Speaking Your Brand: Public Speaking Tips and Strategies

Have you been asked to be an emcee for an event or thought about being one? An emcee (or MC, Master of Ceremonies) is the person who is the bridge and what I call the cohesive glue of the event. Being an emcee is harder than it looks! You’re a host, an entertainer, and a representative of the event’s brand. As the emcee, your goal is to make the participants, the event organizer, their brand, and their business look good. I recently was the emcee for a virtual event and wanted to share my experiences and lessons with you.  I’m joined in this episode by Amber Hawley, who is the emcee for our Brave. Bold. Beyond. Live Virtual Summit coming up on April 1st and was the emcee for the event we did last year. Amber and I talk about 5 rules we came up with for being an excellent, effective, and engaging emcee.  These rules apply whether you’re doing virtual or in-person events. And these rules are helpful for you as a speaker! Be sure to register for our next Brave. Bold. Beyond. LIVE virtual summit to see Amber in action! https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/summit/   About My Guest: Amber Hawley is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and owner of a group private practice. Amber is also co-host of the My Biz Bestie Podcast, Founder of CouplesFix, which provides relationship support to high achieving couples, and is a speaker and emcee.   About Us: The Speaking Your Brand podcast is hosted by Carol Cox. At Speaking Your Brand, we help women entrepreneurs and professionals clarify their brand message and story, create their signature talks, and develop their thought leadership platforms. Our mission is to get more women in positions of influence and power because it's through women's stories and visibility that we challenge the status quo and change existing systems. Check out our coaching programs at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com.  Links: Show notes at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/212/ Amber’s website: https://www.mybizbestie.com/  Listen to Amber’s podcast “My Biz Bestie.” Register for free for our Brave. Bold. Beyond. Live Virtual Summit at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/summit/.  Get on the interest list for our Thought Leader Academy: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/academy/.    Connect on LinkedIn: Carol Cox = https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolcox Amber Hawley (guest) = https://www.linkedin.com/in/amberhawley/    Related Podcast Episodes: Episode 153: Threading a Story Throughout Your Signature Talk with Amber Hawley JOIN US: Our in-person Speaking Accelerator Workshop is coming up in Downtown Orlando on October 30, 2025. Create and practice your signature talk in one day using our proven framework, so you can confidently share your message and attract more opportunities. It's a fun, supportive environment where you get personalized feedback, professional photos, and more. Limited to 15 attendees. Get the details and secure your spot at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/orlando/.

We all love TED talks, right? The best ones tell us something we haven’t thought of before and inspire us to take action. TED talks became so popular because they showcased Big Ideas that oftentimes came from or were influenced by the speaker’s own personal story or experience (plus they’re under 20 minutes!). In this episode, I’m joined by Tanya Golash-Boza, who recently delivered her TEDx talk called “How to Kill a Neighborhood and Make a Profit” about how disinvestment in Black communities during the 20th century has led to gentrification in the 21st.  Tanya is currently in our Thought Leader Academy and worked with us to create her TEDx talk. As a professor of sociology at the University of California, Merced, and founder of the Racism, Capitalism, and the Law Lab, Tanya knows a lot about her topic (she’s writing an entire book on it!): years, statistics, and the specifics of policies like redlining and racial restrictive covenants that led to segregated neighborhoods. Her challenge was to take an academic topic for a niche audience and turn it into a powerful TEDx talk for a general audience - and she did! In this episode, Tanya and I talk about: Narrowing down her content and finding the throughline for her talk Integrating her personal story and experiences growing up in D.C. How she iterated her scripts and added more storytelling with help from one of our speaking coaches Joy Spencer Getting feedback from various people in different disciplines How she memorized her script and prepared for the filming What she’s doing next: taking her TEDx talk and expanding it into a signature talk and keynote, using our framework What has been the most beneficial aspects of being in our Thought Leader Academy   This episode is the second in our Big Ideas series. About My Guest: Tanya Golash-Boza is a scholar who focuses on gaining a deep understanding of systems of oppression and exploitation. As a writer, speaker, and teacher, she tells stories of people and of systems to help colleagues, students, readers, and listeners understand how racism and capitalism structure our lives and what we need to do to change this country and the world.   