Chats with Yvonne

Thank you to Tadin for sponsoring this episode.

Today, I am joined by Vanessa Santos, Soul-Led Entrepreneur, Community Builder, & Speaker.

We have a conversation about what happens when the “spotlight turns off”, when you deliver your speech and step off of the stage, or when you have a full day of being an entrepreneur.

Our central theme: What is essential in the day to day, to be able to show up in the ways that we do and with the “poder” that we exude in our respective fields?

As Latinas, there are still times when we have to work harder to have our voices heard, recognized, and acknowledged in multiple facets of life. We’ll uncover these themes & how they show up in our personal and professional lives to help understand how we take time to take care of & nurture our wellbeing, so that we can continue to nurture our communities and rewire our relationship to success, work, and wellness.

About Tadin:

Tadin Herb & Tea Co. was founded on one simple idea -- to respect and to share the time-honored tradition of using herbs as botanical remedies to promote overall wellbeing. Their goal is to serve the Hispanic comunidad by offering trusted, high quality herbal teas for this generation an the next.

For over 40 years, they've embraced a careful commitment to crafting the best-tasting, approachably priced herbal teas to support their customers' healthy lifestyles.

In this episode I share a short story that I haven't shared publicly before and it's one of the reasons I started the ¡Latina, Presente! Workshop Series.

I shared this speech at the Storytelling like Our Abuelitas workshop and it's about how I learned about the power of storytelling as a means to preserve memories & experience moments even if we weren't physically there.

My hope is that we recognize the power that our cultura, and the women, men, people in our lives have to inspire the way we show up as speakers.

Being an Entrepreneur, Finding Community, & Leaning Into Competition with Humor.

Numbers Witch and Bookkeeper Regan Bashara is conjuring empowerment for passionate, open-hearted entrepreneurs in the United States. Regan helps you track and organize your numbers to quickly build wealth while aligning with your principles and ethics. Wealth allows you to take back your financial agency and start living out your big dreams.

Listen to her podcast Money Through Ease https://www.alleaseaccounting.com/money-through-ease

Connect on: @RayRayHammer on TikTok; @AllEaseAccounting on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube

Does Chat Gpt writing your speech breed self-doubt? Does it make you feel authentic in your expression?

I read a speech Chat GPT wrote for me & give you my thoughts on using the tool to write your speech.

Thank you for tuning in!

Meet Jennifer Aguilar, a small business owner & current graduate student, getting her Masters in Organizational Leadership and Management.

Jennifer began her lipstick business, Muttats, in 2021 and it’s about Empowering beauty without harm, as her lipsticks are organic and only have seven ingredients. 

She is also the daughter of an immigrant single mother and a DACA recipient and hopes to one day be able to give back to little girls like her and provide scholarships to her community through her business.  

Her story is one of overcoming obstacles, seeking opportunities, and never letting go of hope.

Enjoy. 💙

Today's episode is dedicated to providing you all a step by step guide for creating a speech and telling your story.

Like I mention in the episode, check out my website to learn how you can be a guest on my podcast as a part of the Speaker Spotlight Series.

Thank you for your support. It means the world to me!

Today’s episode is going to cover self doubt. I experienced a pretty severe case of it recently and I want to share it, not to propose a solution, but to hopefully remind all of us that we’re here, together. And that I can almost guarantee it happens to all of us to some extent.

Is it inevitable? Does it stem from us or pressures from the world around us?

Today's episode is all about Improv. I start off sharing what improv is, the benefits of engaging in improv, and then I improvise the rest of this episode.

I looked up random prompts (with no prep) and the stories that came up, reminded me that we all have many, many stories to tell that have taught us lessons or impacted the way we approach life, but we haven't been given the space to bring them back to life.

Today I’m talking about how you can start getting paid to speak.

I share the first time I ever got paid to speak and what that process was like, how much you can expect to be getting paid even as a beginner, and what things should be included in your speaker portfolio to ensure you’re ready to go when opportunity comes knocking.

Note: I mention my upcoming workshop Build Your Public Speaking Toolkit happening on Wednesday, January 17th from 6-7pm Pacific Time. If you'd like to attend, head over to chatswithyvonne.com to learn more and register.

In today’s episode I reflect on something that I have gone back and forth on for many years. Do I need to say that I am Latina?

I’m going to share some key moments in my life that have shaped my ever changing, often contradicting perspective on this as well as some thought leadership in this topic of identity from literature that I think discusses it really well.

Thank you so much for being here. If you enjoyed today's episode, use your beautiful voice and let me know. Rate this podcast, share your comments with me on my social platforms, or send this episode to someone you think wants to hear it.

