Examen

Welcome to Your Weekly Words with Julie Avis Rogers, where public speaking meets personal flourishing. In these posts (the video and the written transcript below), I’ll share one word to enhance your effectiveness as a public speaker while also giving a boost for your soul! This week’s word is *examen* so let’s dive in!

Today’s word may seem like an unusual one! Examen??

For any Spanish speakers out there, you may know examen as the Spanish word for TEST or EXAM… but the examen that I am going to share with you today is anything but a test! Instead, today’s examen is a spiritual practice that I find deeply helpful in my own life, and particularly as a public speaker.

So what is THIS examen? This examen is a daily contemplative practice that derives from St. Ignatius Loyola’s Spiritual Exercises. While it’s origins are deeply rooted in Ignatian spirituality and the language of that tradition, I have found it to be a practice that beautifully transcends beyond the limits of one belief system or the purely “spiritual” realm.

Essentially, the heart of this practice is to spend a few quiet minutes at the end of each day, intentionally remembering and “walking through” the events of that particular day with gratitude and curiosity. In my own experience of the examen, I am usually fascinated by the seemingly-mundane details that tend to capture my attention as well as by tiny beautiful moments that I otherwise never would have noted nor committed to memory. A daily examen helps one experience the fullness of any given day. It helps us not solely fixate on ONE quality that may have been disappointing or disproportionately prominent, but instead allows us to pay attention to the many moments that make up the fullness of the day from a grounded and contemplative place.

OK so now the application to public speaking!

Many of us are well acquainted with the phenomenon of ruminating after a public speaking event. Maybe we fret about that ONE question from the audience that we didn’t quite know how to handle. Or that strand of hair that kept falling in our face. Or the typo on the slidedeck that we didn’t realize until the presentation was already underway….

The list could go on and on and on! (Can you tell that I’m VERY familiar with the ruminations???)

So here is what I propose for us today: In place of our ruminations, how about we try a post-presentation examen? Instead of the swirling regrets, let’s borrow a piece of ancient wisdom that will both center us and expand us.

Here is what this could look like:
You’ve returned to your desk or you’ve returned home (or maybe you’re even taking the bus or a train home) after a public presentation or speaking event of some sort. Hopefully you are feeling some pride and celebration for your job well done– and in all honesty, you might also find yourself preoccupied by all the things that didn’t go your way.

So this is the perfect time to PAUSE and EXAMEN.

Maybe close your eyes and take some deep breaths– maybe just give your eyes a little rest. And in silence, in your mind, begin walking through the full experience of that day’s presentation. See yourself arriving in the space. Remember the moments leading up the presentation– how were you feeling? Who did you see? What did the room look like? And then from there, just keep remembering step-by-step the moments that made up the whole presentation experience.

Pay attention to what moments stand out to you. What wisdom is there in those moments? What reminders are there in those moments? Why might those moments be the ones that come to mind?

My hope for you in this process is that you’ll open yourself to both the wisdom of learning from any regrets you might have or things you wish had gone differently– AND you’ll be uplifted and affirmed by the memories of meaningful connection, effective communication, powerful presence, or whatever small joys you might find as you walk through the experience.

Examen. It’s not a test. It’s a way to understand the fullness of your experience.

Ready for more? Click here to book a free exploratory session with me where we can discuss your questions or concerns about public speaking and if I might be able to support you on your speaking journey. Visit my website to learn more about how to become a more confident, authentic public speaker while boosting your personal flourishing along the way!