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How To Become Articulate In Writing and Presenting Ideas

Angler

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Hey folks,

This is a question that's been on the top of my mind since last night after a speech I gave(my first one ever). I'm sure a lot of people can find value in the discussion too.
Because to be articulate is a superpower. To have precise communication pierce attention.
And to be able to hold attention lets your voice and product be heard.

For those who write often, perhaps for fun, or maybe to make money... and feel like they can articulate their words well,

What questions go through your mind as you write?
What helps bring clarity to what you want to say?
How do you go about saying it in an effective way?

Besides asking who are my audience,
what intention I have with this work,
what problem this work is solving for the audience,
how far into the future do I want this message to impact,
or perhaps at what scale do I want this writing to have an influence...

What else?

Do consider: what questions do you ask yourself AS you write?

This is a personal opinion and experience thread. Any feedback is WELL welcome. I will probably find a lot of information from reading books, reading threads here, and practicing on my own and on the forum. But I'm curious about what YOU have to say. Plus engaging is the best practice for writing, right?
 
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Andy Black

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what questions do you ask yourself AS you write?
What’s my goal writing this? Will this achieve that goal?

Can I make this shorter?

Can I make this simpler?

Am I “clearing my throat”?

Can I start closer to the end?
 

Kak

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This is a very important topic. I have always long held that leadership is the single most important part of business. You can create or build anything you want as long as you can convince enough people that it’s a legitimately good idea and provide value to them.

So what is a leader’s most important tool? Communication.

Of course you can start by reading books on the topic, pick up best practices and try to implement them into your daily life, but, it didn’t get better for me until my daily life started requiring it of me.

I used to spend time lobbying legislators in Austin 3-6 times a month. I would stack all the meetings on one day, make the drive and take 3-5 meetings a day.

After stumbling over my first few meetings, I grew into it, I became massively on top of my game. I spoke carefully and precisely. I was able to persuade well. I was able to leave meetings with a lot of what I wanted.

Then, if you know anything about Texas government, legislative session would end and meetings would slow. I was taking one meeting at a time instead of 3-5. They were happening less and less frequently as well. Just like that, my meetings died down to a trickle, and my communication skills eroded back to an acceptable yet still frustrating level.

When you are used to working a room like a master and you begin to struggle, even if the people you are meeting with don’t notice, you will.

I say all of this because you need to IMPLEMENT your best practices and PRACTICE your best practices.

It wasn’t until I started my radio show that I was forced to use these skills very often. The first 50 episodes are probably complete garbage by comparison to the last 50 I have recorded.

If you don’t ever do it, you’ll never have it. If you don’t use it frequently enough, you'll lose it.

Join a toastmasters group and volunteer to speak in every meeting. Start requesting way way more pitch meetings for your business, this might also make you more money. Embarrassing, but narrate your drives, by yourself, out loud in the most eloquent way you possibly can. (I know, it’s weird, but helped me.)

Learn to think faster than you speak, and that may require you to slow down for a while. 95% of the people you come across, after you realize this, speak faster than they think. It becomes like a mode that you “turn on.”

Use every possible opportunity to move this from outside of your comfort zone to solidly inside of your comfort zone. Confidence plays a BIG part in being able to operate at full capacity.

I hope this helps. Great thread! Looking forward to this one.
 
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Antifragile

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How To Become Articulate In Writing And Presenting Ideas

Business owners have to write and present ideas on a daily basis. I speak from personal experience. Whether we are writing proposals, communicating with clients, or presenting a pitch, the ability to communicate clearly and effectively is essential in business.

In order to become more articulate when writing and presenting ideas, focus on honing your communication skills through practice and by employing specific techniques. Here are a few tips to help you become more articulate in your writing and presentations:

1. Write frequently. The key to becoming an effective writer is simple: practice makes perfect. In order to improve your skills, it's important to write regularly and consistently. One of the best ways to do this is by creating a blog or website and writing new posts on a regular basis. This will not only help improve your writing skills, but it will also give you a platform to share your ideas with others. Writing here on FLF is another great place to practice.

