Speaking Your Brand: Public Speaking Tips and Strategies

If you've been telling yourself you'll pitch the conference, keynote, or TEDx talk once you feel more confident, I want you to reconsider the order. 

Public speaking isn't something you do after you become confident. It's one of the ways confidence is created.

I’m sharing three practical ways to build real speaking confidence: say yes and get the reps, experiment with different formats and time constraints, and use podcasting to strengthen your ability to speak naturally. 

I tell the story of walking into a TV studio for the first time with my heart pounding - and how becoming a regular political analyst years later finally gave me the repetition I needed to trust myself.
And then there's the thing that surprised me most: taking an eight-week improv class. Even after decades of speaking, improv helped me get out of my head, into my body, and more comfortable not knowing exactly what would happen next.

In this episode, you’ll learn:
Why confidence is created through speaking rather than perfected in private
What it means to embody your message instead of delivering it only from your head
Why repetition builds the muscle memory that makes speaking feel more natural
What my first TV political panel taught me about saying yes before I felt ready
Why relying on a script can interrupt your connection with the audience
How PechaKucha, Ignite, DisruptHR, workshops, and keynotes develop different speaking skills
Why hosting a podcast or becoming a regular podcast guest strengthens impromptu speaking
What an eight-week improv class taught me about uncertainty and presence
How speaking confidence can help you claim the identity of “speaker”
Why women's public voices matter to gender equality
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, voices, 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/487/ 

Discover your Speaker Archetype by taking our free quiz at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/quiz/

Enroll in our Thought Leader Academy: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/academy/ 

Learn more about our speaking retreat in Orlando: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/live/

Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolcox

Related Podcast Episodes:
Speak with Confidence podcast series
Episode 379: How to Develop Stage Presence and Build Confidence as a Speaker
Episode 378: The Power of Women's Voices and Stories to Change the World

Join us for our three-day speaking retreat, happening in February 2027, in Downtown Orlando, Florida.
You'll create and refine high-impact Signature Stage Segments - the kind that set you apart as a speaker; practice onstage multiple times with our expert coaching and feedback; and professionally film your dynamic segments in front of a warm, supportive audience so you have edited video and a speaker reel to show event organizers what you can do.
Our retreat is limited to 12 women, so get all the details and request your place at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/live/.
Early bird pricing is on for a limited time.

If you’re exhausted by creating a brand-new presentation every time you’re invited to speak, I get it. You want the talk to fit the audience. But customizing your message is very different from reinventing it.
In this episode, I’m joined by our coaches Diane Diaz and Erin Mark to talk about how we each use one foundational signature talk across different audiences, industries, and formats.

Erin shares how she adapts her CALM framework for everything from a six-minute-and-40-second PechaKucha talk to a 60-minute keynote. 

Diane explains what to keep, what to change, and why your stories should be the last thing you cut when time is tight.
In this episode, we talk about:
Why customizing a signature talk is different from creating a new talk from scratch
The core elements that should stay consistent across speaking engagements
How Erin adapts her CALM framework for different industries and talk lengths
How Diane changes stories and audience engagement without losing her central message
Why listing 10, 15, or 20 speaking topics can make you harder to remember and refer
How our Brand Voice Canvas connects your mission, expertise, methodology, and experiences
What Erin did when she was assigned a topic outside her expertise
How to expand a keynote into a workshop without turning it into a content dump
How your signature talk can become podcast talking points, website copy, and months of LinkedIn content

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, voices, 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/486/ 

Discover your Speaker Archetype by taking our free quiz at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/quiz/

Enroll in our Thought Leader Academy: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/academy/ 

Learn more about our speaking retreat in Orlando: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/live/

Connect on LinkedIn:
Carol Cox = https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolcox
Diane Diaz = https://www.linkedin.com/in/dianediaz/ 
Erin Mark = https://www.linkedin.com/in/erinmark/ 
Related Podcast Episodes:
Episode 288: A Framework for Creating a Signature Talk for Income and Impact
Episode 462: Speaking Strategies That Create Lasting Impact: Live Signature Talks from TLA Grads with Erin Mark
Episode 475: From Personal Story to Thought Leadership: A Framework for Speakers with Erin Mark
Episode 483: How an I.D.E.A., Not a Topic, Makes You Easier to Refer, Pitch, and Book with Carol Cox

Join us for our three-day speaking retreat, happening in February 2027, in Downtown Orlando, Florida.
You'll create and refine high-impact Signature Stage Segments - the kind that set you apart as a speaker; practice onstage multiple times with our expert coaching and feedback; and professionally film your dynamic segments in front of a warm, supportive audience so you have edited video and a speaker reel to show event organizers what you can do.
Our retreat is limited to 12 women, so get all the details and request your place at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/live/.
Early bird pricing is on for a limited time.

