“We can’t learn from people who are perfect. We can only learn from people who are imperfect.” – James Robilotta, CSP®

That was my main takeaway from James’ excellent session on “The Power of Relatability – How to Deliver Memorable Messages” at NSA #Influence22.

James shared that we are all weird. And that it’s the “weirds” that are the things that connect us. This is similar to the maxim from my Pink Goldfish 2.0 co-author David Rendall,

“What makes us weak is also what can make us strong. And what makes us weird is what makes us wonderful.”

Robilotta challenged us as speakers to think of the moments that create humanity. Because those things make us relatable.

Brené Brown echoed this sentiment in her book “The Gifts of Imperfection“:

“Most of us spend our lives trying to be, and seem, ‘perfect.’ We try to protect ourselves. It can sometimes be difficult to drop the pretense
and own up to your flaws and faults – it takes courage.”

The main takeaway from the session is that we should own our lies and flaws. That reliability is more important than credibility.

In James’ words, “Your credibility doesn’t make you a good speaker. The [relatable] way you tell your story about it does.”

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Stan Phelps

Stan Phelps walks the walk. He stands out in the sea of sameness by modeling his own Differentiated Experience (DX) message: Differentiation isn’t just about what you say, it’s about what you do and, more importantly, how and why you do it. Stan leverages his unique collection of 5,000+ case studies on customer, employee, and brand experience to engage audiences with informative learning-based experiences. He believes purposeful DX wins the hearts of employees and customers, and differentiation ultimately boosts loyalty, retention, referrals, and results.

Find Stan’s in-person and virtual keynotes, workshops, and Goldfish tank programs at StanPhelps.com.