#056: Ever wondered how the power of your voice can amplify your business? Wonder no more! Join me as I interview Sally Prosser, an acclaimed voice and public speaking coach, who opens up about her passion for speaking, the profound impact it has had on her business, and how you can leverage your voice to make a real difference.
In this episode, you will learn:
Enjoy the episode.
About Sally Prosser
Sally Prosser is a voice and public speaking coach. Over the past 20 years she's helped hundreds of professionals speak with more confidence, had a career as a TV reporter and built a community of more than 300 thousand on TikTok.
She's a TEDx Speaker Coach, an expert on using a hairbrush as a microphone and in 2020 was named Young Entrepreneur of the Year for PR and Media in Queensland.
Sally is your one-stop-shop for everything speaking. From gaining the confidence to put yourself out there…to producing a strong voice…to crafting speeches for the stage…and designing strategy to get your spoken message heard. And with a strong belief that our voice is the organ of our soul, she's all about finding your unique voice and speaking from the heart!
To discover more about Sally and how she can help you speak up for your business:
Follow Sally on Instagram
Enjoy the episode!
#056: Ever wondered how the power of your voice can amplify your business? Wonder no more! Join me as I interview Sally Prosser, an acclaimed voice and public speaking coach, who opens up about her passion for speaking, the profound impact it has had on her business, and how you can leverage your voice to make a real difference.
In this episode, you will learn:
Enjoy the episode.
About Sally Prosser
Sally Prosser is a voice and public speaking coach. Over the past 20 years she's helped hundreds of professionals speak with more confidence, had a career as a TV reporter and built a community of more than 300 thousand on TikTok.
She's a TEDx Speaker Coach, an expert on using a hairbrush as a microphone and in 2020 was named Young Entrepreneur of the Year for PR and Media in Queensland.
Sally is your one-stop-shop for everything speaking. From gaining the confidence to put yourself out there…to producing a strong voice…to crafting speeches for the stage…and designing strategy to get your spoken message heard. And with a strong belief that our voice is the organ of our soul, she's all about finding your unique voice and speaking from the heart!
To discover more about Sally and how she can help you speak up for your business:
Follow Sally on Instagram
Enjoy the episode!
Hello, hello and welcome to the online course creator show. This is episode 56. I'm Lou Blankley, your host, and also a launch strategist and marketing coach who helps entrepreneurs get out there and launch and grow their online courses. And today I have a very special guest expert on Sally Proser, and we're going to be talking all about how to speak up for your business Now. Sally Proser is a voice and public speaking coach. She believes that our voice is the organ of our soul and she's all about finding your unique voice and speaking from the heart. Now. Sally seriously has a lot of experience here to back this up. So over the last 20 years, she's helped hundreds of professionals speak with more confidence, had a career as a TV reporter and built a community of over 300,000 on TikTok. She's a TEDx speaker coach. She loves to use her hairbrush as a microphone and in 2020, she was named as the young entrepreneur of the year for PR and media in Queensland, here in Australia. So Sally is your one stop shop for everything speaking from gaining the confidence to put yourself out there to producing a strong voice, to crafting speeches for the stage and designing strategy to get your spoken message heard.
Speaker 1:Now. I asked Sally to come on today because not only does she know what she's talking about in this space, but she is also a course creator herself. She actually, when I first met Sally, she was actually became a client not that long after meeting her actually. So I have helped her in the past with some of her launching one of her launches, and I'm also a member of her membership, soul Speaker, which is a place where Sally shares her amazing knowledge, expertise and experience on speaking. But not only that.
Speaker 1:I asked her to be on because, honestly, I think this business model, when you're creating online courses, showing up and using your voice, is so, so powerful and it can really be the thing that makes the biggest difference. So if you're someone that's struggling to show up on social media, that's struggling to share your voice or share your opinions, then this is definitely a must listen episode. I'm so glad you have tuned in today and I hope you really enjoy this episode. Welcome to this episode of the online course creator show. I am very happy to have Sally Proser here with me today. Thanks so much for joining us, sally. Lou, so great to be here. Yeah, so just to kick things off, what's your favorite thing about being a course creator?