About Us: The Speaking Your Brand podcast is hosted by Carol Cox. At Speaking Your Brand, we help women entrepreneurs and professionals clarify their brand message and story, create their signature talks, and develop their thought leadership platforms. Our mission is to get more women in positions of influence and power because it's through women's stories and visibility that we challenge the status quo and change existing systems. Check out our coaching programs at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com.  Links: Show notes at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/211 Tanya’s website: http://www.racismcapitalismlaw.com  Tanya’s TEDx talk: https://youtu.be/eakUZX-pRCQ Tanya’s blog post: http://getalifephd.blogspot.com/2021/01/how-to-write-compelling-tedx-script.html  Register for free for our Brave. Bold. Beyond. Live Virtual Summit at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/summit/.  Get on the interest list for our Thought Leader Academy: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/academy/.  Connect on Twitter: Carol Cox = https://twitter.com/carolmorgancox  Tanya Golash-Boza (guest) = https://twitter.com/tanyaboza    Connect on LinkedIn: Carol Cox = https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolcox Tanya Golash-Boza (guest) = https://www.linkedin.com/in/tanyagolashboza/ Related Podcast Episodes: Episode 91: Visibility Works: From Local Speaking to TED.com to a Book Episode 98: Expanding Your Personal Story into a Universal Message Episode 194: How to Structure a Movement-Making Speech Using Your Story JOIN US: Our in-person Speaking Accelerator Workshop is coming up in Downtown Orlando on October 30, 2025. Create and practice your signature talk in one day using our proven framework, so you can confidently share your message and attract more opportunities. It's a fun, supportive environment where you get personalized feedback, professional photos, and more. Limited to 15 attendees. Get the details and secure your spot at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/orlando/.

What does it mean to have a Big Idea? Your Big Idea doesn’t need to be something that’s never been talked about before or something that new research you’ve done has uncovered for the first time (if yours does, that’s great!). I like to think of Big Ideas as ones that aren’t getting talked about in *your* circles, in your community or in your industry. Big Ideas can often be found at the intersection of your industry and a trend (not a fad - I talk about the differences between trends and fads in episode 206). For example, in episode 163 last year, I talked about a feminist approach to public speaking. Speaking is not a new topic and feminism is not a new topic, but combining them is something new. Big Ideas inform your thought leadership. In this episode, I talk with Jackie Roby, the founder of Inspired Journey Consulting, a Boston-based business dedicated to wellness, healing, and transformational tourism. Jackie was one of our incredible speakers at our last Brave. Bold. Beyond. Live Virtual Summit and is currently in our Thought Leader Academy. This episode is the first in our new series on Big Ideas. Jackie and I talk about: Her Big Idea of how travel can be healing (which came from her own personal situation) What wellness travel and healing travel mean The thought leadership project Jackie is creating with her new podcast and her #TravelCanHeal hashtag and challenge How Jackie came up with another Big Idea around helping travel companies with DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) Questions you can ask yourself to identify your Big Idea Jackie shares her experience of speaking at our event and the impact it had on her About My Guest: Jackie Roby is Chief Excellence Officer at Inspired Journey Consulting, a Boston-based business dedicated to wellness, healing, and transformational tourism. She is a sales strategist for wellness travel businesses & is a Diversity Equity Inclusion advocate. Jackie brings over 19 years of experience in travel and hospitality sales. IJC's vision is to create a world where marginalized people feel empowered to be their authentic selves, where traveling is a tool for inclusion, to enhance the cultural wellness in the travel industry, and grow emotional intelligence, healing, & self-care for a kinder humanity.   About Us: The Speaking Your Brand podcast is hosted by Carol Cox. At Speaking Your Brand, we help women entrepreneurs and professionals clarify their brand message and story, create their signature talks, and develop their thought leadership platforms. Our mission is to get more women in positions of influence and power because it's through women's stories and visibility that we challenge the status quo and change existing systems. Check out our coaching programs at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com.  Links: Show notes at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/210 Jackie’s website: https://www.inspiredjourneyconsulting.com/  Register for Jackie’s webinar: https://inspiredjourneyconsulting.com/events/ Jackie’s Podcast “Through Inspired Eyes: Travel Can Heal”: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/through-inspired-eyes-travel-can-heal/id1544605633  Jackie’s speech from our Brave. Bold. Beyond. Live Virtual Summit ‘20: https://youtu.be/bVsFpfbax0w Sign up to get updates for our next Brave. Bold. Beyond. Live Virtual Summit at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/summit/.  