"I could never do that!" It's something I've heard often. Sitting on the subway and knitting a complex lace shawl, I get compliments on my work, and almost inevitably, the stranger complimenting me declares, "I could never do that!" It's almost as though they think knitting is some arcane mystery that only those born with yarn and needles in hand can accomplish. I know I certainly wasn't born with yarn and needle in hand, though. I talk to people about my experiences taking dance classes, and performing in recitals. "You get up there on stage and dance in front of people? Oh, I could never do that!" Hearing this, I am always reminded of a friend of mine, a professional dancer with years of experience, who feels physically ill with stage fright before every show…and who still goes out onstage and amazes the audience, in spite of her nerves.

It's even something I hear from my coworkers and industry peers. All around me, I see people with information and ideas just begging to be shared, stuff that would be useful and interesting to their fellow professionals. Even so: "Write an article for the NEDRA News Blog? I could never do that! Facilitate a NEDRA RING? I could never do that! Actually give a presentation to a roomful of people at a conference or other NEDRA program? I could certainly never do that!"

Well, why not? OK, I'll grant you, I've said it myself often enough, so I know why people say it. But I also know that on the occasions when I've said it, I've nearly always been proven wrong. In this article, I'd like to go through some of the barriers we create for ourselves to getting out there and contributing to the wider research community, and talk about how we can overcome them--and why we should. In other words, I'd like to prove you wrong too.

"I don’t know what to talk/write about."

I've heard people say that they'd be interested in hosting a NEDRA RING, but didn't know what kind of subject to focus on. There's an easy answer to that: if you have a problem, you have a subject! What challenges are facing you in your work? Are you having trouble finding information on international prospects? Struggling to deal with finding new prospects at an organization without an alumni base? Trying to revamp your prospect management system? Chances are, there are other people out there facing the same issues. You don't have to be an expert--and neither do they. The virtue of a RING lies in the fact that it brings many minds together to work on a problem, and six or eight heads are better than one.

I've also heard people say this when it comes to writing for the NEDRA News. I've often asked people, "are there any problems you've faced recently in your office to which you've found a solution?" Again, chances are, someone else is facing that very problem, and would love to hear how you got around it. Whether it's an issue of communication between researchers and fundraisers, or how to handle commercial real estate in capacity evaluations, others can benefit from your experience. Or, if you enjoy reading books on research, fundraising, and related subjects, maybe you could review one, and give your fellow researchers an idea of whether it might be useful for them.

"I'm sure other people know more than I do about this."

Oh, I've used that one. A few years ago, my colleague and I were working on putting together a collection of resources for international research, for our office to use. Our manager suggested we present our findings at the NEDRA Annual Conference. We demurred, saying that of course everyone else must already have this information. When we talked to some other people about the subject, though, we found out that there were quite a lot of shops where international research was in its infancy, and a lot of people were starting from scratch when it came to finding resources. To those people, what we shared was new and useful. Even those people who were more experienced in international research didn't always know about the same resources, though they were also able to give us suggestions for ones we hadn't heard of before. In short, we had underestimated ourselves, and falsely assumed that we didn't have anything worth sharing. The NEDRA conference presentation we gave that year was well received, and led to other presentations later on. If this is a fear of yours, try reaching out to other researchers at other organizations. You might well find that you have more to offer than you think.

"I really don't like talking in front of an audience!"

I can't promise you that stage fright is always entirely curable (just ask the dancer friend I mentioned earlier), but it's possible to learn to be more comfortable with public speaking. Sometimes, the buddy system is helpful. That coworker with whom I created that presentation on international resources is someone who dislikes public speaking. She probably would not have agreed to do a presentation on her own, but doing one with someone else she knew was a little easier. If you don't have a coworker in your office who would be willing to present with you, don't feel shy about asking people at other organizations. Someone may jump at the chance! You might also be able to find professional development activities related to presenting at your organization. At MIT, I was able to take a two-part workshop on creating and giving presentations that taught me a lot of useful skills. Ask around, and see if your organization offers something similar. If not, you might consider joining Toastmasters International, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping people develop speaking and leadership skills. Friends who belong to this organization have told me that it's been invaluable to them in learning public speaking skills, and in becoming more comfortable with speaking to an audience.

You--yes, you--have something to offer.

At every conference I attend, every day in my own office, and every time I look at industry mailing list digests, I see a host of intelligent, resourceful, creative people who know things I don't. They know things that I could use. These people aren't just those who have been in the industry for decades and have high-ranking titles in their organizations, either. Even someone who's only been a prospect researcher for a year or so may have come to this field from another industry, and have knowledge from that industry that could be of use to researchers. I know how valuable it is, for example, to have a former investment banker in the office! Or, they may simply have a different perspective than other people, owing to working in a different kind of office. Remember, it's not about knowing more than anyone else about a particular subject. It's just about being willing to share your own perspectives, experiences, and ideas. On that note, I encourage all of you reading this to think about what you have to offer. It's never too early to start thinking about next year's conference, and it's never a bad time to talk to the Programming Committee about speaking at a workshop or hosting a RING. And of course, I would be remiss in my duties as editor of the NEDRA News Blog if I didn't urge all of you to volunteer as authors!