Speaker 2:Oh, I would say my favorite thing about being a course creator is the creativity. You know there is no real playbook. You can decide what's in the curriculum, what do you want to put in it, how do you want to interact with your community, and so many of my online courses have literally just come to me while having a shower. I was just like, yep, it's going to be this, this, this, this long, this module, and then you can go and create it. So it's such a great way to harness your creativity and keep adapting to what people are looking for as well.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I absolutely love that. So you're here today to talk all about speaking up for your business as an online course creator. So you are a speaking coach. I'd love to hear your story about how you got into this area and why you're so passionate about it.
Speaker 2:Yes, I am so passionate about it. I believe you know your voice is such a great asset in your business. It's one of the things that can't be outsourced or copied or chat GPT, even though they talk about voice cloning and things like that. You know, really your human voice is you, and so when you're using it to promote your business, that's when you can create that real connection with people.
Speaker 2:And for me, my background has always been something to do with voice. So I remember when I was a kid I got a microphone from Santa. That's the only thing I wanted, and the first thing I did was say a thank you speech to Santa in front of my family with the microphone I got. So I did a lot of speaking and then I was a television and radio news reporter. Then it was a company spokesperson and I've used my voice throughout my career. I know the importance of being able to speak with confidence. But then it goes even deeper, because I found myself in a pretty not so great relationship where I'd lost my voice. So it was this irony of you know, speaking on national television by day and then feeling like a silenced girlfriend by night.
Speaker 1:I learned there was big difference.
Speaker 2:Yeah, a big difference between speaking with confidence and speaking your truth and really treating your voice as that organ of your soul and I know it might sound quite deep for online course creators, but when you can tap into that real reason you have your voice and that you're using it as this channel to talk about what you know and love which is where your course is coming from then you can really unlock a whole nother level of not just enjoyment with speaking, but connection with it too.
Speaker 1:I love that because everyone that creates a course they have a real driver behind, like actually choosing the business model, and usually it is about having that message in that, from my experience, course creators want to create a real impact and create some kind of change, so having the why, I guess, behind it and using your voice as the vehicle to get it out there.
Speaker 2:Yeah, 100% yeah. And that's why I started my business, because, sure, being able to speak with confidence and know all of the structures and the breathing and all of that stuff with voice, the gestures, is great, yet it's nothing without that true connection to self. And so that's why I, you know, when I discovered that connection to self, I thought I need to teach other people about this, because it doesn't matter whether you're introverted or extroverted, it doesn't matter whether you love social media or, you know, don't love it so much. We can always connect inward with our voice and use it wherever it is that we want to be heard.
Speaker 1:So you said you're a news reporter. Did you do speech and language type stuff as well?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I was like a speech and drama kid. So I grew up doing a Steadford's and you know poetry on stage. And I got my licentiate diploma in speech and drama, which is like above a speech and drama teaching qualification, it's like an examiner qualification. And when I was 16, I ran a speech and drama studio in the front room of my parents' house. So you know, poor dad, he'd get kicked out of his office up in afternoon and then I'd have little kids coming for lessons. So my youngest was four, the oldest was about my age, leaving school and yeah, that's where all of the core training came from.
Speaker 2:And then I wanted to use my voice and I went into radio but, as I quickly discovered, you can't read the news like you're doing a Shakespearean monologue. I remember the first shift that I did. I was like good morning, it's 5.30. I am Sally Prossa and the news director was like Sal, like seriously, you got to tone that down. Like people are just like getting their kids off to school, they're just driving. Like you've got to use it differently. And that's when I really learned that our voice can be changed and we can adapt it to the scenario. And he said one thing that really stuck with me. He said don't try to do a voice, be a voice. And at first I was like what the hell Like? Don't try to do a voice, be a voice.
Speaker 2:But it goes back to what I was speaking about earlier in the sense of it's not something that we kind of reach outward for, we reach inward for it. And you know creating courses, you know I remember the first one I did. I used the auto cue. So I got a professional cameraman and I was in my living room You've been here, you know downstairs and I it was very proper, like every time I made any kind of mistake it was edited out and it looked amazing. Then I discovered that it's a much better connection when I was just filming freely and if I did make a stumble or something like that, it really didn't matter, because it was so much more important to have that fluency. So I took my own advice from all those years ago and I was like, oh God, I'm doing that thing again. I'm trying to do a voice rather than being a voice, and so it's a little mantra that I always give myself.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's so interesting actually, because I think one of the first times I met you actually I lived in Brisbane for I don't know, like six months to a year or something and I remember asking you I need help with my voice because my accent no one understands it here in Australia, and you just were like, who cares, just talk. And I was like, oh, my god, you're so right. And from then on I've always just been like, well, I just have to be myself really.