2. Be clear and concise. When you're communicating your ideas, it's important to be clear and concise. Your goal should be to get your point across as clearly and effectively as possible without using a lot of extra words or fluff.

3. Read often. Reading is also an important aspect of becoming more articulate in your writing and presentations. The more you read, the better you will become at understanding how sentences are structured, how to properly use different grammar rules, and how to craft compelling arguments and ideas.

4. Practice in front of an audience. Practicing in front of an audience is a great way to become more comfortable with speaking or presenting your ideas in public. This can be done by giving presentations at work, participating in online forums, or through other means. The more you practice talking about your ideas out loud, the more comfortable and articulate you'll become when it comes time to present your ideas.

5. Ask for feedback. When you're working on becoming more articulate in your writing and presentation, it's important to ask for feedback from others. This can be done by sharing a draft of your content with coworkers or friends that have strong writing skills, or by asking for feedback from an expert in the field.

By following these tips, business owners and others can improve communication skills and become more articulate in their writing and presentations. By honing your skills and practicing frequently, you'll be able to communicate your ideas more effectively and efficiently.
 
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Johnny boy

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Do it a lot.

Take whatever you were going to say, remove the fluff that you put in because you're afraid of sounding abrupt, ask yourself "what am I really trying to say?" and then just say that.

Statements of fact > "I feel" or "I think".

Opposite of corporate speak.

When you speak clearly and directly, it's a breath of fresh air to everyone who is sick and tired of euphemisms and pleasantries.
 

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seraphine

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I spent most of my time reading as a kid, so writing became quite intuitive, though I had to consciously strive to improve myself by learning from my favorite writers. A piece of advice that might sound strange is to translate ancient authors.
 
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Andy Black

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Can you tell me a little more about this Andy?
It’s where you warm up to what you mean to say, like clearing your throat before speaking.

“I know you’re all busy so I’ll keep this brief.”

“Today I want to talk about the importance of getting to the point.”

Common advice is to throw away your first paragraph. And to remove half the words you wrote, and remove half again.
 

Andy Black

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Andy Black

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A good way to improve your writing is to write in busy communities like this forum. Writing a blog doesn’t get the same instant feedback that allows you to polish your writing.

Do people understand what you wrote?

Did they understand what you *wanted* them to understand?

Did you help the reader, or did you “win” and come across as smart?

Do you antagonise people and get people to dig in? Or do you help people see things differently and even change their mind?

Consciously practice communicating in the forum and in your everyday encounters.
 
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Andy Black

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Whitespace and silence are your friends.
 

Antifragile

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What questions go through your mind as you write?
I remind myself to begin with the end in mind. It's not about me.
Who is my audience? What do they want?

What helps bring clarity to what you want to say?

It is not about me, that brings me clarity. For example, there is a book "Surrounded by Idiots" by Thomas Erikson
He argues that there are different personalities. If you are writing a proposal to a Red vs a Green - it would be unrecognizably different! And if you mix the two, you'd get both "no".

4-Type-Wheel_large.jpg


Hopefully you see a pattern, it is not about me. So what I want to say isn't an effective way to communicate. What I want is irrelevant. Communication happens in the head and mind of the listener (reader).

Thinking that what you want to say is important is similar to this fib:

There is a story of a man on all fours under a street lamp, searching for something. A policeman passing by asked what he was doing. “Looking for my car keys,” replied the man, who appeared slightly drunk. “Did you drop them here?” inquired the officer. “No,” answered the man, “I dropped them in the alley.” Seeing the policeman’s baffled expression, the man hastened to explain, “But the light is much better here.”


How do you go about saying it in an effective way?

Here I'll reference another excellent book. Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Compassion by Marshall Rosenberg. Author explains a neat method and four components of NVC: 1. observations 2. feelings 3. needs 4. requests. This is an effective way of communicating. Otherwise you run the risk of being totally misunderstood.

