Today, I interview Eric Brotman who was very entertaining in childhood. He loved doing standup comedy or singing, always mimicking his favorite stars. He enjoyed putting on a show for his friends and family, goofy and carefree. But he never actually used his own voice or his own style when he did these things. 

In school, he fit in everywhere and was friends with everyone, now referring to his younger self as "chameleon-esque". Still to this day, he has a tendency-- as many of us do-- to tailor his speaking style to his audience. 

However, the changes that took place after his parents' divorce led this high schooler to face adulthood much earlier than expected. Eric began working at age 14, made his way through college, and completed some internships that led him toward the finance industry (although his studies were in English and Psychology). In this field and in his work with clients, he realized the vulnerable work he was doing as people shared their fears, the financial mistakes they'd made in the past, and their hopes and dreams for the future. 

He found his voice through moving forward, trying different things, and being open-minded to opportunities that came his way. He didn't plan to end up working in finance, but he says it's the best outcome he could have ever hoped for, and he loves helping others to open their minds to the possibilities that life has to offer. 

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Eric D. Brotman, CFP®, is the CEO of BFG Financial Advisors, host of the Don’t Retire… Graduate! podcast, author of the Don’t Retire… Graduate! book, and regular contributor to Forbes.com. 

He and his team believe that financial literacy is the key to financial freedom, so they provide free and affordable educational resources and accessible financial planning with no asset minimums. Free Resources: Ebook to help you save on taxes can be downloaded at lowtaxbook.com Ebook to help understand the financial planning process can be downloaded at whatisfp.com Complete library of resources, including webinars, podcasts, and articles can be found at brotmanmedia.com 

Find Eric here: 
[email protected] 
linkedin.com/company/bfgfa linkedin.com/in/ebrotman 
facebook.com/BFGFinancialAdvisors
facebook.com/DontRetireGraduate 
twitter.com/brotmanplanning

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I'm your podcast host, Dr. Doreen Downing, and I help people find their voice so they can overcome anxiety, be confident, and speak without fear. 

Get started now on your journey to your authentic voice by downloading my Free 7 Step Guide to Fearless Speaking: https://www.doreen7steps.com. 

Support the show

I’m Dr. Doreen Downing and I help people find their voice so they can speak without fear. Get the Free 7-Step Guide to Fearless Speaking https://www.doreen7steps.com​.

Today, I interview Joe Perrone who remembers growing up in Connecticut and being a secure child. He was in a home-school environment where he had to build his own network of friends. Later, in a public school setting, he was thrust among many other kids his age who had spent their lives learning in a completely different environment. 

Joe had to learn to fit into this new rhythm. He observed different norms when he entered the workforce as well. The dynamics between family members, friends, and business partners were all very unique. Being unfamiliar with this realm made him hesitant to speak out when he wanted to. 

Still, business culture and power became great interests for Joe. He chose to stand up against the unfairness that was occurring in his workplace. The thing that gave him boldness in the face of potentially losing his job was his love for his coworkers and doing the right thing by them. 

Stepping into a leadership role was a roller-coaster ride, but now that Joe has found the right way to use his voice, he uses his passion for business to help others find their own success.

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Joe is a strategist who helps business owners reclaim their time freedom. He believes that your business should run itself. It shouldn't run you into the ground. Joe has been helping his clients find full enjoyment in everything that they create, and do it without burning out. An entrepreneur himself, he owns and operates two successful automotive repair shops, and he does it in about six hours a week. 

His favorite ways to invest his reclaimed time is in building strong relationships with his wife and his two young sons, and also building a business that runs successfully without him and helping other business owners do the same. 

Find Joe here: [email protected] 
Facebook Group: TIME FREEDOM WARRIORS facebook.com/groups/138934128239311/?ref=share 
Instagram: @joeperrone.biz  
LinkedIn: https://Linkedin.com/in/joeon34

____________________

I'm your podcast host, Dr. Doreen Downing, and I help people find their voice so they can overcome anxiety, be confident, and speak without fear. 