The goal of this podcast is for us to reflect on our lived experiences and use them to form the foundation for how we show up as speakers. In today’s episode, I’m doing a look back on 2023, the lessons I’ve learned (and in some cases still learning) that have shaped me into the current version of myself as a Public Speaker.

And, because our comfortability with public speaking is mostly in our practice of the art, I’ll outline some of the practices I want to bring with me into the new year.  I hope that my reflection will prompt you to also reflect and find the connections between your lived experiences and the art of public speaking. And better yet, be inspired to also share it.

Thank you so much for being here. If you enjoyed today's episode, use your beautiful voice and let me know. Rate this podcast, share your comments with me on my social platforms, or send this episode to someone you think wants to hear it.

In today’s episode titled: Changing what academia looks, feels, and sounds like. We’re talking with Jennifer Cabrera about how she’s doing just that with her platform Academic Latina. We’ll hear about her upbringing, how her sense of community started at home, and we’ll get a behind the scenes into one of her recent speaking engagements. 

Jennifer Cabrera is a first-generation Latina and proud daughter of immigrants from Sinaloa, Mexico. She is currently enrolled in a Sociology PhD program where she is pursuing her doctorate degree with an emphasis in Chicano/Latino Studies. As a researcher she studies the supportive social relationships and academic achievement of Latinas in doctoral programs. To increase the number of Latinas with doctorates, Jennifer founded Academic Latina - a social media platform that supports Latinas in higher education. Since launching Academic Latina in 2020, her authenticity has been reflected through her inclusive support and guidance to over 30,000 Latinas virtually (Instagram, TikTok, Twitter) and in-person through one-on-one mentorship, academic coaching, and scholarship opportunities. In addition to the free and low-cost resources, she is a dedicated first-generation faculty leading a course at the California State University (CSU) and University of California (UC) that guides underrepresented students to prepare and submit competitive graduate school applications. Jennifer is a bold and passionate change maker committed to uplifting the Latinx community through education.

Hola, Everybody! Thank you for tuning in. In this episode, we chat with Melissa Aguilera, an Assistant Professor of Speech Communication at El Paso Community College.

Topics covered:

• How we create meaning from our cultures to inform our communication styles
• Navigating your career & interests as a First Gen college student & professional
• The importance of inclusivity in public speaking
• Humanizing the public speaking experience through laughter
• Activities to do in the classroom to help students with their public speaking skills
• Student agency

If you enjoy this episode, leave a review to let us know. Gracias!

This episode is part 2 of my conversation with Abby Benedetto, Educational Consultant and Founder of Core Shifts.  https://core-shifts.com/ We chat public speaking, anti-racism in the classroom, and how she is changing the education game.

Abby Benedetto has taken on designing and changing systems for the last two decades from a wide variety of roles and perspectives - honing her skills around deep listening, collaborative innovation, and equity-centered learning design, and driven by the purpose of working to ensure that ALL young people (and adults) have access to the type of deeper learning they deserve so that they feel seen and valued, and develop the skills that they need to go out into the world and thrive.  As 2020 unfolded and the world was newly turned upside down because of covid, the persistent and inexcusable murders of unarmed Black men and women, forest fires raging around us, and clear threats to our democracy, Abby found herself heavy with so many questions of "what am I doing? what can I do?"  Those questions led her to some new lenses of purpose and focus, specifically around supporting other white-identified folks to build an anti-racist practice, and develop tools to reduce the hold that white supremacy culture has on our system of public education.

Thank you so much for being here. If you enjoyed today's episode, use your beautiful voice and let me know. Rate this podcast, share your comments with me on my social platforms, or send this episode to someone you think wants to hear it.

This episode is part 1 of my conversation with Abby Benedetto, Educational Consultant and Founder of Core Shifts.  https://core-shifts.com/ We chat public speaking, anti-racism in the classroom, and how she is changing the education game. 

Abby Benedetto has taken on designing and changing systems for the last two decades from a wide variety of roles and perspectives - honing her skills around deep listening, collaborative innovation, and equity-centered learning design, and driven by the purpose of working to ensure that ALL young people (and adults) have access to the type of deeper learning they deserve so that they feel seen and valued, and develop the skills that they need to go out into the world and thrive.  As 2020 unfolded and the world was newly turned upside down because of covid, the persistent and inexcusable murders of unarmed Black men and women, forest fires raging around us, and clear threats to our democracy, Abby found herself heavy with so many questions of "what am I doing? what can I do?"  Those questions led her to some new lenses of purpose and focus, specifically around supporting other white-identified folks to build an anti-racist practice, and develop tools to reduce the hold that white supremacy culture has on our system of public education.

