There are teenagers, young adults, and others who have lived a bit longer, with a desire to touch lives, with a passion to make a difference, with a burning purpose to not just go through life but know that when they exhale for the last time, that their lives mattered!
If that is indeed the case, why are we not hearing from them, why are we not seeing many YouTube videos about them, why are we not witnessing them sharing their messages of despair, compassion, and hope on the stages of our countries?....or even the Global Stages?
If I am anything to go by, one of the reasons is simple: I did not believe I had a story worth listening to! In coaching others, I had listened to many individuals with most heart wrenching personal experiences which sometimes left me crying on the inside. Yet, all that had happened to me is that I was bullied as a young child....because I was severely under height for my weight; I was a fat kid.
Yet, my friend and mentor Les Brown told me that everyone has a story, everyone has a message, everyone should be sharing from their own experiences straight from the heart.
THAT's when I started to talk about my bullying and the aftermath of that period in my life. People started to come up to me afterwards to share with me and tell me that they needed to hear that. They told me that me telling my story had made a positive difference in their lives.
THAT's when I started to talk about my bullying and the aftermath of that period in my life. People started to come up to me afterwards to share with me and tell me that they needed to hear that. They told me that me telling my story had made a positive difference in their lives.
At first I was a little surprised but I started to realise that we all have stories that need to be told, even if not everyone needs to hear it, SOME people DO need to hear YOUR story.
It hasn't stopped there, I now talk about a variety of subjects on different stages across the world but I also realised I wanted to support others to embrace their journey and share their stories on the various stages, whatever those platforms look like to them and where ever they are.
I also know very well that, not thinking your story is 'good enough' to be heard, is only one of the challenges to stand in front of a group of people and pour your heart out.
The fear of public speaking, low self esteem, the fear of what other people will think, how to craft their stories to make it interesting to others, and many more areas are what ensures that, at the moment, we have many speakers come from overseas and grace our stages, impact our people,...and earn lots of money for doing so instead of local talent gracing the very same stages.
I want us to work together and support you on your journey from this point forward in a way that you will not only find your voice and create your story, but impact many others around you.
...That people will come up to you and tell you that you changed their lives, that you might even have saved their lives because they heard you at a time when someone else's story would not have made any difference at all.
That is not going to happen overnight but, with the right guidance, the right tools, and lots of practice, it is possible.
As another one of my friends and mentors, John Maxwell, tells us:
I can honestly tell you, once I understood that sentence because of a life changing transformational trip to Guatemala in 2013, it was a done deal!!! (I even fired my boss but that's a story for another day)
Do you want to follow the crowd? Do you want to just go through life? OR Do you want to grow through life, impact lives and make a difference?
I also know very well that, not thinking your story is 'good enough' to be heard, is only one of the challenges to stand in front of a group of people and pour your heart out.
The fear of public speaking, low self esteem, the fear of what other people will think, how to craft their stories to make it interesting to others, and many more areas are what ensures that, at the moment, we have many speakers come from overseas and grace our stages, impact our people,...and earn lots of money for doing so instead of local talent gracing the very same stages.
I want us to work together and support you on your journey from this point forward in a way that you will not only find your voice and create your story, but impact many others around you.
...That people will come up to you and tell you that you changed their lives, that you might even have saved their lives because they heard you at a time when someone else's story would not have made any difference at all.
That is not going to happen overnight but, with the right guidance, the right tools, and lots of practice, it is possible.
As another one of my friends and mentors, John Maxwell, tells us:
"Once you have tasted significance, success will never be enough!"
Do you want to follow the crowd? Do you want to just go through life? OR Do you want to grow through life, impact lives and make a difference?
...Are you ready?
Connect with me via e-mail :
jan.robberts@kileadershipinstitute.com