Get started now on your journey to your authentic voice by downloading my Free 7 Step Guide to Fearless Speaking: https://www.doreen7steps.com. 

Support the show

I’m Dr. Doreen Downing and I help people find their voice so they can speak without fear. Get the Free 7-Step Guide to Fearless Speaking https://www.doreen7steps.com​.

Today, I interview Regan Nelson who had great confidence when it came to speaking up. Her brother and sister were heavily involved in politic.  She excelled in speech classes and always found it easy to perform. The true missing piece, Regan says, was that she hadn't found a specific cause or passion that she personally identified as a reason to speak her mind and boldly share her own thoughts. 

Then she joined Beautycounter, a clean skincare line of products, and found that her heart was drawn to the concept of speaking up for change. She wanted to use her voice to benefit and improve the world. 

She had always naturally shared her thoughts about health and wellness as part of her background in the industry. But working with Beautycounter opened up a whole new world of awareness around the toxins that are in everyday products and packaging and the detrimental impact they have on our health and our planet. This became her new mission. 

Regan currently uses her voice within Beautycounter to redefine the standards of clean personal care and cosmetic products, focusing on increasing awareness and legislation around these new standards. 

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Regan Nelson is an entrepreneur, educator, and positive changemaker. She holds a BS and MS in exercise physiology and has 16+ years of experience working in innovation and consumer insights in the consumer goods industry, 6 years of which she spent at Nike. 

Regan is a sustaining member of the Junior League of Portland where she served for two years on the Board of Directors as the Executive Vice President and Community Vice President, among other leadership positions. 

Through her Podcast, This or Something Better, Regan shares stories of innovators and positive changemakers committed to making the world better. Regan’s own quest for “something better” comes through her work as a Senior Director with Beautycounter. Regan is a passionate health educator and advocate for more health-protective legislation over the personal care industry. 

Find Regan here: 
https://linkedin.com/in/regan-nelson-4539646 
https://www.facebook.com/thisorsomethingbetterpodcast
https://beautycounter.com/regannelson?goto=/

__________________

I'm your podcast host, Dr. Doreen Downing, and I help people find their voice so they can overcome anxiety, be confident, and speak without fear. 

Get started now on your journey to your authentic voice by downloading my Free 7 Step Guide to Fearless Speaking: https://www.doreen7steps.com.    

Support the show

I’m Dr. Doreen Downing and I help people find their voice so they can speak without fear. Get the Free 7-Step Guide to Fearless Speaking https://www.doreen7steps.com​.

Today, I interview Sandy Abell, who as a child felt starved for attention because her younger sibling received so much more attention.  She started acting out, as many children do, which led to people rejecting her. All of the rejection put Sandy in the habit of being and behaving the way she thought people wanted her to. 

Later, the REAL Sandy started to peek through, and she was excited to see that people seemed to really like her for who she truly was! As Sandy continued to come out of her shell, she developed a fascination with psychology and personal transformation. Her self-esteem grew as she started to acknowledge and learn about both the "good" and "bad" parts of herself, realizing how special she'd been all along. 

Now, Sandy is a life and business coach who takes joy in helping others to find their own transformation. For a variety of free resources, visit Sandy's website at www.insidejobscoach.com. 

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Sandy Abell is a best-selling author, life and business coach, and licensed therapist. Her passion is supporting people as they rediscover how amazing they are. 

Find Sandy here: 
[email protected] 
https://.insidejobscoach.com 
https://.insidejobscoach.com/subscribe
https://.linkedin.com/in/sandra-abell-ms-lpc-acc-5b650b7/ 
https://twitter.com/SandyAbell 

__________________

I'm your podcast host, Dr. Doreen Downing, and I help people find their voice so they can overcome anxiety, be confident, and speak without fear. 

Get started now on your journey to your authentic voice by downloading my Free 7 Step Guide to Fearless Speaking: https://www.doreen7steps.com.    

