Some of my clients and maybe even some readers of this blog know that I’m a new father. Since I’ve become a dad to a happy and healthy, now five-month old baby boy, I’ve experienced the joys and the triumphs, the sacrifices and struggles, that comprise the full experience of parenthood.
The joys column is full, much fuller than I could ever have expected. The struggles column is plenty full, too, if I’m being honest. At the top of that list of struggles is nap time. He needs to be rocked, lulled, almost coerced to sleep - although I’m happy to report that he is getting better. The point is that, especially early on, whenever I try to shorten the amount of rocking time or move him before he’s ready, he’ll let me know that it’s not right. Maybe it’s a shorter sleep, or he wakes up crying, or his schedule is thrown off track.
In short, I’ve had to learn to embrace the process. We all have to go on our own journeys, to get from where we are to where we need to be. Every client that has granted me the honor of working with them has their own process, too. Writers who just write, those who just sit down at their laptops, and the words just come to them… well, let’s just say that hasn’t been my experience.
The truth: this is incredibly hard work. Also truth: it’s not done without process.
I respect the process of speechwriting and storytelling, and once we’ve started working together, I have discovered that clients respect their own processes as well. So why aren’t people writing speeches themselves, and why don't they feel confident in doing so?
When I talk to clients about why they are looking for a speechwriter, there’s not usually a clear answer. They feel like they can’t do it, and while I don’t believe that’s actually true, I can understand why they feel that way. Just like it is hard to listen to the sound of one’s own voice sometimes, it is even more difficult to hear the stories it is telling us.
Just like with my son, you have to be listening for those signals. Does my story feel authentic and true? Am I using words that I would actually use? Am I using a structure that has an accessible story?
To find meaning in your story, though, the story that will make your next speech or talk great, you have to say it out loud. Work on it with a collaborator. Embrace the process, and you’ll get to where you want to be.