As a speaker, there are many fears one can have. Forgetting your words. Failing to connect with an audience. And for me, my greatest fear has always been—losing my voice for a speaking gig. By the end of my first day of The Spotlight MasterTreat 2018, a few weekends ago, I had no voice. And if you were there, you …
Use Your Voice to Create Opportunities for Others
I’m often asked how I wound up speaking at the United Nations during the Commission on the Status of Women. The answer is simple—a graduate of my Your Spotlight Talk program recommended me. One of my juiciest corporate speaking and consulting contracts came from another alum of that same program. Curious about how I get interviewed on CNN with a …
2 Truths and 1 Lie About Thought Leadership
I recently led a virtual half-day retreat for the women in my Spotlight Speakers Collective. We talked about how to transition from thinking of ourselves as speakers, business owners, and influencers to thought leaders building movements that go beyond presentations, training, programs, and individual client offerings. We explored how to create larger ripples of impact through brand partnerships, physical product …
Speaking lessons from leading my mastermind
One of the many things I love about December professionally (in addition to the two week break I take over the holidays to rest and restore before opening enrollment for my virtual speaker coaching program in early-January each year), is leading the women in my Spotlight Speakers Collective for a MasterTreat™ weekend. (If you’ve never been to one of my …
Can your coach give you the speaking career (and biz) you crave?
What got you to where you are—it won’t get you to where you want to be. I shared these words with my women at The Spotlight MasterTreat a few weeks ago. Aren’t they an inspired looking bunch?! The mindset, habits, skills and relationships that get you to your first level of success (whether you define that by number of …
How to find freedom as a speaker (and in biz) – interview with Natalie Sisson
Up until 4 years ago, building a business around speaking and training DID NOT amplify my freedom. Rather, it got me in my way of it. I felt like I was constantly waiting for an HR leader or event planner to get back to me and let me know if I was the chosen one for an opportunity. I selected …
Want to dress for success on stage?
I’ve anticipated this week for a loooooooong time. The 10 women in the inaugural cohort of the Spotlight Speakers Collective are heading to Las Vegas to spend several days with me developing their speaking skills, masterminding around their speaking and business goals, and developing their speaking reels. 1 of the 10 reasons I’m overjoyed to be pouring all of myself …
How to Start a Mastermind Group (or High-Ticket Coaching Program)
Since 2016, I’ve led a high-ticket coaching program, the Spotlight Speakers Collective. A 9-month mastermind for female entrepreneurs and change makers who want to use speaking and live events to grow their businesses and advance their thought leadership, the Spotlight Speakers Collective is unlike anything else in the marketplace. Fusing individual and group coaching, copywriting clinics, support with backend systems …
How I’m Celebrating My Birthday (stepping into Melinda Gates’ shoes and channeling Brené Brown)
Half my lifetime ago, almost to the day, I sat in the pews at the St. Madeleine Sophie Catholic Church listening to Melinda Gates address my senior class during our graduation. Now, on what will definitely be my most exciting birthday, I’m traveling back to my alma mater to deliver the high school commencement address. I was brought to deep, …
We are ALL impostors (plus, a big announcement)
When Sheryl Sandberg talked about the “impostor syndrome” in Lean In, she brought into mainstream discourse a condition most of us have experienced even if we didn’t previously have a name for it. In the last 5 years since Sandberg’s book, there have been hundreds of articles, books, podcasts, training programs, etc. discussing the prevalence of high achieving women (and …