So the other night, I half-heartedly watched a thread of a conversation unfold on Facebook. It reminded me of an odd habit I’ve noticed in many people these days, which is being unusually mean and harsh about themselves in public settings for the sole purpose of drawing attention to themselves and having others heap undue praise on them to help settle them down. They post sad comments and then eagerly wait for their “friends” to reply to the post, proving that they have value and that the sad sack isn’t that bad, that mean, that angry, that ugly, that chunky–you

A while back, when I decided to change the core concept of my show — from Speak Without Fear to Encouragement for Your Life—I felt it was more in line with my heart’s desire to be an encouragement to others. Now, don’t get me wrong, I am still a 100% believer that your ability to speak and be heard is your best avenue to climb the ladder for personal and professional success, and I will always encourage you to develop your speaking ability because it truly is the one thing you can do to change your life. However, as I