Support the show

I’m Dr. Doreen Downing and I help people find their voice so they can speak without fear. Get the Free 7-Step Guide to Fearless Speaking https://www.doreen7steps.com​.

Today, I interview Kori Gouge who learned to be very quiet and cautious due to living with a step-parent who struggled with mental illness. Her concern was to not cause trouble or upset, which earned her the nickname "Mouse." 

As she started to grow up and explore career options, her dreams of becoming a writer were discouraged because she "wouldn't make any money", so the path to finding her true self began to twist and turn a bit more. 

Then she became an Air Force pilot, where this little Mouse discovered she was actually a naturally gifted leader! However, despite excelling in this field, Kori yearned for something different and much deeper. She chose to withdraw from the Air Force to study psychology, with "personal transformation" in mind. 

She discovered that when she was in a position to truly thrive from the inside out, she was able to be more effective and truly make the biggest difference. She now uses her story and her voice to help people to adopt this same mindset. 

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Kori Gouge, M.A. is a Business by Heart Mentor, writer, author, and speaker. She has been coaching, teaching, and writing on personal, relational, and business growth and communication for over 20 years. Her fascination with human behavior and language led her to earn her BA in Psychology and MA in Intercultural Communication. 

Her love of adventure led her to several multi-country solo overseas trips and to living and working abroad for close to three years. In her work as a business by heart mentor, she guides transformational coaches to unlock their clarity for aligned client attraction and to grow their businesses from their divine purpose. 

Find Kori here: 
[email protected] 
https://korigouge.com 
https://www.youtube.com/korigouge 
https://www.facebook.com/kori.gouge
https://www.linkedin.com/in/korigouge/

__________________

I'm your podcast host, Dr. Doreen Downing, and I help people find their voice so they can overcome anxiety, be confident, and speak without fear. 

Get started now on your journey to your authentic voice by downloading my Free 7 Step Guide to Fearless Speaking: https://www.doreen7steps.com.  

Support the show

I’m Dr. Doreen Downing and I help people find their voice so they can speak without fear. Get the Free 7-Step Guide to Fearless Speaking https://www.doreen7steps.com​.

Today, I interview Debbie Hoffman who worked on Wall Street for 20 years, and she performed very confidently. She excelled at an extremely young age and was one of the only females in a male-dominated industry. Her femininity gave her a strong advantage with clients. However good she was at speaking successfully on behalf of her clients it was not the same as speaking up for herself.

After her retirement, she started doing work in marketing for a health and wellness company. Here, her confidence faltered a little because she realized she was representing herself, instead of speaking for clients, as she had done in the past. 

She experienced a strong physical reaction to the thought of speaking in public, as well as overwhelming imposter syndrome, wondering if she was capable and could really make a difference. Then, she was following up with a client who pointed out that so many people struggle with following up, and Debbie was so good at it. She encouraged Debbie to teach people how to do it well, and that's where Debbie found her purpose and has been helping people ever since! 

Now, she works with relationship-driven entrepreneurs, coaches, and network marketers to make sure they have a reliable follow-up system in place so that they don't lose potential clients and income. 

Get Debbie's free guide: 4 Secrets To “Power-Up!” Your Sales (Without Being Salesy!) http://www.powerupyourfollowup.com/freeguide

 __________________ 

Debbie Hoffman is a heart-centered sales & follow-up expert, speaker, and founder of “Power-Up! Your Follow-Up.” After 20 years of working on Wall Street as a Managing Director, with over $25-billion in sales, Debbie took her organizational skills (and an extraordinary ability to connect with people) and created multiple six-figure businesses. 
In addition, Debbie had tremendous success as a Network Marketer, having built an international team of several thousand consultants. 

She’s also a best-selling author and has a book highlighting her proven follow-up system… due out in 2022. Her mission is to support entrepreneurs to share their gifts and get their message out in a big way so they can create the impact they’re here to make.