Another fib:
There is a cartoon where one Native American remarks to another, “Watch me use modern psychology on my horse!” He then leads his friend to where the horse can overhear their conversation and exclaims, “I have the fastest, most courageous horse in all the West!” The horse looks sad and says to itself, “How do you like that? He’s gone and bought himself another horse.”



@Andy Black is right on with silence advice, it is your friend. Presence: Don’t Just Do Something, Stand There...
 

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Hong_Kong

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Hey folks,

This is a question that's been on the top of my mind since last night after a speech I gave(my first one ever). I'm sure a lot of people can find value in the discussion too.
Because to be articulate is a superpower. To have precise communication pierce attention.
And to be able to hold attention lets your voice and product be heard.

For those who write often, perhaps for fun, or maybe to make money... and feel like they can articulate their words well,

What questions go through your mind as you write?
What helps bring clarity to what you want to say?
How do you go about saying it in an effective way?

Besides asking who are my audience,
what intention I have with this work,
what problem this work is solving for the audience,
how far into the future do I want this message to impact,
or perhaps at what scale do I want this writing to have an influence...

What else?

Do consider: what questions do you ask yourself AS you write?

This is a personal opinion and experience thread. Any feedback is WELL welcome. I will probably find a lot of information from reading books, reading threads here, and practicing on my own and on the forum. But I'm curious about what YOU have to say. Plus engaging is the best practice for writing, right?
I would recommend joining Toastmasters to improve public speaking and presentation skills.
 

Angler

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Holy mother of wowzers... Thank you for your replies @Andy Black, @Kak, @seraphine, @Antifragile and @Johnny boy. So many golden nuggets. Thank you. Thank you. And thank you!
Embarrassing, but narrate your drives, by yourself, out loud in the most eloquent way you possibly can. (I know, it’s weird, but helped me.)
If the narration is to myself(like reciting my beliefs, goals, and values), then I've been doing this for about two month now and it is anything BUT weird. That and writing to myself, has been the biggest game changer for me in terms of my conviction and confidence. I get to know myself better and better each day. If it is in front of a crowd, I feel the tingle as I read your suggestion LOL. And because of the tingles, I'm going to do exactly that for my next speech and I'd be damn if I don't after your reply.
Take whatever you were going to say, remove the fluff that you put in because you're afraid of sounding abrupt, ask yourself "what am I really trying to say?" and then just say that.

Statements of fact > "I feel" or "I think".
Roger that. Just so you know your writing influence me on so many level man. Legit, on many days after a workout, I find myself reciting "get to know yourself so well, to the point where you can see 100 reasons for doubt, 0 reason to have faith, and still be able to move forward with conviction". or "the bar is low man". Stay awesome dude.
I spent most of my time reading as a kid, so writing became quite intuitive, though I had to consciously strive to improve myself by learning from my favorite writers. A piece of advice that might sound strange is to translate ancient authors.
Haven't tried this, seems pretty cool! I've memorize Job's commencement speech before when I found his "looking into the mirror everyday" speech cool. Perhaps I'll give this a try too, but in my own words and turning their writing my own. That'd be a cool synthesis.
Whitespace and silence are your friends.
That's powerful Andy. I'm going to use this along with your advice on starting closer to the end in my next speech.
Hopefully you see a pattern, it is not about me. So what I want to say isn't an effective way to communicate. What I want is irrelevant. Communication happens in the head and mind of the listener (reader).
Yeah... big time! thank you for your replies. Also, your writing reminds me of MJ for some reason. perhaps I've been listening to TMF on loops, and when I read your reply it screamed "look for the need... who is the market? what is the market?"
 

Antifragile

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your writing reminds me of MJ for some reason. perhaps I've been listening to TMF on loops

Excellent, what a great compliment!
Hear that @MJ DeMarco? I've not only read all your books, I am now copying your style successfully!
 
