Photo: by Juandc1993 https://shorturl.at/npA36
Let me tell you the story of how I ended up in New York from London for just one night and I spent it with Diddy.
At the time, I was doing backing vocals for an artist called Natasha Bedingfield who had written the amazing hit "Unwritten". As part of her promotional campaign, she was asked to sing at Diddy's open mic night in New York City. When you're asked to sing in New York City and you just have 24 hours, you make the most of it. I remember exactly what I did as soon as we got to the hotel in New York. I dropped my luggage at the hotel, and I immediately went shopping. New York is an amazing place to explore.
The evening came and we got to Diddy's open mic night, and it was nothing like I had ever seen before. I had been to many open mic nights before but this one was different. The venue had multiple levels and in a time before smartphones were as advanced as they are now, the tables had electronic technology so you could send messages and texts to people at different tables, and also order food and drinks from the table you were at.
I just remember the quality of the band, the drinks, and the atmosphere. This felt like a swanky bar rather than the open mic nights I had ever been to and it introduced me to the new standard. I performed with Natasha Bedingfield, and it was great. I had an amazing night.
Diddy taught me a few things that night about innovation and risk-taking reinventing an old comcept and making it new again.
What he taught me was to not be afraid to fail. Trying new ventures, trying new things, and even with all the research in the world about a new business idea, one can never be sure about its success or failure.I don't know what happened to that open mic night, but I never heard much more about it again, which doesn't say anything about its success or failure. But what I can say is that when Diddy does something he doesn't back down.
I appreciate him modeling taking big risks and doing the thing anyway. Whether that be getting on stage as a public speaker or singer, or doing a presentation, you take risks each time. Sometimes there are plans that don't quite work out as you'd expect, or maybe something won't go the way you had planned it.
I would invite you to not approach your speaking from an outside-in approach based on how people will judge you or how you look to other people. It creates anxiety and it distracts you from the source of your power; namely, that nobody's behaviour or thoughts have any power over you. Only the power that you give those opinions has any impact and this is the absolute truth.
How I coach public speaker to really occupy the space of icons and Legends is to focus within their power. Your confidence comes from knowing that you get to set an intention of love, power, and freedom whenever you open your mouth to speak.
You get to focus on it. You get to feel it, you get to fill yourself up with feeling. And I say this so many times: you get to give yourself goosebumps, you get to get aroused. You get to fill yourself up with the potency and the power of your message.
If the content of what you're presenting doesn't light you up, then you can dedicate that presentation to someone; dedicate it to your newborn baby girl, dedicate it to your desire to provide for her and to be there for her. Dedicate your public speaking to something that means something to you, something valuable to you, so that you can get that inner feeling, that inner light. That inner light, that energy conveys a message far beyond what your words can say.
I've created a free meditation so you can become an ICONIC public speaker. Repeat your Power House Affirmations with me and watch your voice, sense of self and your presence shift!
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