Opportunity Knocks!
by Mary Jane
Mapes
Leaning into the glass, with his mouth pressed next to the opening, he
asked in a low, suggestive tone, "Do you always sound so sexy?" It was opening
night of my son's high school play, and I was working the box office. Having been silenced
by laryngitis for almost two weeks, I could barely talk. The husky whisper of my voice was
anything but sexy to me. In the speaking/training business, a voice like mine can signal
disaster. No voice means no work.
After two weeks with virtually no improvement, my concern was growing. I
had to find people to replace me for programs already on the books. I couldn't talk on the
telephone, make appointments or sell myself to those who called inquiring about my
services. Carol, my assistant, was my only voice.
One afternoon, after Carol had left for the day, I sat in my office
staring at the ringing phone. My voice mail would have to pick it up. I felt helpless to
do anything about it. Frustrating? I'd be less than honest to say it wasn't. But it was
also something else. It was an important reminder that all things happen for a
reason…and if we look for the opportunity in every "crisis," we will find
it. I did.
A lack of voice gave rise to the need to communicate in other ways -
namely, hands on the computer. A reference guide for "The Art of Fielding Questions
with Finesse" had been on my computer for some time. I'd just never been able to find
the time to turn it into a book. For years I'd been collecting input from clients
regarding the most sensitive situations, difficult kinds of people, and tough questions
they ever had to encounter…and, how they dealt with them. Now there was time to put
it in book form.
My fingers flew over the keys; the script was completed. Old acquaintances
were renewed and former clients were revisited as I sought the best people to review the
manuscript and provide feedback. A sense of completion on a project long over-due, the joy
of renewed contacts, and the opportunity to develop plans for other writing projects would
never have materialized if an important part of me had not been silenced.
I don't mind sounding "sexy," but I'd much rather have the voice
that allows me to do what I love doing…speaking and training, helping people to
discover and to operate from their greatest good. Should I ever again lose my voice, I'm
confident that opportunity will again knock.
©Copyright 1999-2006 Mary Jane Mapes All rights reserved.
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