Behind many of the greatest performances of all time – I’m talking about stars like Michael Jordan and The Beatles – there are coaches.
One of the biggest compliments I’ve ever received was when the CEO of a $20B private company told me – no one EVER tells me these things.
I was so proud to be able to help guide this brilliant leader and nudge him gently with my coaching.
The majority of CEOs we work with are surrounded by people who don’t want to hurt the relationship they have with their boss. I GET IT.
This is why an outside voice … a coach … a trainer … is so important.
This is our role.
Like Michael Jordan had Phil Jackson and The Beatles had George Martin, if you want to achieve greatness in your speaking career, you need an expert to support you.
This winning formula isn’t exclusive to sports or music.
If you have a big presentation coming up, you need a coach in your corner.
We’re talking about more than nailing your delivery – we’re talking about owning your presence and making a real impact on your audience.
You need to get the return on your investment.
The Value of Having a Coach in Your Corner
When our clients have big keynotes coming up, we have them present in our studio so they’re confident and ready to go when it’s showtime.
This allows them to get used to the teleprompter and simulate being on stage with the bright lights on them.
The studio can also be a space where self-doubt looms, where the echo of the inner critic threatens to overshadow even the most confident voices.
Being on set, surrounded by lights, cameras, and a crew of between 3 and 30, can be incredibly overwhelming.
And this is GOOD!
It’s a scenario outside the comfort zone for many, and it helps them get ready for the pressure of a real life scenario.
It’s common for insecurities to surface, from hating the sound of your voice to feeling self-conscious about your appearance.
Even after over two decades of experience in studios, coaching TV anchors/reporters, and ten years coaching executives on how to deliver messages on stage, online and for the camera – I need that coach … that voice … improving my delivery and body language.
(I’ll even share a video below of my process in the studio, the three takes I took to get to the final result, and how one of our coaches helped me do it.)
Four Things a Coach Can Do For You in The Recording Studio
1. Emotional Support and Advocacy
One of the primary benefits of having a coach in your corner when presenting is having someone to advocate for you.
They can sense your emotions, support you, and keep you motivated, whether this means saying, “Let’s take a break,” “Let’s go through that one again,” or “Let’s play that take back to review.”
Some clients don’t feel comfortable asking for another take or rehearsal – or don’t even know what questions to ask because they haven’t been on a stage or in front of a camera. Having someone in your corner whose job is to advocate for you if you don’t feel comfortable doing it yourself is a game-changer.
2. Vocal Performance Coaching
Our coaches pay particular attention to vocal performance to see where it can be enhanced.
Having a coach in your corner is like having a second set of ears to listen to your delivery…
- Direct you on how to say each line and which words to emphasize.
- Recognize when your voice sounds dry and needs water or a quick vocal warm-up to get you back into a good pitch.
- Help you identify when you’re dropping your volume at the end of sentences, rushing through lines, or forgetting to connect to your breath.
- Do script editing at the moment if you repeatedly stumble. How you write something on paper doesn’t translate to how you say it out loud. Sometimes, teams will write scripts that have language that is way too stylized for verbal communication. We edit scripts to make sure they sound great when being delivered and like the leader is actually speaking to the audience.
3. Body Language Coaching
The third benefit of having a coach with you in the studio is having someone to direct your body language.
One of the things we commonly see is people using their hands too much or not enough. Or perhaps they’re not adding any facial expressions and are staying super neutral.
When you have a coach in the studio, they can make sure your body is fully incorporated and present in the moment.
We also coach people on their appearance: hair, makeup, and wardrobe. We help you look like the leader you envision and want to be.
With a coach, you receive real-time feedback and adjustments, ensuring that your look and body language match your message.
4. Production Coordination
It’s powerful to have someone other than you coordinate the production to make the most of your time in the studio.
While this isn’t true for working with all coaches, we have extensive broadcast television and theatre background – so we remove all the extra brain work so you can focus solely on your performance.
When you work with our team, you can focus on what you are an expert in.
Even for me, I need one of my coaches in the room so I can focus just on my performance and ignore the producer brain inside me that wants to plan everything.
When you work with us, you also get a reliable crew – a producer, director, videographer, editor, teleprompter professional, makeup artist, hairstylist, photographer, craft services – and whatever else you need.
We have trusted contractors that we work with that you can be confident will deliver the best (unlike that time when somebody brought their own makeup artist, and it was their 15-year-old niece). You don’t have to waste time scheduling any of these key players. We coordinate the entire production and everyone who is needed.
Here’s an example of what getting coached in the studio looks like.
In the first clip of this video, I was still thinking of the words. I was in my head, and my expression was slightly glazed over. I wasn’t emotionally connecting to the words.
What you don’t hear is Raechel, one of our expert coaches, standing off to the side, encouraging me to do another take.
The second time around, I was still trying to make sure the wording was exactly what I wanted to hear and that my presence matched the intention of the video. It was better, but still wasn’t THE take.
Again, Raechel helped me.
Finally, when you watch the third take, you can feel and see I had the confidence of knowing the message, connecting to the WHY, so I didn’t come off as robotic reading from the teleprompter and the energy I had been working up to.
Are you ready for a coach?
The undeniable truth remains: behind the curtain of some of the most legendary performances in history stood coaches who played instrumental roles in shaping greatness.
Whether you’re gearing up for a pivotal presentation or navigating the path to becoming a seasoned speaker, having a coach to guide you is indispensable.
You want someone in your court looking out for every aspect of your performance, including your emotional well-being and your physical and vocal messaging.
Having a coach puts you at ease, as you know someone has your back, and you don’t have to do this alone.
If you’re preparing to deliver a major presentation or looking to break into the public speaking profession, we can help you get to where you need to be.
