Josias: The way I adapt my message to resonate with such diverse audiences is by doing the human-to-human connection. Show my scars because the scars could be healing for someone else. No matter the background of the audience, they somehow faced a tribulation in life which made them almost throw in the towel. It’s very easy to think of the negative in the midst of the trials and tribulations than it is to think of the positive. It’s easy to think of what can’t be done instead of what can be done. Anytime where I am on a platform speaking to the audience, the first thing I think about is how I can connect to each background in the audience where I can be me but they will also understand. People see the glory but don’t know the story.
In connecting with the audience sometimes you have to stoop to vulnerability and share with them raw pains that they may not even think that I have endured because I don’t look like what I have been through. When it comes to knowing my audience, I know one thing, someone in the audience needs to know how to be resilient in the face of adversity, how to stay the course when the course seems difficult to stay on, and how do you believe you can and you will when how it looks like shows that you can’t and you will not. I don’t focus on the hundreds in the audience, I focus on just one. If one life is impacted, then that’s what matters. Being my authentic self is what I will always be, and I believe showing scars is the best way of connecting and adapting to the audience.
Being recognized as one of the top 30 Transformational Entrepreneurs Making Global Impact is a significant achievement. From your experience, how can aspiring motivational speakers shape the next generation of thought leaders?
Josias: When it comes to aspiring motivational speakers and how they can shape the next generation of thoughtful leaders, they must first answer the question of why and what? The why question is why do you feel or believe it should be your voice and your message worth listening to. The what question is what do you have to share that will resonate with the audience. In the industry of speaking, every word counts and there should be a message that leaves substance for eagerness to get more.
If you are an aspiring motivational speaker, the way you can shape this next generation of thoughtful leaders, you have to be set apart and be authentic in who you are and not waiver. You have to be effective and serious and not water down a message. There are too many feeling good speakers out there but there’s no conviction to the audience or any drive that the audience will obtain to become better than they were yesterday. If you want to shape the next thoughtful leader, be real with the message and connect by sharing your story because in that there’s breakthrough and healing.
As someone who has received multiple Presidential Lifetime Achievement Awards, what memorable moments in your journey brought you to enter this point of your career?
Josias: There are lots of memorable moments in my career, but I can’t tell you what point brought this achievement award. You never know who’s watching and who you’re impacting. Even though I don’t know what point brought it to this moment of being a multiple presidential lifetime achievement awards recipient, I would say it’s because of my consistency of impact through the stages and the books that I write that got me to this moment. One memorable moment I do recall in my journey is when my Haitian community reached out to me to write a contribution poem to a legendary Haitian artist named Mikaben who died after his live performance. This moment was major for me because I never knew that the impact of my writing caught the eyes of Haiti open magazine to where they’ve asked me to be a part of this tribute.
In a world that’s constantly changing, what do you believe is the future of motivational speaking?
Josias: In a world that is constantly changing I believe that motivational speaking will be one of the main things that people will tap into, especially in the fields of work that one might be in.
As your career continues to evolve, how do you plan to continue growing and evolving as a voice of change? Any exclusive news you can share with us?
Josias: My plan on how to continue and grow and evolve is really understanding my audience and knowing the different dynamics of my audience and the generation that the audience might be in.
How can our readers connect?
Josias: Follow on Instagram @coachwith_josias
Photo Credits: Courtesy of Josias Jean-Pierre
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