July 14, 2025 • 40 mins
What if you could go from a completely blank page - or in this case, a blank poster board - to mapping out and practicing your signature talk… all in just one day?
That’s exactly what happened at our recent in-person Speaking Accelerator Workshop in Orlando, and in this episode, you’ll hear directly from three of the incredible women who participated: Lesline Pittman, Monica Mitchell, and Dr. Emma Jones.
You’ll get the behind-the-scenes scoop on what it’s like to go from idea to delivery in a single day (yes, it’s totally possible!) - including the unexpected improv exercises, vulnerable storytelling moments, and the real magic that happens when smart, passionate women come together to use their voice.
In this episode, we talk about:
-
Why each of them said “yes” to attending the workshop (even flying in from out of state!)
-
How they went from “Can I really do this in one day?” to confidently practicing their talk on stage
-
What it felt like to get feedback in real-time and push past perfectionism
-
The power of sharing personal stories
-
What they’re doing next with their talks and visibility efforts
You’ll also hear some powerful lessons about embracing vulnerability, escaping the “expert trap,” and why your story absolutely matters, even if others are talking about similar topics.
Whether you’ve been thinking about joining one of our in-person workshops or you just want some encouragement to get your own talk out of your head and into the world, this episode will inspire you to take that next bold step.
Our next 1-day Speaking Workshop is on October 30, 2025, in Downtown Orlando, Florida! If you’re ready to accelerate your growth as a speaker, gain hands-on feedback, and have a lot of fun, this is your chance. Learn more and grab your spot at https://www.SpeakingYourBrand.com/orlando/.
Links:
Show notes at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/435/
Video from the live show: https://youtube.com/live/ZH73ckePBdo
Discover your Speaker Archetype by taking our free quiz at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/quiz/
Attend our 1-day speaking workshop in Orlando: https://www.SpeakingYourBrand.com/orlando/
Enroll in our Thought Leader Academy: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/academy/
Connect on LinkedIn:
-
Carol Cox = https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolcox
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Emma Jones, MD = https://www.linkedin.com/in/emma-jones-mdcoach/
-
Monica Mitchell = https://www.linkedin.com/in/coachmjmitchell/
-
Lesline Pittman = https://www.linkedin.com/in/leslinepittman/
Related Podcast Episodes:
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Hear how you can go from a blank page to on
stage in just one day.
On this episode of the Speaking Your Brand
podcast. More and more women are making an
impact by starting businesses,
running for office, and speaking up for what
matters. With my background as a TV political
(00:21):
analyst. Entrepreneur and speaker,
I interview and coach purpose driven women to
shape their brands, grow their companies,
and become recognized as influencers in their
field. This is speaking your brand,
your place to learn how to persuasively
communicate your message to your audience.
(00:42):
Hi there and welcome to the Speaking Your
Brand podcast. I'm your host,
Carol Cox. This episode is the audio from a
live show that we did shortly after our most
recent one day speaking workshop in Orlando.
So you're going to hear from three of the
women who attended what it was like to create
their talk and practice it on our stage.
(01:03):
On that same day we had so much fun with lots
of hands on coaching and feedback,
fun activities and more.
If you would like to join us at our next One
Day speaking workshop,
you can get all the details as speaking your
brand. So again that speaking your brand.
So now let's get on with the show.
(01:26):
Hi there and welcome to backstage with
Speaking Your Brand. I'm your host Carol Cox.
Today we're going to talk about how to go
from a blank page.
And I literally mean a blank poster board to
having a signature talk mapped out and then
practicing it basically with zero preparation
and just one day.
(01:46):
Is it possible? Yes, it is,
because I have the proof right here with me.
These are three of the incredible women who
recently joined us for our one Day Speaking
Accelerator workshop in Orlando,
Florida. I invited them on because I wanted
them to share with you what it was like to
spend the day with us,
what they felt like they were going to do
before they got there, what the experience
(02:08):
was like, what they learned,
and what they're going to do next.
I'm going to have each of them introduce
themselves where they live,
what they do, and then we're going to dive in
to the questions. Lesline Pittman,
let me start with you.
Hi, Carol. Thank you so much for having me.
I'm excited to be here.
So yes, my name is Lesline Pittman. I live in
Orlando, Florida. I want to say here,
(02:30):
like everybody lives here.
Um, and I am a registered nurse who's also a
certified yoga instructor.
And I show new moms how to put themselves
first through yoga.
Fantastic. Monica Mitchell.
Welcome. Tell us about yourself.
Hi, Monica Mitchell.
Thanks also for having me.
Uh. So fun. Uh, such a great follow up to the
event. I'm from Charlotte,
(02:51):
North Carolina, and I'm a burnout prevention
and recovery coach.
I work with women business owners,
usually in the service industry,
and I help them transition from hustle to
harmony.
Oh, I love that. Yes, I know we all need
that. And Emma Jones, MD.
Tell us about where you live and what you do.
(03:12):
Yes. Hi everyone.
I am in the Boston area.
My name is Emma Jones.
Carol said that, um, I am a physician and
have worked with and do continue to work with
other health care professionals to help them
overcome burnout, as well as helping health
systems to design their systems so that
(03:32):
they're not causing so much burnout.
It's fascinating that the three of you that
were available to join me here today all are
in burnout and wellness.
So clearly this is a hot topic and maybe much
needed. I don't know if that's a good thing
or a bad thing that we all need burnout,
recovery, and assistance so much,
but at least we're all talking about at least
you all are all talking about it and helping
(03:54):
others. So Monica, you went through our
Thought Leader Academy online program that
was in was it 2022?
I think it might have been before that.
It was. It was a long time ago.
Yeah, it was definitely a few years ago. And
so you had worked with us already.
So what prompted you to decide that you
wanted to come to Orlando and do this one day
(04:16):
workshop with us?
Well, I had wanted to do one of your
in-person workshops even back then.
Um, and I ended up closing my business down
for a couple of years for a couple of
different reasons. And I started my business
back up recently, and I just knew one I
needed a signature talk to.
I wanted to work with you.
And about the same time I made that decision,
(04:36):
I got the email promoting the event and I
went. So like immediately there was no
question, no doubt I was ready and excited to
jump back in. So.
Okay, great. Well then we'll talk a little
bit about what the difference was like
working with us online versus in person.
Obviously a thought leader academy is over
eight weeks since it's not just one day.
(04:56):
And there's definitely advantages to both
different ways of delivery.
Emma, let me come to you.
So, Emma, you and I met through Katrina
Skinner, who runs the Women in Pediatrics
group, and she's fantastic.
She became a client of Speaking Your Brand
way back in 2020.
And I've done some storytelling workshops for
her group. And so we had met,
(05:18):
I think, actually in person last year when
you were at a conference here in Orlando.
So what prompted you to decide that this was
the time that you wanted to come do this one
day workshop with us?
Yeah. You know, I think that yes,
we had met I had done one of those
storytelling workshops for the speakers panel
on women in Pedes and obviously got hooked in
(05:39):
the way that you teach to think about talks,
you know, with the storytelling and drawing
people in and making it much more engaging
instead of just the data dump,
which is the way I had been trained to talk
in academia.
So that was very intriguing to me.
And then we did get to meet in person when I
was doing the book event.
And you were you were there as well.
(05:59):
Um, and then the real decision to come to
this event was that it was I'm really kind of
intentionally setting my public presence as
more of an intention for this year.
And so how I'm showing up online in basically
every time I'm in front of people speaking,
whether that's a two minute Instagram reel or
(06:20):
a longer teaching video or an in-person.
Really kind of taking that care so that it's
high impact and that I feel like your
approach of, you know,
it's not just the words you're saying or the
content of your talk, but kind of the way you
structure it and the way you weave in. The
storytelling was really resonating.
And a lot of people, when I said, I'm going
(06:41):
down to Orlando because I went in for one
day, I flew down the night before and I flew
back that night. I was in Orlando for less
than 24 hours. People were like,
this is crazy. Like, you're on stages all the
time. You already know how to talk.
Why do you even need to do this? And I was
like, no, no, no, it's not about that. It's
like a different way of communicating in a
different way. So those were the reasons why
(07:01):
it felt like the right time for me to jump
in.
All right. Great. I'm so glad that you were
there. And, Leslie, you're here with us in
Orlando, and I know that you know a woman,
Brittany Johnson, who had attended the one
that we did last fall.
And she had encouraged you to come to ours.
And so what finally made the decision for
you?
Yeah. Um, yeah.
(07:21):
Because when Brittany encouraged me, like you
said, it was last fall.
So here we are, like six months later.
And I was like, you know what? Um,
it was actually when, um,
Diane came to our last women on Their eyes
meeting. I've just lately kind of felt like
I'm in a, I guess, the expert trap.