Speaker 2:Oh, 100%. Now, accent is such a part of who we are, it's part of our identity, it's part of our story, it's something to be embraced. You know, on the odd occasion I get a lot of people say, oh Sal, can you help me with my accent? Like, well god, the last thing I want to do is turn you into a bow in Queenslander. Have an accent like us. If you're listening from overseas, you'll find it's quite hilarious. Yeah, there was a Scottish guy I worked with and instead of saying shower, he'd say sure. So it wasn't really hard to understand, and his team was struggling to understand him and he was doing things like safety briefings, you know. So in that case I was like, well, look, we're just going to have to, you know, check a couple of those vows to make sure people understand what it is that we're saying. Beyond, beyond. That accent is nothing to worry about.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's so true. I, when I was younger, I did a few seasons snowball instructing in the States and then I ended up with a summer job there waitressing in a Mexican restaurant, and I had to like seriously change some of the things that I said, because American people could not understand me when I said do you want some water? What?
Speaker 2:Water, water, oh my gosh. When I was in the UK I worked at a Aussie pub called the walkabout and at the when I first started it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I studied in Lancaster for a year and the guys would come into the pub and they'd say all of a bud would live a bud. I could not work out what the hell they were saying, but they were saying I'll have a bud, meaning a Budweiser, I think the terminology, and it's not something that's very commonly drunk over here. So, yeah, there's so many stories about these lost in translation things that they all add to the the richness of experience. Like another one, I work with a lot of people from all over the world, including the states, and I often use the term stuff it up, right, so when you're speaking, you don't want to stuff it up. And they were like, oh no, sell. Like, do you have a cold?
Speaker 1:you got some nasal congestion and they thought that I was like my face was stuffed up, other than messing up, you know yeah, that's so funny, but then also, on the flip side, the accent so powerful as well, because one of the seasons when I was snowboard instructing, I actually was one of the most popular instructors because people keep requesting me and it was like I think it was a big part due to the accent. Like you go to the snow, you get a foreigner to teach you how to scale snowboard, you know.
Speaker 2:So it's still part of the experience?
Speaker 1:Yeah, and I think online as well, if we're speaking to a global audience, which we are as soon as we turn on, go live or whatever we are going to a global audience. We really just have to be ourselves.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so it's watching that terminology. However, often people know what we mean anyway and they can find it quite endearing. So, yeah, into yourself. I was talking to someone this morning about I'm being your weird and wonderful self and in online course creation, when there's so much out there and there's so many people who can teach the stuff, like most things can be Googled right. So, as a course creator, we want to make our content be so much Ours so that it can't be picked up and voiced by someone else. This is a bit of a test I say when you're putting out any marketing or courses, can that script actually be done by someone else and still make sense? And the answer should be no. Your content only makes sense if it's done by you.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and that's where it's so powerful with your story and using your voice to share that story. So today we're talking all about how to speak up for your business and there's no doubt about it a course creation business. You do have to be the one at the forefront sharing your story, putting your face and your voice to your business. So what do you recommend to someone who is maybe so keen to have this kind of business but they're just struggling a little bit to step into that Powerful position of speaking up for themselves and using their voice?
Speaker 2:Hmm, well, start small, so you might want to not do a big live on Instagram, however, you might put a story out there to start with. You might even just make videos in your camera roll that never get posted. So it's not about going from zero to hero, just start pushing it a little bit. Maybe, instead of launching your own podcast, you be a guest on some other people's podcasts Small stories just think of what are all these different ways that you can use your voice and our voice can be used, from like social media videos to podcast, to speaking on panels, at events, webinars. There's so many different ways, on stage and online, that we can use our voice. So it's working out what are you drawn to and then where's that next small step you can take to do it? So that's the first practical thing, and then, alongside that, it's the story. It's a story that's going on in your mind.
Speaker 2:So this morning, I was speaking with somebody who said oh, so I just hate social media. I really hate social media. I don't want to be on there. That's like, well, you know, but I feel like I have to have a business to be on there and this kind of relationship is not going to be fun. It's going to make social media feel like that annoying friend that's dragging you to the party that you don't want to go to, whereas if you reframe it to being the sovereign of your socials that's what I like to say I'm the sovereign of my socials and it's this incredible opportunity that we get to be able to reach so many people.