What if the most important sales moments connected to your speaking engagement happen before you step on stage and in the first few minutes after you step off?

My guest, sales strategist Nikki Rausch, has been my go-to coach for sales language, proposals, pricing, consultation calls, and follow-up for years. 

In this conversation, we walk through the entire speaking engagement from the first inquiry to the conversations that happen after your talk. 
Nikki explains how to make yourself easy for an event organizer to hire, plant sales seeds without turning your presentation into a pitch, and recognize when an audience member is giving you a buying signal.

We also chat about why your job as the speaker begins long before your scheduled presentation time. 

In this episode, Nikki and I talk about:
Why you should answer an event organizer’s question before asking for a call
How to state your speaker fee clearly and keep the conversation open
Nikki’s “rapport bank account” and why your presence matters before you reach the stage
The difference between planting sales seeds and selling from the stage
How to use client stories and Q&A responses to show people how you help
What a buying signal sounds like after a presentation
How to invite someone to buy or schedule a call while her interest is still high

About Our Guest: Nikki Rausch is a sales strategist, speaker, and founder of Sales Maven. With more than 25 years of sales experience and over a decade as a business owner, she teaches service-based entrepreneurs how to have confident sales conversations that lead to yeses, without feeling pushy or fake. As a Master Certified Practitioner of Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), Nikki focuses on the language and communication behind selling. Her approach is rooted in building rapport, recognizing buying signals, and guiding conversations in a way that feels natural for both you and the client. She is the author of three books, including The Selling Staircase, and host of the Sales Maven Podcast, ranked in the top 1% globally. Through her coaching, programs, and speaking, Nikki supports women entrepreneurs in turning sales into a skill they can rely on, so they can grow their business with clarity and confidence.

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, voices, 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/486/
Nikki’s website: https://yoursalesmaven.com/ 

Get Nikki’s free gift Follow-Up Made Easy Guide: https://yoursalesmaven.com/easyfollowup 

Discover your Speaker Archetype by taking our free quiz at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/quiz/

Enroll in our Thought Leader Academy: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/academy/ 

Learn more about our speaking retreat in Orlando: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/live/

Connect on LinkedIn:
Carol Cox = https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolcox
Nikki Rausch (guest) = https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikkirausch/ 

Related Podcast Episodes:
Carol’s episode on Nikki’s Sales Maven podcast: https://yoursalesmaven.com/blog/integrating-both-thought-leadership-and-lead-generation-into-one-talk/
Episode 133: Authentic Selling at Your Speaking Engagements with Nikki Rausch
Episode 34: Relationship Selling with Nikki Rausch
Episode 483: How an I.D.E.A., Not a Topic, Makes You Easier to Refer, Pitch, and Book with Carol Cox

Join us for our three-day speaking retreat, happening in February 2027, in Downtown Orlando, Florida.
You'll create and refine high-impact Signature Stage Segments - the kind that set you apart as a speaker; practice onstage multiple times with our expert coaching and feedback; and professionally film your dynamic segments in front of a warm, supportive audience so you have edited video and a speaker reel to show event organizers what you can do.
Our retreat is limited to 12 women, so get all the details and request your place at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/live/.
Early bird pricing is on for a limited time.

When you hear “executive presence,” do you picture someone walking into a boardroom looking polished, confident, and completely certain of what to say?

My guest, Mary E. Maloney, sees it differently. 

Executive presence matters most when you’re in the middle of a high-stakes identity shift, such as after a promotion, a career change, the sale of a business, a retirement, or an unexpected ending. 

Mary calls that in-between space the Keystone Gap: your old identity no longer fits, but the new one hasn’t fully locked into place.