Like you. Like you like to say,
Carole, where I can relate with Emma.
(07:44):
As a nurse, you're taught well.
You're not even taught to really publicly
speak as a nurse, so I'll say that.
But, um, I say all that to say,
I just, I call myself like, I'm a nurse, I'm
a nurse, I'm a nurse. And it's like people
they don't really like.
They care about it after they get to know me,
you know what I'm saying? But they want to
hear, like, from my heart,
(08:04):
right? And that's what drew me to what Diane
said, what you said and also what Brittany
said. I was like, okay, let me let me sign up
and see what this is about.
And yeah.
And was there anything, Leslie, that you were
nervous about or curious about before you did
the workshop?
Yeah. Um, though the main thing was only one
(08:29):
day, like, I think that that was the biggest
thing. I'm like, one day,
like, for real, like, y'all gonna get me
together in one day.
So even walking in, I still was like,
I don't know, like 8 to 5 goes by really
quick, you know?
And the way that you structured it,
I was after the first five minutes,
I was like, oh, okay, we're getting right
(08:50):
into this. So yeah.
Yeah. And and for those of you who are
watching this either live or on the replay,
and if you're here live or on the replay, say
hi to us. So this is our signature Talk
Canvas framework here with our the board,
which like I said, was blank when they
started. And then we guided them through
using our questions and prompts so that they
(09:11):
could write on the post-it notes and the
different colors depending on what they were
working on, and lay out their talk from
beginning to end. So, Monica,
I mentioned that you had done our Thought
Leader Academy online a few years ago,
and we generally do that process with the
board in a one on one VIP day where either
myself or Diane, we're asking you questions,
(09:33):
and then we write on all the post-it notes,
and then we lay it all out in that three hour
time that we're together. And so how did that
how did that compare to what you did with the
in the in person one day workshop?
It was very similar where you were giving the
prompts and we were, you know, obviously the
big difference was we were filling it out
instead of you guys. I think the biggest
(09:53):
difference was that we had that 1 to 1
interaction, where we were able to just jump
in and brainstorm a little bit,
and also the interaction with the other
people in the workshop.
So we would take a little break and you and
Diane were moving around the room. And while
that was happening, if we got stuck,
we were I was able to go to Emma and say,
(10:14):
Emma, what do you think about this? Or um,
you know, just anybody else in the group. It
was really great to be able to have that
extra interaction and perspective that we
wouldn't have had just in a Q&A with you too,
directly.
Um, I did notice that a lot that not only did
Diane and I float around to,
again, like, get you on stock or kind of give
(10:35):
you some of our perspective because we've
done this process literally hundreds of
times. So it's kind of like,
you know, we can like glance at it in zero in
like, oh, this move this here,
or I think you need to set this up first
before this part comes.
But then I noticed that you all were getting
feedback from each other,
which is what I loved seeing.
Now. Emma. I remember at the end of the
(10:56):
morning before lunch because we did this work
in the morning. I came to look at your board
and you talked me through it, and you had the
whole thing filled out.
I mean, it was so impressive.
So how did you feel going through the
process, and were you surprised that you got
it all filled out?
Yeah, I was, to be quite honest.
I mean, I was a little,
(11:17):
um, nervous, kind of like Leslie that.
Oh, am I really going to be able to do this
in this short of a time frame?
And also just in a ballroom,
like where we have post-it notes and a poster
board, right? Like, I don't have my books,
I don't have my resources that I can go and,
like, pull all my stuff from.
So I was really unsure,
but it just started coming out.
(11:40):
And of course, some of the stories were ones
that I've told before.
You know, I've pulled stuff that I've written
about in the book or talked about elsewhere.
Um, so I had a little bit of scaffolding,
but yeah, it was actually really shocking how
well things came together.
You talked us through the process really,
really well in terms of kind of putting the
(12:01):
landmarks in place.
Um, Carol teaches a little bit from back to
front, so I appreciated that.
You know, begin with the end in mind.
And so we were knowing where we were going.
And then that really helped me kind of think,
okay, this will be there.
I mean, visionary thinking is what I teach
and what I was making the talk about.
So to some extent I just sort of like ate my
(12:22):
own cooking. And I was like, if I have to
take the visionary lens to this,
how do I do that? You know,
think big, X small.
Um, so that but that was helpful.
Like not having my books and not being able
to like Google, everything was,
was actually helpful. I was I was afraid of
it, but it did actually free me to get
things, get my thoughts organized in a in
(12:44):
what I think is a much better way.
Well, and this is one of the things when I
was preparing for the workshop in my notes,
I put a note that said,
basically, we're going to go through this
pretty quickly. And but because we do that
because we don't want you to overthink and we
you need to kind of like get through the
process, get through the main elements on the
board. And then you can always go come back
(13:05):
and add details, add more details to stories
or add a client examples or what have you.
Because I feel like so many of the times we
get stuck because we are overthinking,
like, oh, let me go look at Google, let me go
read my, you know, 100 pages of Google Docs
like and ways that I have kept related to
whatever I'm speaking about. But then we
never get through the whole thing because we
(13:26):
get like analysis paralysis.
And so that's why I like either the VIP day
process, which is just three hours,
or this in person, because you really this is
what we always say, Diane and I is that you
know, your content and you know your stories.
We just give you the structure to get them
out of your head and into a format that you
(13:47):
can work with. So, Leslie,
let me come back to you and ask you about
after in the morning.
So in the morning everyone mapped out their
talk and then we had lunch.
And then after lunch we had you all get on
the stage and well, first we did some improv
activities and some improv games,
and then we had you actually have five
(14:09):
minutes each to share a segment of your talk,
either a story or say the beginning of your
talk. So, Leslie, let me first ask you about
the improv exercises that we did.
Have you ever done improv before,
and did you know we were going to do that?
And then how did you feel about it?
Um.
No, I had never done improv before.
(14:30):
And like, the only thing I know with improv
is like, whose line is it?
You know? Anyway, that show,
um, and watching comedy stuff myself and
like, you guys share that, which was nice,
but I had no, I didn't Brittany did not.
She left that detail out.
So, um, because I would have been like,
uh, what? You know, and after though,
(14:51):
it just felt. I felt so exhilarated.
Like it felt like, oh,
I can do this.
Like I can show up on the stage and think on
the spot because I feel like,
you know, like I could speak for myself.
Like, even though I do put out content on a
regular basis, I still be in my head a lot.
So this was a really good activity where it
(15:12):
was like, you just gotta you gotta do it.
Like Carol and Diane were like,
you just come on, just just say anything.
Anything. So that was good.
Yeah. I love the videos of all of you doing
the improv because it looks so silly.
But that is the point. Because I want us to
get comfortable, you know,
like being silly. Not because we're going to
(15:33):
be silly when we're standing in front of a
stage and, you know, in front of 100 or 500
or more people, but it's more like getting
reminding ourselves that we have bodies that
we can use when we're speaking.
It's not just saying up in our head.
Monica, what about you?
How did you feel about the improv?
Did you know we were going to do that and
what was the experience like?
I had heard about your previous workshops
(15:55):
where you had done it, and I was dreading the
whole way down. I was like,
she's gonna make us do improv.
How do I get out of it?
Like, I was ready to like,
oh, my tummy hurts, but I sucked it up.
I got in there and I think the thing for me
was just it reinforced that it was okay to
not be perfect and that nobody was going to
die and that nobody, like,
(16:16):
even if we laughed, we laughed because we
were having fun.
Um, but I think I just,
I get in my head a lot about needing to make
sure I get things right.
And so it just kind of released that for me,
and I, I had fun.
I don't want to do it again.
But but it was fun and I really appreciated
(16:37):
just the love and support from everybody
that, you know, we just had fun with it.
Nobody. Nobody got hurt.
Nobody died. It was great,
right?
Yes. Yeah. For sure.
And Emma, what about you?
Well, I definitely had no idea that.
But I'm not surprised because I have been in
other similar venues that are trying to,
like, get over stage fright or just get a
(16:57):
little out of your head where improv has is
been used as a technique.
And so it wasn't my first time.
Um, but it was a lot of fun.
You know, it was a lot of fun to do that.
I think improv is more fun to do than to
watch. I when I've gone to improv shows,
I'm kind of like, I'm not sure I get it,
but when you're actually doing it,
(17:18):
it is a lot of fun.
And so the reason that,
and for those of you watching and listening,
the reason we do improv again is to remind us
that we have bodies. Because as high
achieving women especially,
we spend so much time in our heads
overthinking, thinking about what is the
exact right word that I'm going to say next.
Or I want to make sure that,
you know, whatever I'm saying is perfectly
scripted. And of course,
(17:39):
improv is the opposite of that.
So I deliberately designed the workshop for
everyone to do the improv first,
and then come up and do their five minute
segment of their talk.
