Yesterday I shared something that even surprised me: a 20-minute Speaker’s Cut of RELEVANCE that revealed more emotion than I anticipated. Not dramatic emotion – just that deep, honest kind that shows up when you finally speak something true.
A friend called it “raw.”
My project coach said it was “courageous.”
Both were right.
But here’s what I’ve been sitting with this rainy Stay Whole Tuesday early morning.
- Rawness is a beginning, not an end.
- It’s a signal – not a destination.
If RELEVANCE is going to reach the people it’s meant to reach, I need to learn how to carry that emotion with steadiness. Not to mute it, not to hide it, but to hold it well enough that it keeps the listener in their story, not mine.
And part of learning that craft is the work itself.
Another friend, a writer, has challenged me to create a 10-minute version, and eventually a 5-minute version. A ruthless but beautiful exercise — one that forces you to cut to the bone, to make every single word earn its place.
Raw is real.
Steady is generous.
And the sweet spot lives somewhere between the two.
Stay whole,
— gPage
P.S. On Tuesday evening, after posting this nugget in the morning, I spent some time on the video. I used a quick hybrid of iMovie and Descript to whip this thing into shape. In iMovie, I added a few A-roll talking-head moments, aiming to look the viewer directly in the eye, trimmed the rough edges, and stitched everything seamlessly. Then I processed the full cut in Descript, using its transcript editor to remove dead air, tidy up pauses, and improve pacing. The result? A smooth, straightforward final cut that runs to a sharp 18 minutes — the ideal length TED suggests if I ever want a shot at that famous red dot.