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Andy Black

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Somewhat related:

FROM Andy Black:
When I give people a hard truth here, a lot of times I end up in a senseless debate. My point gets missed because of my "tone". I ain't got time for that. People can't hear truth unless it's wrapped in a candy a$$ covering.
Is there a way to give people a hard truth and not end up in a senseless debate?


FROM BizyDad:
Is there a way to give people a hard truth and not end up in a senseless debate?
Yes. People not named Bizydad do it all the time.

In person, I can do it. On forums, email or any text based medium, I haven't truly cracked the code.

The rare times that I feel like I did, I call it "Channelling my inner Andy Black". I see you do it with regularity. You don't put a candy a$$ filter on it, but you don't smack people upside the head with it either. Two tactics I see you do. You ask a simple, well worded question, or you tell a story from your life that illustrates your point.

Neither one do people take offense.

I'm learning... Kinder, gentler BizyDad...

...who still wants to smack people upside the head with the truth.


FROM Andy Black:
Two tactics I see you do. You ask a simple, well worded question, or you tell a story from your life that illustrates your point.
Both tactics let people arrive at their own conclusions without looking like I've a horse in the race.

They stem from having a goal of helping people rather than winning a debate or looking smart.

I drop a question or story and move on. If it's ignored I don't even see it. If there's a constructive conversation I engage. If someone takes it up the wrong way I try to clarify. If they persist in taking it up the wrong way I move on.


I'm learning... Kinder, gentler BizyDad...

...who still wants to smack people upside the head with the truth.
I don't think it's about being kinder and gentler. I think it's about leading a horse to water and leaving it to drink or not. This is how I don't get drawn into senseless debates.
 

Angler

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They stem from having a goal of helping people rather than winning a debate or looking smart.
I don't think it's about being kinder and gentler. I think it's about leading a horse to water and leaving it to drink or not. This is how I don't get drawn into senseless debates.
I think the first point is 100% right on. The second point is something I have to work on from time to time. I'd find myself in a position where I ask myself if I am being a good person or a nice person by saying what I'm about to say... I really want to help the person, but they might not be ready for the advice. If I talk more than necessary as a nice person, then it will backfire(everything I say will fly out the other ear). If I go all blunt and honest, he will think I'm attacking him personally or I'm virtue preaching(getting all defensive). And then it would occur to me I don't have to say anything at all. Then I would shut my mouth, silent-mode, and just nod. and smile. Then the person would come to say, I feel like I've known you for a very long time... but uh, excuse me... I haven't said anything! Hah.
 

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Read (or listen to) novels that are just beyond your comfort zone, then try to stop every fifteen or twenty minutes and sum up what you heard. You'll begin to utilize better vocabulary.

If you can summarize a chapter from Dickens, Twain, Kipling, or Tolkien without stripping the emotional impact from the chapter you'll be well on your way to becoming influential.
 
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BrunoRastablasta

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Hey folks,

This is a question that's been on the top of my mind since last night after a speech I gave(my first one ever). I'm sure a lot of people can find value in the discussion too.
Because to be articulate is a superpower. To have precise communication pierce attention.
And to be able to hold attention lets your voice and product be heard.

For those who write often, perhaps for fun, or maybe to make money... and feel like they can articulate their words well,

What questions go through your mind as you write?
What helps bring clarity to what you want to say?
How do you go about saying it in an effective way?

Besides asking who are my audience,
what intention I have with this work,
what problem this work is solving for the audience,
how far into the future do I want this message to impact,
or perhaps at what scale do I want this writing to have an influence...

What else?

Do consider: what questions do you ask yourself AS you write?

This is a personal opinion and experience thread. Any feedback is WELL welcome. I will probably find a lot of information from reading books, reading threads here, and practicing on my own and on the forum. But I'm curious about what YOU have to say. Plus engaging is the best practice for writing, right?
I'm a professional speaker and I taught storytelling for years around Europe; then I pivoted into writing.
It took me 3 years of daily writing and more than a million written words to become a good writer even with those storytelling skills.