So. And how did that feel?
Did did you feel less less nervous coming up
to do the five minutes after that?
Yes. I think that both the improv exercises
(18:01):
and then the, the, the whole day that,
you know, we kind of had built some rapport
together. And so we we had a comfort level to
try out something new,
you know, and I did share a story that I had
never told out loud before.
Um, and I know a lot of people did that.
Um, so the both of those things made it very
(18:22):
comfortable of a container to be able to,
to test some things out,
which I think was really powerful.
And then the other thing that was great about
having that like five minutes live is that
you were giving us feedback.
And again, we already felt comfortable to get
we knew that you loved us and you wanted the
best for us. So when you were saying, I mean,
immediately right off the bat,
(18:43):
I had been talking for like half a minute and
y'all. And Carol was like, stop,
You're swaying.
And she had already given a lot of people
feedback about, like, weird movements.
So, like, I wasn't taken off guard by that.
And it was really helpful,
right? Instead of just, like, keep swaying
through the whole talk. And then she told me
at the end. So I did also think that was
really, really helpful.
(19:04):
Yes. And we and the reason we do the five
minutes is to give you enough time to kind of
spin out your story or what have you,
but so that we can notice the things that you
don't know necessarily that you're doing.
And we all do those things,
which is why I always recommend recording
yourself on video when you do speaking
engagements, because either sometimes people
sway or they kind of move their feet,
(19:25):
but not, but they kind of move it in a way
where it's not helpful.
Right? It's like kind of distracting to the
audience or like people play with their hair
quite a bit and they don't even realize that
they're doing that. So just little things
like that that are subconscious,
and we want you to feel more comfortable on
stage and own the stage and use it to your
advantage so that you're making a bigger
(19:45):
impact on your audience.
Now, Lesley-ann, I know that you had
mentioned in you had done a vlog on your
YouTube channel as you were preparing to come
to the workshop, which was so fun to watch
that as well.
And then you said at some point that and I
can relate to this a lot,
that like getting feedback in the moment can
sometimes feel hard, like,
(20:07):
you know, so but share a little bit about
what it felt like to get that feedback and,
and what you learned from it.
Yeah. I yeah.
I'm somebody I don't like feedback.
Um, and I know as a high achieving woman,
that can be something like, you're not
supposed to say that, but I don't,
and I can, um, get offended by it.
(20:28):
But you and Diane did a good job.
Like. Like I was saying in my vlog,
too, is like, you guys are the people that
are supposed to give me the feedback for,
for this what I, what I'm doing for with
speaking. And so when you gave me the
feedback, it felt very like,
um, I was very receptive to it because I
(20:48):
trust you, ladies.
And, um, and obviously you guys are very,
both very successful in what you do.
Um, but yeah, no feedback,
especially like how Emma was saying, like how
they would just like stop. And you're just
like, oh, God. But it wasn't like they're
just wanting us to be better.
And they see our potential,
which is also something that's very nice.
(21:09):
So I enjoyed the feedback.
Like the whole day, everything that you both
said was it was it was good.
It made me feel like, okay,
yeah, I maybe let me change this instead of
saying that or let me not,
you know, touch and make sure I don't touch
my chest. Because if there's a mic like
those, little things make all of the
(21:29):
difference.
Mhm. Yes. And well thank you Leslie.
And to, to all of you for taking the feedback
in stride. And I and I hope and this is what
we hope to do is because it's a small group
about 15 women is that we're creating that
kind of safe supportive environment where by
the time you're getting on the stage to
practice the five minutes,
(21:50):
you know, it's around 2 p.m.
in the afternoon. So we've had all of that
five plus hours together.
And to do that well, actually,
though, at the very beginning for
introductions in the morning, I had each of
you share an embarrassing story on the stage
in one minute. So that's how we roll.
Like we get you on the stage right away with
now everyone knows now who's listening to
(22:11):
this. They're going to know how to prepare
for it. So we're going to change it up for
next time. All right.
So Monica, let me come to you for a talk
about your five minute practice session.
Now, here's the thing is,
for those of you listening and watching, is
that when the women came up to do their five
minute session segment,
they had no notes, no slides,
(22:32):
no script, no little like papers that they're
holding on to. They weren't even looking at
their board that they had been working on
because like I said, you know, your content
and you know your stories.
And Monica, when you did your five minutes,
it was flawless.
Like it just streamed out of you.
And you remember coming onto the stage.
(22:52):
I was like, is that the first time you've
said, like, you've given this before? And
you're like, no, that was the first time. So
tell me about that.
I, I still you're I'm crying just thinking
about it because I think you guys just
created such an amazing environment to share
our passion and our gifts and to put that
(23:15):
into words and to create the environment
where we felt safe and comfortable and
confident sharing it with other people that,
um, you know, I, I have changed my business.
So this is a new kind of focus and a new
program for me. So I came in completely
unprepared, completely from scratch,
and, um, you know, had my outline but hadn't
(23:36):
really practiced any of,
of what I was saying.
So I got up and I was like,
y'all just bear with me.
And I was terrified. I was just shaking in my
boots. But because we had already laughed,
because we had already bonded,
because we had already gotten feedback and
and I knew nobody was going to die if I said
something wrong.
I just kind of went for it and just shared.
(23:57):
And, um, I think I kind of blacked out for a
few minutes. I don't remember it at all.
Um, but I just remember feeling so proud at
the end of it and and just safe.
I think that was really the biggest thing for
me. It was just safe to.
Even though I wasn't prepared, even though I
wasn't, um, or I didn't feel prepared even
(24:19):
though I it was brand new material and I was
just able to share from my heart and it felt
safe. And so that was that was my take away
from it.
Well, I feel like if you can do that, that
well, you can basically get in front of any
group and be totally fine.
Well, see.
Emma, let me come to you now.
(24:40):
So again, you mapped out your whole board.
It was beautiful.
And then you said that you had shared a story
for the first time in your five minute
segment. So why did you decide to share that
particular story?
And then how did it feel to go up there with,
you know, no notes or anything to to go on?
Yeah, the the choice of the story was
(25:03):
intentional.
Why did I choose to put it in the talk was a
little bit of that just kind of like magical
moment, kind of like Monica was talking
about, like, I don't know, it just sort of
came to me like, this story belongs here.
And the choice to use my five minutes to tell
that story, really, I wanted to get the value
of the feedback, you know,
and telling something that might be a little
(25:25):
bit hard to tell. I was telling the story
about a way a, you know,
a way that I thought I was doing something
right and it ended up being something wrong.
And, um, and the way that the harms came of
that and, you know, I don't know that that I
nailed it on the stage in the five minutes,
but I got it out in some version of it.
(25:45):
That started to take shape of like,
why am I telling this story?
What am I actually trying to say?
What details are necessary versus what
details are superfluous?
And, um, I wanted to kind of wrangle with
that around that story in particular,
because it is a central message.
You know, the central message of the story I
(26:06):
was telling was that I thought I was being a
good doctor by being constantly available to
my patients and giving them my cell phone
number and not making them see any of my
partners or anything like that.
And that really that ended up resulting in a
patient abandonment.
And that because so much of what I teach is
about the need for boundary setting and for
sort of calling out that martyrdom.
(26:29):
Um, I wanted I wanted to have like a really
clear story that was true and vulnerable and
that, like, I know I really lived this. I'm
not just preachy here.
And I remember your story and you know that
you were at Disney World and and what
happened because we remember stories.
So I remember your story,
and then I remember the lesson from it.
And so that's why especially the personal
(26:51):
stories are so powerful because they connect
you with your audience.
They build a sense of trust and rapport and
and that you're showing that your audience is
not alone, that they're not the only ones
experience. And especially for all of us,
again, who have degrees and credentials,
and we are up there as the expert
authorities. And a lot of times the audience
(27:11):
is like, she's not going to understand where
I'm at or she's not going to understand what
I'm been going through or have gone through.
But when you share a story like that and then
you draw the lesson for the audience,
or they take a lesson from it,
then all of a sudden they buy into the rest
of your talk, everything else you're going to
share with them, they're much more aligned.
They feel much more aligned with it.
(27:33):
Leslie, what about you?
You shared also a very personal,
heartfelt story in your practice session.
Why did you decide to share that one.
And how did it feel?
Yeah. Um, I wanted to share that story.
And the same thing that you already pretty
much said. Um, I just want,
like, more women to be seen.
And it's interesting because I've shared that
(27:55):
story before, but not but being more
prepared. Um, and the tools you guys gave me,
it's still like a hard story for me to share,
because, you know, I didn't know you all, and
I don't know how you're going to receive me.
And, you know, those all those those things
that I say in my head,
um, but I'm glad that I shared it,
(28:17):
you know? Um, so.
