Louder than Words

The Voice Engine

"Developing your authentic voice is not just about personal gratification. It's about achieving impact. In order to do that, your work must resonate with others. You must be mindful of not only what you want to communicate but also how it will be received by your audience."- Louder than Words

The idea of the “Voice Engine” explains the three interlocking components of an authentic voice: identity, vision and mastery. Identity is the idea of who you truly are. What experiences, passions, challenges and hopes define you and cause you to strive towards a vision and mastery? Your identity is the core of authenticity because pursuing work which you do not genuinely identify with can never be authentic.

Vision is the destination you strive for in your work. It’s the place where you want your audience (customers, readers, clients, etc.) to come to through your work. Vision is less a specific goal than a North Star to guide you along the path.

Mastery is the way you grow in the skills of your craft to deliver your vision. This comes from practicing core competencies, emulating existing great work and regularly taking smart risks to advance your craft. Mastery is not a destination but an unending journey of improvement.

Henry posits that any great work requires the creator to have identity, vision and mastery. Whenever we’re “stuck” in life or work, it’s helpful to consider each area to hone in on the sticking point. For example:

• If the project we’re working on is unfulfilling it likely doesn’t align with our identity.
• If a team is working hard but feels aimless then a lack of vision is likely to blame.
• If the work feels important but we’re not achieving the results we want it’s likely a lack of mastery. We don’t have the skills needed to achieve the vision yet, which results in an “aspiration gap.”

Commit to a Path

"If you try to be effective at everything you will be effective at nothing. You must choose a path. This is the first and most significant responsibility of any creative professional and it's the origin of all unique authentic voices."- Louder than Words, page 82

It’s always difficult to turn down opportunity but it is required to develop a truly authentic voice. Bouncing from area to area or trying to “do it all” precludes the possibility of becoming excellent and providing the unique value we are all capable of creating. This is not to say that you should be myopic and ignore the world around you. Quite the opposite. You must choose a path to the exclusion of others but your voice is unlikely to resonate if you shut everything out.

Have you committed to a path? Or are you pulled in every direction in your work, always chasing the next “thing.” Building an authentic voice takes patience and effort over time so consider carefully the path (or lack thereof) that you’re on.

Define Your Intended Audience

"The most important method for refining your vision is to closely and specifically define your intended audience."- Louder than Words, page 105

The idea of knowing your audience isn’t new but Henry places extra emphasis on it in the context of our authentic voice. He provides some excellent guiding principles for thinking through the intended audience of any project:

• Think of a specific person rather than traits when thinking and talking about your intended audience. Your audience is made up of individuals who you need to relate to rather than demographics like married men age 30 to 45 with children. The person would ideally be someone you know and can reasonably ask “what would they think of this?”
• Your intended audience should feel like whatever you’re creating was made for them personally. Remembering that you are connecting your vision with real people helps clarify your actions and thinking.
• Don’t change your intended audience in the middle of a project. If you find that what you’re working on won’t work for the audience you planned, making slight adjustments for a different audience is unlikely to be successful. Pause and take the time to consider the new audience from the beginning and don’t be afraid to toss completed work that is no longer relevant.

Henry provides some guiding questions to help us think through our intended audience:

• Who is your intended audience for a project you’re working on?
• What are you trying to achieve for them?
• What expectations will they have and how can you exceed them?
• How can I surprise and delight my audience in unexpected ways?