If you want to build a new skill (like public speaking, writing, or personal branding), here's a great strategy:
Find "low cost settings" to practice it.
"Low cost settings" are settings with low cost of failure: because they're among friends, or close colleagues, or small groups, or supportive people -- generally, spaces you feel safe in.
For example,
- For public speaking: Talk about an interesting article you read with a colleague you like (1 person). Then, if it felt good, present about it in your team meeting (~10-15 people). If it still felt good, you can present about it at an even larger department meeting (~50+ people).
- For writing: Send something you wrote to a friend, or to a chat group with close friends. If it felt good, then post it on Facebook or Instagram (where you have a more intimate community). If it still felt good, post it on LinkedIn or on a blog.
- For personal branding: Explain to the interns, in an intentional way, who you are and what you do at the company. Then, explain it to the more junior folks you cross paths with. Then, explain it to folks at your level. Then, explain it to strangers.
We all have "low cost settings" in our lives: Spaces where we feel safe, loved, protected -- even if we fail.
Find those spaces in your life, and practice the things you're afraid of there, first.
Build momentum, and if it feels good, move on to the next step, as you hone your new craft!
