The world needs people to believe in. People who stir our emotions.
People who have a perspective that resonates with us and compels us to act.There are many people who speak passionately but their words have no consequence; they float “like feathers in the wind”, hoping to land on a receptive ear.These words tend to promulgate from theoretical doctrine, political ideology and social cause; their purpose: influence an audience and imprint a specific message on each member of it.These words are pushed, blurted and forced with the hope of commanding and proliferating a narrow biased point of view.
A voice without passion:
Is self servingIt speaks with the left brain in control, carefully articulating the message intended to advance their specific agenda — it’s a one-way street leading to THEIR destination not yours.I have often heard certain people described as having a hidden agenda when they speak; the type of person that conveys distrust with their words. It’s a feeling they stir in others. You can’t put your finger on exactly what bothers you about what they say, you just feel you’re not hearing their true story.But a voice with passion puts everything out there for everyone to hear and decide whether or not to buy in; the passionate voice wears who they are on their sleeve; the truth is obvious.
Relies on logicTries to influence through logic. It’s conviction is that if the audience understands the words, a change in behaviour will likely follow. Appealing to the intellect has its flaws. I may understand someone’s point of view on a subject but don’t act on it because my gut doesn’t compel me to do it.My experience as a leader is that intellectualizing rarely, on its own, doesn’t result in action. It’s gets a nod which says “I got it!”, but it doesn’t move the feet.A new strategic plan, for example, may be viewed as the right thing to do to meet the competitive challenges of the day, but
unless it lights fires in people, nothing actually happens.To get stuff done you have to have a healthy mix of understanding and agreement fuelled with emotion and passion.
Does not convinceIs ineffective in convincing others to listen and follow them. Dis-passionate voices are ineffective in expanding their narrative to those around them because those receiving the message don’t buy what is being said.
The message isn’t believable, not necessarily because the content is inaccurate or false, but because it’s not being communicated with feeling.A voice with passion, on the other hand, can fall short on the facts of a particular issue, but still convince others. The raw power of emotion can overcome most incomplete thoughts.
Induces sleepA voice with no passion puts us to sleep. It doesn’t cut through the clutter of the barrage of messages that plummet us every hour of every day.
It has no clean signature that subliminally forces us to sit up and take notice.A presenter on any topic must find a way to make their words compelling and interesting so people take notice. If you’re discussing your views on eliminating bureaucracy in your organization, for example, you might want to talk about cutting the “CRAP” slowing things done instead of reducing red tape.A voice with passion uses words that helps create one’s persona that is characterized as exciting, vibrant,
innovative and interesting; attributes that everyone can identify with.
Lacks convictionBland words suggest a lack of speaker conviction; saying the words but not feeling and believing the words.If I don’t believe that you personally identify with your own words (because of the lacklustre way you deliver them), why should I buy in?How many times have you sat in an audience and listened to someone read their script in a perfectly monotonous way and have concluded that the speaker is a non-believer of their own message?It happens more often than not.The passionate voice easily convinces the listener that the communicator is all in with their content. The emotional context of any communication is critical in being perceived as one who owns their material completely.Related:
6 Mammoth Barriers to Being Successful Is never criticizedA dispassionate voice will likely never get criticized, whereas someone who speaks loudly from the heart can attract labels like: intense, excessive, angry, aggressive and overly opinionated.The thing is, what do you want: words that land on you but make no difference to the way you think and feel about something, or words that jolt you to think about a different perspective because of their sheer energy and apparent outrageousness?Moderate words play to the crowd with a herd mentality and are soon forgotten.
Bland insipid words may not be taken the wrong way but they’ll never be unforgettable.The passionate voice lives in a different world; it very often creates controversy around its words. It has the “ability” to take an issue and either upset others or make them euphoric by its emotional energy; it’s rare to leave them with a “take it or leave it” conclusion.
The voice without passion rarely changes the world.It might be accurate but never compelling to produce action; non-controversial but never outrageous to stir emotions.
Change is created by people who believe in a new something and get excited by its possibilities.Voices who are able to push people in this direction exude the passion required to overcome the inertia that’s in the way.