Speaker 2:You know, wi-fi was invented in 1997. 1997. So in 1996, if you said to somebody, oh my gosh, I really don't want to show up on TikTok or Instagram, I'm nervous because I've been on this podcast and I've got my Kajabi and my Kachar and all this, they'd be like what the hell are you actually saying? You can just look into your phone and film a video and then you can send it out to thousands of people around the world and it's pretty much free. You know they would just their mind would be blown. So it's such a great opportunity that we live in this day and age, that we can reach so many people, and it's such an opportunity. So I would say, stop seeing it as the enemy and start seeing it as the friend, the friend that enables you to amplify your voice. So if you enjoy having a one-on-one conversation with someone and you enjoy having a one to small group, then social media is just like that, but on steroids.
Speaker 1:So do you recommend that, if people are showing away from it, to just imagine that they are talking to one person?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think that definitely helps. Imagine you're talking to one person and know that, like, social media is like your house, I say it's like hosting a house party. So when you put out some content, it's like putting out an invitation. You're putting out a party invitation and then people come to your door. So some of the nice comments and people engaging, it's like, yeah, hey, come on in. And then you've got to talk back to that person because it'd be rude not to, because they've come to your house for a party.
Speaker 2:So when people don't respond to comments, that's what it's like. It's like someone turning up and you're not greeting them. Then you might get some haters or some annoying people and you can decide to kick them out or you can decide to ignore them and then you can decide when the party's over so you want to send your next invitation. So I think that's a really helpful metaphor when it comes to marketing, because it really puts you in control. You know, I have these mantras I'm the sovereign of my socials, I'm the queen of the castle, I'm in charge of the day. Because as soon as that power imbalance shifts and you're like, oh, it's just this thing I have to do, that's when it all goes downhill.
Speaker 1:Right, yeah. So it's about creating a like positive relationship with what you even think of social media and its role in your business. To start off with, yeah. So your work includes like a big chunk of like the mindset side of things as well as the practical voice tips and that kind of thing. So in your work, what are the common reasons why people are holding back that you know, as people listening might also be experiencing- yeah, the biggest one is what will people think I say?
Speaker 2:what will people think? Or will people like it? It's kind of like that people pleaser type vibe and that fear of you know I put myself out there and it's also comes down to your own stories. So if you've got this perception of people who are really always out there on social media, being attention seekers, for example, or even being someone not like you, you put yourself in a category that isn't them and say, well, I'm not like that.
Speaker 2:Yes, so true so you create that story where I'm not like that and in some cases it's like I don't want to be like that there's some big, loud creators that you're like oh God, I hope that's not. That's not me. We got to remember. We get to be in charge of our own story. So if you are worried about what people will think, I say, aren't you more worried that they won't think? We need more thinking people. We want people to think things about us. So it comes down to OK, well, they're going to think negatively about us. And then we get to turn inwards because a fear of other people judging us negatively is us judging ourselves negatively. So we get to look inside you know that whole pointing one finger out and three fingers back at you and it's like, well, what am I worried about? And often it's not really anything at all.
Speaker 2:Like one of the best things that happened to me was going viral on TikTok and then getting a whole bunch of haters. I put this video out. It was about pronunciation a hill that I don't want to die on, which I discovered, and people were stitching this video saying I was Australia's most dangerous woman, that I was encouraging. I know crazy, right, encouraging people to or not encouraging people. I was making them feel bad about their voice, which is the exact opposite of what I get up in the morning to do. I'm all about feeling great about your voice and so, of course, with this was you know, hundreds of thousands of people, some positive, many negative, and so I'm crying on the couch of my therapist's office, being like, why don't people like you know?
Speaker 2:And that's when she said, sal, you got to live life in your disco ball, keep on shining, keep on dancing, and you decide who comes to your party and who gets reflected right back on them. And the bottom line was is the sky didn't fall in, my business grew, if anything, and no one in my in a circle or my clients or friends thought any differently of me. So it's like well, why worry about what strangers on the internet say? So I say, if you're worried about judgement, like, go out there and post content until you get haters. It's going to be the best thing for you to up level. If you want to up level, get haters. If you've worried about being cancelled, go out there and get cancelled. Like, go and have the things happen that you're worried about happening, and then you'll realise that they're nothing and you're able to free yourself from them.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I love what you said once that I heard was something around people you know having the sphere of speech and then being cancelled, like everyone is so scared of being cancelled these days. But I think you said you've actually got to be out there and be known and have people thinking about you in the first place. Oh yes, I was like I actually. Yes, I want to be cancelled. I want to be famous enough to be cancelled.
