The One Problem Interview With Deena Baikowitz, Business & Career Coach

Madam Speaker: Nancy Pelosi and the Lessons of PowerHi there, my name is Avil Beckford, and this is the One Problem Interview. This is something that's near and dear to my heart. I started it a couple of months ago. There are tons of problems in the world, and they could simply overwhelm you. But we are going to take one problem, and my guest is going to present her problem to us and offer a solution in five to ten minutes. Now, today, my special guest is Fireball Deena (Deena Baikowitz).

She is another Ellevate Network sister. And most of you who watch this regularly will realize that Ellevate Network is near and dear to me. And that's why I profile so many of the members. Now, Deena is a business and career coach, trainer, speaker and also a comedian. Deena, I'm going to turn it over to you. You're going to present your one problem and tell us your solution. Thank you.

Deena Baikowitz

It's so great to be here and I've always said I never met a mike I didn't like. I've never met a stage or an audience or a camera that I didn't want to be in front of. And that is, in fact my topic, which is women taking the stage, speaking up and being visible on platforms like this, on podcasts and panels and conferences. And the reason it's so important for women to speak up and to show up is that number one, if she sees it, she can be a role model for other women, for young women, for women at all stages of their career.

We need to see more women in positions of power. And we need to see more women on TV as leading experts. We need to see more women quoted in the New York Times articles as the resource, as the expert, as the go-to thought leader in their industry. Instead of it being, quite frankly, the usual pale, stale and male. We need that diversity, and so there's so many different ways that women can take the stage. There's, as I said, podcasts like this interview, panels, and conferences.

The One Problem Interview With Deena Baikowitz: Women Taking the Stage, Speaking up and Being Visible on Platforms

We all have the technology to create our own videos. The problem is women are scared, and while I say this about women, because we are both Ellevate members and so committed to helping women succeed. Men have had a much easier time getting to wherever they wanted to be on their own. So this one problem is to encourage women to speak up and show up and take that stage. The reason we as women do tend to be more afraid of it is we're afraid of criticism or afraid of rejection.

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Deena Baikowitz

We are afraid that we are going to be hurt by it somehow. That one wrong move or one misstatement could ruin our careers. And I'm not going to say that these are founded or unfounded. There are just simply higher standards for women than there are for men. Women have to work twice as hard and longer to get to the same place. So those are some of the negatives. There's also just your basic people in general. People are not comfortable with public speaking.

Death and public speaking are the two biggest fears. And that it's more emotional. Is that fair criticism? I'm not good enough, I'm not smart enough. I don't have anything important to say. People are going to make fun of me. They're going to walk out on me. They're going to ignore me. There's a line in Fatal Attraction,

“I will not be ignored Dan.”

I'm taking all those fears. We can work with that, I work with that, I coach my clients on presentation of content and delivery and confidence.

And so what is it that you're passionate about? What do you want to talk about? Let's start with that. To learn to be or to get comfortable taking the stage, find something that you care about. And every woman, every business owner, every career person has something that they care about. Every human being has something they're passionate about. And whether that's animal rights, climate change, corporate change, innovation, leadership, entrepreneurship, networking.

Deena Baikowitz

What is it that you're passionate about and then create an outline? OK, here's the main topic. So for me, for today, I created this outline of why it's important for women to take the stage, what's preventing them and what can we do to encourage women to do more of it? So, that's it. Figure out what is your topic? Three, subtopics and start practicing. Practice by yourself. And practice with a friend. You don't have to do it in front of a room of fifty thousand people.

You don't have to keynote an international conference or do a TED Talk. Although I do encourage it. Start small, get used to the sound of your own voice and enjoy the sound of your own voice. I think a lot of women, it's like, oh, I don't want to see myself on camera. I don't want to watch that or listen to that. You know what? We are all amazing, wonderful, unique people. We need to celebrate ourselves and celebrate each other.

And as you know, I'm really tiny, short, growing up short as an adult. Because of that, I was picked on and I was teased, but I was always confident on stage. And I say I may be very small. But I take up a lot of space and I want to use the stage as a platform to lead by example to show others that whatever you're insecure about, get over it, embrace it, use it as an asset to deliver a message.

Deena Baikowitz

So, it's not about me being on stage and my ego. It's another way to help and inspire and encourage. And so I would ask your listeners and especially Ellevate members, what do you want to teach? What message do you want to share and how do you want to inspire other women to do it and other human beings? And so that brings us back to why you need to take the stage. You all have a message and a story and something that will resonate with someone elsewhere.

We figured out the why, we figured out the what, now it's the how. Practice, get feedback, watch other speakers, hire a coach, take an acting class or an improv class. I do stand up comedy. I was a theater major. And I dance, I perform, I speak. Every class that I take improves my skills. It teaches me something new and I love to do it. And I meet other people who do it. So, you know, surround yourself with the community of other speakers.

And I think that when we create our stories, even for people who may not want to take the stage, your stage might be in writing articles and putting your name on them. It may be that you are the go-to press source for somebody. So, whether it's video or audio or written, find the platform where you are most comfortable. If you really don't want to be seen visibly, there are so many podcasts that are strictly audio and you can get your message out in a powerful way that doesn't freak you out as it really has to feel good and it has to feel empowering.

Deena Baikowitz

And it definitely is empowering to know that you can stand up and make a difference. And so I think that for women, taking the stage is about making a difference. It's about leading by example. And it's about conquering your fears and conquering your fears is one of the best ways to build confidence in yourself. With that, I would say lights, camera, action, presenting, and then take that bow and enjoy that applause. Thank you.

Avil Beckford

Thank you so much. This is interesting because it's also about building your personal brand and one of the ways is to start. If you're not ready to go take on the world by speaking, you can write articles on LinkedIn. Start there so people get accustomed to you and you keep on evolving and progressing until you're ready to take off and start speaking. And like Deena said, small steps. You just take an action and you run with it. Thank you so much, Deena.

Deena Baikowitz

Thank you. I enjoyed this.

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