On this episode of Mastery Unleashed, Christie Ruffino sits down with Renee Cooper, an accomplished speaker, corporate fundraising expert, and Toastmasters leader, to discuss the art of speaking with confidence and connecting with an audience.

Renee shares her inspiring journey, from a childhood dream of becoming the next Oprah Winfrey to overcoming self-doubt and societal expectations, ultimately stepping into her true calling as a speaking coach. With over 15 years of experience in corporate fundraising and public speaking, Renee reveals how storytelling is the key to capturing attention and making a lasting impact.

She provides three powerful strategies to help entrepreneurs, professionals, and aspiring speakers connect more and present less:

1. Know Your "Why": Stay grounded in your message and ensure clarity in your purpose.
2. Start with a Story or Powerful Question: Grab attention immediately and engage your audience emotionally.
3. Master the Power of the Pause & Nonverbal Communication: Own the stage, make eye contact, and let silence work for you.

Listeners can download Renee’s exclusive empowerment speaking tips, a printable resource to boost confidence and elevate their speaking skills in any setting.

Renee is a Communications expert and has been a Speaker for 15+ years, raising millions of dollars in Corporate Fundraising. Along her journey, many executives and leaders on all levels would ask her how she enjoys speaking so much and how they could consistently appear more authentic. Renee turned her lifelong love for speaking and educating to mentoring, coaching, and training individuals, teams, and organizations to improve their sales and leadership skills, by discovering, developing, and amplifying their voice, the most important instrument we were given. Renee uses a unique and customized interactive approach to help her audience’s create authentic and engaging connections with their audiences, big or small. By using science-backed techniques including Improvisation, coupled with specific voice techniques and her own story overcoming adversity in the workplace, Renee is passionate about improving Communications in the workplace by getting her clients and audiences to walk through the discomfort of speaking, or working through conflict by doing a deep dive in Communications Training so they can reach the next level in their success journey - personally or professionally.

Renee is a Toastmaster through Toastmasters International and a graduate of Dale Carnegie Leadership program. Renee is a speaker for the United Way of Broward County, has been a Speaker for Eagle's Haven in Coral Springs, FL, appears on Virtual Stages, leads Communication Masterclasses on Eventbrite, and runs a private Communications Coaching practice as a Transformative Communications Coach, supporting individuals and leaders in all industries in person and via Zoom. Renee, an educator by heart, was an Improv teacher and has led Improvisation classes at her local community center, to give back to her community.

We have been conditioned, especially throughout school and in our careers, to get our presentations done and over with. Yet most people throughout every industry are still simply presenting. This is because most people simply share their message and hope that it will land for their audiences. Having the ability to take your message, while being able to transform your experience with them, through your voice, so that your audience will step into that message with you, is where authentic connection happens as a Speaker.

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