People will never forget how you made them feel
People will forget what you said
People will forget what you did
But people will never forget how you made them feel.Maya Angelou
We all learn important life and business lessons differently, this powerful message is one I had to learn from experiencing it myself despite reading this message many times and hearing others offer the advice.
My story is a pretty simple case study really. Picture this. It’s 10pm at a Black Tie Gala Dinner of 580 people, amazing lighting, great entertainment, I’m nominated for the next award so being careful not to drink too much wine, sitting at a table with important people and wearing heels (something I seldom do).
Entering the night I was 100% positive Michael Trengove from Code Club Aotearoa (who I am in awe of and have since become the chair of his Charity Digital Future Aotearoa) would win so what happened next was a complete shock.
The government Minister of the day opens the envelop and my name is read out. OMG!!!. All carefully constructed calmness evaporates, I walk onto the stage as the Minister talks about this amazing sounding person? walk up to the microphone and …… promptly start crying. My opening words were “I am going to be a girl now and cry”, deep breath and I launch into my story, I will spare you the gory details but it involved childbirth.
Long story short — the lesson here — later that night and all of the next day women, who were all strangers to me, came up and hugged me! all of whom said “I teared up” or “I cried” during your speech. Nobody referred to anything I said, their only takeaway was how they felt.
So whether you are pitching to an investor, meet a stranger in the lift, accepting an award, writing a proposal or chatting at a conference — Tell your story with passion. Leave those strangers with a feeling!
Footnote
I wrote this story a few years ago and was reminded about it last week at a team strategy day. After hearing 15 stories, about the roles of some fabulous passionate people and discussing real challenges facing Aotearoa with them all day, I realise only a few stuck in my mind. Those ones that stuck share this characteristic — I remember how they made me feel. Ngā mihi, Vic.
“We live in a great country so helping every New Zealander reach their potential in life is something we can all aspire to achieve”. You can follow me on LinkedIN or on Twitter and read my context here.
This post is my personal opinion so while I wear many hats it doesn’t necessarily reflect the views and positions of the various organisations I represent. Vic