This post was written by Lauren St. Germain, Facilitator and Coach for The Latimer Group.
I was recently listening to an old episode of Brené Brown’s podcast, Unlocking Us, where she arrives at a major “a-ha” moment, live during the show.
And I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since.
Moments before her big realization, Brené tells her guest, Karen Walrond, that she’s struggling. Karen responds that when she herself is struggling, she relies on her gratitude practice to access joy and move past the hard times.
When Karen shared this notion of gratitude being a practice in her life, it was as if I could feel Brené’s shoulders drop. That was it. The ‘a-ha’ moment. And I felt it in my bones too.
In Brené’s words: it’s a practice, it’s not a knowledge base.
It’s not enough to know that expressing gratitude will make you feel good. You need a daily, unwavering commitment to show up and give thanks.
I started to think about the other things in my life where this could apply, and my mind went straight to what we teach here at The Latimer Group.
It’s not enough to know that a hook at the beginning of a presentation will draw the audience in. You have to practice it.
It’s not enough to know that you must be an active and intentional listener. You have to practice it.
And it’s not enough to know that the most persuasive messages are clear and concise. You have to practice it.
Everything we teach in our courses and everything we write about on this blog is information. It’s your knowledge base.
But what I’m here to tell you is that what really matters is what you do with that information.
What matters is how you put it into practice.
Today I want you to remember: it’s a practice, not a knowledge base.
And I’m confident that if you view it this way, you’re going to continue to evolve and develop as a powerful and persuasive communicator.
Want to listen to the whole conversation between Brené and Karen? Click here.
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Does your team:
– Overwhelm the audience with too much detail?
– Make things too complicated?
– Fail to ask for what they want or need?
Does your organization:
– Waste time because of poor internal communication?
– Take too long to make decisions?
– Struggle to clarify and frame discussions?
Do your leaders:
– Exhibit poor executive presence?
– Lean on incomplete communication skills?
– Fail to align the organization?
We transform teams and individuals with repeatable toolsets for persuasive communication. Explore training, coaching, and consulting services from The Latimer Group.
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