Speaker 2:Like there's not going to be a headline tomorrow going Sally Proser cancelled because it's not newsworthy. No one knows who I am. I should say that I'm fine, I'm fine, I'm fine, I'm fine, I'm fine, I'm fine.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so it's kind of like people know who you are.
Speaker 2:That, yes, that is true, but it wouldn't be headline news, so that's just a whole lot of opportunity to have a greater reach. You know, it's kind of like this. It's this weird thing and it goes back to our childhood often, where we, you know, want to speak up, but we've been told that that wasn't right. Maybe it's it's we've been told to be quiet, we weren't listened to and we said something stupid and we were humiliated. So we've possibly got this narrative of you know what it's safer if you just pipe down, you know, and I think we are told yeah, we are told throughout our childhood by our teachers, by our parents, like you know, some of them down there you know, like constantly.
Speaker 1:So it's no wonder that we kind of have this programming of you know thinking I better not say that, I better not talk too loud and, you know, show up too loud. But the reality is, as a course creator, you absolutely need to in some way or other to get sales.
Speaker 2:Yeah, to reach the people that you can help. You know I love this quote. It's a tiny Robbins one, I think, but he said the problem with a lot of people is they're obsessed with being who they were yesterday. Yes, andrew, I think about that. So you know, just because it was the way we did something yesterday and the day before doesn't mean we need to be like that Today.
Speaker 2:That's what I said about my drinking. You can make a new choice and so our energy flows where intention goes. So if we're thinking about the negative, it's going to bring in the negative. But if you're putting your content out there and you're thinking, wow, there are all these people who need my course, because you wouldn't have a course if there wasn't a problem you were solving, right, like if it was just like a hobby thing that you did, like me talking into my hairbrush on TikTok that's kind of just like a thing I do for fun which also works as a marketing tool might have had, yeah, but if you've got a problem that you're trying to solve, then you're wanting to reach the people whose problem you can solve.
Speaker 2:So getting the voice out there is the way to do that, and you've got to get through the enough. I can say shit, but you've got to get through the shit to get the clear water. It's like on a beach, you know you've got to get through the breaks of the waves to get to the beautiful. You know smooth water out the back. And that's what I sort of think of as well when it comes to overcoming any challenge, including negativity online and haters.
Speaker 1:I really like for me. I find it helps me if I focus on serving people rather than going out there and doing videos and stuff just to get sales, because then it's a whole different energy, right yeah?
Speaker 2:yeah, it's. I love that. It's the energy transfer. It's not I'm doing a video, it's I'm reaching someone who needs to hear my message.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and I think another thing that holds people back is that I have to do social media, Like you said before. That person was like I don't like social media, but if you feel like you have to do it and you can't switch that thinking around it, then it is going to feel like a drag and you're going to not want to turn that video on.
Speaker 2:You don't have to do it, you get to do it. You know, before social media you would have to pay really expensive television or newspaper advertising dollars. You know which is hard when you're a business starting out. Even before that time, like what would you do? Get the town crier to shout it down the street? You know it's like we're so lucky to live in this day and age where we have such amazing marketing tools that are free and they're quite leveling as well. So you can say what you want about the algorithms or anything like that, but if you've got great content, it will get to the right people. And the algorithm is our friend, because the better the algorithms get, the more likely it is to put us in front of the people who want to see us.
Speaker 1:So, as someone who has received quite a lot of haters, especially on TikTok, like sometimes I hear your stories and I'm like, wow, that's a lot to deal with, but you just like slight water off the ducks back for you.
Speaker 2:Oh, after the crying with the therapist.
Speaker 1:So you've got to process the haters and then you can move on.
Speaker 2:I feel like I'm over it now. I really I'm so glad I went through it. There was a time when it would just like cut me and I would be like, oh my God, why do they hate me, you know? And I really struggled with it and I worked through it and I've I'm so glad I have, because it's like that. I feel like I've battled that monster and now I can move on and it doesn't hold me back at all. And this quote really helped me as well.
