How I’m Speaking My Success Into Existence (Hint: It’s Not Over Email)

Published: 2/6/2026

Aeons ago, before I started S2S, I had a job coaching public speaking. It was going ok, but I was advancing slowly. I wanted more opportunity, more students, more sessions.

So I put together a bang up proposal on how I was going to develop the business. Call prospects, visit organizations, sell the programs.

The cornerstone of my plan? Get out there and talk to people. That’s always been the key to success. It’s the name of my business, after all!

So I typed up this beautiful plan, along with another half-baked idea for a Youtube channel, and emailed it over on a Friday afternoon. Slam dunk, right?

Why email and texting are not your friends

These are great methods of communication…just not for important ideas. How easy is it to ignore an email? How much attention does your text really get?

Moreover, your text has no body language, and no ability to read your audience. What if they’re stuck in traffic, burned their toast this morning, had a fight with their cat…and now you want a promotion? Because you’ve been “working hard??” Get outta here!

You need to be present with your audience and have their full attention. If you’re summarizing key points, confirming a schedule, attaching a document – email is perfect. If you have something to discuss, you need to talk in real time.

Good things happen when you show up

90% of success is just that – showing up. It commands respect to schedule a time, hold someone’s attention, and be present with them. It makes them listen, think, and feel with you. It makes them receptive to what you’re saying.

So when my old idea died in an inbox, I left that job and changed my approach. I started getting leads for my own programs. Email and text referrals, thank you very much! But did that alone generate sales, trust, and happy clients?

When you talk about money, make sure you’re actually talking to them

One of the first skills I learned was the consultation. I refused to go into financial details or program specs over email. I wanted to meet in real time, in person or at least on a call.

Suddenly, I was having successful conversations. My clients and I both felt at ease. They told me about their goals and challenges, I outlined what I could do for them, and we worked through all their questions. A simple chat became the start of a great working relationship.

How would you feel buying a service, especially something like coaching, if all you had to go on was a form, or a webpage, or an email back and forth? Would that inspire confidence, or raise more questions?

Call me old fashioned, but I don’t even like ordering at a restaurant from a touchscreen – I want to speak to a person before I hand over my money! The more personal or expensive the purchase, the more people feel the same.

People buy from people

Getting someone’s buy-in starts with connection. Showing up helps you communicate authentically and build trust. It’s not just what you’re saying – it’s how you’re saying it too.

Our body language and tone of voice communicate as much or more than the actual content of our words. Anyone can write (or prompt AI to write) something that sounds good on paper, and everyone has read a million emails that were just too good to be true.

But if what you’re offering is real, and you’re creating value, you can demonstrate that through authentic presence. You can engage your audience intellectually and emotionally, which is the key to effective communication.

Leave it in your drafts

So before you send that email or text or note on a napkin with your big proposal, think about it from the other side – how would you treat your idea if it tip-toed into your inbox? If it couldn’t answer follow up questions? If it came in with 5 or 10 or 50 others just like it?

Now what if it showed up in person? Blocked out a modest but firm slice of time to discuss it? Came through a face and a voice and a human being making a connection?

You have the ideas. They just aren’t going to speak for themselves. Get in there and show them what you’ve got – you’ll be pleasantly surprised with your results.