Struggling to find your natural speaking voice? Do you find yourself clinging to a script only to come off sounding forced? In today’s post, Dean gives you a simple way to think of speaking that will set you free and let the words grow themselves.
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I am here to free you of your script—that thing you took so much time to write, carefully memorize, and try to recite as if it were coming off the top of your head. The problem is, it rarely sounds natural. You don’t sound present—you sound rehearsed.
I have a tree outside my front yard. It’s beautiful—an icon of the property. I know that tree well, but I don’t know it leaf by leaf. I know it by its shape, which comes from the trunk and the branches. Now think about this: the tree looks the same all year round, but the leaves are always changing. They bud, they grow, they fall, and they return. The tree is not defined by its leaves—it’s defined by its structure.
When you present, your words are like the leaves—they change each time. The structure and flow of your message are the trunk and branches. If you focus on getting every word right, your mind is in the wrong place. Instead, focus on the sequence and structure of your presentation—the key movements that shape your ideas.
Each time you rehearse, let new words form naturally. The structure will hold, even as the words change. That’s how your personality comes through authentically. Just like the tree renews its leaves every year, your presentation renews itself each time you deliver it. The core remains strong—the trunk and branches—the structure you’ve designed. Everything else grows fresh, alive, and in the moment.
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