As a public speaking coach and trainer many people ask me if I can fix their fear, make them a better presenter and a more confident and effective speaker. They do a coaching package, or attend a workshop and then they think they are fixed. When I follow up 6 months later many people state that they have not had a chance to try or practise what they have learnt, or they are still not ready to present.
This is where people need to take responsibility for their own journey, be it public speaking, leadership, difficult conversations or something else that they are working on. Yes we need our trainers, coaches and mentors to help us, but ultimately we must take responsibility and ensure that we keep stretching and working at our goals.
Steven Covey in his book 7 Habits of Highly Effective people asks 3 questions?
- What one thing could you do, that you are not doing now, that if you did do on a regular basis, would make a great and positive difference in your personal life?
- What one thing in your professional life that you are not doing now, that if you did do on a regular basis, would make a great and positive difference in your career?
- Why aren’t you doing 1 and 2 right now?
If you need to improve your public speaking, your confidence, control nerves, do better at job interviews or be stronger with your response to questions, then Stephen Covey would ask, why aren’t you working on that right now. This is taking responsibility of your issues or your goals in life.
The reverse of this is to play the blame game and blaming circumstances, other people or just bad luck as the reason why we have not been able to succeed. And in many case we don’t take any action and we keep doing what we have always done. Doing nothing is still making a decision, making a decision to remain the same.
Stephen Covey also suggests that everything we do is created twice. First in the mind and secondly in the action we take. It is the taking of action that makes the difference and the taking responsibility. So take action, take responsibility and learn to communicate your messages and ideas effectively and confidently to those people who need to hear them