Amanda Palmer is not a motivational speaker, but her speech The Art of Asking is beyond inspiring, it was down right moving. Amanda is a member of a grunge/cabaret band and blogger who started out working on public streets as a human statue called The 8' Bride. She started this particular speech with a brief background story of her experience as a human statue; this introduction actually moved me to a tear or two. Palmer explains that after a person dropped some money into her hat or can she would hand them a flower and give a prolonged gaze that expressed gratitude and acknowledgment of truly seeing the person. As a former worker in the behavioral and mental health industry, I was touched because there are so so many people in this world who do not feel "seen" and just a little acknowledgment could make a world of difference in their lives. Amanda uses this story as a prelude and foundation of her main point to engage the audience. She clearly does not take herself too seriously and gets a few chuckles from the crowd throughout her speech.
The experiences that Amanda shares throughout her speech reveal her humanistic, trusting, giving and caring nature; she is an artist with a heart for people. She tells of stories of trusting her fans, even to the extent of literally exposing all of herself (naked body) to them to be written on as their human canvas. The trade off for making herself so vulnerable to her fans is a connection that allows her to ask of them for things she or her band needs, from something as small as a Nettie Pot to a place to sleep. The beautiful part of the connection she builds through her vulnerability to ask these kinds of things of her fans is, in turn, it allows her fans to feel, and in some cases, be a part of her life. Palmer's actions actually prove that if you give of yourself freely people will willingly give back instead of having to be made to, which is the entire point of her speech.
Amanda's acts of kindness and trust can be difficult for many to comprehend and/or do. She had to overcome her own doubts and fears as the human statue, which developed the courage and humility she implements when asking for help from fans. Making yourself vulnerable in that manner can be risky, but taking such risks is what got her a crowd funding donation of over one million dollars when she only asked for one hundred thousand; and that million came from a total of fewer donors than her bands first record with a major label sold right after release. Amanda Palmer's speech encouraged me to continue to have a heart for people, even in the music business. She also inspired me to be fearless enough take the risk of asking for help when I need it. Amanda Palmer would make an awesome motivational speaker.
