Recently, I had the pleasure of receiving a Women of Inspiration 2019 award alongside a number of other truly inspiring individuals.
Let me tell you – imposter syndrome was loud when I received and accepted the nomination. It became deafening when I was told I was an actual recipient of one of the awards (WOI2019 – Influencer). This had me questioning EVERYTHING about myself, my business, and my puns (can you believe it?!).
Then, I got to spend the day with a number of other nominees. What I learned on that day was invaluable to quieting the imposter voice in my head. Not silence, but quiet for a bit.
This day taught me that no matter your success, no matter your level of outward confidence, there is still that fear of being judged. Of not being worthy of accolades or even having thoughts worth believing in. This then trickles down to why so many people do not hit “publish” when it comes to posting regular content.
I, myself, let my own blog go untouched for a couple of years for fear of being judged on my own thoughts about the content (something I work with every single day).
Writing as other people – easy peasy! Writing as yourself – a wee bit harder. Putting yourself out there is scary.
AND YET YOUR MESSAGE STILL NEEDS TO BE HEARD
Sure, every single topic has most likely been written on six ways to Sunday, but they are missing one key thing: YOU! YOUR TAKE, YOUR VOICE, YOUR EXPERIENCE!!!
Your message has a different point of view and way of connecting
Goodness, if social media is any indication, there are so many different voices and points of view that, while many say the same thing, resonate with only a few.
How I write about content is completely different than how advertising companies write about content, which is different than how social media gurus write about content and so on. Very different audiences, similar concepts, different connections.
In the corporate world, I’ve worked with a number of engineering companies where many have the same message, “We must work together as a response to climate change.” Yet, because of the individual perspectives of each company, they are saying it differently to each of their stakeholders. One may be focusing on partnering with a renewable company to identify effective energy solutions forward; whereas the other is currently looking at reducing waste in their designs themselves, along with improved automation for the reduction in transport costs. Same message, different points of how, different audiences, different content required.
Your message is more than the words on the page
Your message is more than the actual text you are typing. It contains everything unique about you: who you are, what you do, what you think, and what the experience in connecting with you would be like.
No one has your experience or take on a situation. Your words are not characters on a screen, but the culmination of your learning and experience of the world itself.
I regularly read similar “5 Ways to X” types of blogs. While they almost always say the same first four points…each one always has a unique fifth one. It’s this experience that creates the unique point and captures the attention of your key audience. This one thing is what will separate your message from the others.
Your message is in service to others
We tend to downplay our stories, don’t we? We gloss over the lessons we’ve learned, wrongly assuming that everyone else has had that same lesson. For instance, years ago a client told me that he took the word “no” to really mean “Next Opportunity.” That connected with me and I’ve been operating that way since. While I don’t like “no,” I do not let it stop me from looking forward to the next opportunity.
What I didn’t do was share this same message as I had assumed I was late to the party in hearing this. When I had this tumble out of my mouth during a conversation with a colleague last month, their mind was blown. Now, they move forward with that same mindset towards hearing “no.”
The message here is that my knowledge was NEVER ABOUT ME! It was about how it could support my colleague who was tired of hearing “no.” You do not share your thoughts and insights to build your ego (or, at least, that shouldn’t be your primary motivator). You should share your message because of what it could do for other people.
The moral of this blog is simple: you have a message worth sharing
How and why you are connected to the message is unique to you and deserves to be heard. Don’t assume that just because the information you’re looking to share has been written about before will have your same insights and experiences or is connecting with the people who are looking for you!
So, stop telling yourself that your message has been heard; that your story isn’t new; that no one will connect to what you are doing and why.
Now, write to share your wisdom (then edit, naturally), and hit “publish” with courage.
Have you overcome your fear of sharing your message? Share your insights below or contact The Write Harle for a 1:1 chat!