I’ve shared this video with lots of clients, and now you get to enjoy it, too. It’s a rendition of Cee Lo Green’s big hit by Anna Robi, a hearing woman who’s studying American Sign Language.
Aside from her great moves, great tattoo, and great hair, notice Anna’s attitude. (And keep an eye out for the little smile that says she’s goofing on us):
What Anna has done here is create a public speaking, or signing, personna that she can deploy to get Cee Lo’s message across. That character is clearly based on her own personality, but it also conceals Anna’s real complexity and presumed vulnerability, even as it reveals her humor and showmanship.
Yes, You Want a Public Speaking Personna!
Wouldn’t you sometimes like to slip into the skin of a character who doesn’t care what anyone else thinks? Or one who’s calm and confident? Or smart and sexy? Wouldn’t you like to single out your favorite qualities and leave the ones you’re tired of at the stage door?
I sure would — and guess what, we can! It’s all about knowing that we can choose what to put before an audience. We can choose to be powerful, funky, low-key, angry, funny, inspiring, or whatever else we want.
How Do You Create this Character?
Practice (as I’m sure Anna did for this performance)!
And while you’re practicing, don’t just practice words, or even ideas. Practice feeling the way you want to feel when you actually deliver those words and ideas to people.
Over time, that kind of practice will make your public speaking personna so real that you can slip into feeling like him or her at will.
And don’t forget to ask yourself:
Could My Avatar Use a Dose of Anna’s Attitude?
The answer is probably yes.