How to speak with purpose and intention.

In this blog, I will summarize Chapter 3 of the book by Alletta Rochat, called Speak Connect Succeed.

Chapter 3 is called “what is my purpose? The power of intention”. What does it mean, and why do we want to speak with purpose and intention? How does this topic relate to your ability to connect and succeed? How do we speak with purpose and intention? What are the benefits of defining your purpose up front? How much time will this take, and what does it require from me? Do I need to do some other work upfront before I can do this?

As the author mentioned, speaking with purpose is about knowing where you are heading, setting your compass, and focusing on your goal. I tend to fall into task mode quickly, I would start a task immediately, and take action, which often leads to missing my goal or confusing the audience. If you speak with purpose, or why as taught by Simon Sinek in his book, Start with Why. You access your passion, purpose, and intention; when we do this, we access emotion, which is powerful let someone resonate with your topic, which in turn means someone will be more likely to take action. How do we speak with purpose and intention?

Do you need to ask yourself what you would like the conversation’s outcome to be? For example, do you want an action to be taken, an agreement on an issue, etc.? This should take too long and will become easier over time as the habit grows. Once you have established this, define what the outcome will look like. You can also ask yourself what you want the other person to think, feel or do differently as a result of hearing you speak. Besides the obvious ability to connect, are there other benefits of speaking with purpose and intention?

When you clear your purpose and intention in supporting your goal, you make it easier for others to understand you and what you want to achieve. With clarity, you can navigate difficult conversations more easily by replying in a more considered way. You can respond rather than react. You will be able to avoid responding emotionally, which means you are more likely to have a positive outcome in a conversation. When you define your purpose upfront, you can see how this conversation fits in with the bigger picture, e.g., how important this person is to you and what you’re doing.

In summary, by speaking with purpose and intention, you access emotion, making it easier to connect. You can speak with purpose and intention by defining what “you” would like the conversation’s outcome to be and look like and what you want the other person to think, feel or do because of your speaking. Speaking with purpose has other benefits, such as you are more understandable, you can navigate difficult conversations in a more considered way, you are to avoid responding emotionally, and you’re able to see how your conversations fit in with the bigger purpose.