Yes. Well, I am glad to.
And I know all the women there were glad as
well. Did any of you experience what we call
a vulnerability hangover after the workshop?
Yes. Okay. So, Monica,
tell me about that.
I just went home and took a nap.
I went back to my B&B and I just,
like, face down, and I just,
(28:38):
like, passed out for a couple hours.
Yeah. It was I mean, it was.
Yeah, it was a it was a long day. Lots of
food though. We definitely. We kept you fed.
That's for sure. We did. We were definitely
fueled.
Please go eat.
More.
Food over there. All right.
Leslie, you raised your hand about the
vulnerability hangover.
Yeah, it's that's a good way to say it,
(28:59):
because it's like, right after I was on a
high. But that night, I was so tired.
Like, even the next day,
I was just like, why am I so tired?
Like, I didn't work out,
like, you know, like.
But no, it was it was a vulnerability.
Hangover is the perfect phrase to say for
sure. And I think also because that story
(29:19):
that I shared, like with my motherhood
journey, it even though it happened five
years ago and I've grown and evolved,
it's still a little part of me that like,
is still healing through that.
And um, and just like the judgment,
I think that's also what it is like when you
share a personal story,
being a thought leader being an expert like
(29:41):
we all are. You're afraid that,
like, you're going to get judged.
But like you mentioned,
that's how your audience will connect with
you. Which like as a health care
professional, that that kind of does the new
does like makes me like,
wait a minute. You're saying I got to be
vulnerable with my with,
like, my patients? Like,
that doesn't make sense.
But it does, you know,
(30:03):
because it really does help people remember
and relate.
I feel like that's the biggest thing. And
that's what for me, the audience that I'm
talking to, I want them to be able to relate
to me and not feel like I'm up here and
you're down there like I never I never want
people to feel like that because I know how
that feels.
Mhm. Yes. And and I remember the other women
(30:25):
who shared very personal stories and some of
them for the first time to any,
to anyone other than maybe,
you know, their, their close family members.
And we had a discussion about this idea that
your audience has to have earned your
vulnerability.
So that particular audience,
because you may have a story in your talk and
you may go and I say this,
(30:46):
you may go to an event and you kind of get
the vibe like, I don't really know if this
audience is quite aligned, or maybe there's
something else kind of going on and it just
doesn't feel like the right place,
the right group of people to share.
Maybe the really vulnerable details of the
story. So you can kind of still include the
story, but just kind of,
you know, give it kind of the broad brush to
(31:07):
get to the your next point or get to your
lesson versus another audience you may be in
front of, and you feel like this audience
will get it. They will they'll understand it,
and they will appreciate it in the sense that
it will help them in their own journey as
well, because they have earned your
vulnerability. So, Emma,
let me come to you and either ask you
(31:29):
anything about this idea of vulnerability,
hangovers, or audiences earning your
vulnerability. Or if you want to share,
what was your big takeaway from the workshop
that you from this day?
Yes. I didn't have to experience the
vulnerability hangover because we didn't put
it out into the world yet.
I will once this story becomes out there and
(31:52):
then responses happen.
That's I'm sure when the like,
oh Lord, what did I do?
We'll set in. Um, but one of the biggest ahas
for me was somewhere when we were mapping out
the talk, we had to write like some kind of a
challenging belief or something like that.
I don't remember exactly what the prompt was,
and I wrote one that was like,
(32:14):
people need boundaries.
And then I wrote another one that was like,
because they are self-righteous and martyrs.
And when I read it out loud,
I like, wanted to hide under my desk because
I was like, it's so judgmental and I don't
want to say that.
And then everybody in the room was like,
yes, that's it. That's what you need to be
saying. So that was kind of where my like
(32:35):
little vulnerability poke came that like my
true belief about the way I see the situation
needed to be revealed.
Whereas I prefer to kind of keep that under
wraps and say like, oh,
it's just, you know, just do these behaviors
and then everything will be fine,
you know? But like really saying, like, I see
you and the and then that led to the story
(32:58):
because like, I can see you because I'm also
seeing me like I was there too.
Yeah. And you gave a good piece of advice
that if we tell our own story that we,
we committed the same sin,
then it will make it less preachy and more
connecting.
Exactly. Because. Right.
If you go in front of an audience and
(33:19):
basically, like, wag your finger, like you
all are self-righteous and want to be
murderers, right? It's that your audience is
not really be very receptive to that.
But if you say like, I,
I felt like a martyr and I kind of liked it
until I realized it was harming me,
right? My own boundaries and the patients
that I was caring for.
(33:39):
Exactly.
Yeah. All right. Well,
thank you for sharing that. Emma. Lesley-ann.
What was your biggest takeaway from the
workshop?
Oh, that's a good question.
Um. My biggest takeaway would be.
Stop overthinking.
Like, just just just just you like you like
you ladies. The biggest takeaway, actually,
(34:01):
it might have be different with them when I
said on the vlog, but like,
right now, as you ask me,
is like, I already know this.
Like the story, like what you said in the
beginning of this conversation is like,
I know my story.
Like, nobody can tell my story but me,
and there are people out there that need to
hear it from me.
And with also, um, oh,
(34:22):
there was something else that you you said
and it just it slipped my mind.
Oh, it'll come back eventually.
But yeah, my story needs to be told like
that's the biggest thing. And my story
matters because I think that's something too,
is. Oh, that's what it is that like I also am
this like thing of oh, other people already
(34:43):
talking about yoga for new moms.
Like there's already other people doing the
thing like. Why?
Why do I need to share it?
Suzy already knows about this,
but no, Suzy doesn't know.
Like her algorithm is completely different
than my algorithm.
Like, obviously I'm going to be seeing yoga
stuff all day because of what I do,
(35:03):
right? Um, so getting out of that,
like, okay, I, I need to share this,
even if I'm seeing it,
I need to share this because there are people
that are following me that don't know about
breathing and stretching and the benefits,
blah, blah, blah.
Yes. And they and they,
for whatever reason, they're drawn to you.
(35:26):
Who you are versus other people are drawn to
someone else who maybe does similar things.
But that's also where your stories come in,
like your hard won life lessons.
You know, the personal experiences to share,
like why you or yourself are drawn to yoga
and what what it has done for you.
Monica, what was your number one takeaway
from the workshop?
I was right in line with Leslie.
(35:47):
That was exactly what I was going to say.
I remember having the conversation with you
when we were working on my my board saying,
I mean, this is just common sense.
Like, everybody knows this. There's three
other burnout people here. Everybody knows
about burnout. You know,
like, what am I sharing?
That's different. And it was the exact same
conversation. It was just,
you know, the different perspective, the
different tone, the different experience,
(36:09):
all of those things.
And so yeah, I'm exactly the same
overthinking. And then my,
my message does matter.
And there are people that need to hear it so.
Well, even just in this conversation here,
all three of you talk about burnout and
wellness, but in to different audiences and
(36:29):
very different ways, very different
frameworks and content and stories.
And so even though the umbrella topic seems
the same. It's it's dramatically different
under the surface.
Yeah. All right.
So Lesley-ann, what is next for you?
What are you doing? Speaking and visibility
wise.
Uh, posting my content on social media.
(36:52):
So continuing to show up boldly and loudly on
social media and.
Yeah, that that's.
It for now.
All right. How about pitching yourself for
some conferences?
Yes. Pitching myself so that I can,
so that I can do more speaking opportunities
and sharing my story.
(37:13):
Um, you know, to new moms and working moms.
So, yeah, pitching myself for sure.
Okay, great. Emma, what's next for you?
What are you working on?
I am working on building my online presence
in multiple channels through the social media
primarily, you know, primarily getting people
out there. I'm building a course called
(37:34):
Healthcare Visionary Academy so that I can
teach more healthcare workers how to think in
a visionary way and give them the skills to
do that. And then, yeah,
I'd love to, um, pitch and get on some sort
of healthcare conferences or speak at
hospitals that sort of where I'm looking to
the rooms that I want to get in,
if you will. And I think all of that through
(37:56):
the social media presence will get my name
out there so that when people are looking for
that, they'll they'll know to look for me.
And all of this storytelling works very well
for those formats.
The structure that you give us about how to
think about a talk, can I find it can work
very well for like any type of format.
(38:18):
So I'm just using that and re patterning it.
And my signature talk is going to be a
webinar very soon.
Okay. Well you'll have to let me know because
I would love to be able to see it.
Monica, what's what are you working on?
Speaking invisibility wise and in your
business?
I'm just going to copy them.
(38:40):
Uh, I am looking for, um.
I'm starting to work on developing some
relationships with strategic partners to
support their businesses by offering my
services. I'm looking for podcasts,
speaking engagements, conferences,
etc. just want to show off my new talk and
hopefully, you know, share my passion and
gift and experience to to help others.
