Speak in your authentic voice and have fun doing it!
Let Her Speak is a seven-month-long training experience in 2024/2025 for female-identifying business leaders wanting to learn how to speak in their authentic voice, and have fun while doing it!
- This experience will help you let go of limiting beliefs about yourself on stage, learn the power of storytelling, of breath, master gestures and vocal variety, and learn how levity and vulnerability help us connect to other humans on stage and off.
- An audience wants to be drawn in, they want to fall in love with you. They want to be moved. To be persuaded and that all starts with our voice and our physical presence way before the messaging even begins.
- Let’s find your authentic/powerful voice while being surrounded by other supportive women. Oh, and let’s find some fun too.
Meet the Instructor: Dana Black
Dana Black is a communications coach, public speaker, moderator, corporate emcee, podcaster, storyteller and a SAG-AFTRA TV/film/voiceover actor for over 15 years. She has performed on stages throughout Chicago and beyond and loves commanding a room using vulnerability, creativity, a little sass and a lot of heart.
Dana is also a speaker delivery coach for TEDxChicago, an executive public speaking and performance coach with Janicek Performance Group and coaches clients privately all over the country. She loves helping people craft THEIR story and messaging with more ease, confidence and authenticity. Dana is also the casting director/project manager for actors for the Southwest Institute for Emotional Intelligence.
Dana moved to Traverse City two years ago after living in Chicago for over 20 years. Dana is now an active Big Sister with Big Brothers Big Sister, a TART Trail Ambassador, was a co-host/emcee for the April 2024 reboot of TCNewTech, a playwriting mentor for the Young Playwrights Festival at the City Opera House, a public speaking coach for local political candidates and business leaders, and an upcoming moderator for the National Writers Series. Oh, and she loves to kayak and hike in all the beautiful nature!
Personal Website
Dana Black
Instagram
Dana Black (@dana_black209)
Acting/Emotional Intelligence Work
Emotional Intelligence Workshops & Coaching | Southwest Institute (swiei.com)
Janicek Performance Group
Janicek Performance Group: Media & Executive Presence Coach (kathrynjanicek.com)
Sessions
LET’S INTRO AND RELEASE
Location: Traverse Connect
Orientation and intros, learning about each other and what we want to work on regarding public speaking. Releasing limiting beliefs about ourselves thru a water release ceremony, pulling some oracle cards. Followed by a cocktail hour somewhere! First cocktail on me!
LET’S CONNECT
Location: Traverse Connect
My Name is exercise. Memorize and present the My Name Is exercise to one person in the group, to practice the power of connection. Then present the exercise to the entire group and see the difference in talking to more than one person.
LET’S PRACTICE
Location: Traverse Connect
Participants will bring in real keynotes, presentations, pitches, fundraising remarks, toasts to work on in front of the group, with live coaching from Dana.
LET’S VOCALIZE AND GESTURE
Location: TBA
Let’s kick off the year LIVE on a stage! Let’s project our 2025 goals for the year to the back of the space, use big gestures, exaggerate and command a room with confidence.
LET’S STORY SHARE with Shea Petaja
Location: Traverse Connect
Learn the power of how to tell a compelling story, and how to incorporate more stories into your business plan, pitches, fundraising efforts and presentations.
LET’S PITCH
Location: Traverse Connect
Present your 3-5 minute elevator pitch about your business to the group and get us all to buy into your mission, your product and YOU.
LET’S PLAY
Location: Traverse Connect
Learn the power of presenting comedy, poetry, a toast, a joke. Let’s have some fun and loosen up our bodies and minds by presenting something unrelated to our business plan.
LET’S PRACTICE
Location: Traverse Connect
Participants will bring in real keynotes, presentations, pitches, fundraising remarks, toasts to work on in front of the group, with live coaching from Dana and supportive feedback from the group.
LET’S SEE IT AND CELEBRATE
Location: TBA
Participants present a 5-7 minute written speech or presentation around what this class has taught them about their own public speaking journey, and perform it in front of the class AND invited guests of the participants! YEP! A small but loving and supportive audience for our final class together. Wine and personal stories/testimonials around how this class helped them become a better leader, speaker and citizen of the world.