Get on the interest list for our Thought Leader Academy: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/academy/.  Connect on LinkedIn: Carol Cox = https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolcox Jackie Roby (guest) = https://www.linkedin.com/in/jackie-roby/  Related Podcast Episodes: Episode 162: Why We're #ChoosingWomensVoices - and You Should Too Episode 163: A Feminist Approach to Public Speaking Episode 184: Why Some Speakers Become Thought Leaders JOIN US: Our in-person Speaking Accelerator Workshop is coming up in Downtown Orlando on October 30, 2025. Create and practice your signature talk in one day using our proven framework, so you can confidently share your message and attract more opportunities. It's a fun, supportive environment where you get personalized feedback, professional photos, and more. Limited to 15 attendees. Get the details and secure your spot at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/orlando/.

Many of us guest on podcasts and it’s an excellent way to increase your visibility and expand to new audiences. Have you considered pitching yourself for traditional media, like TV, radio, and publications? You should! Joining me in this episode is Marie Fiebach, who is one of our speaking coaches for our Thought Leader Academy and for our Brave. Bold. Beyond. Live Virtual Summit. Marie is the host of the Feed Your Family Tonight podcast and a regular contributor on her local ABC TV affiliate in Wichita, Kansas. Marie and I have been working on a training she’s doing in our academy on media pitching and prep, so it got me thinking that it would be helpful for us to talk about the differences in doing interviews for podcasts, for media (TV and radio), and for publications. In this episode, Marie and I discuss: Why you should do interviews (what you get out of it) Who gets media coverage (hint: you can!) The differences between podcasts, TV, and publications in the content you share, your call to action, and the depth of your answers How to interact with the host on a podcast vs. when doing a TV segment Examples from both my and Marie’s experiences in doing TV, podcast guesting, and being interviewed for publications About My Guest: Marie Fiebach has been working with non-profits for more than 20 years. Through her work in strategic planning and fundraising leadership, she has helped many organizations break through the status quo and achieve goals once thought to be impossible. Marie has helped organizations plan and execute fundraisers with revenues in excess of $100,000, developed a food program for at-risk teens, designed and executed a process for recruiting and hiring a new executive director, and so much more. She currently sits on two local non-profit boards and is a weekly guest on KAKE TV’s Good Morning Kansas. She lives, works, and volunteers in Wichita, Kansas. When she is not helping others dream bigger you may find her pursuing her passion for helping busy families at FeedYourFamilyTonight.com.   About Us: The Speaking Your Brand podcast is hosted by Carol Cox. At Speaking Your Brand, we help women entrepreneurs and professionals clarify their brand message and story, create their signature talks, and develop their thought leadership platforms. Our mission is to get more women in positions of influence and power because it's through women's stories and visibility that we challenge the status quo and change existing systems. Check out our coaching programs at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com.  Links:   Show notes at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/209 Marie’s website: https://feedyourfamilytonight.com/  Marie’s podcast “Feed Your Family Tonight”: https://feedyourfamilytonight.com/category/podcast/  Work with us to prep for your media interviews: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/media-training/ Sign up to get updates for our next Brave. Bold. Beyond. Live Virtual Summit at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/summit/.  Get on the interest list for our Thought Leader Academy: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/academy/.  Connect on LinkedIn: Carol Cox = https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolcox Marie Fiebach (guest) = https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariefiebach/ Related Podcast Episodes: Episode 115: How Your Speaking, Media, and PR Can Work Together with Wendy Glaister Episode 139: Selecting the Best Stories to Include in Your Signature Talk with Marie Fiebach JOIN US: Our in-person Speaking Accelerator Workshop is coming up in Downtown Orlando on October 30, 2025. Create and practice your signature talk in one day using our proven framework, so you can confidently share your message and attract more opportunities. It's a fun, supportive environment where you get personalized feedback, professional photos, and more. Limited to 15 attendees. Get the details and secure your spot at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/orlando/.