___________________


Find Debbie here: 
[email protected]
https://www.powerupyourfollowup.com/ 
https://www.facebook.com/groups/powerupyourfollowup/ 
https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbieahoffman/ 
https://www.facebook.com/debbieannhoffman 

___________________


I'm your podcast host, Dr. Doreen Downing, and I help people find their voice so they can overcome anxiety, be confident, and speak without fear. 

Get started now on your journey to your authentic voice by downloading my Free 7 Step Guide to Fearless Speaking: https://www.doreen7steps.com.   

Support the show

I’m Dr. Doreen Downing and I help people find their voice so they can speak without fear. Get the Free 7-Step Guide to Fearless Speaking https://www.doreen7steps.com​.

Today, I interview Rich Stevens who tended to be the loudest person in the room, always making "noise". He had a big personality. At home, however, he kept to himself and was fairly mellow and quiet. 

He then realized that in business and in life, being noisy isn't helpful. He had a lot to say, but it was not useful, constructive, or otherwise helpful in any way. So his words were just noise, and they were off-putting. 

After battling years of depression, he realized that by making a lot of "noise" he felt that he was the problem. He has since learned to balance the different sides of his personality, focusing on quality over quantity. 

He has a deep love for people and now helps people to gain a better understanding of each other, allowing them to become stronger. 

_____________ 

Rich Stevens is a podcaster and motivational speaker. On his podcast Inside the Orange, he talks to people to understand the similarities and differences in people and how we can learn from each other. The idea of Inside the Orange comes from the idea that we think we 'know' people from the outside, but only when we look inside of people and understand them do we know what's really going on. 

Much like everyone knows what an orange is, but you don't know how good that orange is until you unpeel it... Rich wants to grow his brand and help businesses understand their people better through training and engagement to improve retention of people within the business and to help develop brand ambassadors. 

Find Rich here: 
[email protected] 
http://insidetheorange.co.uk/ 
https://www.facebook.com/insidetheorange 
https://www.linkedin.com/in/richard-stevens-0b557993/

_____________

I'm your podcast host, Dr. Doreen Downing, and I help people find their voice so they can overcome anxiety, be confident, and speak without fear. 

Get started now on your journey to your authentic voice by downloading my Free 7 Step Guide to Fearless Speaking: https://www.doreen7steps.com.  

Support the show

I’m Dr. Doreen Downing and I help people find their voice so they can speak without fear. Get the Free 7-Step Guide to Fearless Speaking https://www.doreen7steps.com​.

Les Brown is a well-known motivational speaker, but what you might not know is that he came from humble beginnings. In this interview, he shares a couple experiences from his childhood that shaped and transformed the way he lives his life. The key was in changing the story he believed about himself! 

Les is full of insightful knowledge and shares lots of quotes I'm sure you'll find meaningful. He enjoys lifting people up, building confidence and clarity. He believes that in order to find your voice, you must focus on 1) not being afraid to dream big, 2) owning who you are, and 3) protecting your relationship circle; it's important to only surround yourself with people who care about you and add positivity to your life. 

________________

Les has a coaching community called Coach Me, Les Brown, where he helps people transform their lives and finances. He shows aspiring speakers how to be successful and make money. His focus is on making a shift into mindset mentorship and meaningful connections. 

__________________ 

Find Les here: coachmelesbrown.com 
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lesbrownspeaks/ 
https://www.facebook.com/thelesbrown 
https://www.instagram.com/thelesbrown/ https://twitter.com/LesBrownLive https://twitter.com/LesBrown77 

_________________

I'm your podcast host, Dr. Doreen Downing, and I help people find their voice so they can overcome anxiety, be confident, and speak without fear. 

Get started now on your journey to your authentic voice by downloading my Free 7 Step Guide to Fearless Speaking: https://www.doreen7steps.com.      

Support the show

I’m Dr. Doreen Downing and I help people find their voice so they can speak without fear. Get the Free 7-Step Guide to Fearless Speaking https://www.doreen7steps.com​.

