2 weeks ago I had the pleasure of attending Tiwa King’s first in person event since the "panoramic". Even more special, though, is that this was actually the first time that we had met in person full stop.
This, despite the fact that we live in the same city and had spoken virtually and on the phone (for hours at a time) prior to this day.
Tiwa’s event (The Authenticity Checklist) was a full circle moment in a lot of ways because of:
#1 The nature of the event itself
I first encountered Tiwa at TEDx Peckham 2018. I use the word “encounter” because we didn’t meet. She sang “Glory” as I sat there transfixed by the power of her performance.
At the time, I had a vodcast in which I would interview inspiring Christian women in business. I made up my mind, right there and then that I would reach out to her. Then...
She ghosted me...
Or so I thought...
2 years later she messaged me on Facebook, I did get to interview her and the rest, as they say, is history.
Tiwa's event was a full circle moment because, once again, I found myself transfixed in the audience as she hosted, sung and facilitated talks with amazing women with inspiring messages.
#2 The fact that she had, had a session with me earlier this year to take her from stumped about how to get PR to completely savvy about it
As you can see from Tiwa's review (below) her greatest challenge, at the time, was with brand clarity.
It was during this time that we clarified what her purpose was and therefore her branding should be; so to see her- months later- making strides towards it by allowing me to help her convey it through a media one-sheet, giving workshops in corporate spaces, writing a book and now at this event truly almost brought tears to my eyes.
The day after the event I sent Tiwa a voicenote congratulating her on a job well done.
I told her it was amazing to see her sing live, share her truth and host other women.
I also complimented the fact that whenever someone said something profound or that truly struck a nerve with those present, she would allow it to marinate through silence before moving on.
My compliment came from past experiences with a pastor at my old church who had a habit of "quenching the spirit" in order to move on to the next item on their agenda- rather than allowing God to move.
It turned out that a lack of sensitivity to the moment was also something that Tiwa had always hated and now realised why
In her own words: "It's like it was preparing me for the future...and I didn't even realise that I'm now doing the opposite with my event. I didn't even know till having this conversation"
Through Tiwa we see a powerful lesson: following your passion is not just about associating yourself with the things you love. Passion can also work in reverse.
It reminds me of an old Honda advert that used to come on when I was a kid where the jingle began:
“Can hate be good?
Can hate be great?
Can hate be good?
Can hate be great?
Can hate be something we don’t hate?”
Thereby challenging the idea that hate is always a bad thing.
The chorus then went on to answer this question by asserting that we can “hate something” so much that we become motivated to “change” it and “make [it] better”.
In other words, hatred can be a good thing if channelled positively in order to both serve and improve things for our fellow man- especially through PR.
So what about you, sis? What do you hate? What problem do you wish to solve? What impact do you wish to make? What legacy do you want to leave? What's your "why?"
Like Tiwa, you can achieve this in your PR efforts by simply embodying the change that you wish to see in the world. You can also:
Speak out against the things you hate within your industry and/or society at large
Raise awareness about solutions to the problem that you wish to solve, especially if your business provides it
Collaborate with brands and corporations that provide solutions to the problem that you hate
Donate to charities or non-profits that aim to eradicate the thing that you hate
Doing so will make you more relatable to your ideal client due to a shared value system, thereby building the all important know, like and trust factor, and increasing your bottom line.
Want more PR tips?
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