SELFI

There are some moments when you realize, that life has come a full circle. June 3rd, 2022, was one such in the recent past. I had finished my talk, addressing parents & students of a reputed girls' college in Bengaluru, India, on their annual day as chief guest. The response was overwhelming when the staff & I were walking to the board room, and parents & students shared how much they enjoyed the talk wanting pictures with me. It felt good that the talk made an impact & it had set them thinking.

As I was returning home, I remembered the day my quest with finding the #voiceinme had begun as a starry-eyed 16-year-old, fascinated by the guest whose speech I still remember when I was in school. She had addressed us, as we were readying ourselves to fly out of school with our dreams. All of us wanted our picture with her. Watching how engineers from All India Radio ( AIR) had come to record her talk, I marveled at how it would be if there comes a day when I would talk & AIR would record me! Crazy I thought & smiled to myself at that ridiculous wish! Little knowing my journey with my voice had begun!

My journey from a shy introvert to a public speaker has also been one where I have had many breakdowns which have led to breakthroughs. This Rumi powerfully describes as “The wound is the place where the Light enters you.” Therefore when someone says that my knees tremble, I go blank, and my throat dries up... I have been there too. It is a journey of Self-discovery, Self-acceptance & Courage. Slow, definite, and very measured steps!

#tranquilthursdays was initiated to share talks & stories that inspired me. So decided to start this newsletter too on Thursdays as part of my journey with the LinkedIn Accelerator Program. The learnings from my own journey are what I now coach leaders on when we set off to find each of their Voices, it is satisfying for me & fulfilling for them. Immaterial of the positions they hold, everyone I realize has an ongoing battle & what makes them invariably give up is the Imposter syndrome. The pandemic gave me an opportunity to render these services to women on their climb on the leadership ladder, feeling stuck, to get them to be both heard & visible. it has been very meaningful. I called it VANI ( Virtual Articulation Narrating Instrument).

The journey of finding myself as time flew & being a catalyst for those who chose the path has since been a fascinating one. As a VOICE & Self-expression coach, I realized that right from building your vocabulary to fighting the monsters within is a choice. It becomes a fulfilling one as you start reaching each milestone you set out for. It is an ongoing & continuous battle. One needs to understand that as the goals change the prep tools need to be adaptable & updated too.

That is where this project that I intend to work with start-ups was born. Will briefly touch upon them here & go into details as the weeks progress. ?SELFI?- "Getting in touch with your VOICE" is what it is called. VOICE here?is an acronym where each alphabet stands for the exploration we would do: Vision +Outcome +Information +Communication +Energy. the power of first understanding intra-personal communication & then moving to interpersonal communication is a powerful one. That is why the spelling is intentionally SELF & I . Self-connection is prime.

Johnathan Swift's word, "Vision is the art of seeing what is invisible to others,” says it perfectly. 3 questions that you need to think about when you are setting your vision are:

What am I passionate about?

What uniqueness do I bring in?

Do I have credibility in that space?

As you mull over these questions, allow the rest in your head to also come along. Funnel it & notice how these three will give you a direction. Subscribe to this newsletter for some handy tips on how you work on your SELFI. I will also share my journey with these amazing start-ups!

Grateful to everyone on my journey who shaped me into who I am and helped me tap into the #voiceinme.