If you’re an introvert, the thought of visibility, and maybe even the thought of public speaking, is one that you may be a little bit more hesitant to pursue. However, did you know that there are so many speakers from professional speakers all the way down to entrepreneurs, who do public speaking and consider themselves introverts? You do not need to be an extrovert to be a really great public speaker. As an introvert, there are many things that you can do to put yourself out there, to find your voice, and to use your voice effectively. My guest today is Katherine N. Johnson, who is a Certified Professional Coach, mentor, writer, podcaster, and speaker. In this episode, Katherine opens up about her experiences as an introvert and details her journey in finding and using her voice.  Plus, we also share specific strategies we’ve both used as speakers that you can apply to your public speaking and thought leadership journey. About My Guest: Katherine N Johnson is a Certified Professional Coach, mentor, writer and speaker. After 20+ years in the Information Technology (IT) field, Katherine now leverages her extensive experience to mentor women in STEM fields helping them level up so that they can EXCEL in their careers. Katherine is passionate about helping professional women and young girls to gain clarity, courage and confidence to pursue their bigger purpose and vision. In her newest venture, the Beautiful Reflections podcast, Katherine gets vulnerable sharing details of her personal story, while interviewing other inspiring women along the way.    About Us: The Speaking Your Brand podcast is hosted by Carol Cox. At Speaking Your Brand, we help women entrepreneurs and professionals clarify their brand message and story, create their signature talks, and develop their thought leadership platforms. Our mission is to get more women in positions of influence and power because it's through women's stories and visibility that we challenge the status quo and change existing systems. Check out our coaching programs at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com.  Links: Show notes at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/208/  Katherine’s website: https://katherinenjohnson.com/  Katherine’s podcast “Beautiful Reflections: Coaching for Career Women”: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/beautiful-reflections-coaching-for-career-women/id1546169726  Sign up to get updates for our next Brave. Bold. Beyond. Live Virtual Summit at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/summit/ or text SPEAKING to 33-777.  Get on the interest list for our Thought Leader Academy: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/academy/.    Connect on LinkedIn: Carol Cox = https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolcox Katherine N. Johnson (guest) = https://www.linkedin.com/in/katherinenjohnson/  Related Podcast Episodes: Episode 127: Developing Confidence in Public Speaking [Confidence Series] Episode 129: From Fear of Speaking to Keynote Speaker in 2 Years [Confidence Series] Episode 192: The Cure for Vulnerability Hangovers [Use Your Voice Series]   JOIN US: Our in-person Speaking Accelerator Workshop is coming up in Downtown Orlando on October 30, 2025. Create and practice your signature talk in one day using our proven framework, so you can confidently share your message and attract more opportunities. It's a fun, supportive environment where you get personalized feedback, professional photos, and more. Limited to 15 attendees. Get the details and secure your spot at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/orlando/.

