In my book The Influence Factor: The Journey to Discovering Your Influential Voice, I teach that one of the elements to having an influential voice is to “empower your truth.”
The most important part of this key element in your influential voice is to know, and own, your story. Everywhere you go these days you were hearing someone tell you that your story is critical for your success. But so often I hear people say, “but Ann, my life is quite ordinary, I don’t have a story that people would be interested in hearing.” Here is the point: your story is about a way to connect with your tribe. Your tribe is the people who feel and think like you, who have had similar experiences that you have had and therefore feel bonded to you. You earn vulnerability (remember, marketing is about vulnerability, credibility and tribe) with those people through your story.
little voice in your head….”But Ann, my life is ordinary and boring I don’t have a unique story to bond with other people!”
Your story doesn’t have to be about extreme abuse, or loss, or overcoming some crazy obstacle. Your story is just who you are. I am always blown away when I start working on this with my clients. Because I hear it so often. For example, Linda said, when we started: “Ann, I am not a story teller, so you will have to drag it out of me.” You can look at her website and blog here and see how much story telling she now does.
So what is my client’s first homework assignment to their influential voice?
To write a timeline of their life. From birth to present time, I asked them to write down everything that happened: where they were born, where they went to school, what sports or games they played, their siblings, where they moved, what awards they got anything that happened in their lives.
From this timeline you can pull stories to share, excite, relate, and more importantly CONNECT. Did you swim as a child like my client Linda who didn’t realize the power of those stories to building your influential voice? Are you a mother? Do you enjoy running marathons? Sometimes our life is so EVERY DAY for us we forget how it connects us to others.
My storytelling builds my influential voice.
For example I am a gardener. I know some of you laugh because you see my crazy nail polish and wonder how that’s possible….duh, I wear gloves! My gardening stories connect me to my tribe. My tribe, believes in holistic living. My tribe understands that success comes from taking care of their whole being (remember the 6 core areas of influence?)not just their business. So when I share my stories about gardening I connect with them.
Does gardening seem quite ordinary to me? At times, absolutely. Until I post a picture on Facebook or write a blog about my garden and I hear the comments. This is a connection to your story.
So take some time and write out your timeline and start to tell stories about your life. This will empower your truth and build your Influential Voice!!
