188. Stepping Into Your Speaker Persona: Transforming Into A Powerful and Confident Communicator

“It's not about becoming someone else; it's about becoming the best version of yourself.” - Todd Herman

Unlock your inner rockstar speaker with the power of personas!

We all subconsciously step into different roles or “personas” in our lives. In this episode, we’re exploring the benefits of harnessing personas intentionally, especially to build your confidence as a speaker.

Learn how to take on a speaker persona gives you the oomph to own the stage. Hear the story behind the origins of my own speaker persona and how music and other rituals transform my energy. 

You’ll get tips to consciously embody the speaker you aspire to be.

In this episode, you’ll discover:

• What a speaker persona is and how to create your own, so it feels natural for you.

• Ideas for choosing empowering persona traits like passion and conviction and still be yourself.

• The benefits of visualizations and affirmations to embrace your persona as your gentle reminder to step into that confident speaker version of you.

• Triggers and routines to get into the persona like music and objects, so you teach your nervous system how to respond. 

• Practicing your persona in other areas of life first, so you test it out and prove how valuable this tool is for yourself.

It's time to consciously tap into a powerful your speaking persona to captivate your audience. 

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Grab the FREE resource Go from Unknown to Visible.

• Grab the FREE resource Take the Stage

• Follow me on Instagram: @laurieann.murabito

• For more about me and what I do, check out my website.

• If you’re looking for support to grow your business faster, be positioned as an authority in your industry, and impact the masses, schedule a call to explore if you’d be a good fit for one of my coaching programs.

Transcript:

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:00:01]:

Like it or not, we all step into being someone or something every time that we're learning a new skill or stepping into someone or something every time we are doing something we are familiar with. Today we are talking about the speaker persona. And I wanna really dive into this because I want you to create your own speaker persona, and I'm gonna share some of my tips that I've been using for years. So let's get onto the show. We all have a persona, like a role that we step into in certain situations, whether it's a situation that you're familiar with or that you're not familiar with. It could be something that you've done over and over again, in which case that persona has almost become you, or you have become that persona. Or it's something brand new. And you might be feeling like I'm the newbie.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:00:59]:

I don't know what to do, what I'm doing here. Well, that's almost a persona also, but let's really dive into what these personas are so that they can help you step out on stage and communicate with confidence. I mean, public speaking is a beautiful time for you to actually consciously tap into a powerful speaking persona. And I'm gonna share a little bit about more about mine. But when you fully embrace this side of it, you literally unlock your ability to captivate the audience. It's like, who are you becoming? Like, every time that I step into my office to record a podcast, and I used to record them in my walk in closet when they were just audio. But every time I do this, like, I step into someone. Like, I have heard people say to me, they'll send me like DMs and beautiful compliments that like I could listen to you for hours, the way that you're the way that you tell stories is because I really get into them.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:02:00]:

Like I just step into this persona that I am the podcast host, that I am the speaker. But I've been doing it for so long that it's just very, very natural for me now. It's like it's the lines are blurred between who Laurieann is when she's off the stage and out of her podcast recording mode to her everyday life. But it was a speaking persona that got me out on stage to begin with. So what is a persona. You know, Todd Herman talks a lot about this in the in his book, The Alter Ego. But it is like almost like a role playing. Do you remember when you were a little kid and you were playing with your brothers, sisters, or the neighborhood kids? And it's like it's make believe.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:02:55]:

Like, I'm gonna make believe that I'm Superman or Super Wonder Woman. You know? Who are you stepping into? Or, like, I remember, like, me and my sisters, like, we would play house, and somebody would be, like, the breadwinner and go off, you know, to work during the day and somebody was at home, like, cooking in the kitchen. Like, these are just personas. We were just acting as if we were this person. So what if you use that to your advantage now? As an adult, as an entrepreneur. You know, there is a previous episode that I have, that I would highly recommend that you go back and listen to it's called it's about the split personality. And the cliff notes version is that we, as entrepreneurs, have 2 different roles. Like, we are the CEO, and we are the employee.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:03:49]:

We step into different roles depending on what we're doing. Like, I have to write content. Well, guess what? I am going to basically channel my inner writer. I am going to I'm just gonna become. My persona is that I'm an amazing writer and that everything I write, you know, is captivating and people can hardly wait to to read it and are looking out for my stuff. You know? But the same thing, like, when I step out on stage, I become that speaker, that powerful, confident speaker. So one of the things that I do with my clients is I have them decide what kind of speaker are you going to be? Like, we literally decide on this. You probably have heard me talk about this before.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:04:35]:

There are gonna be 3 words or short phrases that you're gonna use and, like, this is the kind of speaker that I'm gonna be. So that as we are crafting a presentation, as we are practicing your your speech, you're looking through it through the lens of these 3 words, these descriptors, because this is how we're going to basically filter. Does that work? Does that fit this criteria? The kind of speaker that you wanna be. So that can help you with your speaker persona. But maybe there's somebody that you admire. And it could be like, I admire that charisma. I admire the way that person uses humor. Maybe you form your own character.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:05:20]:

