manifested, I teared up because I was struggling so much. The struggle was real, it was frustrating, but I refused to let my mind, my fear, my inability to meet the perfection I saw for myself stop me from writing. It ended up being a fairly good first book.

If we ever want to create something that we picture in our minds, we have to trust The Struggle.

 

Stay Positive & Trust It, Again And Again

Photo credit
In The Box Podcast

Episode 15: Coincidences, Reaction Time, Life Of A Social Platform And More – Podcast

Garth Beyer

On this episode of In The Box Podcast, we talked about the significance of coincidences, if we should fear artificial intelligence, and the three options you have when you notice you’re afraid.

You’ll also hear us touch on the life cycle of social platforms (how they all turn into a platform for purchasing), the advantages people who aren’t born into a creative family have, and a confusing bit about fate, destiny and LeBron James.

Worth listening. Worth subscribing.

Episode 15: Coincidences, Reaction Time, Life Of A Social Platform And More

Reaction time – How long does it take you to do something you’re afraid of?

Life of a social platform – Will every social platform turn into a platform for purchasing?

Coincidence – Do you place any significance on coincidences?

Computers – Should we be concerned with artificial intelligence?

Fate – Do you believe in fate and or destiny?

Born into creativity – Is there something people who aren’t born into artistic families have that those who are don’t?

 

Stay Positive & Address Fear Then Dance With It