 The great thing about the tech industry is that there is so much disruption and innovation. Unfortunately, there isn't a lot of that happening on the communications end. And I am just as guilty as the next, the marketer of falling into the pride and true trap. As you can tell, I have a speech impediment. I cutter. Cuttering has made a lot of choices for me in my life. I chose to be a writer because I was more comfortable with the written word than I was the spoken one. I chose to be a freelancer because the anxiety about going to a job interview would leave me speechless. And I chose often to be silent when I know I could have added value to the conversation. After ten years as a writer, I have learned a thing or two about what businesses think they need to do in order to get eyes on their brands as well as their products. I talk about mobile strategy and SEO, social impact and hashtags, and of course Facebook and Twitter. But their favorite word is branding. Probably all of our favorite words in this industry. But you know what the problem with using that word is? It's that most companies are afraid to truly be themselves. Law is an all. Think about it. When was the last time that you or a manager or another person on your team crossed something off a marketing strategy because you considered it a weakness or a thing that you just weren't perfect at? It probably happens a lot more often than you think, especially when you are in an early stage startup with not a lot of money and even less time. You kick with what you know. I want to stop here for a second because I know that this talk has communication in the title. And I am talking almost exclusively about marketing. That's because communication is marketing and vice versa. I'm sure all of you here already know that. You already know that there is no marketing without some type of conversation as well as connection with both people, consumers, brands, and the greater outside world as a whole. And for that end, we're constantly communicating with people daily, all day, every day, in person and over the phone, online and off through your company's brand and through your own personal one. When it comes to marketing and communication, like I said earlier, we stick with what we know. But that's what we are wired to do as people. One of our basic needs is to be liked. And that makes sense because in terms of evolution, it was how we managed to survive as a whole and come this far in our lives. We hit that because we decided to stick together as age species. And not because we shunned or differentiated ourselves from each other. Being accepted is a part of our DNA. So it's natural to want to enhance the certain parts of our personalities that we think other people are going to find interesting. What about all of the other things that we ignore, suppress, or even quite a hide? Who we shun, close things in an effort to seem likable? And what if we stop doing that? Is it possible that those things, our deepest insecurities and our greatest fears are the keys to the conversational kingdom? Today, I want to challenge you to abandon your strengths and explore your weaknesses. Both personally and professionally. So often, weakness and how are considered negatives. They walk hand in hand. But those feelings aren't necessarily a bad thing. The Italian intellectual Eugenio Colorni believes that doubt is creative because it allows for alternative ways to see the world. What if you applied that to your company's brand or your own personal approach to how you communicate with other people? When Forbes magazine ranks their 100 most trustworthy companies, they focus on their behaviors. The ones that are the most transparent, consistent, and for better or worse, how informative they are. How informative is your company? And in terms of your own personal brand and the way you communicate with others, how informative are you? I love Harid and one of my favorite authors is Haruki Murakami. He actually uses a form of weakness in his writing. The reporter Nathaniel Rich of The Atlantic wrote that no great writer writes as many had sentences. As he does. And if you read any of his books, then you understand. His writing is compelling because of the way he chooses to tell his stories. The plots take you from reality to supernatural, often times in the same sentence. It's bizarre. It's jointed. Often times it's written chopply or incredibly long-winded. However, it works. He's marketed himself. Kai uses port. Kai using port sentences to his advantage. And now he's one of the great writers of our generation. And that's a good tip. Hand out by being unequivocally and imperfectly you. Always remember that sometimes your greatest vulnerability can also be your greatest asset. Kevin Plank from Under Armour understands this pretty well. The first rule in his formula for innovation is to be really good at one thing. And that's what he did. For the first five years Under Armour only had one product. And it was their compression shirt. For me in my business it was writing in all forms. From editorial to business and eventually in marketing. That builds credibility. And once you've got that under your belt you can start to grow from there. My personal disruption after I had my one thing that I was good at. It was peeking. When I started peeking about a year and a half ago. It was a way to break myself out of my shell. I was terrified to peek the people one on one. Let alone in front of an enormous crowd like this one. Once I put myself out there my biggest fear, my strongest doubt and my greatest vulnerability. I realized that I was connecting with people in a very real way. It's a lot easier to connect with your audience. Whether it be a crowd like this one or a person that you're having a casual conversation with. When they know that you are flawed too. The reason why I'm standing here is because I chose to embrace fear and vulnerability. After years of desperately trying to fit into a mold. I realized that the thing that made me different actually made me a little bit more interesting. It has helped me form deeper connections with those around me as well. Once I accepted my insecurity and shared it without shame. Also, opening myself up to whatever criticisms would come my way. Because honestly, cuddling public speakers is kind of weird, right? I found that people didn't judge me. They wanted to learn more about me. Most importantly, they wanted to share with me their own insecurities. Fears, vulnerabilities and weaknesses. So what cares you? Worries you? And what makes you vulnerable? What challenges you to the point of fear? That is how you are going to capture your audience. And that's also what's going to make you a compelling person to have a real conversation with. Hope while you're talking, but more importantly also while you are listening. A lot of people are going to tell you that you have to be the strongest communicator to succeed. The best orator to tell your story and the most articulate to move the masses. But sometimes the truth is you need to be the most transparent one. Thank you.