Who do we believe when they speak?
I heard this question posed in a talk this morning and it resonated. We are living in a time when there is a lot of noise. There are many people speaking and pronouncing and giving advice about many, many topics. There are people who speak in meetings and in Zoom conferences and in trainings. With so many voices it is often difficult to discern truth from fiction or fact from opinion. I suspect we all have an internal filter that assists us to know when to absorb and when to dismiss what's being said.
Who do YOU tune in to when they speak? Who do you believe? Consider the answers to these questions:
1. What captures your attention? Is it the person who's speaking what you are thinking? Is it the person with the loudest voice? Is it the person you most respect that causes you to tune in? Pay attention to who captures your attention when they speak and note why.
2. What makes someone believable? Is it because they share your values or views? Is it because they are the highly credentialed voice in the room? Is it because what they say is said eloquently using persuasive words to convey a message? Pay attention to why you believe what someone says when they speak.
After giving these key questions some thought, consider this:
1. Integrity matters. What someone says must align with who they are and what they do. I've heard many people speak eloquently about topics but then fail to follow up their speech with actions that suggest they believed what they said. People with integrity have my ear. I believe them when they speak.
2. I look for those who speak less but say more. Often the people who have the most thoughtful input, use the least amount of words. I watch and listen for them to share, and I believe them when they speak.
So who do you believe when they speak? Who has your ear? Perhaps today we can strive to be people who speak on purpose when (and only when) we have something valuable to say. Let's be the person that people believe when we speak.
-Mindy Muller, CFRE, President/CEO of CDP
#communitydevelopmentprofessionals #leadership #nonprofits #meetings
