Episode Description
What if the reason your voice isn't landing has nothing to do with your words?
In this off-season episode, Lauri Smith joins Desiree Stanley on the Pockets of Knowledge Podcast for a conversation that goes well beyond speaking tips. They cover what's happening in the body when you open your mouth, why playing offense instead of defense changes everything about how you show up, and the difference between meek, aggressive, and the powerful middle zone most of us were never taught to find.
Lauri also introduces "scare-citement," the word she made up for the moment when fear and excitement are so tangled you can't tell them apart, and shares the fax machine story that became the hinge everything turned on.
🎙️ Originally aired on Pockets of Knowledge Podcast with Desiree Stanley, Episode 189
Key Takeaways1. Your body is already in the room before your voice is.
When you're energetically present, taking up your full space rather than shrinking to one-tenth of it, people feel you coming before you say a word.
2. Play offense, not defense.
When we don't set an intention, our inner critics do it for us, and they always set intentions to avoid. "I don't want to make waves. I don't want to screw it up." Flip it: What do I want to create in this room? That single shift moves you from reactive to creative.
3. There are three physicalities, and the middle one is where the magic is.
Meek (caving, retreating) and aggressive (over-efforting, tunnel vision) are both off. The assertive middle — open heart, balanced effort and ease, peripheral vision wide — is the zone of genuine connection and leadership. Your toes will tell you which mode you're in: if one foot is backing toward the exit, that’s a sign.
4. The Voice starts in the toes.
The fascia runs head to toe in one connected system. A healthy speaking voice isn't just throat and lungs, it's a whole-body instrument playing as it was designed.
5. Finding your voice is a remembering, not a learning.
We came in playing our instruments perfectly, and then we put in hours of "don't be too loud, don't be too much." Unlearning is faster than learning. It's already in there, we just need to return to our natural wisdom.
6. Breath moves you from terror to excitement.
Fear is excitement without breath. When the breath is shallow and held, the body stays in terror. When we let it deepen, we move toward the aliveness of excitement.
7. Practice it aloud, standing up, in the body.
Staring at a PowerPoint is not rehearsing. The body has to do the thing before it can do the thing. When you’re preparing to speak publicly, get up and say it aloud enough for the body to recognize the moment when it arrives.
8. Your Voice Matters — especially if you think she doesn't mean you.
Humanity is like a global orchestra. The string section has gone silent thinking it shouldn't take up too much space. What creates harmony is every voice playing its part. If you're listening and wondering whether she means you, the answer is YES. Especially you.
Take the Speaker Alter Ego quiz to find out which protective mask hides your natural radiance so you can learn how to get present, connect deeply, and share your vision when it matters most!
https://voice-matters.com/speaker-alter-ego-quiz/
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Thank you so much for listening!
Take the free Speaker Alter Ego Quiz to find out which protective mask is hiding your wild, untamed radiance.
https://voice-matters.com/speaker-alter-ego-quiz/
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