Imagine you are giving a speech or a presentation. Nerves make you speak very quickly. Uncomfortable, you stand frozen in one spot, arms down and hands at your side. You are not sure what to do with your hands, and you feel disconnected from yourself. You rush through the material to the end. Or imagine that you are writing an article or working on your book project. You sit staring at the page but the words won’t come. You feel frozen.
Finding our sense of balance and connecting with our inner essence can help us to find our voice. If we take the time to balance and connect with ourselves before we begin writing or public speaking, we will attune to our authentic selves, express ourselves more easily, and be more readily prepared for our challenge. We will come unstuck and unfrozen. The ideas for writing or speaking will flow. Our body language becomes more relaxed and natural, making this a useful practice for just before public speaking activities.
5 Ways to Find Your Voice, Before Expressing Yourself Publicly
1. Journaling. Sometime before your public speaking event, writing activity, or other self-expression activity, but on the same day, take a few minutes to bust out your journal. Write in it how you are feeling, and what’s on your mind. Take time to freely express whatever comes into your mind, just let it free flow without censoring yourself. If you need a suggestion, you could always just try writing about the day before and what your successes were, what you learnt, and what you are grateful for. You could write about what your wishes are for the day ahead.
2. Meditation. Sometime before your event but on the same day, and preferably even right before you go on stage or begin writing, have a meditation session. You can follow a guided meditation or just try a simple meditation technique on your own such as THIS ONE.
3. Go for a Walk. Try going for a walk in nature or even just in the hallways of the building you are in. As you walk, walk in mindfulness, being aware of your breathing. You can try a walking meditation such as breathing slowly and saying to yourself: Breathing in, I am walking. Breathing out, I am calm. Breathing in, I am centred. Breathing out, I am connected.
4. Centering Visualization. In the moments you are waiting to be introduced to speak or before you pick up your pen or open your laptop to begin writing, you can do a brief visualization to centre yourself. Take deep slow breaths. Feel your centre of gravity and imagine yourself rooted to the ground and a connection right to the core of the Earth. Visualize the connection flowing through you up through your head and out to the sky. Visualize yourself as a deeply balanced, connected, part of the Earth. Feel the root of your power. Continue with the deep slow breaths until it is time to begin your event.
5. Believe in Your Message. If you believe in your message you will be able to better connect with your audience and your body language will be more natural. If you believe in your message your audience or readers will notice.
And even better, if you are able to do these things most days, you will find that the ability to find your sense of balance and to connect with your inner essence will be even easier on a day when you especially want to tap into that flow and find your voice. By taking the time to balance and attune to our authentic selves before we begin writing or speaking, we will be better able to express ourselves more easily, and naturally, and our challenge will not seem as overwhelming. Our self-expression will experience a state of flow, and we will have found our authentic voice.