Go Beyond Storytelling – Hear Your Authentic Voice with New Ears

“I’m trying to say out loud the things that my soul is streaming.”

— Tim Grahl at ConvertKit’s Craft & Commerce conference

I’m delighted to report that my soul is showing me ways to discover what wants to be said, rather than “should-ing” myself into trying harder via the “buzzword du jour” (which is most likely “storytelling”).

It’s a subtle distinction that’s requiring me to up my awareness so that I can distinguish a story that’s naturally in tune with my soul’s “streaming” vs trying to make something happen. Joyfully, recently, in a number of ways (including those described below), the Universe has been teaching me to pay more attention to these kinds of authentic messages.

A Blast From the Past

Recently, I reconnected with the importance of authentic storytelling at a workshop with Michael Kass in San Francisco. Very unexpectedly, I found myself rediscovering the story of how I got and then embraced the name “Dancing Bear” in the 1970’s. The story that emerged re-energized the ways that that name still resonates for me. (For more on this, read “The Revolutionary Resonances of Dancing Bear” on Medium.)

Connecting with My Business Creator Tribe

Even more recently (in early June), I traveled to Boise, Idaho to attend the Craft & Commerce conference put on my email marketing provider-of-choice, ConvertKit (affiliate link), “an email marketing platform designed specifically for creators.”

Not only did I hear a quite dazzling array of main stage speakers (including the ones quoted above and shown below); but more importantly, I felt connected to a business (my email marketing service provider) as a community or tribe. Who knew that this was possible? And, because it was so real, so fun, and so inspiring, that’s another story that, for me, wants to be told.

A BUSINESS THAT STANDS ON VALUES

Suffice it to say that it is inspiring for me to partner with a business that stands on its values to such an extent that their service becomes as much (or more?) about the way they connect people than it is about making money… or even making great software. And, of course, they are making money and making great software.

What made this conference so special is what makes ConvertKit so special, and that’s their commitment to “creators.” It’s not just a “lip service commitment” as evidenced by the extraordinary collection of creators that Craft & Commerce attracted and the quality of the uplifting, valuable speakers that they curated. That’s was meaningful.

That’s what made me go to the conference. I had a sense of this from their culture which promotes values like “Create Everyday,” “Work in Public,” “Teach Everything You Know,” and the new one that was on the t-shirt we all received, “Default to Generosity.” The experience of the community of creators who share these values and the individual creators who I met there took this to a whole new level. I’m already committed to going back again next year, and that says a lot!

Recommended Resources: Luscious Links

• Running Down a Dream: Your Road Map to Winning Creative Battles
  by Tim Grahl
  Tim was one of the main stage speakers as the ConvertKit conference and I’ve been really valuing the vulnerability and insights that he shares in this book. It’s a kind of extension of one of my favorite all time books, “The War of Art” by Steven Pressfield.
• ConvertKit email marketing software
  As discussed above, this company excites me through a unique combination of its culture, its software and its focus on serving Creators of all kinds to make a living from their creative work.

Thanks for reading!