The Backstory of The Speaker’s Manifesto…
The first professional speaker I ever saw was Bishop John Gimenez who came to my elementary school to speak. I was mesmerized as he shared his personal journey as a heroin addict. It may have been one of the first times I stopped talking and devoted all of my attention to listening.
At that moment, I knew that was what I wanted to do…speak to audiences and capture their attention by talking about things that mattered. And although it took me years to overcome my fear of stepping onto the stage and living that dream, I have had the privilege of doing just that for the past four decades.
But the truth is I long struggled to allow myself to share my most important message. The one that matters most to me, and the one I have learned matters most to those I am here to serve.
I wrote The Speaker’s Manifesto early one morning after a very powerful experience sharing the story that matters most to me on stage for the first time in September of 2017 at Heroic Public Speaking Live. It captured what I felt in that moment and was intended to help people who want to share their story from the stage trust they can and should.
If that is you, then I hope you will resonate with it. If not, maybe you know someone who needs to read it to remind them they have a story that matters and might change someone’s life if they shared it—the way John Gimenez changed mine that day long ago.
THE SPEAKER'S MANIFESTO
Speakers speak.
We must speak.
It is the way we make sense of the world.
We speak about ideas.
We speak about insights.
We speak about impacts and implications.
WE SPEAK TO CREATE AND CONFIRM...
Our identity,
Our place in the world,
and our value.
WE SPEAK TO UNDERSTAND...
Making sense of our observations
Putting them into words.
Knowing when we truly understand
We will be able to help others do the same.
WE SPEAK IN OUR HEADS...
Endlessly.
The doubts.
The questions.
The wonders. The fears. The worries.
AND WE REHEARSE...
Conversations that will never occur
Stories that will not be told
Ways to apologize and make it right.
ALWAYS ALOUD...
If only in a whisper.
When we hear the words,
We discover...
Meaning,
Context,
Value, and
Relevance (or lack thereof).
CONSTANTLY WE BEG...
For someone who will listen,
An ear lent that helps us
connect the disparate passages
In our endless stream
of seemingly disconnected thoughts.
One who…
Compassionately nods,
or gently questions.
Adds a missing piece,
or simply affirms our words.
One who listens,
Enabling the revelation of the truths
harbored within our thoughts.
Revealing there is indeed meaning.
It matters not
if that meaning agrees
with our thoughts.
It matters that now we know.
Because that allows us to confidently share...
To reveal our discoveries to others,
Cementing them in our memory bank,
Assigning it a place of easy recall
when they are needed.
And deep within lies our message...
...developed over time
...drawn from experience
...deep seeded in emotion
Hidden away. Protected...
Lest we be judged,
our weakness laid bare.
And it hurts...
...more than anyone can imagine
...pushed down and out of sight
...consciously or unconsciously
Locked away behind a mask
hidden by a suit of armor…
Adopted because it is safe, comfortable,
expected, and accepted.
We daily avoid the awkward, ever-present reality...
We who speak to understand,
struggle every day to deliver the one true message
that matters most…
to us,
and to our audiences.
© 2017 Dr. Michael Hudson, All Rights Reserved.
TAKE ACTION: If this post resonated with you, I encourage you to consider why it did. What message are you here to share and who needs to hear it? Why have you chosen not to share it? Are you ready to step up, show up, and speak up to change someone’s life?
The First Step…Give yourself permission to explore the story you most need to share. The one that changed your life. The one that revealed something to you that others need to know. The one that you wish you had heard earlier in your life. Because chances are the story you most need to tell is the one you wish you knew before you encountered your life’s most challenging moment.
I love this Michael. It has moved me and reminded me just how important it is to speak. Thank you. I'm sharing it with all my speaker friends!
A great use of words. Very deep and powerful! Thanks for sharing, Michael!