Voice in Presentation: Looking Back and Moving Forward

You Revealed

written by Hilary Blair

My ah-ha!  – You revealed, unveiled, realized.

While working with a client recently, I said what I have said countless times — “I’m not teaching you anything you don’t know – I’m giving you permission to express what is in you.  These are not new ideas; they are just a little sleepy in you.  I share with you techniques that help you express what is awakening.”  And he looked at me knowingly, understanding it to be true.  And again, I was exhilarated and charged as if it was the first time I had seen the joy in the eyes of the speaker as he or she realizes, “yes, I do know how to do this.”

It’s like Michelangelo. I clarify; I’m not saying I am Michelangelo.  But it dawned on me that my experience is just like how the artist said that he could see what was – not even what could be, but what was already present.

“In every block of marble I see a statue as plain as though it stood before me, shaped and perfect in attitude and in action.  I have only to hew away the rough walls that imprison the lovely apparition to reveal it to the other eyes as mine see it.” ~Michelangelo

Coaches are there to guide you to be who we see you already are.  We are like bowling bumpers to keep you rolling for a strike. In all my years of teaching, I’m still startled when people don’t see how amazing they are when I myself see it so plainly. Often, I see people where I know they can be.

I invite you to see what I’m seeing – you in all your excellence and grace and balance of human imperfection that is of itself, perfection.  I invite you to step into you.


The Proof’s in the Story

written by Robin A. Miller, PhD

During this holiday season, I received a present from my parents.  They had created a CD of compiled scenes from my childhood.  Not only did I have precious memories now in my possession, I also had a hard copy of the stories that I had shared with friends and family.  These stories were difficult to believe without seeing them.  Now I have the proof!

What I have noticed this year through coaching is that story continues to compel listeners to pay attention to our presentations or keynotes, as it has always done through the ages.  Story has also become important in the interviewing process: interviewers ask the interviewee to remember, to share, and to compare.  They are looking for story and for patterns.

When I think back on memorable presentations or sermons, I can always recite the story.  Facts fade; data comes and goes, unless very compelling and connected to story; and what is left is the visual and sensory image of a story, a feeling, a place, a time, an event.  These stories are a recounting of an experience that usually transformed a person’s life, moving her/him from one place to the next.

As we move into the New Year, I encourage all of us to think about our story.  How does our story connect to or reflect what we would like to convey?  Does our story connect to what the listener wants to hear?  How can the events of our lives be used to share our voice in the world?

Let’s look back on the video of our life, moving forward into the New Year, and use it to provide meaning in all we say and share.


Surround Sound

written by Kenny Storms

Years ago I saw a painting that, to this day, has left a lasting impression on me. In the painting there was a depiction of a human figure that was completely covered in eyes. The symbolism revealed in this picture was that our identity, how we perceive the world, how we look at those around us, how we see ourselves, is in part created by the eyes of those individuals with whom we find ourselves spending time. If this is true, then I have to bring attention to the voices that have surrounded me. I have worn every influential voice, both positive and negative, like a jacket, and this jacket reflects these influential voices through my thoughts which, often, echoes through my lips.

These days I am blessed with a chorus of voices that are propelling me upwards and onwards; both personally and in my work. It has not always been this way. In my past, I had become very comfortable with voices that pushed me downward and “offward.” This loud murmur that led, figuratively, to a deafening silence and a voice lost. I had to work and am continuing to work, even fight, to hear voices that create a positive influence so that I continue the growth of my own voice. I write about this particular topic because I think, as we come into this New Year, we should take a moment to listen to the voices that are around us.

If our desire is to be the best that we can be in whatever facet of life we find ourselves, and if we are influenced by the voices circling us, then it seems we should submerse ourselves in the best voices. The voices that propel, guide, and push us to those points that we are unsure or unaware that we can reach. Because maybe, one day we will reach out and grab that ledge and we will be that voice for another.

But the verdict is still out.

I wish the eye-covered figure in the painting had also been bound in ears and veiled in mouths. The eyes reflect out, the ears reflect in, and the voice is a combination of the two. What do you hear, what does your voice reflect, and what is echoed back?


A Present for You

written by Ailish Riggs

This has been a whirlwind of a year with plenty of change, including a cross-country move that holds a whole new adventure! It has also been a year full of new perspectives that have challenged long held ideas about myself and my interactions with the world. I’ve realized how often life’s many distractions have kept me from being fully present with those around me and with the world in which I live.

As my perspectives have begun to shift, I have become more keenly aware of how the challenge, for all of us, of being present is increasingly difficult.  In a world that encourages disconnection, whether it be through technology, media, or even our own busy-ness, it has become acceptable to split our focus and multitask. But we, as a whole, are losing out. We are shutting down our potential for vulnerability and for growth, losing our ability to engage in honest and open exchanges, and neglecting the potential for investing in the personal relationships that shape us.

So as I move forward, my goal is to opt out of distraction and engage with presence – to become more fully open and aware.  To dismiss the seemingly valid reasons I give myself for not connecting and to approach my friends, colleagues – and even those I don’t know – with the time and attention that we humans, as equals inhabiting this planet, deserve.  I hope you will engage with me!

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