Clearly

Many years ago — back when I had maybe a handful of interviews under my belt, and had just given my first public talk — I decided to learn how to speak more clearly.

My words hadn't come out in a garbled mess, as I had worried they might, but there was absolutely room for improvement.

I wanted to get rid of the filler words I found myself using on stage. I decided that I'd catch myself — stop and notice and remind myself of my goals — every time I uttered an 'um' or 'uh,' until I consistently cut them from my verbal meanderings.

I'd also need to work on my projection. I tended to speak quite softly, and this had never been an issue during my writing or design careers, but would absolutely be one if I was to continue speaking and wanted to be heard, understood, and maybe even listened to.

I've gone through the same process with every communication medium I've decided to take up and take seriously: identifying what it means to communicate well using the medium in question, and then slowly but surely knocking down the barriers between me and my audience.

With design, clear communication means the accurate visual expression of ideas, an understanding of symbolism and iconography, and a grasp of context; graphics that make perfect sense in one context might be utterly confounding in another. Coming from a fine art background, learning design, for me, meant learning to make my work a conversation, rather than a monologue.

With writing, my main focus was reigning in the elements of expression that I'd long considered to be 'my voice' but which were actually just lazy figments of a 'style' I developed early on, before I knew what I was doing. Recognizing the difference between what was me, and what were vestigial word-patterns that were only still present because they seemed too inconvenient or difficult to cull from my palette, allowed me to sharpen my rough edges into something that felt more like an accurate extension of my ideas.

Today, I'm going through the same process with other mediums I've decided to tackle. As tends to be the case, each is its own unique challenge, but also a huge opportunity.

With my video work, I've been honing the style of communication I've adopted for in-person, on-stage speaking, into something that works for a shorter-form, on-camera format. I wanted to discuss a lot of the same topics I cover in my written work, but to do so in a manner that makes sense for the YouTube audience: to the point, digestible, and simple enough to grok without needing a whole lot of background info.

I've also begun to produce more audio-only offerings, which until this point has been limited to interviews on other peoples' platforms and recording my own audiobooks. Producing my own podcast, I've found, is an adventure all unto itself: I've become very familiar with my super-subtle verbal ticks and tendencies, particularly the kind that are only audible when fluffed up by an extremely sensitive microphone.

Working with some of these aspects of how I speak, while whittling away at others, has been a challenge, but also an adventure. It's also given me one more way to express and share, so all the sweat and effort has been very much worthwhile.

We all have the ability to take what we experience inside and make it shareable — to project it into the world. But doing so in a way that others can understand, and that others will want to pay attention to in the first place, typically takes a bit of work.

Discovering what you believe, and what you have to offer, is half of the journey.

The other half is ensuring that you're communicating clearly enough that your words aren't misinterpreted, ignored, or muddled beyond comprehension.

Some Things

Oh wow, things have been frantic. In a good way, but definitely lots of productive mistakes made, and fast-paced learning occurring.

1. Let's Know Things Podcast

The first episode of the Let's Know Things podcast will be published on June 1.

I've been having a blast with this project, partially because it's given me an excuse to learn the basics of an entirely new industry, and partially because it's the perfect medium for a type of conversation that's difficult to have on the other platforms on which I publish.

Each episode, I use a news item as a starting point for a larger discussion. I 'unspool' that article, putting it in context and following some of the strands of information that emerge.

This gives me the excuse to dig fairly deep into a series of adjacent topics, rather than sticking with purely actionable items, philosophical ruminations, or storytelling. It's current events mixed with a propensity for learning and exploration.

Right now, you can sign up for the Let's Know Things newsletter (which is weekly, free, contains a curated selection of interesting links, and will point you toward the podcast when it's live), like it on Facebook, and follow it on Instagram.

The first episode of the podcast itself will be available June 1, with a new episode each week from that point forward.

2. Consider This

Season Two of my YouTube series, Consider This, is also arriving posthaste.

Through the end of May, I'm emptying the vaults and publishing the last handful of episodes I have from the first season, and beginning on June 3, a new episode will be available every Tuesday and Friday.

You can check out the first season of the show, and see my other videos (including many of the talks I've given recently, and some interviews I've done on other shows), on my YouTube channel.

You can ask questions for me to answer on-air on the Consider This Facebook page, and can follow the show on Instagram for behind-the-scenes stuff.

3. Writing

If you've been reading my blog for any amount of time, you've probably noticed that the attention I pay to it ebbs and flows: I'll sometimes publish daily, and other times I'll ignore it for months.

I'm trying out a new schedule for posting, which has me publishing new posts twice a week — I've been enjoying it so far. It's been nice to get back into a steady blogging rhythm.

You can see the essays I publish each week at Exile Lifestyle, or on Medium.

4. London & After-London

I'll be in London from June 8 until June 28, and while there I'll continue producing new work for Consider This, Let's Know Things, and Exile Lifestyle.

I'll also be exploring the city, and probably popping over to Scotland at some point. London is relatively familiar to me, but I've never really taken the time to share it, so I'll be doing that as much as possible.

After London, things are very much up in the air.

I have a few ideas of where to go and what to do next that I'm toying with, and I'll expound upon those, soon, once I've considered them more thoroughly.

For the moment, I will ask that if anyone in the US has a car they're selling (or knows someone who does), particularly if it gets good gas mileage, is road-trip worthy, and fairly inexpensive, please let me know :)

Outro

Thanks for making it all the way down here to the bottom — I don't take that for granted, and I appreciate your time and attention!

If you've yet to say hello, consider shooting me an email and telling me a bit about who you are and what you're up to. I love hearing from folks from all over the world: it's a bit like traveling, but without the cramped airline seats.

You can also follow me and/or say hello via social media. I'm pretty much all over the place, including YouTube, Instagram (the photos I feature in this newsletter are pulled from my Instagram feed), Twitter, Facebook, Periscope, and Snapchat.

It's a hot, sultry, pollen-heavy day here in Missouri. I'm looking forward to London, as the weather there tends to be a bit more to my liking: rainy, chilly, and peacoat-friendly.