It’s no question that 2020 definitely threw us for a loop. With many of our speaking engagements and events forced to convert to online presentations and webinars, I know that a lot of us are excited to get back to in-person speaking (hopefully sometime in the later half of 2021). My guest today is Mary Beth Simon, who is the founder of Niche Partnership Consulting and also a current client in our Thought Leader Academy. In this episode, Mary Beth & I talk about what she’s doing for visibility and various strategies she can implement to leverage her visibility opportunities including: In-person speaking engagements Virtual presentations Podcast guesting A TEDx talk Listen in through the end as she shares the opening of her TEDx talk that she’s working on—I promise, you’re going to be blown away!    About My Guest: After 30+ years in corporate financial services, Mary Beth now uses her strategic talents to coach entrepreneurs and individuals on creating their contingency plans empowering their second-in-command to keep business and life flowing smoothly in an emergency. Mary Beth founded Niche Partnership Consulting because her clients’ transformations inspire her. She believes that the combination of continuous learning, growth, and change is the fountain of youth and recently became a certified Les Mills BodyFlow instructor.   About Us: The Speaking Your Brand podcast is hosted by Carol Cox. At Speaking Your Brand, we help women entrepreneurs and professionals clarify their brand message and story, create their signature talks, and develop their thought leadership platforms. Our mission is to get more women in positions of influence and power because it's through women's stories and visibility that we challenge the status quo and change existing systems. Check out our coaching programs at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com.  Links: Show notes at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/207  Mary Beth’s website: https://nichepartnershipconsulting.net/  Apply to speak at our Brave. Bold. Beyond. Live Virtual Summit: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/apply.  Get on the interest list for our Thought Leader Academy: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/academy.    Connect on LinkedIn: Carol Cox = https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolcox Mary Beth Simon (guest) = https://www.linkedin.com/in/mary-beth-simon-npc/  Related Podcast Episodes: Episode 102: Getting Local Media and Publicity to Expand Your Visibility with Amanda Berlin Episode 156: Visibility Strategies That Get You Noticed with Janice Gassam, Ph.D. Episode 206: Trends in Public Speaking and Thought Leadership for 2021 with Carol Cox JOIN US: Our in-person Speaking Accelerator Workshop is coming up in Downtown Orlando on October 30, 2025. Create and practice your signature talk in one day using our proven framework, so you can confidently share your message and attract more opportunities. It's a fun, supportive environment where you get personalized feedback, professional photos, and more. Limited to 15 attendees. Get the details and secure your spot at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/orlando/.

Happy New Year! This is the 3rd year in a row I’ve done a trends episode for the start of the year. You’d think after what happened in 2020, I’d shy away from projecting trends, but the trends I talked about a year ago surprisingly held up pretty well. (I recap them in this episode.) What I mean by trends are not fads or cliches or gimmicks.  Trends are like currents or waves of energy that move through our society and affect everything from business and the economy to popular culture and media as well as our politics. How do these trends impact our public speaking and thought leadership? Because as speakers and leaders, our talks and messages have more of an impact if our audiences can see the bigger picture of what’s affecting them and the world around them. In this episode, you’ll learn 3 trends (and action steps for each) related to format, audience, and content that you can apply to your speaking and visibility, as well as to your business and marketing strategy in general.    About Us: The Speaking Your Brand podcast is hosted by Carol Cox. At Speaking Your Brand, we help women entrepreneurs and professionals clarify their brand message and story, create their signature talks, and develop their thought leadership platforms. Our mission is to get more women in positions of influence and power because it's through women's stories and visibility that we challenge the status quo and change existing systems. Check out our coaching programs at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com.  Links: Show notes at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/206   Be sure you’re on our email list so you don’t miss announcements for our next Brave. Bold. Beyond. Live Virtual Summit on April 1st, including our call for speakers in January: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/join.    Interested in working together to create your signature talk and thought leadership platform? Schedule a consult call: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/contact.    Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolcox   Related Podcast Episodes: Episode 101: Public Speaking Trends for 2019 Episode 154: Public Speaking Trends for 2020 Episode 166: Reimagining Our Businesses, Industries, and Public Speaking with Carol Cox and Diane Diaz Episode 184: Why Some Speakers Become Thought Leaders with Carol Cox [Thought Leadership Series] Episode 185: My Journey as a Thought Leader and How We’re Evolving at Speaking Your Brand with Carol Cox [Thought Leadership Series] JOIN US: Our in-person Speaking Accelerator Workshop is coming up in Downtown Orlando on October 30, 2025. Create and practice your signature talk in one day using our proven framework, so you can confidently share your message and attract more opportunities. It's a fun, supportive environment where you get personalized feedback, professional photos, and more. Limited to 15 attendees. Get the details and secure your spot at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/orlando/.