(39:02):
But at the same time, I'm rolling out.
I just started promoting my new program,
the From Hustle to Harmony,
and I'm starting to pick up some clients and
do my work there, so I'm really excited about
that.
Wonderful. Well, make sure to connect with
Leslyn, Emma and Monica on LinkedIn.
Follow them there. Check out their websites
(39:22):
as well. And thank you so much for being here
on backstage with Speaking Your Brand.
And thank you so much for being part of our
Speaking Your Brand community.
I love it when I see you all interacting on
LinkedIn and supporting each other.
You know, we've had women in our community
who are meet up because they happen to be in
the same city or who have gone and flown to a
speaking engagement that one of the other
(39:44):
women in the community is speaking at.
So I just love seeing you all come together
and support each other.
So thank you so much.
And for those of you watching and listening,
if you would like to join us at our next One
Day Speaking Accelerator in Orlando,
go to Speaking Your Brand Orlando again that
speaking your brand Orlando.
(40:05):
Get on the interest list.
So when when we announce our next date for
this fall, you'll be the first to know.
Until next time, thanks for watching.
Hear how you can go from a blank page to on
stage in just one day.
On this episode of the Speaking Your Brand
podcast. More and more women are making an
impact by starting businesses,
running for office, and speaking up for what
matters. With my background as a TV political
(00:21):
analyst. Entrepreneur and speaker,
I interview and coach purpose driven women to
shape their brands, grow their companies,
and become recognized as influencers in their
field. This is speaking your brand,
your place to learn how to persuasively
communicate your message to your audience.
(00:42):
Hi there and welcome to the Speaking Your
Brand podcast. I'm your host,
Carol Cox. This episode is the audio from a
live show that we did shortly after our most
recent one day speaking workshop in Orlando.
So you're going to hear from three of the
women who attended what it was like to create
their talk and practice it on our stage.
(01:03):
On that same day we had so much fun with lots
of hands on coaching and feedback,
fun activities and more.
If you would like to join us at our next One
Day speaking workshop,
you can get all the details as speaking your
brand. So again that speaking your brand.
So now let's get on with the show.
(01:26):
Hi there and welcome to backstage with
Speaking Your Brand. I'm your host Carol Cox.
Today we're going to talk about how to go
from a blank page.
And I literally mean a blank poster board to
having a signature talk mapped out and then
practicing it basically with zero preparation
and just one day.
(01:46):
Is it possible? Yes, it is,
because I have the proof right here with me.
These are three of the incredible women who
recently joined us for our one Day Speaking
Accelerator workshop in Orlando,
Florida. I invited them on because I wanted
them to share with you what it was like to
spend the day with us,
what they felt like they were going to do
before they got there, what the experience
(02:08):
was like, what they learned,
and what they're going to do next.
I'm going to have each of them introduce
themselves where they live,
what they do, and then we're going to dive in
to the questions. Lesline Pittman,
let me start with you.
Hi, Carol. Thank you so much for having me.
I'm excited to be here.
So yes, my name is Lesline Pittman. I live in
Orlando, Florida. I want to say here,
(02:30):
like everybody lives here.
Um, and I am a registered nurse who's also a
certified yoga instructor.
And I show new moms how to put themselves
first through yoga.
Fantastic. Monica Mitchell.
Welcome. Tell us about yourself.
Hi, Monica Mitchell.
Thanks also for having me.
Uh. So fun. Uh, such a great follow up to the
event. I'm from Charlotte,
(02:51):
North Carolina, and I'm a burnout prevention
and recovery coach.
I work with women business owners,
usually in the service industry,
and I help them transition from hustle to
harmony.
Oh, I love that. Yes, I know we all need
that. And Emma Jones, MD.
Tell us about where you live and what you do.
(03:12):
Yes. Hi everyone.
I am in the Boston area.
My name is Emma Jones.
Carol said that, um, I am a physician and
have worked with and do continue to work with
other health care professionals to help them
overcome burnout, as well as helping health
systems to design their systems so that
(03:32):
they're not causing so much burnout.
It's fascinating that the three of you that
were available to join me here today all are
in burnout and wellness.
So clearly this is a hot topic and maybe much
needed. I don't know if that's a good thing
or a bad thing that we all need burnout,
recovery, and assistance so much,
but at least we're all talking about at least
you all are all talking about it and helping
(03:54):
others. So Monica, you went through our
Thought Leader Academy online program that
was in was it 2022?
I think it might have been before that.
It was. It was a long time ago.
Yeah, it was definitely a few years ago. And
so you had worked with us already.
So what prompted you to decide that you
wanted to come to Orlando and do this one day
(04:16):
workshop with us?
Well, I had wanted to do one of your
in-person workshops even back then.
Um, and I ended up closing my business down
for a couple of years for a couple of
different reasons. And I started my business
back up recently, and I just knew one I
needed a signature talk to.
I wanted to work with you.
And about the same time I made that decision,
(04:36):
I got the email promoting the event and I
went. So like immediately there was no
question, no doubt I was ready and excited to
jump back in. So.
Okay, great. Well then we'll talk a little
bit about what the difference was like
working with us online versus in person.
Obviously a thought leader academy is over
eight weeks since it's not just one day.
(04:56):
And there's definitely advantages to both
different ways of delivery.
Emma, let me come to you.
So, Emma, you and I met through Katrina
Skinner, who runs the Women in Pediatrics
group, and she's fantastic.
She became a client of Speaking Your Brand
way back in 2020.
And I've done some storytelling workshops for
her group. And so we had met,
(05:18):
I think, actually in person last year when
you were at a conference here in Orlando.
So what prompted you to decide that this was
the time that you wanted to come do this one
day workshop with us?
Yeah. You know, I think that yes,
we had met I had done one of those
storytelling workshops for the speakers panel
on women in Pedes and obviously got hooked in
(05:39):
the way that you teach to think about talks,
you know, with the storytelling and drawing
people in and making it much more engaging
instead of just the data dump,
which is the way I had been trained to talk
in academia.
So that was very intriguing to me.
And then we did get to meet in person when I
was doing the book event.
And you were you were there as well.
(05:59):
Um, and then the real decision to come to
this event was that it was I'm really kind of
intentionally setting my public presence as
more of an intention for this year.
And so how I'm showing up online in basically
every time I'm in front of people speaking,
whether that's a two minute Instagram reel or
(06:20):
a longer teaching video or an in-person.
Really kind of taking that care so that it's
high impact and that I feel like your
approach of, you know,
it's not just the words you're saying or the
content of your talk, but kind of the way you
structure it and the way you weave in. The
storytelling was really resonating.
And a lot of people, when I said, I'm going
(06:41):
down to Orlando because I went in for one
day, I flew down the night before and I flew
back that night. I was in Orlando for less
than 24 hours. People were like,
this is crazy. Like, you're on stages all the
time. You already know how to talk.
Why do you even need to do this? And I was
like, no, no, no, it's not about that. It's
like a different way of communicating in a
different way. So those were the reasons why
(07:01):
it felt like the right time for me to jump
in.
All right. Great. I'm so glad that you were
there. And, Leslie, you're here with us in
Orlando, and I know that you know a woman,
Brittany Johnson, who had attended the one
that we did last fall.
And she had encouraged you to come to ours.
And so what finally made the decision for
you?
Yeah. Um, yeah.
(07:21):
Because when Brittany encouraged me, like you
said, it was last fall.
So here we are, like six months later.
And I was like, you know what? Um,
it was actually when, um,
Diane came to our last women on Their eyes
meeting. I've just lately kind of felt like
I'm in a, I guess, the expert trap.
Like you. Like you like to say,
Carole, where I can relate with Emma.
(07:44):
As a nurse, you're taught well.
You're not even taught to really publicly
speak as a nurse, so I'll say that.
But, um, I say all that to say,
I just, I call myself like, I'm a nurse, I'm
a nurse, I'm a nurse. And it's like people
they don't really like.
They care about it after they get to know me,
you know what I'm saying? But they want to
hear, like, from my heart,
(08:04):
right? And that's what drew me to what Diane
said, what you said and also what Brittany
said. I was like, okay, let me let me sign up
and see what this is about.
And yeah.
And was there anything, Leslie, that you were
nervous about or curious about before you did
the workshop?
Yeah. Um, though the main thing was only one
(08:29):
day, like, I think that that was the biggest
thing. I'm like, one day,
like, for real, like, y'all gonna get me
together in one day.
So even walking in, I still was like,
I don't know, like 8 to 5 goes by really
quick, you know?
And the way that you structured it,
I was after the first five minutes,
I was like, oh, okay, we're getting right
(08:50):
into this. So yeah.
