The moral of your story
Each decision you made along this story journey revealed a personal insight.
Your audience values what you have to offer and are waiting for your message. You have been onstage before and received incredible feedback. In fact, every time you speak in public you are complimented.
Mindset and grounding work will go a long way to building your confidence onstage. Your nerves are there to serve you. Capitalizing on your nerves will help you advance your skills, but capitalizing on your nerves takes a bold move. Dive into your story crafting process and you will find your confidence grows!
Here are 5 customized recommendations based on what might be holding YOU back:
1. Mindset
When you get up to speak in front of a crowd, you sometimes feel nervous. Maybe your heart starts to race or your palms feel sweaty. This might stop you from stepping onto the stage or speaking on a podcast. Developing your own pre-performance ritual will help you feel grounded and harness the power of your nerves. After all, your nerves are there to serve you.
PATH TO TRY: Deep breathing triggers a relaxation response. My favourite breathing exercise is called 4-7-8. Inhale for 4 seconds, hold your breath for 7 seconds and exhale for 8 seconds.
2. Core 7 Stories for Business
You might think you don’t have any stories to tell or you’re not sure what parts of your life are story-worthy. Crafting your Core 7 Stories for Business will build your story crafting skills and help you clarify your messaging. You will have a story for every occasion. Most importantly, crafting your Core 7 Stories will show you the many ways your story matters.
PATH TO TRY: Grab my FREE Core 7 Stories for Business guidebook and start crafting your stories!
3. Master Your Voice
Maybe you carry a memory of a speaking gig turned bad, you don’t like the sound of your voice, or you worry that you say “ummm,” too often. The good news is, speaking skills are learned. As you Master Your Voice, you will start loving your voice. You will be vocally empowered. You’ll stop stressing over petty details because you’ll be too busy building crescendos!
PATH TO TRY: Chose a passage from a book and read it out loud. As you read it, hear yourself. Listen for things like tone, pace and pause. When you’re done, write down two things you loved about your voice and two ideas you have to try next time.
4. Performer’s Glory
Maybe you haven’t pushed yourself much to take many storytelling opportunities. The next step in your story journey is stepping onto the stage! You know it’s a leap, but you gotta leap to learn.
PATH TO TRY:Maximize the value of your next performance opportunity by answering the following questions:
Pre-performance
- My goal at this performance is to work on: _________
Post-performance
- Two things I did an excellent job of at this performance were: _________
- Two ideas I have that I want to try next time are: _________
5. Story Power
You want to start out in a safe space with a warm audience and expert feedback. A little recognition of your efforts (after all, you’re going to put yourself out there!) will help you to progress. Captivating, persuasive storytelling is truly multi-faceted. You’ll need everything above… and to be done in a way that opens hearts and minds, you’ll need expert guidance on EXACTLY how to make it happen.
PATH TO TRY: A skip-the-fluff, results-oriented, community-based container of awesomeness that will teach you to express yourself clearly and powerfully, gain real respect from the audience you’re trying to reach, and to feel at home on stage: STORY POWER™! If you’re reading this, you’re very likely meant to join us… so adventure on, hero.