So it takes a lot of practice.

When it comes to speaking, it's about 4 things:
- Subject matter
- Preparation
- Delivery
- Postmortem (feedback systems, learning cycles)

When it comes to writing, it's about 4 things:
-Idea generation
-Research
-Writing
-Editing

There are A LOT of things involved in all four of those, but I don't want to overwhelm you at the start. You should just practice for six months and then go deeper into each of them (check out the concept of deliberate practice).
 

Walter Hay

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I will address this question from the perspective of learning.

Communication begins with knowledge. If you don't know your subject, your communication will be inadequate.

Here's my personal account of being educated and learning to communicate:

As a young boy I spent months in hospital. I had always been an avid reader, even from the age of 5 when I began reading books such as Robin Hood, Swiss Family Robinson, The White Army (nothing to do with Russia, this book was about internecine warfare in England before the invasion by the Normans.) These books taught me sentence construction and vocabulary.

In hospital the nurses brought me children's books , but I found them boring so they brought me the Encyclopaedia Britannica because it contained lots of pictures. I wasn't interested in the pictures but I devoured the facts. This led to me being known by the nickname "The Professor", because I could always answer my local gang's questions.

I was fortunate to attend a school that taught student teachers how to teach in isolated rural schools. The result was pupils were often left to their own devices to read text books. The teacher would explain if we had any questions.

At the age of 10 I was required to present a public lecture to an audience of about 200 strangers, mostly from the nearby university teacher's college. A week before the lecture I was given a book to read in preparation. It was about the invasion of Mexico by Hernandez Cortez. I was only allowed notes on a piece of paper that would fit in the palm of my hand.

That experience taught me to communicate, and no doubt contributed to my ability as a salesman to convey a message to prospects.

My life experiences also contributed to my ability to communicate, because I often had to talk my way out of trouble :innocent: :halo:. Later by public speaking and conducting Bible classes I honed my communication skills in my little church group.

To summarize:
Read, Read, Read.
Talk among friends and associates.
Take any opportunity to speak publicly even if nervous, but be sure to know your subject first.
Learn something worthwhile - not gaming, not FaceBook scanning what's trending, not tweeting "friends".
Join a group that discusses their favorite subject, and be an active participant.

Walter
EDIT: P.S. SIDE HUSTLES: I have not operated side hustles but what I am about to write about is very similar. I should have mentioned that as a boy I learned a lot about communicating and even marketing psychology through conducting my little business ventures, and observing the reactions of people and studying the market.

How else could I have built a successful little business in the face of enormous competition? I refer to my business selling dressed rabbits (in Australia) during a massive rabbit plague. My competition was primarily the rabbits themselves. Not only were they swarming over the countryside, but they were even devouring the gardens of my potential customers in the rural town. There were plenty to be caught, but killing and cleaning them did not appeal to my target market.

Little old ladies were that market, because being a skinny little runt I knew that when going to the shops they would come up and pat me on the head. Even at 8 years of age I was observant. They chatted with me and I knew how to recognize and take advantage of a soft touch.

Try a side hustle to learn and practice communication skills.

Walter
 
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I don't have much to contribute because I struggle in this arena as well. But! A funny note I picked up on is how different sales language is from corporate.. (Which I just got a handle on..) especially with what @Johnny boy and @Andy Black mentioned. Its funny because, it's yet another way Slowlane has hindered my growth! Great thread @Angler !!!!
 
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Parkeexant

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What’s my goal writing this? Will this achieve that goal?

Can I make this shorter?

Can I make this simpler?

Am I “clearing my throat”?

Can I start closer to the end?
your right i saw this questions in a book ones so this is a good advice.
 

Lee Ashby

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Story telling and relatability.
Some great answers in this thread.
I'm calling these two out as important elements to consider - especially useful in training / educational type of content. Sharing personal insights, stories and getting the audience to 'read' the stuff between the lines, behind the message is key.