Yeah. And and for those of you who are
watching this either live or on the replay,
and if you're here live or on the replay, say
hi to us. So this is our signature Talk
Canvas framework here with our the board,
which like I said, was blank when they
started. And then we guided them through
using our questions and prompts so that they
(09:11):
could write on the post-it notes and the
different colors depending on what they were
working on, and lay out their talk from
beginning to end. So, Monica,
I mentioned that you had done our Thought
Leader Academy online a few years ago,
and we generally do that process with the
board in a one on one VIP day where either
myself or Diane, we're asking you questions,
(09:33):
and then we write on all the post-it notes,
and then we lay it all out in that three hour
time that we're together. And so how did that
how did that compare to what you did with the
in the in person one day workshop?
It was very similar where you were giving the
prompts and we were, you know, obviously the
big difference was we were filling it out
instead of you guys. I think the biggest
(09:53):
difference was that we had that 1 to 1
interaction, where we were able to just jump
in and brainstorm a little bit,
and also the interaction with the other
people in the workshop.
So we would take a little break and you and
Diane were moving around the room. And while
that was happening, if we got stuck,
we were I was able to go to Emma and say,
(10:14):
Emma, what do you think about this? Or um,
you know, just anybody else in the group. It
was really great to be able to have that
extra interaction and perspective that we
wouldn't have had just in a Q&A with you too,
directly.
Um, I did notice that a lot that not only did
Diane and I float around to,
again, like, get you on stock or kind of give
(10:35):
you some of our perspective because we've
done this process literally hundreds of
times. So it's kind of like,
you know, we can like glance at it in zero in
like, oh, this move this here,
or I think you need to set this up first
before this part comes.
But then I noticed that you all were getting
feedback from each other,
which is what I loved seeing.
Now. Emma. I remember at the end of the
(10:56):
morning before lunch because we did this work
in the morning. I came to look at your board
and you talked me through it, and you had the
whole thing filled out.
I mean, it was so impressive.
So how did you feel going through the
process, and were you surprised that you got
it all filled out?
Yeah, I was, to be quite honest.
I mean, I was a little,
(11:17):
um, nervous, kind of like Leslie that.
Oh, am I really going to be able to do this
in this short of a time frame?
And also just in a ballroom,
like where we have post-it notes and a poster
board, right? Like, I don't have my books,
I don't have my resources that I can go and,
like, pull all my stuff from.
So I was really unsure,
but it just started coming out.
(11:40):
And of course, some of the stories were ones
that I've told before.
You know, I've pulled stuff that I've written
about in the book or talked about elsewhere.
Um, so I had a little bit of scaffolding,
but yeah, it was actually really shocking how
well things came together.
You talked us through the process really,
really well in terms of kind of putting the
(12:01):
landmarks in place.
Um, Carol teaches a little bit from back to
front, so I appreciated that.
You know, begin with the end in mind.
And so we were knowing where we were going.
And then that really helped me kind of think,
okay, this will be there.
I mean, visionary thinking is what I teach
and what I was making the talk about.
So to some extent I just sort of like ate my
(12:22):
own cooking. And I was like, if I have to
take the visionary lens to this,
how do I do that? You know,
think big, X small.
Um, so that but that was helpful.
Like not having my books and not being able
to like Google, everything was,
was actually helpful. I was I was afraid of
it, but it did actually free me to get
things, get my thoughts organized in a in
(12:44):
what I think is a much better way.
Well, and this is one of the things when I
was preparing for the workshop in my notes,
I put a note that said,
basically, we're going to go through this
pretty quickly. And but because we do that
because we don't want you to overthink and we
you need to kind of like get through the
process, get through the main elements on the
board. And then you can always go come back
(13:05):
and add details, add more details to stories
or add a client examples or what have you.
Because I feel like so many of the times we
get stuck because we are overthinking,
like, oh, let me go look at Google, let me go
read my, you know, 100 pages of Google Docs
like and ways that I have kept related to
whatever I'm speaking about. But then we
never get through the whole thing because we
(13:26):
get like analysis paralysis.
And so that's why I like either the VIP day
process, which is just three hours,
or this in person, because you really this is
what we always say, Diane and I is that you
know, your content and you know your stories.
We just give you the structure to get them
out of your head and into a format that you
(13:47):
can work with. So, Leslie,
let me come back to you and ask you about
after in the morning.
So in the morning everyone mapped out their
talk and then we had lunch.
And then after lunch we had you all get on
the stage and well, first we did some improv
activities and some improv games,
and then we had you actually have five
(14:09):
minutes each to share a segment of your talk,
either a story or say the beginning of your
talk. So, Leslie, let me first ask you about
the improv exercises that we did.
Have you ever done improv before,
and did you know we were going to do that?
And then how did you feel about it?
Um.
No, I had never done improv before.
(14:30):
And like, the only thing I know with improv
is like, whose line is it?
You know? Anyway, that show,
um, and watching comedy stuff myself and
like, you guys share that, which was nice,
but I had no, I didn't Brittany did not.
She left that detail out.
So, um, because I would have been like,
uh, what? You know, and after though,
(14:51):
it just felt. I felt so exhilarated.
Like it felt like, oh,
I can do this.
Like I can show up on the stage and think on
the spot because I feel like,
you know, like I could speak for myself.
Like, even though I do put out content on a
regular basis, I still be in my head a lot.
So this was a really good activity where it
(15:12):
was like, you just gotta you gotta do it.
Like Carol and Diane were like,
you just come on, just just say anything.
Anything. So that was good.
Yeah. I love the videos of all of you doing
the improv because it looks so silly.
But that is the point. Because I want us to
get comfortable, you know,
like being silly. Not because we're going to
(15:33):
be silly when we're standing in front of a
stage and, you know, in front of 100 or 500
or more people, but it's more like getting
reminding ourselves that we have bodies that
we can use when we're speaking.
It's not just saying up in our head.
Monica, what about you?
How did you feel about the improv?
Did you know we were going to do that and
what was the experience like?
I had heard about your previous workshops
(15:55):
where you had done it, and I was dreading the
whole way down. I was like,
she's gonna make us do improv.
How do I get out of it?
Like, I was ready to like,
oh, my tummy hurts, but I sucked it up.
I got in there and I think the thing for me
was just it reinforced that it was okay to
not be perfect and that nobody was going to
die and that nobody, like,
(16:16):
even if we laughed, we laughed because we
were having fun.
Um, but I think I just,
I get in my head a lot about needing to make
sure I get things right.
And so it just kind of released that for me,
and I, I had fun.
I don't want to do it again.
But but it was fun and I really appreciated
(16:37):
just the love and support from everybody
that, you know, we just had fun with it.
Nobody. Nobody got hurt.
Nobody died. It was great,
right?
Yes. Yeah. For sure.
And Emma, what about you?
Well, I definitely had no idea that.
But I'm not surprised because I have been in
other similar venues that are trying to,
like, get over stage fright or just get a
(16:57):
little out of your head where improv has is
been used as a technique.
And so it wasn't my first time.
Um, but it was a lot of fun.
You know, it was a lot of fun to do that.
I think improv is more fun to do than to
watch. I when I've gone to improv shows,
I'm kind of like, I'm not sure I get it,
but when you're actually doing it,
(17:18):
it is a lot of fun.
And so the reason that,
and for those of you watching and listening,
the reason we do improv again is to remind us
that we have bodies. Because as high
achieving women especially,
we spend so much time in our heads
overthinking, thinking about what is the
exact right word that I'm going to say next.
Or I want to make sure that,
you know, whatever I'm saying is perfectly
scripted. And of course,
(17:39):
improv is the opposite of that.
So I deliberately designed the workshop for
everyone to do the improv first,
and then come up and do their five minute
segment of their talk.
So. And how did that feel?
Did did you feel less less nervous coming up
to do the five minutes after that?
Yes. I think that both the improv exercises
(18:01):
and then the, the, the whole day that,
you know, we kind of had built some rapport
together. And so we we had a comfort level to
try out something new,
you know, and I did share a story that I had
never told out loud before.
Um, and I know a lot of people did that.
Um, so the both of those things made it very
(18:22):
comfortable of a container to be able to,
to test some things out,
which I think was really powerful.
And then the other thing that was great about
having that like five minutes live is that
you were giving us feedback.
And again, we already felt comfortable to get
we knew that you loved us and you wanted the
best for us. So when you were saying, I mean,
immediately right off the bat,
(18:43):
I had been talking for like half a minute and
y'all. And Carol was like, stop,
You're swaying.
And she had already given a lot of people
feedback about, like, weird movements.
So, like, I wasn't taken off guard by that.
And it was really helpful,
right? Instead of just, like, keep swaying
through the whole talk. And then she told me
at the end. So I did also think that was
really, really helpful.