It doesn't have to be an actual speaker, so you don't have to use, like, hey. I wanna be like Gary v or Tony Robbins because guess what? Tony's really good at being Tony. Gary's really good at being Gary, but you're really good at being you. But let's bring in the power of having this speaker persona so that it gives you that confidence. It gives you that oomph, to just show up and be you and deliver the presentation so that you feel more confident. And the more that you do this, the more that you, like, step into this role, the easier it's going to get. So some of the common traits that you might want to include in your speaker persona is passion, passion for your topic, passion for the audience, concern for the audience, you know, like your love for the audience, you know, your love for your topic, your conviction on your solutions. Because if you're not convinced that your solutions are gonna help people, don't expect other people to just step in and like, oh, yeah, I believe you.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:06:32]:

Because remember, it's the energy that you show up. That's what people fall in love with. That's what people, like, in a quarter of a second, feel like she's confident. He's confident. They know what they're talking about. Don't underestimate your vocal power. Your voice has so much power. So you don't even you might be just like listening to this podcast.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:07:01]:

You might not even be watching seeing it on YouTube or maybe you don't even know that it's available as a video. So you're only listening to my voice. But you can tell from my voice how passionate I am, so don't underestimate the power of your voice. So who are you going to be? Like and what are you going to do to, like, step into being that speaker? It might be like you're visualizing. You visualize the event, whether it's in person, whether it's virtual, a small audience, something very intimate. Maybe it's somebody's membership, it's somebody's mastermind. You know, visualization is so powerful. When you can see it in your mind, it's like your body just reacts to what it's seeing in the brain.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:07:53]:

Maybe you stand nice and powerful. Maybe there are some affirmations that you're going to tell yourself. Maybe you see again, I'm going back to visualization, not just seeing the audience, but seeing yourself give the speech. You know, years ago when I, was speaking in the leadership industry, whenever it was like the night before that I had to sleep really well, like I would literally be practicing my speech. I would wake up in the middle of the night and there I was like in the middle of one of my points sharing one of my stories. It's like I dress rehearsal at night. Here's another great tip is to show up to the event the day before or at least before the before the audience starts to get there, especially if it's some sort of like a luncheon talk. Get there.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:08:46]:

Get into the room, like, before the audience does. Just get a sense for the feel of the room and the energy that's in the room so that again you're just adding that reality to your visualization that you had started earlier. And you've probably heard me talk about your pre speaking routine. Now my pre speaking routine has has changed depending on if I'm in person versus if I'm speaking virtually. In person. You will find me. If you are seeking me out, I will be somewhere in the hotel, in the convention center, I will kick off my heels. I will be barefoot, you know, like pacing in some sort of like a service hallway with my AirPods on listening to a couple of songs.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:09:35]:

They're very specific songs, but I'm listening to those songs, that energy that gets me into my speaker persona. And this comes from my years of teaching fitness classes. I taught step, I taught spinning, and it was like I would have a full day at work, and then I was always teaching at night. So then I would get there and I would be tired, but I had trained myself enough, literally trained my nervous system, because that's all we're doing with this speaker persona. Whatever persona you want to be. You are teaching your nervous system to step into that. So music was a trigger for me. I would turn the music on, and instantly I would have that energy.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:10:21]:

I could show up and be 200% energetic so that hopefully the people who were attending my class would they would go from their 50%, because remember, they all had a long day also, to hopefully 75, 90% energy by the time that they left the class. So you'll need some sort of a trigger. So that's what a pre speaking routine is. You know, maybe it's a piece of jewelry that you just kinda like you look down at. You feel. You just, like, you twirl a ring. There's a certain bracelet that you wear that you're just like, this is the bracelet that I wear when I am speaking. Ladies, maybe there's some red lipstick.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:11:02]:

I have had some clients who have told me every time I'm speaking, every time I'm on TV, I wear that red lipstick. It, like, it just puts me into this persona, so much easier. Like, just the ritual of doing something. Again, it's a trigger. But it's how you're going to show up as your best self. This is not like I'm faking it because I know some of you are probably listening to, like, so you're not really yourself. No. We're just I'm just borrowing this persona until it becomes my own.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:11:37]:

Remember until I teach my nervous system that this is me, this is the way that I want to show up. We all show up in different areas of our lives differently. I don't show up as a speaker when I'm when I'm cooking dinner when I'm sitting down to dinner with my husband. You know, as a matter of fact, like, think about like, like my coaching hat. When I'm coaching clients, I'm wearing my coaching hat. You know, I'm not wearing my loving wife hat. You know, I we all have different roles in our lives. Let's be very intentional about them.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:12:15]:

So how can you step into your speaker persona? Who is this speaker that you want to be? Once you start writing that down, and maybe even a picture is worth a 1000 words. I want you to, like, maybe grab a picture. If you're a visual person, this is gonna work really well. Or maybe you're gonna wanna do something like what I do. Turn music on. For me, that just that makes me energetic. That makes me show up again. I spent a lot of times teaching fitness classes, so that trigger was already there for me.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:12:51]:

So that's what make it made it easy. So literally look back on your life and start thinking about, like, where are some triggers that I instantly go into that role that maybe I could borrow that and use it over here to step into becoming a bigger, better speaker. A bigger, better communicator, you know, sharing with audiences. You know, with your speaker persona, you're gonna be able to claim the you're literally gonna be able to claim that stage and own the stage. And when you own the stage, you are gonna have your audience's attention. Yes, they are they won't be able to take their eyes off of you. Again, it's showing up in this energy. When you're owning this persona, you're gonna have great eye contact.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:13:39]:

If you're not watching this video, you should come watch this video. But it's about that eye contact. You know, I move intentionally. I vary my tone. Again, I'm in that speaker persona of mine, you know, because that's who I need to be when I am recording a podcast. You know, you're also going to exude confidence in your material and your ability to connect with the audience. They're just gonna feel it. They're just gonna be able to see it.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:14:13]:

They're gonna be able to hear it. And those are all really important, especially when you are getting into speaking, because you've heard me say before, the best way to get booked is to be outstanding on the stage. So when you get that opportunity to be in front of the stage, you know, be respectful to that audience and show up as the person that they're expecting. Step into your speaker persona. And this is exactly how you're gonna get, like, those standing ovations and you're gonna get the applause. But I will tell you, like, when I first started speaking, you've heard about my very first speech where I where I shared that I I went right into college professor mode. And when I was done, I was literally like, okay. I'm done.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:15:03]:

You can if you wanna talk to me, I'll, you know, I I was broken up like that. I'll be in the back of the room. I just wanted to get away. That was the persona that I was in. I was the college professor trying to serve the audience. But then I went into, okay, I'm an introvert. I'm shy. I just want to like go in the back of the room now.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:15:23]:

So that's where I'll be. So I stepped into that again because I hadn't really understood what the speaker persona is. So I want you to decide on your speaker persona. And the fun thing about this, if the one that you pick, if it doesn't work out, you get to pick another one. There's oh, you can always edit. You can always decide it's time to change because as I've been a speaker, I've changed my speaker persona. It definitely changed when the world shut down and like there was more virtual events. I had to learn how to record a podcast.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:16:05]:

I had to learn how to do Facebook lives. I had to learn how to speak virtually so that my audience would feel me, could hear my passion, could hear my confidence, couldn't see my confidence and not this like little flat wall, 2 dimensional, no personality type person. So we all get better. It's about doing the reps. Do the reps step into your speaker persona. But look at the other areas of your life, where you're using your persona. Try it out. If you're like, hey.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:16:43]:

I just wanna, like, try this out, this this persona stuff, but I don't wanna do it when I I don't wanna wait until I get on stage, find another area of your life. You know, maybe it's at the gym. Maybe it's with your family. Maybe it's when you're writing content. Maybe it's when you're leading your team. Maybe it's when you're coaching your clients, serving. Maybe it's when you're selling on a sales call. See who you step into.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:17:13]:

Be intentional about who you wanna step into. That's what I wanna challenge you with this week is look at the different personas that you have in the different areas of your life. Where do you need to be intentional about who you're stepping into? Where do we need to change or edit who you're stepping into? Make those changes. Write it down. Put some pictures somewhere so that you're constantly reminded about this new persona. And I would love to continue this conversation. So if you are deciding on a new persona, feel free to reach out to me in DMs. Or if you're on my email list, you know, reply to my emails.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:17:58]:

I reply back to everybody. It's me. It's not a team member. It's not a bot. It's me. And if you are at that point where you're like, you know what? This is the year that I am gonna finally, embrace speaking. This is the year that I'm not gonna be afraid of putting myself out there. This is the year that I'm going to get really visible in front of audiences that are filled with my ideal clients.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:18:27]:

If you're one of those people, if you are a high achiever, if you've got a message that you need to get out into the world, I want to encourage you to book a call with me. I've got various programs and how you can work with me, either 1 on 1 or groups or some events that I have coming up this year. Book that call at chatwithla.com. And I will share with you the different ways that I the different programs that I'm gonna have that I'm offering this year. I'm doing some changes I'm making. I'm very excited about some of the changes. And until then, I can hardly wait to speak with you. And I can hardly wait to see what personas you step into this week and moving forward because the world needs you.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:19:17]:

You have a story. You have a solution, and it's time for you to speak and stand out. So till next week, go be in demand.