Speaker 2:If you live for people's acceptance, you die by their rejection. If you live for people's acceptance, you die by their rejection. So I started to watch that. You know, every time a positive comment came in or a like, I wouldn't feed into that dopamine hit of oh yes, oh great, oh great, amazing. Because if you've got the amazing feeling, then you're going to have the equal and opposite negative feeling if it's not a nice comment.
Speaker 2:So I openly and happily receive it all. And when you've done a lot of work and personal development you know I'm going to personal development junkie and all of that you start to see that so clearly that the comments that people leave are just such a clear reflection of where they are in their life and in some ways and in many ways, they help you because your true fans, your real clients and friends, they'll often come in to defend you and you'll create, you'll strengthen your connection with your people by them kind of siding with you and being like, oh no, don't be mean to her and shut up. So I find that, like whenever I share content about my haters, it strengthens my connection with my community.
Speaker 1:I think that's so important to recognize in any area of life really. Man, this is not a life catching podcast, but you know, to go through something actually will make you stronger. And the same thing is true if you do get maybe very little response when you do speak up your business, or if you do get haters, or if you know you do a launch or whatever but your messaging's off and it doesn't really convert. Like if you're willing to be able to hold what's happening and then actually find out. You know, like work through that process, you're always going to come out the other side in a much more strengthened place.
Speaker 2:Yeah, absolutely so, lou. You helped me with one of my launches. You know, and you've seen how I've had ups and downs with launching different programs and different things. Working You're not working and when you can step out and say you know, this is a challenge I'm invited to overcome. You know, if you make growth one of your values, then anytime there's an obstacle it's an opportunity to live out one of your highest values.
Speaker 2:And I sort of see it like a video game in a way, and at each level we have the choice to sit behind the rock and just hide from the opponent or what do you know, the monster or whatever it is on that level, and a lot of people do that. They say it's too scary. I tried, I was just hiding behind the rock. But if you hide behind the rock, you just you never go anywhere. So every time you do come out and you face the objection, then you go up to the next level. So I'm at a stage now where I really I mean a bit touch wood while I say this. But you know, I embrace challenge because I know that every challenge I face is an opportunity to level up.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'm the same actually, and that has only come from a dedication to growth, like you say yeah, I think it doesn't happen overnight.
Speaker 2:I am going okay with social media. You know I don't have that many followers and I post pretty consistently and I have been for about four and a half years. I've posted on almost every single platform every single day for four and a half years. I really enjoy the content creating process. You have to, and I think there are some people I've I'm not sure if you see it with your clients or people who come into your world but this idea of, oh, I'm going to do one social media post and someone's going to buy my course, oh, yeah.
Speaker 2:It's definitely had a lot of people come into my world who thinks like that?
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's not reality.
Speaker 2:It's not reality, you know. So it's just a continual building. You know, so many people and I'm sure everyone can relate to this will say I've been following you for years. Hmm, or I've been following you for a while. You know, I just booked a speaking gig from somebody who was like it was funny, because she's like oh, I don't know if we want to have all of the dancing that you normally do. I'm like, oh, don't worry, I can. I can roll back on the dancing. But she said, yeah, I've been following you on LinkedIn for about three years.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's always interesting, I find, especially with the like private clients. That's usually the case.
Speaker 2:Hmm.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but you ask super consistent.
Speaker 1:Yeah, exactly, so you are super consistent. I feel like, out of all of the people that I know on the online business world, you're probably one of the most consistent at showing up. What kind of do you either find that waivers, or is it just like an ingrained habit at this?
Speaker 2:point, it is a habit. So I made the decision a while ago that I would be happy to show up on camera with no makeup and sometimes I'm not even wearing bra or anything, you know and so that has helped me because I don't have any barriers. You know, I'll show up as I am, so I don't need to be down, I don't need to be in any particular way, I will just make a video. I also have someone helping with my content, so I have somebody who creates content for my podcast page and then that gets collaborated across and sometimes it like looks like I'm putting new videos out where I'm just sharing, and I do across lots of platforms, so I'll do it.
Speaker 2:The Tik Tok and the Instagram and the LinkedIn and the Facebook It'll just all be the same piece of content that's going out across all of them. And I work hard on keeping my crown chakra open. So like I work harder my creativity, so I go outside, I look into the clouds and I, you know, think in the shower and then that just means there's a never ending fountain of content coming in where I wake up and I'm like I've got so much to say today. What do I want to say you know, it's just, it's always, I'm always being inspired. So.