(19:04):
Yes. And we and the reason we do the five
minutes is to give you enough time to kind of
spin out your story or what have you,
but so that we can notice the things that you
don't know necessarily that you're doing.
And we all do those things,
which is why I always recommend recording
yourself on video when you do speaking
engagements, because either sometimes people
sway or they kind of move their feet,
(19:25):
but not, but they kind of move it in a way
where it's not helpful.
Right? It's like kind of distracting to the
audience or like people play with their hair
quite a bit and they don't even realize that
they're doing that. So just little things
like that that are subconscious,
and we want you to feel more comfortable on
stage and own the stage and use it to your
advantage so that you're making a bigger
(19:45):
impact on your audience.
Now, Lesley-ann, I know that you had
mentioned in you had done a vlog on your
YouTube channel as you were preparing to come
to the workshop, which was so fun to watch
that as well.
And then you said at some point that and I
can relate to this a lot,
that like getting feedback in the moment can
sometimes feel hard, like,
(20:07):
you know, so but share a little bit about
what it felt like to get that feedback and,
and what you learned from it.
Yeah. I yeah.
I'm somebody I don't like feedback.
Um, and I know as a high achieving woman,
that can be something like, you're not
supposed to say that, but I don't,
and I can, um, get offended by it.
(20:28):
But you and Diane did a good job.
Like. Like I was saying in my vlog,
too, is like, you guys are the people that
are supposed to give me the feedback for,
for this what I, what I'm doing for with
speaking. And so when you gave me the
feedback, it felt very like,
um, I was very receptive to it because I
(20:48):
trust you, ladies.
And, um, and obviously you guys are very,
both very successful in what you do.
Um, but yeah, no feedback,
especially like how Emma was saying, like how
they would just like stop. And you're just
like, oh, God. But it wasn't like they're
just wanting us to be better.
And they see our potential,
which is also something that's very nice.
(21:09):
So I enjoyed the feedback.
Like the whole day, everything that you both
said was it was it was good.
It made me feel like, okay,
yeah, I maybe let me change this instead of
saying that or let me not,
you know, touch and make sure I don't touch
my chest. Because if there's a mic like
those, little things make all of the
(21:29):
difference.
Mhm. Yes. And well thank you Leslie.
And to, to all of you for taking the feedback
in stride. And I and I hope and this is what
we hope to do is because it's a small group
about 15 women is that we're creating that
kind of safe supportive environment where by
the time you're getting on the stage to
practice the five minutes,
(21:50):
you know, it's around 2 p.m.
in the afternoon. So we've had all of that
five plus hours together.
And to do that well, actually,
though, at the very beginning for
introductions in the morning, I had each of
you share an embarrassing story on the stage
in one minute. So that's how we roll.
Like we get you on the stage right away with
now everyone knows now who's listening to
(22:11):
this. They're going to know how to prepare
for it. So we're going to change it up for
next time. All right.
So Monica, let me come to you for a talk
about your five minute practice session.
Now, here's the thing is,
for those of you listening and watching, is
that when the women came up to do their five
minute session segment,
they had no notes, no slides,
(22:32):
no script, no little like papers that they're
holding on to. They weren't even looking at
their board that they had been working on
because like I said, you know, your content
and you know your stories.
And Monica, when you did your five minutes,
it was flawless.
Like it just streamed out of you.
And you remember coming onto the stage.
(22:52):
I was like, is that the first time you've
said, like, you've given this before? And
you're like, no, that was the first time. So
tell me about that.
I, I still you're I'm crying just thinking
about it because I think you guys just
created such an amazing environment to share
our passion and our gifts and to put that
(23:15):
into words and to create the environment
where we felt safe and comfortable and
confident sharing it with other people that,
um, you know, I, I have changed my business.
So this is a new kind of focus and a new
program for me. So I came in completely
unprepared, completely from scratch,
and, um, you know, had my outline but hadn't
(23:36):
really practiced any of,
of what I was saying.
So I got up and I was like,
y'all just bear with me.
And I was terrified. I was just shaking in my
boots. But because we had already laughed,
because we had already bonded,
because we had already gotten feedback and
and I knew nobody was going to die if I said
something wrong.
I just kind of went for it and just shared.
(23:57):
And, um, I think I kind of blacked out for a
few minutes. I don't remember it at all.
Um, but I just remember feeling so proud at
the end of it and and just safe.
I think that was really the biggest thing for
me. It was just safe to.
Even though I wasn't prepared, even though I
wasn't, um, or I didn't feel prepared even
(24:19):
though I it was brand new material and I was
just able to share from my heart and it felt
safe. And so that was that was my take away
from it.
Well, I feel like if you can do that, that
well, you can basically get in front of any
group and be totally fine.
Well, see.
Emma, let me come to you now.
(24:40):
So again, you mapped out your whole board.
It was beautiful.
And then you said that you had shared a story
for the first time in your five minute
segment. So why did you decide to share that
particular story?
And then how did it feel to go up there with,
you know, no notes or anything to to go on?
Yeah, the the choice of the story was
(25:03):
intentional.
Why did I choose to put it in the talk was a
little bit of that just kind of like magical
moment, kind of like Monica was talking
about, like, I don't know, it just sort of
came to me like, this story belongs here.
And the choice to use my five minutes to tell
that story, really, I wanted to get the value
of the feedback, you know,
and telling something that might be a little
(25:25):
bit hard to tell. I was telling the story
about a way a, you know,
a way that I thought I was doing something
right and it ended up being something wrong.
And, um, and the way that the harms came of
that and, you know, I don't know that that I
nailed it on the stage in the five minutes,
but I got it out in some version of it.
(25:45):
That started to take shape of like,
why am I telling this story?
What am I actually trying to say?
What details are necessary versus what
details are superfluous?
And, um, I wanted to kind of wrangle with
that around that story in particular,
because it is a central message.
You know, the central message of the story I
(26:06):
was telling was that I thought I was being a
good doctor by being constantly available to
my patients and giving them my cell phone
number and not making them see any of my
partners or anything like that.
And that really that ended up resulting in a
patient abandonment.
And that because so much of what I teach is
about the need for boundary setting and for
sort of calling out that martyrdom.
(26:29):
Um, I wanted I wanted to have like a really
clear story that was true and vulnerable and
that, like, I know I really lived this. I'm
not just preachy here.
And I remember your story and you know that
you were at Disney World and and what
happened because we remember stories.
So I remember your story,
and then I remember the lesson from it.
And so that's why especially the personal
(26:51):
stories are so powerful because they connect
you with your audience.
They build a sense of trust and rapport and
and that you're showing that your audience is
not alone, that they're not the only ones
experience. And especially for all of us,
again, who have degrees and credentials,
and we are up there as the expert
authorities. And a lot of times the audience
(27:11):
is like, she's not going to understand where
I'm at or she's not going to understand what
I'm been going through or have gone through.
But when you share a story like that and then
you draw the lesson for the audience,
or they take a lesson from it,
then all of a sudden they buy into the rest
of your talk, everything else you're going to
share with them, they're much more aligned.
They feel much more aligned with it.
(27:33):
Leslie, what about you?
You shared also a very personal,
heartfelt story in your practice session.
Why did you decide to share that one.
And how did it feel?
Yeah. Um, I wanted to share that story.
And the same thing that you already pretty
much said. Um, I just want,
like, more women to be seen.
And it's interesting because I've shared that
(27:55):
story before, but not but being more
prepared. Um, and the tools you guys gave me,
it's still like a hard story for me to share,
because, you know, I didn't know you all, and
I don't know how you're going to receive me.
And, you know, those all those those things
that I say in my head,
um, but I'm glad that I shared it,
(28:17):
you know? Um, so.
Yes. Well, I am glad to.
And I know all the women there were glad as
well. Did any of you experience what we call
a vulnerability hangover after the workshop?
Yes. Okay. So, Monica,
tell me about that.
I just went home and took a nap.
I went back to my B&B and I just,
like, face down, and I just,
(28:38):
like, passed out for a couple hours.
Yeah. It was I mean, it was.
Yeah, it was a it was a long day. Lots of
food though. We definitely. We kept you fed.
That's for sure. We did. We were definitely
fueled.
Please go eat.
More.
Food over there. All right.
Leslie, you raised your hand about the
vulnerability hangover.
Yeah, it's that's a good way to say it,
(28:59):
because it's like, right after I was on a
high. But that night, I was so tired.
Like, even the next day,
I was just like, why am I so tired?
Like, I didn't work out,
like, you know, like.
But no, it was it was a vulnerability.
Hangover is the perfect phrase to say for
sure. And I think also because that story
(29:19):
that I shared, like with my motherhood
journey, it even though it happened five
years ago and I've grown and evolved,
it's still a little part of me that like,
is still healing through that.
