There will never be a time in your career when you don’t have to speak in public. I’m not saying you have to go on a world tour and conduct motivational speeches, but having a seat at the table requires you to use your voice. I used to be deathly afraid of speaking up in meetings. I felt that what I had to say didn’t matter or someone might think it was stupid. What I quickly learned was that those who spoke up seemed to (1) get heard and (2) gain access to the table at some point in time.
