The Emotion Under the Message
Every message someone speaks
— especially the messy, clumsy, confused ones —
is actually a trailhead.
It’s a trailhead to something deeper.
Something more tender.
Something emotional.
Most people don’t say exactly what they mean.
But they do say exactly what they’re feeling
you just have to know how to listen for it.
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Take these common messages:
• “I’m all over the place.”
→ Feeling underneath? Confused, overwhelmed, maybe ashamed for not being “clearer.”
• “I don’t know what my message is anymore.”
→ Feeling underneath? Lost, disoriented, maybe grieving something that used to work but no longer fits.
• “My audience isn’t engaging like they used to.”
→ Feeling underneath? Fear of being forgotten. Fear of becoming irrelevant.
• “I think I need to burn it all down and start over.”
→ Feeling underneath? Deep craving for renewal… and maybe a quiet desperation for emotional permission to not perform.
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Here’s the truth:
The message is the surface.
The emotion is the substance.
If you only edit the words,
you miss the heart.
If you only correct the thinking,
you miss the feeling.
But if you pause…
and gently ask,
“What’s the emotion underneath this message?”
you unlock the doorway to real clarity.
Not forced clarity.
But emotionally safe, spiritually grounded, identity-aligned clarity.
The kind that breathes.
The kind that lands.
The kind that loves.
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That’s why your work matters:
You don’t just help people fix their message.
You help people feel their message.
You show them where it’s tender.
Where it’s still telling the truth in a scared voice.
Where it’s more about being understood than being impressive.
And when they feel safe enough to name the emotion under the words?
That’s when the message rewrites itself.
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Final thought:
Every time someone says something confusing,
try asking yourself:
“What is the emotion underneath this?”
That’s where the real message lives.
That’s where healing begins.
Mark Gifford