I hope that helps.
Big topic.
 
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Walter Hay

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I should have added another life experience that was a huge help in enabling me to confidently communicate.

In high school I was a member of the school drama club, and acted on stage a number of times. We put on high quality productions in an auditorium seating 2,500 people, and we had to project our voices to be heard by those in the back rows.

The process was very good for developing communication skills because we had to become someone else and be convincing. Adding to the demanding nature of these events was the presence of the theatre critic from a major newspaper, who published a review the day after we performed.

If you want to develop communication skills including increasing self-confidence I can think of no better method than acting on stage.

Walter
 

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Report #1:

Just gave a speech titled "what is it that you want". It's a speech inspired by a thread on here(on clarity) and had a lot of content on my purpose, drive, and ambition. In short though, I'm putting the advice given previously from @Kak by narrating my drive and to do so in front of a crowd(@Antifragile 's advice). I wrote the speech with a lot of "I believe" and "I think" too, so @Johnny boy this one is for you brother. One of the line went like, "I believe that you must know what it is that you want to live a truly happy life". OH YES, the books you sent me man. They're game a changer in my writing and thinking process.

@Primeperiwinkle, I've been getting myself to do active recall when I read. And I have something to tell you. Your advice is right on the money! Right now, I won't get the words right of course when I summarize; however I end up building on the message with my own thoughts. And most of the time, the content that I summarize is not only what the book is saying, but mixed with my belief too. I'm learning and retaining much more by active recalling.

With all that being said, I delivered it with lots of pauses this time around. Thank You @Andy Black . I can feel myself getting more comfortable with the silence.

Oh, and the speech was mostly you oriented! The instances when I would say "I" only push the idea that the audience should really know what they want.

Onward to my next report soon.
 
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Angler

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Report #2:
It’s been about a month since the last update. I’ve written 3 speeches since then. I presented two 2 of them online and another today in person.

The one today was by far the most thrilling, exciting, and got my heart to skip a few beats. I’m going to have to practice my body posture onward, finding myself swaying and bouncing around more than I wanted.

Being articulate in writing and presenting is not the only goal now. I will work on carrying my body language better and with dignity when I speak.

I think it’s better presenting every speech in person from now on too. You have a lot more things to juggle with, so growth would be much faster if I can adjust.

With that said, usually I don’t really care if people hear me out or not, as I’m not a person to speak about myself if not ask. Due to this, being at the center of attention filled me resistant.

It felt quite good plowing through the resistant though. I know I won another battle over myself.

It’s a complex relationship. I HATE the nervousness before I give every speech even though I know I will crush it. I do love the feeling of conquering my inner voices.

I know for a fact after every speech I’m getting better at speaking concisely, with conviction, and feelings. It’s a gut feeling.

Onward!
 
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Issi007

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Hey folks,

This is a question that's been on the top of my mind since last night after a speech I gave(my first one ever). I'm sure a lot of people can find value in the discussion too.
Because to be articulate is a superpower. To have precise communication pierce attention.
And to be able to hold attention lets your voice and product be heard.

For those who write often, perhaps for fun, or maybe to make money... and feel like they can articulate their words well,

What questions go through your mind as you write?
What helps bring clarity to what you want to say?
How do you go about saying it in an effective way?

Besides asking who are my audience,
what intention I have with this work,
what problem this work is solving for the audience,
how far into the future do I want this message to impact,
or perhaps at what scale do I want this writing to have an influence...

What else?

Do consider: what questions do you ask yourself AS you write?

This is a personal opinion and experience thread. Any feedback is WELL welcome. I will probably find a lot of information from reading books, reading threads here, and practicing on my own and on the forum. But I'm curious about what YOU have to say. Plus engaging is the best practice for writing, right?
This thread is really rich in information,
I learned so much about writing in a 15 min read.

Thanks for sharing !
 

maverick

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Just imagine yourself in the audience.

Why would you care?
 

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