Thank you so much for being here. If you enjoyed today's episode, use your beautiful voice and let me know. Rate this podcast, share your comments with me on my social platforms, or send this episode to someone you think wants to hear it.

In this episode, I share my story. I tell you how I got started in public speaking and what I did to start getting paid for it. I also offer ways for you to start getting booked. 

Thank you so much for being here. If you enjoyed today's episode, use your beautiful voice and let me know. Rate this podcast, share your comments with me on my social platforms, or send this episode to someone you think wants to hear it. 

In this episode, we sit down with Wendy Barba, VP of Brands at mitú to learn about her career in media as a First Gen Latina. We tap into leadership, the role of community, and her upbringing to learn how it plays a role in how she navigates her career.   Of course, this wouldn't be a Chats with Yvonne episode if we didn't tap into her public speaking journey. We'll hear about how she feels about the art as an introvert herself.   

About Wendy:  

Wendy is the VP of Brands at mitú where she leads the Community Team to define the social media and editorial strategies across all of mitú’s brands; we are mitú, FIERCE, crema, Things That Matter, and Somos mitú.  She became part of the mitú team seven years ago after working at an entertainment-focused media outlet that highlights Latinos in mainstream media. She joined mitú to create an impact on the voice that is representative of millions of US-Latinos who are first-generation like her. During her time at mitú, she was one of the first editors to launch mitú, she founded FIERCE, and helped bring to life crema, Things That Matter, and Somos mitú.

Hola, everybody! I am currently training for a marathon and I've realized a couple of things along the way in my process. I share some of the lessons I've learned and how you can use those to inform your own public speaking journey. 

Here's a sneak peek: 

• Getting started is always the hardest.
• Practice is essential, but you have to find the type of practice that works for you. 
• No pain, no gain, but too much pain isn’t normal.
• I never regret going for a run.
• Stretch after every run, even the short ones.
• Find someone or something to hold you accountable. 
• Don’t watch other people.

Networking and public speaking are one in the same. I'd say networking is a great way to practice your public speaking!

I tell you about a recent networking event I went to & give you some tips for networking based on what I learned. 

This segment covers the written history of public speaking and we tap into how, though our abuelita's forms of storytelling aren't necessarily documented, they are valid and empowering ways of public speaking that we can tap into to inform how we want to show up on stage. 

I will walk through the written history of public speaking and where it started, but also draw connections to the history of spoken words in our communities, that haven’t necessarily been officially documented.

Thank you for being here. You're one step closer to loving the art of public speaking and that makes me so happy. 

This episode is so special to me! 

People in my community share what the phrase "Calladita Te Ves Mas Bonita" has meant to them. Our cultures are beautiful, but where do we draw the line and unlearn the things that don't benefit us? How does growing up with this sentiment, impact how we show up in the world and what does it do to our relationship with the art of public speaking? 

Thank you to everyone that participated in this segment. Your lived experiences help us see that we're not alone in our feelings & that we can collectively work to empower and uplift one another. 

In this week's episode of the Chats with Yvonne Podcast, we explore Safe Spaces. Where does the term originate, what does it feel like, and how can we use safe spaces to practice our public speaking skills?

Thank you for tuning in. If you liked this episode be sure to leave a review. I would really appreciate it! 

Hello everybody!!   

Welcome to Season 2, Episode 1 of the Chats with Yvonne Podcast where we dive into the world of public speaking and chat with people about their individual journeys in hopes that we can further connect with the art of public speaking.

Our Guest today is Brittney Johnson (@brittneyxedu)! 

Here from her: 

My name is Brittney Johnson and I’m a 25-year-old from LA. I am a second-grade teacher, DEI Chair, and a second-year Educational Leadership, Administration and Policy doctoral student at Pepperdine University. Additionally, I have a BA in Political Science and Sociocultural Linguistics (UCSB ’18) and a M.ED in Teaching (USC ’20). I’m interested in urban planning equity, DEI initiatives, school district segregation, and organizational leadership! Outside of school & work, I enjoy going to spin classes, listening to music, traveling (will visit my 27th country in December!), family dinners, and baking along to The Great British Bake-Off.

My message for my platform is that we may all be on the same journey, but we each may need a different path. Do what is best for you to protect your spirit, mind and body as you pursue your purpose.

Let us know what you think & be sure to follow Brittney for grad life tips, flow, & personal growth. 

