May is Personal History Month, and you’re encouraged to preserve your story in print or video to share with your family. Everyone has a story to tell, especially small business owners. Storytelling is a must-have skill in business communication.
Our guest blogger this week knows storytelling and public speaking very well.
Author, speaker, and “The Visionary with Guts,”Nancy Matthews founded Women’s Prosperity Network (WPN) with her sisters, Trish and Susan, in 2008. They dreamed of a new type of networking for women that created a community of support, education and advancement in their personal and professional lives.
WPN has grown to 18 chapters world-wide, including the Knoxville, Tennessee chapter that is led by Be Media Savvy’s founding partner, Lisa Petree.
Nancy is an accomplished storyteller and speaker, and she trains others to share their personal and professional stories in an authentic, powerful way.
Is Your Story Worth Telling?
By Nancy Matthews
One of the greatest doubts and fears I’ve been plagued by is the long standing “not good enough” syndrome. What’s most interesting about this is that I know some of you will read this and think, “Really, Nancy? You’re so awesome, you’re MORE than good enough” and others may think, “That’s right, Nancy, you’re not good enough.”
And here’s the good news … what I’ve come to learn, and how I continuously move past the doubting and fearful monkeys in my head is this … What you think of me is none of my business!
This is not to say that I don’t care ABOUT YOU – I care very much and bring the best of me to every conversation, presentation and social media post.
This IS to say that my commitment is to bring my personal best to every situation and task at hand, and understand that I am responsible TO you but not FOR you.
So, what does this have to do with you telling your story?
I invite and encourage you to tell your story and KNOW that it is good enough!
Each of your experiences – no matter how big or small, brings with it the seed of learning that you can pass on to others. And, be sure to pay particular attention to things you do that others marvel at and comment how gracefully you do them. Those are some of the big things and stories to share that you may be taking for granted. Just because they’re easy for you, doesn’t mean they’re easy for others.
For me this showed up when I was a single parent, raising two amazing children, took in my ailing grandmother while working full time, and people would say, “Wow, I don’t know how you do it, it must be so hard.”
It didn’t feel hard to me. I was just doing my best and took for granted that my best WAS more than good enough!
As I look back now, I see that the time management strategies I used, and the consistent attention to having a positive attitude, are valuable things to share with others so they can get through life with more grace and ease.
In developing my personal brand and messaging, it took me years to muster up the courage, as well as appreciation, for all I have accomplished in my life to be able to share my stories and experiences with others. The old “I’m not good enough” monkey kept me quiet for far too long, and I don’t want that to happen to you.
I’ve learned that the more I share my authentic self – both my amazing successes and my fantastical failures (ahem…learning opportunities), the more easily the people I am meant to work with and serve come to me and ask, “How can we work together?”
Now it’s your turn … Your Story IS Worth Telling!
About Nancy Matthews
Leadership, Sales & Marketing Expert – International Speaker, Author of The One Philosophy, Co-Founder of Women’s Prosperity Network
Nancy brings more than 30 years of experience from her work in the corporate world and as an entrepreneur to show you exactly how to do what you love and have the money follow! It begins by focusing first and foremost on your vision and the positive impact you seek to create. As a single mother of two amazing children (now all grown up), Nancy knows first-hand how to juggle the many demands on our time and energy to achieve results and enjoy the journey!
For more information, go to: NancyMatthews.com
