In under an hour, Mr. John Davies revealed the secret to success: “Know why you do what you do.”
And if there was ever a question of finding that sense of purpose, Mr. Davies addressed that as well; “Everything you need for life is between your two ears. The trick is learning to get it out of your mouth.”
Mr. Davies discovered his passion for communications when he accidentally enrolled in a journalism course in college.
Although he didn’t intend to diverge from his Political Science- and Economics-based schedule, he ended up starting his own newspaper in graduate school. “But I did not want to be a reporter, I wanted to help create the news,” said Mr. Davies.
Currently, Mr. Davies owns the public relations firm “Davies Public Affairs.” “I solve crises and ensure that opportunities are fulfilled…We help those companies [going through crises] figure out how to talk to the public and tell their story to earn support.”
On Mar. 22, Mr. Davies joined the students in Spaulding Auditorium and conveyed his message.
“People who have a powerful ‘why’ and can share it capture attention and succeed at what they do,” said Mr. Davies.
In order to communicate his point, he used a captivating powerpoint that included videos of speeches given by successful and influential leaders, such as Martin Luther King Jr., Steve Jobs, and Bill Gates.
Ultimately, he emphasized the importance of “the message” and “finding out what you need to say” rather than worrying about details like whether the message should be printed on a flyer or brochure.
“We are never going to be less connected. We are never going to be less transparent. We are never going to have less information.”
In light of this observation, Mr. Davies agrees that the best way to effectively use this “explosion of information” is to be selective in choosing what process.
He concluded, “Those who can do that really well will succeed.”