Ep. 142: Transforming Your Stories with Gail Larsen
On this episode of Health Gig, we are joined by speaking coach, consultant, and author Gail Larsen. Gail is the creator of a proven program that liberates the Speaker within and transforms even the reluctant orator into an agent of change. Her method is a remarkably powerful way to build leadership skills that effectively integrate inner healing and transformation with practical skill-building. Gail is the founder of Real Speaking and also the award-winning author of Transformational Speaking: If You Want to Change the World, Tell a Better Story.
More on Gail Larsen:
Website: https://realspeaking.com
Facebook: https://facebook.com/transformationalspeaking
Twitter: https://twitter.com/gaillarsen
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Show Notes
[01:53] Transformational speaking is speaking in a way that really catalyzes the kind of change we'd like to see in the world. Actually, the subtitle of my book is If you want to change the world, tell a better story.
[03:35] There's so much that's prescribed around how we are to speak that it took away the spontaneity and fun and presence that's available to us if we're not editing and rehearsing ourselves into oblivion.
[04:59] It's been wonderful to develop a way for people to trust who they are and bring their original gifts to the speaking world rather than think there's some way to do it that we don't know. And that's what most speaking training would suggest.
[06:18] Hopefully we all have places in our life where we feel real and where we can be authentic. And the question is, why do we think when we're speaking or doing anything in our professional lives that we have to shut that down? It's actually the greatest gift we have to bring. So I feel like the work helps us trust who we are and through that trust, become more expressive and real and instead of hiding it, because we're supposed to show up in a certain way. And when we get there and then we get to the message that really can bring a better story to our world.
[09:42] What I did overtime was create a process where people could name their medicine so that it wasn't simply, oh, that's good to know I've got this, but what is that I bring to the planet that is original that when I remind myself of that, I can shine totally and bring that gift forward. So I think it's it's recognizing it. It's a conscious act. You know, it's not a resume. It's not our list of accomplishments or I'm detail-oriented or I'm visionary. It's two or three words that encapsulate something that resonates inside of us. It's just like a deep breath of recognition of who we really are. And then it can become something we remind ourselves of in those moments of stress and anxiety.
[11:21] I think we need someone and older in our life savings. You this, you know, don't it isn't about marching in lockstep with everyone else. It's about really recognizing that your differences are your gift. And when we encourage that and people can trust themselves, I think we'd have a very different world.
[13:25] It's quite a process of courage to ask for good reflections and from people we know see us. And aren't going to denigrate us.
[15:00] I begin with working with stories. I don't even try to put together a presentation because a new presentation will arise based on what we've learned in our life journey from our stories and from the expansive sense we have is we're willing to be more authentic. So it's a beautiful process to watch people recognize that they do have something and their way of bringing it that matters.
[16:00] There are breathing exercises that can get us home. There are actually some speaking skills that can get us home. One is to slow down, stop the sentence, let your feelings catch up with what you're saying so that you're present with it.
[17:34] what I see in working with people is, as the stories are told and the wisdom emerges, there's just a greater self trust of who we are.
[19:12] for me, finding your way means finding your home. So when you are happy and delighted and present and embodied and trusting of yourself and that next piece of the story it will come out now and didn't yesterday because you're here.
[19:50] I think there's a mystery that runs through it that if we are open to whatever source we trust to come through us, that we can, without any conscious thought, influence someone in that audience without any design or strategy because we're trusting the moment, we're trusting ourselves, we're trusting the power of the story, and if we get too rehearsed about it, we shut out that magic.
[20:45] I always ask people to find a voice they've silenced that brings them alive because who knows what our true voice is. We've been so put into boxes our whole lives. What's real? So it's not like we have one voice. We have multiple voices.
[22:41] We just don't want to be stuck in this box of how it is and how we are. There's so much inside us that if we allow it freedom and we trust it, it just becomes a very different experience of speaking.
[26:07] When we know the message that we want to deliver and that's everything we say supports that message and nothing else, the superfluous can fall away. So every story we tell shows that message in action. Every every word we speak is that message. Our call to action is to put that message out in the world in a way that it lives. It's it all starts flying in formation. So it's a very organic process. Rather than stand up and give a speech and let's fix you, it's like let's find you underneath all this and what you can bring that's unique to your gift.
[27:58] When you get to see people in their truth and their expression and hear the stories, it's never old. So the process doesn't change. But the excitement and the specifics that each person brings are just so diverse that it never ceases to amaze me how much we hold within ourselves that's ready to be expressed and the joy in doing that and community.
[28:38] there's nothing like being in this space of exploration to really look at how our life has prepared us to speak to what matters. I call it getting out of jetlag and catching up with who you've become. We tend to move so fast and this is an opportunity to to let all that fly in formation and bring forward what really matters to you.
Thank you for joining us on Health Gig. We loved having you with us. We hope you'll tune in again next week. In the meantime, be sure to like and subscribe to this podcast, and follow us on healthgigpod.com.
Quotes:
“It isn’t about marching in lockstep with everyone else, it’s about recognizing that your differences are your gift.”- Gail Larsen
“Our stories are what emotionally connect us with ourselves, so we can connect with an audience.” -Gail Larsen
“Hey, your voice matters! We need every voice to mend and tend the web of life so we can have a world that works for all people.” -Gail Larsen
Keywords
#GailLarsen #Practice #PublicSpeaking #MentalHealth #Health #Wellness #HealthGig #Pandemic #COVID19 #TriciaReillyKoch #DoroBushKoch