I talk quite a bit on this podcast about signature talks - why you should have one and what goes into one. Your signature talk is your foundation for your brand message and story. It showcases who you are, what you do, who you do it for, and why it matters. We’ve worked with our clients for the past 5 years to help them create their signature talk, which they’ve used for presentations (in-person and virtually) for brand awareness, lead generation, keynotes, and TEDx talks.   In this episode, Diane Diaz and I talk about: 4 types of talks you should have as an entrepreneur, speaker, and thought leader When you should use each type Examples of each My favorite type of talk What the women in our Thought Leader Academy are currently working on This episode is part of our series on Goals & Planning.   About Us: The Speaking Your Brand podcast is hosted by Carol Cox, joined in this episode by our lead speaking coach Diane Diaz. At Speaking Your Brand, we help women entrepreneurs and professionals clarify their brand message and story, create their signature talks, and develop their thought leadership platforms. Our mission is to get more women in positions of influence and power because it's through women's stories and visibility that we challenge the status quo and change existing systems. Check out our coaching programs at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com. Links: Show notes at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/205 Get instant access to our Webinar Idea to Launch on-demand training: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/webinar-course  Schedule a consult call to talk about creating your signature talk and thought leadership platform: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/contact.  Get on the interest list for our Thought Leader Academy: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/academy/.  Maureen Taylor’s webinar results on Nikki Rausch’s Sales Maven podcast: https://yoursalesmaven.com/how-to-make-your-free-webinar-profitable-a-client-success-story/ Connect on LinkedIn: Carol Cox: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolcox Diane Diaz: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dianediaz  Related Podcast Episodes: Episode 116: 16 Ways You Can Use Your Signature Talk Episode 145: You Need to Create a Framework [Frameworks Series] Episode 165: How to Repurpose Your In-Person Presentation into an Engaging Webinar with Carol Cox and Diane Diaz JOIN US: Our in-person Speaking Accelerator Workshop is coming up in Downtown Orlando on October 30, 2025. Create and practice your signature talk in one day using our proven framework, so you can confidently share your message and attract more opportunities. It's a fun, supportive environment where you get personalized feedback, professional photos, and more. Limited to 15 attendees. Get the details and secure your spot at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/orlando/.

