Learn why telling the truth is not a tactic
“I think this is very important, number nine, is to be honest. This is a tactical approach these days.
People always say, “I love that thing you’ve got where you just say whatever’s on your mind. You just come right out with it. It’s like, you know, the truth.” It’s like, well, that’s not really a tactic. That’s a way of living. That’s a way of being.
This is just one of the pithy quotes from David Carr’s commencement address to the UC Berkeley School of Journalism in 2014. Here’s the link to the video and transcript.
http://bit.ly/1yTF77N
Carr’s comment reminded me of a quote from John Gardner: “Pity the leader caught between unloving critics and uncritical lovers.”
In effect, what we should seek out in our lives are ‘loving critics’. The people who care about our welfare and support us, as well as giving us unvarnished feedback.
People pay me to be their loving critic – to give them honest feedback that is couched with sensitivity – about how they pitch themselves and their ideas, about their body language, their voice, the structure of their messages and how they listen and speak under pressure.
Other quotations from Carr’s speech that resonated with me were:
“The most interesting thing in the world is something I don’t know.”
“If you’re scared and courageous at the same time you’ll probably do great things.”
“Don’t be a bystander in your own life.”
Your Call to action/How to apply for this post: In the next seven day seek out a loving critic, or be a loving critic for someone. For specific guidelines on how to do this please email me at michael@kellyspeech.com.au