I was talking to my coach a couple of days ago as we prepared to record an interview. When he asked if I was ready to get to it I responded that I had meant to review our previous discussion in preparation for this but had only glanced through it very quickly. As we talked this through we explored whether the fact that I had only skimmed it was perhaps a good thing.
It reminded me of my wedding speech. I had prepared my speech for the big day and typed it out, highlighting a few of the key points / phrases that I wanted to include. I practiced reading it several times in the mirror or with other close people, and each time I couldn’t get through it without my emotions getting the better of me and having to stop to collect myself. I started to worry that I would be a blubbering wreck on the day and my speech would be ruined. Then something clicked, I decided that I didn’t need to keep practicing the speech and I would just get up there, glance at my notes, and let it flow.
If I really think about it there have been many times in my life where I have got to a point of deciding to just let things happen. In every case it has worked out completely fine and all the fears and hesitations that I’d had beforehand didn’t even show up. It doesn’t always come easily to me, this ability to just let things play out – I often have to concsciously decide to, but whenever I do it seems to work.
In the end I decided that we should just crack on with the interview and see where it went. I actually enjoyed the process and it felt very freeing to be able to just talk without worrying about whether I was on script or not. I can’t wait to see the outcome.
So, how did the weddnig speech go? Well, while I did feel the emotions rise as I got to the parts that had me going when I was practicing, I managed to take a breath and carry on. It felt great and I think it landed, at least a few people told me it came across as really heart-felt and had them getting emotional about it. I take that as success.
If you find yourself getting stuck, take a few deep breaths, remind yourself of what you are doing and why, and then go with the flow. It works for me and I am sure it will work for you. If you want to get in touch to find out if working with me is for you, please get in touch.
Patrick Hickman 