You Are Your ONLY Competition

This has been weighing on my heart for a few weeks and it’s time we talk about it.

Stop holding yourself back for fear of competition!

So many prospective clients over the years, even when I was ghostwriting books, have said, “There’s so much competition. My voice won’t matter.” This really isn’t the concern but it’s how it comes through in their speech because saying that sounds so much better in our society than saying what they really mean – and we’ve all been there at some point in our lives.

“Am I worthy of attention, love, and someone valuing what I have to say.” 

Yes, that is what you are really saying when you ask about competition. You are wondering if you matter. If your voice can be heard above the others. IT CAN! IT WILL! Only YOU can say your message in the way that you deliver it. You and I can both respond to the same question and will answer it differently because of our individual filters, experiences, thought processes, and values. Neither of us is wrong and we both will reach our intended audience. How is that?

We are wired to hear from certain voices more clearly than others. This is why you can hear the same thing from two friends and a stranger and it will be the stranger’s thoughts you act upon. We have a way about us that determines who we hear from more dominantly than others. For the people connected to you, YOU are the voice they are waiting to hear.

TD Jakes and Lysa TerKeurst both released books on the SAME TOPIC within six months of one another. BOTH books reached best seller status. Why? Because their voices are different. I read both books and I can tell you that TD Jakes is CRUSHING me (no pun intended) with his book. For others in my eGroup (online Bible Study group), Lysa’s book resonated more deeply. We all enjoyed both books. Certain voices sit better with certain people. Both authors shared personal stories, scripture, and sound theology in how to deal with life when it doesn’t go the way you expected. The audience is the same: People going through something that feels like it has shattered their world. People who feel stuck. People who are about to lose faith, if they haven’t already. Yet, I am pretty sure niether of them thought would have considered not writing their book if they knew about the other. They aren’t compeition. They are both people talking to the folks connected to them.

I need you to be a warrior today. I need you to turn on that place within yourself where you stop being insecure about your voice and start using it. I know it’s hard to discover your voice… I spent YEARS trying to find mine. Then one day it was just there waiting for me to use it. And when I started doing so, that’s when I realized WHO I truly was.

My source comes from my faith. Yours may come from something else. That’s okay. For both of us. What matters is that you know your source, your voice, your vision, and your mission. Then, get out there and walk it out! Combined, these make up your purpose. You ARE worthy. You ARE valued. And your voice DOES matter. People are stuck in chains in their life in numerous ways and it only gets worse as society deteriorates in how we interact with one another. Imagine being able to speak with someone using the platform(s) you were designed to use to reach the people connected to you and learning that you changed the course of someone’s life and released them from chains!

Be the warrior that you are!

Be the kind of warrior that kills the bad things and releases the good by sharing your story through your art. For you that may be KILLING IT at work when you give presentations. It may be scultping something that moves people to tears. It may be taking a photo that tells a story more potent than any blog someone can write. It may be acting in a play and adding flair to a part people never understood. Your art may be writing a book, sharing poetry, or producing music. It’s time we stop boxing ourselves in to thinking that our stories can only be told through one medium: books. It just isn’t true. The written word is powerful, but we are in a society where some folks will never read a book or blog but will visit an art show, attend a conference, or listen to a podcast. You’ll know your platform when you understand your voice and who is connected to you. Start being willing to use your voice and watch how it all unfolds before you!

 

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