NEW CHAT! #chatswithyvonne #humanizingpublicspeaking   

Fabio Peña is a first-generation college graduate born in Guadalajara Jalisco Mexico. He was raised in Yakima Washington and later moved to Seattle to study at the University of Washington. Although he was rejected from the business major, he worked his way up to become the financial controller for an international manufacturing company and also decided to start his own consulting firm. Peña and Co. provides two types of services: management consulting to small-medium sized businesses, and also to the first generation community through storytelling and mentorship. When he’s not working, Fabio enjoys traveling, spending time with his wife and two pet huskies, dancing, and cooking. 

Learn more about Fabio and his #publicspeakingjourney here! Available via the #chatswithyvonnepodcast and IGTV (@chatswithyvonne_) for your preferred viewing needs.

Nancy Marmolejo is an executive coach and keynote speaker who teaches leaders, executives, and entrepreneurs how to tap into their Deep Genius, the hidden strengths we all hold that uncover our next levels of leadership capacity and problem solving.  

As the founder of TalentAndGenius.com, she’s committed to uncovering what makes us great and putting meaning into what we create.  Dubbed a “professional paradigm shifter”, Nancy’s been featured in Forbes, Latina, Latina Style, The Huffington Post, Univision, Smart Money, Redbook, as well as many popular podcasts. She is a recipient of the Anna Maria Arias Award for creativity and innovation in business as well as many other awards and recognitions.  

A little-known fact is that Nancy spent her teen years working the snack bar at AC Flea Market in Hayward. Witnessing the world’s first Flea Market Wedding as well as getting to know the many “fleas” taught her lessons in marketing, PR and branding you could never learn in school.  

She recently wrote a book about navigating grief in the world of social media and is working on another about creativity for leaders. Nancy lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her daughter and a very large orange cat.   

Follow @chatswithyvonne_ on Instagram if you'd like!

Why is it so important to take your audience on a journey? How can you do this in an impactful way. Designer, Erick Lopez takes us through this exact journey & reminds us how important it is to sell your vision in a way that will resonate.

Erick, I was in awe of your entire process and definitely inspired by your approach to public speaking! Check it out and let us know what you think. How will you take your audience on a journey?

Here's a continuation of my chats with high school peers about our experience with public speaking through benchmark portfolio defenses! Jerica, also my best friend, talks to us about getting out of our comfort zone and how public speaking is a tool for doing that.  

Enjoy! You can also listen to this on The Chats with Yvonne Podcast. 

If you don't already, follow my Instagram @chatswithyvonne_ for more.

How can public speaking lead to new and exciting opportunities? Christina shares exactly how to do that. She has an admirable way of bridging her interests and expertise to create stories and communities that uplift and inspire our communities towards action.  

Christina Rodriguez is your homegirl for all things Grad School & Marketing with a commitment in creating equitable opportunities for women of color in Business, Housing and Academia. Christina received her Bachelor's degree in Latino/a Studies from San Francisco State University and went on to receive her Master's degree (MBA) with an emphasis in Marketing at Notre Dame de Namur University. She is currently pursuing her doctorate in Educational Leadership and provides her expertise and experience navigating college as a first generation Latina.   

Don't forget to follow @chatswithyvonne_ for more!

How can student involvement strengthen your public speaking skills? Benjamin breaks that down for us and gives us some great insight into his role as an advisor where he empowers his students to find their confidence; their purpose.   

Benjamín Perez is the founder and host of the Latinx Greek Life podcast and the Find Your Purpose Instagram live series. He became a brother of Sigma Delta Alpha Fraternity, Inc. at  San José State University. He is the co-founder of  Gente Unida, a student leader coalition of Latinx students. The purpose of the student organization is to create unity amongst the Latinx student organizations. His passions are empowering and advocating for his culture as well as giving back to the world that changed his life, higher education.   

Follow him across all social media platforms @pereztheadvisor!

The chats with my high school peers continue! Mikayla, also a communications professional, shares how our high school experience with public speaking through project based learning/ benchmark portfolio defenses shaped her career and life trajectory.   

Her energy is infectious and her advice for gaining confidence in yourself despite setbacks, will inspire you.   

Enjoy! 

Welcome to this month's episode of Chats with Yvonne. This one is especially made for all of our mommies / mommies to-be and anyone considering motherhood: "I can be a good mom and a thriving professional."

Marialva is Dominican. Expat in Costa Rica. Finance Professional, Career Mentor and Working Mom slaying career and motherhood with courage and authenticity.

She's an introvert & connector that's passionate about helping women thrive in their careers while enjoying motherhood. Lover of all things chocolate and lip balm addict!