Communicating for Success: Finding Our Voice with EMPOWER (Part 1)
- The Amber Foundation
- Nov 4
- 2 min read
by Richelle Gabucan
“𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝗮 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗲.”
This was the simple, powerful central message from Sarah Millson at the EMPOWER by The Amber Foundation workshop on "𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗦𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀." It set the tone for an evening that wasn't just about theory, but about finding our own voices to make an impact.
The session was packed with insightful frameworks. My key takeaways:
𝟭. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝟯𝗩𝘀 (𝗩𝗶𝘀𝘂𝗮𝗹, 𝗩𝗼𝗰𝗮𝗹, 𝗩𝗲𝗿𝗯𝗮𝗹): A reminder that how we look and sound often make a greater impact than our words.
𝟮. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗠𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗴𝗲: The power of having a single, concise, jargon-free message, repeated at the start and finish.
𝟯. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗧𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗘𝗾𝘂𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: Trust = (Credibility + Reliability + Intimacy) / Self-Orientation. This was a highlight. We discussed how it's about "walking the walk":
• Credibility is shown in the details of your expertise.
• Reliability is showing up and communicating clearly when you can't.
• Intimacy is creating a safe, empathetic space where others feel heard.
The most practical exercise was building our own central message. As someone passionate about education equity, I'm refining mine to: "𝘌𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘦𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘪𝘴 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵, 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵." I was fortunate to practice this with Julie Aswani. Her practical advice on delivery and presence—something I struggle with—was invaluable.
This workshop was the perfect blend of theory and practice. The buzzing atmosphere of connection wasn't just from networking; it was from all of us actively using these new tools to build trust. It was a powerful reminder that effective communication is the foundation for, as Sarah so aptly put it, "helping make the world a better place."
A huge thank you to EMPOWER by The Amber Foundation for equipping us with these tools.
Thank you to our generous venue sponsor, Morgan Stanley, for hosting us in such a wonderful space and for the delicious catering that fueled so many great conversations.
Immense gratitude to our dedicated Group Leaders for guiding our discussions: Angel Olausson, Ameesh Kumar, Britney Siu, Dr. Sharmeen Shroff, Felicia Wong, Ga Young Kim, Ivy Ngai, Julie Aswani, Jose Fung, Lawrence Roberts, Marina Rai, Mehrnoush Salehpour, Megan Swandel, Min Huang, Nikita Jadhav, and Rabia Minhaj.
And to the incredible Exco team and leadership for making it all happen: Elizabeth Thomson, Kishore Sakhrani, James Thomson-Sakhrani, Anisha Sakhrani, Felicity McRobb, Manisha Wijesinghe, May Anne Vergara Bird, Meena Palad, Petunia Kingsley, Reena Rollason, and Soundari Mukherjea.
A special thank you to my fellow cohort members as well!
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