Episode 08: Voices Carry

We’ve all had this experience - sitting in a room, listening to another person share their personal story and being emotionally moved. Words matter. They can create deep empathy, inspire action, or speak directly to a part of us that has been hidden but is begging to be acknowledged. And when each of us finds a way to tell those hidden stories, or say the hardest things, we give others the gift of knowing none of us is alone. The journey of finding and then actually using your voice though? That’s truly a Not Small Thing. Both of us have experienced this journey ourselves - testing the waters to build our comfort levels and confidence, confronting our fears about public speaking, to actually letting our guard down and sharing our stories to rooms full of strangers. And we found that it’s just as rewarding to share as it is to listen. It was actually profoundly liberating. You might be thinking to yourself that you’d love to speak out, whether at work, with your family, or to the world, but doubt you could ever have the guts. In this episode we talk about the fear of speaking up and sharing our difficult experiences, how other people’s perceptions of us is a “them” problem not an “us” problem and get some good advice on how to shift your thinking about what “good speaking” is or if it even exists.

We’re joined by two superstar coaches, Casey Erin Clark and Julie Fogh, the co-founders of Vital Voice Training. They are on a mission to change how we talk to each other, how we really listen, and how we collaborate. They believe that claiming and using your voice can change the world, and we couldn’t agree more. We hope it inspires you to think about how your story might be exactly the thing we need to hear.