You know how a lot of people have a “word for the year” that they pick out at the start then live into? Yeah… that’s never worked out for me. I’ve found it much more helpful to find a “word for the year” when in retrospect, as a way to see where the last year has taken me.
My word for 2020 was VOICE.
🗳🎤📝
I’ve always admired quiet leaders, but early in the year, I felt myself challenged by the idea that my call to leadership might look different. I’ve always loved organizing ideas into words, whether through speaking or writing. I started to see this as a gift. And if I didn’t use it for good, it would be wasted.
I started to try my hand at more ambitious writing. Lengthy scripts on climate change. Bolder video scripts. Then… when the year started to go off the rails… I really felt the urgency around using my voice in bolder ways than I was used to. To comfort those who were experiencing the communal pain and hardship more acutely. To challenge those whose privilege was getting in the way of loving their more vulnerable neighbors. To rail against racism and injustice and to help us imagine better ways.
Learning how to be a good steward of your voice is a never ending process. But here’s some of what I learned.
💠 When you find your voice, it won’t be for everybody and that’s fine.
💠 It’s not about having a massive audience. It’s about being a good steward of the audience you do have.
💠 This isn’t black-and-white, but often, spending too much energy and time refuting bad ideas backfires by giving them more attention.
💠 If you have a tendency to associate wisdom with speaking less… don’t let that bias you towards thinking being silent is always the right thing to do.
💠 Using your voice isn’t about having all the answers. It’s about helping people find what they need… hope, resources, direction, a challenge, a different perspective, or something else.
VOICE