Last Sunday, as I hovered on stage, clutching my microphone, and watched the band get their instruments ready, I overheard a conversation between the drummer and the worship pastor as the upright piano was getting a last-minute tune-up.
Do you tune up the piano on Sunday mornings?
No, I’m just making a few micro-adjustments.
I love a good upright piano sound. They’re always just a little bit out of tune, which gives them their charm.
Their charm! He struck a chord in me (pun intended) while simultaneously hitting the nail on the head (or the stick on the snare? Bad dad joke).
As they were talking, I could hear four different pianos start to play in the background of my mind.
The first two were baby grand pianos, which I often sang around while growing up. My grandma, who also happened to be my church choir director throughout childhood, often played while I sang after school. We still sing Christmas carols around it on Christmas Eve while her 102-year-old fingers dance weightlessly across the keys. The other was my mom's baby grand, whose piano I used to practice music before touring internationally with the Tucson Girls Chorus. Both had a beautiful sound, consistently well-tuned and perfectly on pitch.
The other two pianos I could hear were those of my grandmother’s (my dad’s mom) and aunt’s. Both were uprights. My grandmother’s used to have a muffled sound, making it ever so slightly different on the ol’ eardrums than the others. The other upright was my aunt’s, whose piano had more of a tinged sound to it and was deliciously ever-so-slightly off-pitch.
I knew what the drummer and lead Pastor were talking about. I could hear what they were talking about when they said it. Uprights certainly did have a unique charm to them, and I was thrilled to be able to sing next to one that day.
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There’s a phrase that gets bandied about in the content marketing world. Finding your voice. I don’t love that phrase because it is not only cliche (ugh) but also implies that your voice was lost somehow. Instead, perhaps we should reframe the sentiment to finding your upright piano charm.
In my bestselling book, Discovering Something Greater, I talk about the importance of using your voice to claim your something greater. Your voice, your sound, the way you hit the ol’ eardrums of your audience like my grandmother’s piano hit mine growing up, is what lets you stand above the noise. And you know what?
It’s okay to go out of tune now and then.
When you go out of tune, you stand out, often in a good way. Your song or message hits a little differently. Your tone sticks out in people’s minds allowing them to hear you differently than the other baby grand pianos in the room. You get remembered. You cultivate a connection. You get noticed. And you tug on the heartstrings of the people listening so that they instantly feel that deep-seated connection when they hear your piano strings play through your writing, podcast, or blog.
Your voice is like an upright piano. It’s filled with charming euphemisms that only you say, timber only you use, and accents unique to your background.
Think about it. This is why it’s easy to:
Identify someone from Nashville in LA when they speak
Feel the word hygge, a Danish word implying a cozy atmosphere, as only an English speaker
Hear the unmistakable twang of Dolly Parton’s songs or the unmistakable rough texture of Zach Bryan’s voice, and know who’s singing
Your voice is your personal brand. And, when you stop trying to sound perfectly in tune, you stop fitting in with a chorus of other pianos playing the same melody. Instead, you become the upright piano in the back of a jazz bar, striking chords so deep inside someone’s soul that you make them feel something.
And that is how you’ll get remembered in this noisy world.
More importantly, you’ll make a difference in other people’s lives by sharing your wisdom with a sound that only you can bring to the stage.
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Three Exciting Announcements!
In addition to this newsletter and new feature, I’ve been spinning up a few things behind the scenes for you.
1. New Feature Coming Soon (and Changes to How I Show Up Here for You)
Next month, I’m kickstarting a new feature column highlighting the outstanding upright pianos in the outdoor and entrepreneurial space. Each Friday, you’ll get a written interview to gloss over and see how fresh voices bring their ideas to life. You’ll see what’s happening behind the RV walls parked next to you at campgrounds and the outstanding businesses that are unfurling within feet of your rig.
These Wednesday newsletters will continue, but they will be only available for paid subscribers. We’ll start going deeper into the HOW of building a business from the road, giving you actionable takeaways you can implement right now. Because they’ll be so action-packed and tactical, I’m putting them behind a small paywall. Right now, it’s only $5 (less than one Starbucks dirty chai latte) per month or $50 for the year. In 2024, that price will increase. If you join now, you will lock in that rate as long as you’re a paid subscriber.
2. New Course: Map Your Year
If you’re anything like me, this is the time of year when you reflect on what you did and look ahead to your goals for 20-20-MORE. I created a new on-demand course with my planning system to outline how you want your next few months or years to look. Get to planning with sticky notes and giant wall calendars.
3. New Merch: Show Off Your Roadpreneur Status
I live for comfy clothes that tell a good story. That’s why I created a merch line just for Roadpreneurs. Share your status on your sweatshirt and spark organic conversation around the campfire about what you’re up to. Here’s my personal favorite.
These clothes and tote bags can be worn proudly to grow your business without constantly having to. Plus, they’re comfy, so you’ll actually want to wear them (unlike so many other merchandise items I’ve found).