How can we create a decision-making filter to determine which opportunities to say ‘yes’ to and which to say ‘no’ to? If you are newer in your business and/or with speaking, it can be very beneficial to say ‘yes’ to a lot of opportunities because it provides you with experience and with data for future decision making. Then, as we get further along in our businesses and in our speaking careers, we inevitably get more and more invitations and opportunities. My guest today is Danielle Hayden, who is the founder of Kickstart Accounting, Inc. where she and her team help business owners with bookkeeping, financial analysis, and education.   Danielle and I talk about: Decision-making filters to help you decide what opportunities to say ‘yes’ and ‘no’ to Identifying the goal you have for a speaking engagement Determining if that particular audience is the best one for you Tracking metrics beyond dollars (so important) When an entrepreneur should hire a bookkeeper and CPA The framework Danielle uses with her clients This episode is part of our Goals & Planning series.   About My Guest: Danielle Hayden is a reformed corporate CFO (chief financial officer) who is on a mission to help rule-breaking female entrepreneurs understand their numbers so they can gain the confidence needed to create sustainable profits. After spending 10+ years in the boardroom as a corporate finance officer, Danielle is now in her sweet spot as the co-owner of Kickstart Accounting, Inc. where she helps business owners with bookkeeping, financial analysis, and education and as the author of the Profit Planner book series. When Danielle isn’t crunching numbers on her clients’ behalf or crafting the next iteration of the Profit Planner, you can find her hanging with her two kids as she inspires them to lead their fullest lives or doing any and almost every fitness-related activity ranging from Spartan races to pilates.   About Us: The Speaking Your Brand podcast is hosted by Carol Cox. At Speaking Your Brand, we help women entrepreneurs and professionals create their signature talks and gain more visibility to achieve their goals. Our mission is to get more women in positions of influence and power: on stages, in businesses, on boards, in the media, in politics, and in our communities. Check out our coaching programs at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com.  Links: Show notes at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/204 Connect with Danielle at www.profitplannerbooks.com and www.kickstartaccountinginc.com. Download Danielle’s free financial goal setting worksheet: profitplannerbookkeeping.com/speaking  Danielle’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/daniellehayden__oh    Be sure to get on our email list so you don’t miss the details of our next Brave. Bold. Beyond. live online event that will be on April 1st. Call for speakers is coming in early January. Go to https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/join.    Connect on LinkedIn: Carol Cox = https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolcox Danielle Hayden (guest) = https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielle-hayden-kickstartaccounting/   JOIN US: Our in-person Speaking Accelerator Workshop is coming up in Downtown Orlando on October 30, 2025. Create and practice your signature talk in one day using our proven framework, so you can confidently share your message and attract more opportunities. It's a fun, supportive environment where you get personalized feedback, professional photos, and more. Limited to 15 attendees. Get the details and secure your spot at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/orlando/.

This episode is 2 conversations in one.  I invited my guest and client Lesley Batson, founder of Rebel Rock Wealth, on to the podcast to help us with our financial review and planning as we end one year and start the next. Lesley shares with us the areas we need to review as individuals and as business owners. This ends up being the 2nd half of our conversation.  The 1st half of the conversation is about an incident that happened to Lesley when she was co-hosting an online event in November. You won’t want to miss either parts of this episode.   About My Guest: Lesley Batson launched Rebel Rock Wealth, a strategic financial consulting firm that teaches independent thinking professionals and small business owners, the WHOLE truth about money and helps them implement strategies to control and build the wealth style they desire. Lesley is licensed in several states and meets with clients from Florida to California virtually. She loves Hamilton the Musical, playing golf, and taking up space on a sandy beach.   About Us: The Speaking Your Brand podcast is hosted by Carol Cox. At Speaking Your Brand, we help women entrepreneurs and professionals clarify their brand message and story, create their signature talks, and develop their thought leadership platforms. Our mission is to get more women in positions of influence and power because it's through women's stories and visibility that we challenge the status quo and change existing systems. Check out our coaching programs at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com.  Links: Show notes at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/203 Lesley’s website: https://www.rebelrockwealth.com/  Free checklist: https://www.rebelrockwealth.com/syb Lesley’s video about what happened at the event she was facilitating: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/lbatson_tedxcentennialparksalon-antiracism-diversityandinclusion-activity-6733081975789293568-pw2x  Lesley’s group No More Ignorance: https://no-more-ignorance.mn.co/  Schedule a consult call to talk about creating your signature talk and thought leadership platform: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/contact.  Get our LinkedIn for Speakers online masterclass at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/linkedin.  Connect on LinkedIn: Carol Cox = https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolcox Lesley Batson (guest) = https://www.linkedin.com/in/lbatson/  JOIN US: Our in-person Speaking Accelerator Workshop is coming up in Downtown Orlando on October 30, 2025. Create and practice your signature talk in one day using our proven framework, so you can confidently share your message and attract more opportunities. It's a fun, supportive environment where you get personalized feedback, professional photos, and more. Limited to 15 attendees. Get the details and secure your spot at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/orlando/.