Hey Reader,

Having you open this up is like finding out you DO have a new box of trash bags!

Let's dive into a little 'vocal psychology'…

Feeling fake is actually a good sign!

Most people who call themselves "shy" aren't really shy.

They're just quiet. And there's a big difference.

Shy is a personality. Quiet is usually just a volume knob nobody ever turned up.

Here's the thing we all do: we decide who we are based on how we've always sounded. "I'm soft-spoken." "I'm an introvert."

"That's just my personality."

Cool story. Also, you've been telling it so long you started believing it.

But your voice isn't your identity. It's a skill.

And skills get better with practice.

The weird part is that practicing your voice feels fake at first.

Like you're playing a character. Some guy in a voice-over class pretending to be himself. (Which is somehow the most uncomfortable thing imaginable.)

That feeling isn't a warning sign. It's just what "unfamiliar" feels like. We've confused the two for so long we treat discomfort like a stop sign instead of a green light.

Here's something that actually works if volume is your thing: the next time you're talking to someone, speak at what feels like an embarrassing, fire-alarm, somebody-call-security level of loud.

So loud you're sure they're going to look at you funny.

Too scary? “Record yourself”. Speak at a “Volume” you think is WAY over the top.

Then listen back to it...

What felt like screaming? Sounds completely normal.

Turns out you've been a mumbler this whole time, and everyone was just too polite to say so.

And here's the sneaky trick: go practice on strangers.

I call them “Neutral Ears”.

Different gas station. Different grocery store. Any place where nobody knows how you "usually" sound. They have zero reference point. You could speak in a completely new way, and they'd just think, "huh, friendly person."

No stakes. Perfect practice. You're basically a spy, except instead of gathering intel, you're just working on not swallowing your words.

That's where the real reps happen. Not on stage. Not on a call with your biggest client…

In the cereal aisle at a store you've never been to before.

And if you want someone to help you figure out which part of your voice is actually holding you back, that's exactly what I do in a quick 15-minute call.

No prep needed. Just show up and talk.

Grab a free 15-minute call with me below.

If the timing's off, no worries. The cereal aisle will still be there.

Go find some neutral ears.

Stellar Marketing Quotes

"The right time is a myth."

Kate Lee, Harvard Business Review

"The more we resist change, the more we suffer."

Robert Waldinger

The moment I almost spoke Martian…

The teleprompter went full alien on me

The words were upside down…And backwards.

I'm standing there, on “Live” TV, ready to deliver my perfectly rehearsed 5-minute “MDA Telethon” pitch, and the teleprompter looks like someone let a toddler loose on the keyboard… In Martian.

Backwards Martian.

The teleprompter looks like someone fed it a bowl of alphabet soup and hit “spin”.

My first thought was genuinely, "Am I having some kind of optical episode right now?"

My second thought, roughly 0.4 seconds later, Reader...

"Oh. I'm on LIVE television."

That's the kind of moment where your brain does this fun little thing where it offers you two choices: freeze like a deer who just got a speeding ticket, or start talking and figure it out on the way down.

Years of Radio training kicked in faster than a cat running from a vacuum cleaner. I just... started talking.

Made the whole thing up on the spot while staring at what looked like an ancient curse written in reverse.

My co-host was giving me the "I see exactly what's happening and I'm genuinely impressed you haven't started speaking in tongues" look.

The viewers? Not a clue!

Completely oblivious to the small internal crisis happening behind my eyes.

Here's the thing about that moment. It wasn't talent that saved me.

It was “Reps”.

Thousands of hours of live Radio where the equipment breaks, the guest no-shows, or the phone lines go dead, and you just keep going.

You can't fake that kind of “Ready”.

And most ‘communicators’ don't realize they're missing it until they're already standing at the metaphorical teleprompter, squinting at backwards Martian, going "...uh."

Most communication coaches teach from theory.

I teach from “pattern recognition”. You've got to record yourself!

Diversions

Your Thoughts

C'mon, be honest...

What makes someone instantly sound confident? Their voice Their words Their body language Their eye contact

Wait! Before you go... Please rate this Newsletter Loved it 🔥 It's Ok 👌 Not for me 💩