Speaker 1:I don't know if that's helpful. Yeah, no, that I think that's a really good point, because I think, yes, people struggle with. The barrier is, I've got to look good and I can't be bothered putting makeup on Like I think that's a big one for women, so that then it becomes like a well, I'm just not going to do it today.
Speaker 2:Yeah, exactly, and that's why I made the decision. You know what that's it? You just, this is my face, yeah, and I do really dressed up sometimes as well, so, like people can see, you know different parts of me.
Speaker 1:Yeah, well, they see the real you and the many aspects that you come in.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean if I was filming online course or when I'm doing a webinar or something like that. You know I always go to an effort, but with social media, I'm happy to put things out that aren't and then just use a mix, you know. So, of course, I'm a big proponent for speaking up for your business, doing video content, doing podcasting, sending voice notes instead of typing, showing up on stories every day I love all that. However, I also use emails which are just text. I use carousel posts, I use photos. I use a lot of other content that isn't voice. So if you've always got something handy in your camera roll that you can come out with, then that can help you be consistent as well.
Speaker 2:Like I'm like if I had nothing, I could just put a little story up to say download my pep talks in your pocket.
Speaker 1:So I love that of having using those days when maybe you are feeling a little bit more creative to think of content that you can have on the background for days when you're not feeling so into showing up. You know, but I also. One thing that happened in my business is I started my online business quite a long time ago, in 2013, which is like makes me ancient in this area, and one of the things that blew me away is when I started doing videos. I think it was about 2015, and the instant connection that I had with people after that point made me realize how powerful video is, because people get to see you and they hear your voice and when they talk to you, they're like they actually they already know you, even though you don't know them, which I think is testament to how powerful video is and sharing your voice Right.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean like people are really good at people have a really great BS radar, and online there are a lot of I wouldn't want to say charlatans, but you know there's a lot of different content making different claims.
Speaker 2:But when you can see someone's face and hear their voice like the voice says so much about a person, we can hear what their airflow is like you know.
Speaker 2:So a voice that has more airflow, like this Well, I've been a little bit sick, so it sounds a little bit nasally but one like this is more believable than a voice like that. So if your voice is in the back of your throat and you take lots of different pauses, then that's like the voice of a lie, which is why the voice is so beautiful, because you can hear someone's passion, you can hear their knowledge, you can hear their honesty, you can hear their certainty, you know. So if a creator says you know how this happens and we do it all the time, and this is a bit of an Australian thing, where it goes up at the end of every line Over and over again, that might put a bit of a seed of uncertainty. So, even though it's so great to use our voice, we've got to make sure that we're using in a way that is putting the right kind of message across.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think that's a continuously improvement. Like you know, you should focus on that Always, right. Like I definitely feel like I listened to myself on this podcast when I'm editing it and I'm like.
Speaker 2:God, I say like a lot.
Speaker 1:Oh my gosh.
Speaker 2:I'm saying my podcast and actually yes. So this is really important to say a video that has bad lighting, that has rising inflections, that has a whole lot of things that aren't perfect, is better than no video at all. So like, remove any of those barriers to entry. You know, I've got a fantastic lighting set up, for example, but most of my videos I just put on the windowsill. It's not perfect, but it's quick.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah. And I think for me starting this podcast as well, is that I've really had to leave perfectionism at the door, like there is no room to be obsessed with a sentence that maybe you said the wrong word by mistake, or I say like too many times. I also think I say you know a lot like, and I said like again, it's all just part of it, right? And if I was so hung up on that, I literally wouldn't be here right now interviewing you.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and you asked about what people have as a barrier before and I said it was they're worried about what people think. The second one would be oh, I say too many ums and r's and I can't say what I want to say. It's the concern about the fluency and again, you're better off speaking with ums and r's and a flowing than sounding like a robot. And also online you can cut in the editing Like, actually, videos that have those really short jump cuts are more watched, they say, on TikTok anyway. So some of the videos I make like they look like they're a seamless video but they're actually not they're. I record one sentence. Stop one sentence, stop one sentence, stop, you know, so you don't really have to have a whole lot of information in your mind to go for it. And even in podcasting I know with this one same with mine you know if you really need to have a stop and say something again, it's no problem. There is so much magic in editing.
