What are you hiding behind?
Is public speaking about performance… or presence?
We hear all the time calls for authentic communication.
But what does it mean to speak up as yourself?
When I first learned to speak on stage, I relied on performance. A combination of theatre, clown and improv classes helped me overcome serious stage fright.
But after a while, I realised I was hiding behind a persona.
That stepping stone did give me confidence, but I knew it wasn’t the whole picture.
Susan Cain, author of Quiet, describes a similar journey. She worked with a coach to make public speaking feel less like a performance, and more like a conversation.
That shift carried her through to delivering one of the most popular TED Talks of all time.
The business world often emphasises our role and professional persona — which is often linked more to performance than presence.
But communicating is what we say, and who we are. And true impact comes from
🌻 Connecting with warmth and empathy
🌟 Revealing personality through humour and anecdotes
💡 Sharing stories and ideas that truly light us up
Performance can help us get started. But if we stay in performance mode, we risk creating a disconnect.
The good news?
Speaking with authenticity is not an innate skill, but a craft we can all learn and refine.
It’s a lifelong practice, shaped by every milestone, challenge and conversation along the way.
Until our presence is heard, seen and felt. With every interaction.