Using counterarguments to your advantage
The things we think are barriers to speaking up can also be power tools
Say you have a spark of an idea and set out to write something. Then, there is a little voice in your head saying, “yeah, but…” and offering a reason that feels very real and valid as to why you should not write it.
You then have choices:
You can listen and not write the piece.
You can use what that little voice said and incorporate it into the piece, turning a perceived weakness into an asset that you name and own.
Here’s how you do that: Say, for example, that you want to write a letter to the editor of your local paper about the need for a stop sign on your street. And, the feeling that stopped you was, “Yeah, but, I’m just an ordinary person. Who is going to listen to me?” Use that to your advantage instead of letting it be a block by including the line, “To be fair, I’m but one citizen speaking out on this issue. But, I’m also a resident who sees numerous vehicles speeding down the street every day, and see almost daily near-misses with pedestrians, including playing children, that could be way worse.”
Boom. You took your most likely point of dismissal (thing by which you could be discounted or that you believe would discount your credibility) and named it and claimed it and now nobody can use that to discredit you because you already brought it into the room.
Try this every time you feel resistance. This technique works in job cover letters, opinion pieces, essays, grant applications, book proposals and many, many other places.