Speaker 1:Yeah, 100%. I actually really like that about you know doing the face to camera reels, how you just do a sentence at a time, because there's no way that I'd remember what to say anyway. Yeah. I also find breath as well, Like sometimes when you're talking too fast and trying to get it all out, your breath gets like you kind of lose breath. So taking that moment to chill and then go again, yeah think on the in breath, speak on the out breath.
Speaker 2:Oh, I love that. It's the same thing making videos for content. So I'll have the camera framed quite wide and I'll just keep going and I'll stop and start, but then we're in the edit. You can just tighten the frame, you know, so you don't need to just press stop and start a hundred times. You can just keep going and then in the editing yeah, it depends what system you're using, but you can just make it tighter, and so it looks like it's meant to be like that and it's actually more interesting than just having the same frame the whole time.
Speaker 1:Yeah, good tip. So I'm interested to know how have you found TikTok as a course creator? Because, for those listening, if you don't know, how many followers do you have on there, like quite a lot right.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I don't know. So it's weird. So I'm about let's have a look. It's 300 and something thousand. It has been slowly going down and I don't know the reason for that. Partly it's the finding the right audience. So it's at 344,000 now. It was up to 350,000 at one point, and more followers isn't always better. That's what I've learned.
Speaker 2:So when I first started doing TikTok, I did quite a few like grammar videos Like this is the difference between effect and affect, and it was kind of fun. But then a lot of people thought I was an English teacher and I'm not. I'm voiced in presentation and confidence, and so they'd be asking me these complex grammatical questions. I'm like, oh God, I'm going to have to Google that one, like it's just not what I do. And so I thought, oh, I'm going to have to change the content to really show people and even my news reader comedy. For a while people just knew me for that and I was like, oh, I got a lot of followers from that. And are they people who are going to be buying in my business? So even though my followers are less and my views are down, I found my conversions have been up because I'm talking to the people I want to work with about voice and presentation and TikTok.
Speaker 2:The best thing about it, I mean timing was a big thing for me. I joined in December 2019. So it was perfect timing and my first video went viral on the 27th of February 2020. So right before COVID and it was the first time I really used a lot of video, because you can't use anything else on TikTok. So up until then, I'd be doing a lot of just posts on LinkedIn and Instagram like stills, whereas on TikTok you had to do video. And that's when I discovered, like you said, that power of video. Once people see you on video, you start to create traction that you can't get any other way.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's so true, right, it just cuts through yeah. More so than Russian word. Yeah Well, thanks, sally, for coming on today. I feel like we have talked about so many good things and if a course creator is listening who's been a little bit too scared to put themselves online, I think your overall message is to just get out there and do it anyway, right, yeah?
Speaker 2:Baby steps Back yourself, do it. So thinking about your voice is just this channel to share what you know and love. So if your course is as good as you think it is because that's what a big part of it as well is I had to work through this as well you need to have a course that you absolutely want to shout from the rooftops because it's that good.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I did it. If it's said on there a few weeks ago actually.
Speaker 2:Yeah, For sure You've got to love it. And then you can spread the word and download my pep talks in your pocket. So I've got these five audio tracks which take you through a voice warm up, a bit of a pep talk, breathing exercise, a speech warm up, and you can download them just like a podcast. And if you are feeling a little bit shaky before you film a video for social media or a webinar or anything like that, then you can just tune in and get a little. They're only about three and a half minutes each, so you can get a little dose of motivation before you start.
Speaker 1:I love that. I think, yeah, it's so important to just get that, have that courageous moment almost, and then just do it and then, as you do it, over time, you'll build that confidence to keep showing up 100%, yeah. So where can people find you if they want to check out what you do? Maybe look at your courses and also download those pep talks in your pocket.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so I would love to hear from you. Instagram's probably the best place for me, so I'm at Sally Proser Voice, also TikTok at Sally Proser Voice. I'm just not as good there on the DMs, so I'm better on the DMs on Instagram and also LinkedIn. They're the three blessed places. There you go. That's a good reframe for social media. It's the blessed places and my website is sallyprosacomau. Don't forget the AU.
Speaker 1:Amazing. Well, thanks so much for coming on today, sally. I hope, for those of you listening, you've taken away something quite a few points from this podcast today and you're ready to take action and get out there and use your voice. Thanks, course Creators and Go Getters. You're incredible and I hope you enjoyed today's episode. If you haven't done so already, make sure you hit subscribe in your podcast app so you don't miss an episode. If you'd like to find out more about what I offer, head across to loublatelycom. See you next time.