Your ideas aren’t big enough!
That was said to me by an event planner who had hired me for a small conference but did not think I was ready for the bigger stage. Since the audience was in the finance sector, I took no offense. She was looking for a speaker who could address pressing issues related to strategy, scaling and sales — all great topics but not within my bailiwick.
The planner’s comment, however, gets to the heart of why so many people feel that their ideas are not worthy of a wider audience. Some colleagues who are embarking on writing a book sometimes wonder if their ideas are original enough. I always assure them that originality is laudable, but it is not the be-all and end-all.
Some perspective
My ideas, both published and spoken, focus on what’s often referred to — sometimes dismissively — as the “soft stuff” — the caring, commitment and compassion we extend to others. For me, those ideas are plenty of “big.” At the same time, there is nothing original.
Management authority and prolific author Tom Peters has written, “My life in six words: Hard is soft. Soft is hard.” Peters means that managing the human side of the business is often harder than managing the “quant” side of the business. After all, what’s more important than taking care of your people?
Why you?
So, how can you differentiate your ideas from others? Specifically, what gives you the authority to write and speak about your chosen topic? It comes down to integrity, integration and presentation.
Integrity is the foundation of your public self. It is a combination of your education, experience, perspective and accomplishments. What can you share with others that will help them address their issues? For example, if you are an entrepreneur, what can people learn from your experience? Or, if you are an executive coach, what insights into human behavior will enable your audience to gain greater awareness?
Integration is your source material. What research do you cite? Did you do the research yourself, or are you pulling it from recognized sources, such as academic or professional ones? (Always add citations to your work.)
Presentations are where you pitch your ideas. If you are writing an article or a book, do you tell stories? Do you use illustrations and graphics? Do you weave in data points? What you do matters and will give your ideas a lift, a professional sheen.
The same goes for live presentations. Consider your stage presence. How do you take the stage, making eye contact and leveraging the energy in the room? Do you ask questions of your audience? Will you engage in question-and-answer sessions after your presentations?
Connecting more fully
When you write and present, you share yourself with others. Physician-philosopher Albert Schweitzer wrote, “Man can no longer live for himself alone. We must realize that all life is valuable and that we are united to all life. From this knowledge comes our spiritual relationship with the universe.” Your thoughts, ideas and works enable you to connect more fully with others.
Knowing your material and presenting it in ways that leverage your experience makes your ideas big enough to make a positive difference in the lives of readers and audiences alike.
Opinions expressed by SmartBrief contributors are their own.
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