And um, and just like the judgment,
I think that's also what it is like when you
share a personal story,
being a thought leader being an expert like
(29:41):
we all are. You're afraid that,
like, you're going to get judged.
But like you mentioned,
that's how your audience will connect with
you. Which like as a health care
professional, that that kind of does the new
does like makes me like,
wait a minute. You're saying I got to be
vulnerable with my with,
like, my patients? Like,
that doesn't make sense.
But it does, you know,
(30:03):
because it really does help people remember
and relate.
I feel like that's the biggest thing. And
that's what for me, the audience that I'm
talking to, I want them to be able to relate
to me and not feel like I'm up here and
you're down there like I never I never want
people to feel like that because I know how
that feels.
Mhm. Yes. And and I remember the other women
(30:25):
who shared very personal stories and some of
them for the first time to any,
to anyone other than maybe,
you know, their, their close family members.
And we had a discussion about this idea that
your audience has to have earned your
vulnerability.
So that particular audience,
because you may have a story in your talk and
you may go and I say this,
(30:46):
you may go to an event and you kind of get
the vibe like, I don't really know if this
audience is quite aligned, or maybe there's
something else kind of going on and it just
doesn't feel like the right place,
the right group of people to share.
Maybe the really vulnerable details of the
story. So you can kind of still include the
story, but just kind of,
you know, give it kind of the broad brush to
(31:07):
get to the your next point or get to your
lesson versus another audience you may be in
front of, and you feel like this audience
will get it. They will they'll understand it,
and they will appreciate it in the sense that
it will help them in their own journey as
well, because they have earned your
vulnerability. So, Emma,
let me come to you and either ask you
(31:29):
anything about this idea of vulnerability,
hangovers, or audiences earning your
vulnerability. Or if you want to share,
what was your big takeaway from the workshop
that you from this day?
Yes. I didn't have to experience the
vulnerability hangover because we didn't put
it out into the world yet.
I will once this story becomes out there and
(31:52):
then responses happen.
That's I'm sure when the like,
oh Lord, what did I do?
We'll set in. Um, but one of the biggest ahas
for me was somewhere when we were mapping out
the talk, we had to write like some kind of a
challenging belief or something like that.
I don't remember exactly what the prompt was,
and I wrote one that was like,
(32:14):
people need boundaries.
And then I wrote another one that was like,
because they are self-righteous and martyrs.
And when I read it out loud,
I like, wanted to hide under my desk because
I was like, it's so judgmental and I don't
want to say that.
And then everybody in the room was like,
yes, that's it. That's what you need to be
saying. So that was kind of where my like
(32:35):
little vulnerability poke came that like my
true belief about the way I see the situation
needed to be revealed.
Whereas I prefer to kind of keep that under
wraps and say like, oh,
it's just, you know, just do these behaviors
and then everything will be fine,
you know? But like really saying, like, I see
you and the and then that led to the story
(32:58):
because like, I can see you because I'm also
seeing me like I was there too.
Yeah. And you gave a good piece of advice
that if we tell our own story that we,
we committed the same sin,
then it will make it less preachy and more
connecting.
Exactly. Because. Right.
If you go in front of an audience and
(33:19):
basically, like, wag your finger, like you
all are self-righteous and want to be
murderers, right? It's that your audience is
not really be very receptive to that.
But if you say like, I,
I felt like a martyr and I kind of liked it
until I realized it was harming me,
right? My own boundaries and the patients
that I was caring for.
(33:39):
Exactly.
Yeah. All right. Well,
thank you for sharing that. Emma. Lesley-ann.
What was your biggest takeaway from the
workshop?
Oh, that's a good question.
Um. My biggest takeaway would be.
Stop overthinking.
Like, just just just just you like you like
you ladies. The biggest takeaway, actually,
(34:01):
it might have be different with them when I
said on the vlog, but like,
right now, as you ask me,
is like, I already know this.
Like the story, like what you said in the
beginning of this conversation is like,
I know my story.
Like, nobody can tell my story but me,
and there are people out there that need to
hear it from me.
And with also, um, oh,
(34:22):
there was something else that you you said
and it just it slipped my mind.
Oh, it'll come back eventually.
But yeah, my story needs to be told like
that's the biggest thing. And my story
matters because I think that's something too,
is. Oh, that's what it is that like I also am
this like thing of oh, other people already
(34:43):
talking about yoga for new moms.
Like there's already other people doing the
thing like. Why?
Why do I need to share it?
Suzy already knows about this,
but no, Suzy doesn't know.
Like her algorithm is completely different
than my algorithm.
Like, obviously I'm going to be seeing yoga
stuff all day because of what I do,
(35:03):
right? Um, so getting out of that,
like, okay, I, I need to share this,
even if I'm seeing it,
I need to share this because there are people
that are following me that don't know about
breathing and stretching and the benefits,
blah, blah, blah.
Yes. And they and they,
for whatever reason, they're drawn to you.
(35:26):
Who you are versus other people are drawn to
someone else who maybe does similar things.
But that's also where your stories come in,
like your hard won life lessons.
You know, the personal experiences to share,
like why you or yourself are drawn to yoga
and what what it has done for you.
Monica, what was your number one takeaway
from the workshop?
I was right in line with Leslie.
(35:47):
That was exactly what I was going to say.
I remember having the conversation with you
when we were working on my my board saying,
I mean, this is just common sense.
Like, everybody knows this. There's three
other burnout people here. Everybody knows
about burnout. You know,
like, what am I sharing?
That's different. And it was the exact same
conversation. It was just,
you know, the different perspective, the
different tone, the different experience,
(36:09):
all of those things.
And so yeah, I'm exactly the same
overthinking. And then my,
my message does matter.
And there are people that need to hear it so.
Well, even just in this conversation here,
all three of you talk about burnout and
wellness, but in to different audiences and
(36:29):
very different ways, very different
frameworks and content and stories.
And so even though the umbrella topic seems
the same. It's it's dramatically different
under the surface.
Yeah. All right.
So Lesley-ann, what is next for you?
What are you doing? Speaking and visibility
wise.
Uh, posting my content on social media.
(36:52):
So continuing to show up boldly and loudly on
social media and.
Yeah, that that's.
It for now.
All right. How about pitching yourself for
some conferences?
Yes. Pitching myself so that I can,
so that I can do more speaking opportunities
and sharing my story.
(37:13):
Um, you know, to new moms and working moms.
So, yeah, pitching myself for sure.
Okay, great. Emma, what's next for you?
What are you working on?
I am working on building my online presence
in multiple channels through the social media
primarily, you know, primarily getting people
out there. I'm building a course called
(37:34):
Healthcare Visionary Academy so that I can
teach more healthcare workers how to think in
a visionary way and give them the skills to
do that. And then, yeah,
I'd love to, um, pitch and get on some sort
of healthcare conferences or speak at
hospitals that sort of where I'm looking to
the rooms that I want to get in,
if you will. And I think all of that through
(37:56):
the social media presence will get my name
out there so that when people are looking for
that, they'll they'll know to look for me.
And all of this storytelling works very well
for those formats.
The structure that you give us about how to
think about a talk, can I find it can work
very well for like any type of format.
(38:18):
So I'm just using that and re patterning it.
And my signature talk is going to be a
webinar very soon.
Okay. Well you'll have to let me know because
I would love to be able to see it.
Monica, what's what are you working on?
Speaking invisibility wise and in your
business?
I'm just going to copy them.
(38:40):
Uh, I am looking for, um.
I'm starting to work on developing some
relationships with strategic partners to
support their businesses by offering my
services. I'm looking for podcasts,
speaking engagements, conferences,
etc. just want to show off my new talk and
hopefully, you know, share my passion and
gift and experience to to help others.
(39:02):
But at the same time, I'm rolling out.
I just started promoting my new program,
the From Hustle to Harmony,
and I'm starting to pick up some clients and
do my work there, so I'm really excited about
that.
Wonderful. Well, make sure to connect with
Leslyn, Emma and Monica on LinkedIn.
Follow them there. Check out their websites
(39:22):
as well. And thank you so much for being here
on backstage with Speaking Your Brand.
And thank you so much for being part of our
Speaking Your Brand community.
I love it when I see you all interacting on
LinkedIn and supporting each other.
You know, we've had women in our community
who are meet up because they happen to be in
the same city or who have gone and flown to a
speaking engagement that one of the other
(39:44):
women in the community is speaking at.
So I just love seeing you all come together
and support each other.
So thank you so much.
And for those of you watching and listening,
if you would like to join us at our next One
Day Speaking Accelerator in Orlando,
go to Speaking Your Brand Orlando again that
speaking your brand Orlando.
(40:05):
Get on the interest list.
So when when we announce our next date for
this fall, you'll be the first to know.
Until next time, thanks for watching.
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