Expanding Your Business by Raising Your Voice

Peggy Woods had the picture-perfect life, the picture-perfect family and the picture-perfect marriage. At least, that’s what others saw. Behind closed doors, the picture wasn’t pretty. Woods was controlled, demeaned and often physically abused by the man she married as a young woman. She began to write poetry to express her feelings. She shared her poems with friends who praised her talent. She wrote a heartfelt poem to her husband, communicating her love, pain and confusion. He responded by forbidding her to ever write another poem again.

“That was the last piece of me I wasn’t going to give up,” she said softly to a group of women who erupted into a roar of cheers on a rooftop patio in Puerto Vallarta.

Just days before, these women were strangers, arriving in Mexico from all over the United States, each one an entrepreneur, serious about promoting her business authentically, through the power of her voice and her unique story. They came to learn from The Master Speaker Trainer Arvee Robinson, a woman who has delivered more than 3,500 speeches, written best-selling books, shared stages with speaking giants and transformed hundreds of lives and businesses through public speaking.

“I believe that everyone has a message to share that only they can give to people who can only hear it from them. And that message will change someone’s life, their business or their soul,” said Robinson.

Woods, now in a healthy marriage, holds a doctoral degree in ministry and is the CEO and founder of Write Now Publishing in Corona, California. Her superpower is helping busy people write books fast. “Everybody wants to write a book, but nobody has the time,” she said. “I coach my clients and we get it done.”

However, she avoided public speaking and therefore believed she was limiting the number of people who would find out about her, people who could use her help. “I was nervous about trying to remember the lines. But then I met Arvee Robinson. I was so impressed with her techniques. She has a simple way of helping you to remember.”

“Speaking is not an amateur sport,” Robinson explained. “It’s a profession. And like all professions, you need comprehensive training to succeed. You need structured training that includes a step-by-step system that you can replicate for every speech you give.”

Robinson’s signature style involves a speech sandwich, with tasty stories and hardy meat. “When I was a little kid, my mom used to give us all bologna sandwiches. She would have one piece of bologna between two pieces of Wonder Bread and a little bit of Miracle Whip. Now, if there was not a piece of bologna in there, we would have known, right? That’s what happens to the speeches that people give. Oftentimes they don’t give any real content, they don’t give any real meat. And we know it! We know it immediately! So, whether your speech is long or short, you need to have some great content, so it fills up the audience.”

Robinson also helps clients craft their professional story – the reason why they do what they do. “I teach them to share that story, to go deep, to get connected to it so people get to know them, because we all buy from people that we know, like and trust.”

Lorena Coello is the founder of Personalized Skincare based in Fullerton, California. Her goal as an esthetician is to provide accurate information and quality products that help people have healthy, youthful looking skin. Coello has a thriving business, but she knows she can help more people through public speaking and videos. While working with Robinson at the Puerto Vallarta retreat, her unique backstory came out that bolstered her credibility.

“There are a lot of influencers, vendors and other people selling skincare and giving advice that is not quite the correct advice,” she said. And that motivated her. She spent years testing and researching skincare products only to find that many of them had additives that weren’t good for the skin, didn’t help the skin or smelled bad.

Coello was so focused on her education as a young woman that she invested the money she made while working at a salon into her research, sacrificing her quality of life. For two years, she lived in an attic without air conditioning or heat, a space so small that she had to crawl into it and couldn’t fully stand up in it. She started working with a chemist and made her own products.

“I really wanted to be more comfortable speaking in groups, but I was always afraid of people thinking negatively about me that I never let my guard down,” she said. “I made a lot of steps being in that group of women in Mexico – it was so beautiful. I feel like I’m a different person in a confident way since I came back from the retreat. That fear is completely gone now.”

Robinson says the best way to eliminate fear of public speaking is through practice. “Most people don’t practice enough and that’s the problem. They wing it. They get nervous. They get scared. That’s why they forget what they are going to say. They are not fully prepared. You need one hour of practice for every two minutes of speech so that you become the speech. If you have a 30-minute speech, you need to practice for 15 hours.”

Lori Giovannini, a certified brain health coach from Mishawaka, Indiana, attended the retreat to learn how to be a more impactful speaker. Her target audience is Catholic women. Her goal is to help them live balanced lives, to be “healthy and holy,” she said.

“I’ve talked in front of a lot of people at retreats and workshops and I thought I was giving a lot of value. But I realized I was sharing so much information that I was talking at the audience, instead of speaking in a way that they would listen and walk away with something deeper that they could put into practice in their own lives,” said Giovannini. “I think a lot of people write speeches like they are writing a book. Arvee taught us how to craft a speech so that people would listen.”

Following Robinson’s guidance, Giovannini changed her speaking style and her audiences are praising her presentations. “I learned you can’t just give a pretty talk, you have to make sure you have a strong close. Arvee taught us the importance of the close at the end of the speech. We cheat our audience in a way if we get them to a point and don’t offer anything more.”

Robinson also stresses the importance of maintaining your instrument – your body, including your voice. She recommends public speaking at least once a week to stay in shape. “The physical body is your tool. You need to exercise, eat right and take care of yourself to be able to perform well and maintain your stamina. When you speak for one hour, it’s like working an eight-hour day.”

And that energy is part of Robinson’s appeal. At 68 years old, she is a disciplined body builder who follows a strict diet and exercise regime and is preparing for a competition this fall.

“When I first met Arvee, it was through a virtual summit. I wondered, ‘Who is that fiery redhead?’” said Olivia Vo, known as the Savvy Social Strategist and Savvy Social Humorist. “I just loved her demeanor. She incorporated fun props into her speaking and was so masterful at conveying that high energy, which is hard to do virtually.”

Vo was going through a major career shift at the time. She had recently left a staffing and recruiting position in an environment where she no longer felt valued. She was figuring out how to go into business for herself and incorporate humor into her career. She was signing up for classes, going to seminars and searching for coaches.

“I could see her true colors,” Vo said about Robinson. “Arvee wasn’t just training people, she was building a community. She wants to show you behind the scenes. She wants to show you her formula. She’s a servant leader who wants you to succeed.”

Today, the women from the retreat continue to stay connected and supportive of each other. Woods writes some poetry but mainly helps others write and publish their stories into books. She also gives speeches that connect with her audience and result in new clients. “Arvee teaches you how to give a great speech,” she said. “And when you do that, people listen. They look at you differently. And now, I feel different.” QCBN

By Bonnie Stevens, QCBN

The Master Speaker Trainer Arvee Robinson will be presenting and coaching at Bonnie Stevens’ media relations workshop retreat in Sedona, “Your First-Class Ticket to the News Media World,” Aug. 15-19. Visit MediaRelationsWorkshop.com. Also, hear how to become a superstar speaker with Robinson on Zonie Living at https://starworldwidenetworks.com/ episodes/how-to-become-a-superstar- speaker-with-arvee-robinson-video.