Ever notice how when you try to share something you’re super passionate about – say, avoiding gluten, cutting out diet sodas, or using non-toxic cleaning products people either:
…brush you off…
…glaze over or tune you out…
…roll their eyes…
…become defensive…
You know that the information you’re sharing is so important, and you’re sharing it because you care, and you want whomever your sharing it with to benefit – you just want to help!
These kinds of responses are especially common when talking about environmental toxins – the chemicals we’re exposed to daily that are linked to so many of the diseases and health problems that we struggle with. People either get freaked out, or they throw up their arms and say:
“ugh! everything gives me cancer – whaddya gonna do?.”
Talking to people can feel a little bit like this:
What we’re sharing… our MESSAGE is so important – why aren’t people really paying attention. Why aren’t they taking action and making changes?
What’s really going on here?
Simple. The messenger is killing the message.
There are some places where the messenger, meaning how you deliver the information, is just as important as the message or information itself. In some cases the way you share the message is the most important part!
Mess that up, and no one will stick around long enough to hear what you have to say, or you’ll get the brush off, the eye rolls, and the defensive posturing. No one wins here.
Understanding this is KEY to being able to engage with people, especially around the chemical toxins conversation. It’s scary. It’s overwhelming. It’s too “doomsday” and “Debbie-downer”. HOW you invite them into this conversation can make the difference between getting a new client, and getting no clients.
But, with the right tools this conversation can be easy, seamless, and one that is the most eye opening and action inspiring for your clients!
Getting the bigger message out there – the information about the links between chemical toxins in our personal environment and health and what we can do about it must be part of your work around supporting the health of your clients. This is not a topic we can continue to ignore or sweep under the rug.
I’m committed to making this easy for you, and committed to taking the overwhelm out of this conversation.
In the sprit of this committment, I’ll be sending out an invitation later this week to join me in a free seminar where I’m going to share with you:
- what the real story is with environmental toxins and why we need to know this stuff!
- some of the most common and most toxic items that you likely have lurking in your kitchen (and how to help your client’s “detox” these things too!)
- how to set yourself and your practice apart by integrating the toxins conversation into your work
- how to avoid “killing the message”, and instead speak in a way that inspires curiosity and engagement.
- and much more!
In the meantime, think about a time when someone’s delivery totally shut you down, and “killed the message” – I’d love to hear about it! Comment below and tell me what the message was, how they killed the message, and how listening to them made you feel!