In this conversation, Mary explains why the real issue in that gap usually isn’t a lack of confidence. It’s a lack of clarity. 

Mary shares her Five C’s of Identity Shift, the year she struggled to explain who she was without her CEO title, and the boss who pushed her onto a stage before she believed she was ready.

In this episode, Mary and I talk about:
What executive presence means during a high-stakes transition
Why identity is the hidden architecture beneath career and leadership changes
The Keystone Gap between releasing an old identity and building a new one
Why rushing through an identity shift can make the transition harder
Mary’s Five C’s of Identity Shift
The difference between needing more confidence and needing more clarity
How purpose, impact, and your standards for showing up strengthen executive presence
What Mary learned after selling her company and taking a year away
How a reluctant first speech changed the trajectory of her career
Why authentic stories and knowing your audience matter on stage

About Our Guest: Mary E. Maloney, FACHE, is a former CEO/CMO turned Master Facilitator who guides senior leaders through high-stakes transitions, helping them clarify and articulate the identity, purpose, and value that will define their next act. Through her signature two-call Brand Declaration® process, she helps leaders sift through decades of experience to name the recurring themes of their value in minutes rather than months. She works with C-suite executives, physician leaders, military officers, founders, and board-level talent through online courses, mastermind cohorts, and 1:1 inplacement/outplacement executive advisory work, and facilitates leadership and strategy retreats for enterprise teams navigating complex change.

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, voices, 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/484/ 

Mary’s website: https://revealinggenius.com/ 

Discover your Speaker Archetype by taking our free quiz at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/quiz/

Enroll in our Thought Leader Academy: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/academy/ 

Connect on LinkedIn:
Carol Cox = https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolcox
Mary E. Maloney (guest) = https://www.linkedin.com/in/maryemaloney123/ 

Related Podcast Episodes:
Episode 483: How an I.D.E.A., Not a Topic, Makes You Easier to Refer, Pitch, and Book
Episode 288: A Framework for Creating a Signature Talk for Income and Impact
Speak with Confidence series

Join us for our three-day speaking retreat, happening in February 2027, in Downtown Orlando, Florida.
You'll create and refine high-impact Signature Stage Segments - the kind that set you apart as a speaker; practice onstage multiple times with our expert coaching and feedback; and professionally film your dynamic segments in front of a warm, supportive audience so you have edited video and a speaker reel to show event organizers what you can do.
Our retreat is limited to 12 women, so get all the details and request your place at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/live/.
Early bird pricing is on for a limited time.

When someone asks what you speak about, do you give them one clear answer - or a list that includes a bunch of keywords like leadership, communication, resilience, confidence, and change?
I understand the temptation to include everything. 

When you’ve had a long career, narrowing your message can feel like leaving out valuable parts of your experience. 

But if the person you’re talking with can’t explain what you speak about after the conversation is over, she can’t refer you. And that means you’re less likely to get booked.

In this episode, you’ll learn:
The difference between a broad subject, a presentation topic, and a distinctive idea
Why your speaking topic is also a positioning decision
The one-sentence referral test every speaker should try
How broad positioning costs you opportunities you may never know you lost
Three questions that can uncover the point of view inside your experience
How to test your message with my I.D.E.A. Framework
What event organizers need to understand before they can picture you in the room
A practical sentence prompt for clarifying your audience, claim, and outcome

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, voices, 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/483/ 

Discover your Speaker Archetype by taking our free quiz at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/quiz/

Enroll in our Thought Leader Academy: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/academy/ 

Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolcox

Related Podcast Episodes:
Episodes 478-481: Expert Trap Series
Episode 468: What TEDx Organizers Look for When Selecting Speakers

Join us for our three-day speaking retreat, happening in February 2027, in Downtown Orlando, Florida.
You'll create and refine high-impact Signature Stage Segments - the kind that set you apart as a speaker; practice onstage multiple times with our expert coaching and feedback; and professionally film your dynamic segments in front of a warm, supportive audience so you have edited video and a speaker reel to show event organizers what you can do.
Our retreat is limited to 12 women, so get all the details and request your place at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/live/.
Early bird pricing is on for a limited time.