Today, I interview Todd Cherches and to describe Todd as a shy child would be an understatement! As a very tall yet introverted boy, he hid in the back of the class and was afraid to speak up-- or even to answer the telephone at home.

He was quiet, a bit antisocial, and generally preferred to just be in his own company. However, as you'll see in this interview, Todd shares three experiences that helped him discover the boldness in himself when it comes to seizing once-in-a-lifetime opportunities. 

In the humble beginnings of his career, he moved past the curtain and into a brave and insightful conversation that influenced his direction and attitude. Later, he saved a leadership presentation and stepped up to the plate to deliver it, and in return got to experience firsthand the help and encouragement of the exceptional leaders present. Later still, on the verge of giving in to his introversion when feeling defeated at a conference, he walked through a very special door that would entirely change the trajectory of his entire life. 

Today, Todd is a professor of leadership, teaching at NYU and Columbia. He is a trainer and coach who teaches leadership skills and presentation skills.

__________________ 

Todd Cherches is the CEO and co-founder of NYC-based executive coaching firm, BigBlueGumball, as well as a three-time award-winning adjunct professor of leadership at NYU and Columbia University. A member of Marshall Goldsmith’s “MG 100 Coaches,” Todd is a TEDx speaker, and the author VisuaLeadership: Leveraging the Power of Visual Thinking in Leadership and in Life (Post Hill Press/Simon & Schuster; 2020). 

A pioneer in the application of visual thinking to the practice of leadership, Todd was recently named by Thinkers50 as a finalist for their 2021 “Distinguished Thinkers Award” in Leadership, and is ranked #35 on the 2021 Thinkers360 “Top 50 Thought Leaders and Influencers in the field of Management.” 

Find Todd here: 
[email protected] 
https://toddcherches.com 
https://linkedin.com/in/toddcherches/ 
** Visit www.toddcherches.com/passion for a free download of chapter 17 ("The Passion/Skill Matrix") from Todd's book, VisuaLeadership. 

__________________

 I'm your podcast host, Dr. Doreen Downing, and I help people find their voice so they can overcome anxiety, be confident, and speak without fear. 

Get started now on your journey to your authentic voice by downloading my Free 7 Step Guide to Fearless Speaking: https://www.doreen7steps.com.     

Support the show

I’m Dr. Doreen Downing and I help people find their voice so they can speak without fear. Get the Free 7-Step Guide to Fearless Speaking https://www.doreen7steps.com​.

Today, I interview Rob Howze whose talent for music came naturally. He was able to communicate through music without a second thought. In a speech classes, he found that he wasn't as readily able to express his thoughts clearly without music. It was like a different language. 

He later discovered that he truly felt the most confident when he was thoroughly prepared. Being familiar with the subject matter and knowing what he wanted to say was the key. His confidence grew, and while he still expresses himself through music, he is also now able to freely speak to others.

Today, he works as a mentor, challenging people to find their "why". He coaches people and helps them to realize how truly unique they are, helping them to gain the confidence needed to take leaps forward in life.

__________________ 

Rob is a businessman, philanthropist, musician, podcaster, husband, and father that loves technology. "Every day I wake up looking forward to being able to utilize all of my knowledge and experience to empower people to make decisions that will ultimately improve their businesses and their lives." - Rob Howze 

Find Rob here: [email protected] 
[email protected] 
https://howzemusic.com/ 
https://linkedin.com/in/robhowze/ www.facebook.com/Robhowzelife/ 
https://.facebook.com/HowzeLifeRob 

___________________

I'm your podcast host, Dr. Doreen Downing, and I help people find their voice so they can overcome anxiety, be confident, and speak without fear. 

Get started now on your journey to your authentic voice by downloading my Free 7 Step Guide to Fearless Speaking: https://www.doreen7steps.com.  

Support the show

I’m Dr. Doreen Downing and I help people find their voice so they can speak without fear. Get the Free 7-Step Guide to Fearless Speaking https://www.doreen7steps.com​.