Ep. 106 Meet 2021 World Champion of Public Speaking Verity Price

Mark Brown. Are you kidding me? Are you kidding? For those of you who aren't toastmasters, we just had the World Championship of Public speaking, which means 25,000 people compete from around the world. And now the added challenge of virtual. And Mark, you and I and Ed Tate were watching. Verity Price gave her speech and we were all thinking, that's it, she won. That's it, she won. We are thrilled to have on this podcast the 2021 World Champ, World champion of public speaking, Verity Price.

Anyone can give a presentation, few deliver unforgettable presentations. What's the difference? You're about to find out. Welcome to the Unforgettable Presentations podcast with your hosts, World Champion speakers and coaches, Mark Brown. Mark Brown.

Your life tells a story and there's someone out there who needs to hear it.

And Darren Lacroix. And Darren Lacroix.

Stage time. Stage time. Stage time.

Ready for some powerful presentation, Ahas? Let's dive right in.

Darren Lacroix. We have a new sister in the ranks of World Champion public speakers. Get this. And the first from the continent of Africa, all the way from South Africa, we have with us today the new World Champion of public speaking for 2021, Verity Prize.

Verity, welcome.

What a welcome.

You are amazing. We can't wait to hear your story. And dive in, because I know everyone wants to know, what's the story behind Verity? Welcome.

Thank you. So, it's just amazing to be here.

So tell us, just how did you get started in speaking? Or how did you come across Toastmasters?

So speaking in Toastmasters happens at different times. I was the girl who was afraid of speaking at school. I used to skip school if I had to read the Bible in our assembly. I was terrified of speaking in public. And then on my 20th birthday, out of nowhere, I started songwriting, I started writing lyrics and I realized I was gonna have to sing. So I went for coaching, voice coaching. And I ended up with a coach, actually, in America, in Naples, Florida, who taught me. He was trying to teach me confidence. He said, I'm not worried about teaching how to sing. I have to teach you to be confident. And Joe's approach to teaching confidence was to make things go wrong. So while I was singing, he'd crank up the mic, he'd switch it off, he'd knock things over and he'd be like, verity, you keep singing, you do not stop singing. Whatever happens, you keep singing. And I thought he was a bit crazy, but I kept following his technique. And blow me over if. When I started singing professionally, I was the singer that the music could cut out, the lights could go off, and I just kept going. And he taught me that you've got to be okay with things not being okay. And when you okay with things not being okay, that's when you can have the confidence to put yourself out there. So that's. I started speaking at 30, from my music career, led into speaking, and I joined Toastmasters when I was 36. So 10 years ago.

Wow, what a journey. You began as a chanteur. Chanteur. A singer, a songwriter and a singer, and you translate that into speaking. That's amazing. Now, you found Toastmasters 10 years ago, and the journey from Toastmasters newbie to Toastmasters world champion must have been quite the thing. Did you ever think when you first joined Toastmasters that you'd be a contestant at anything?

I definitely didn't. I joined for fun. I thought, you know, this is this lovely meeting that happens once a month that gives me something to do on a Wednesday night at my club. I just joined for fun. And a year in, they said, oh, we're having a club contest. Which I thought was just a little club contest. So I didn't take it seriously. And I joined and my sister beat me. Kay. I was very. And then she went on to win area and then division. And then she became the third woman ever to win district in Southern Africa. And suddenly she was taking her sixth speech that she'd ever done to the world semifinals. And I watched her come second to Ryan Avery in the semifinals in 2012. We always have dined out that they counted the ballot three times, so we convinced she was really close, but she didn't get to make it to the finals. But watching her journey made me see how this contest can grow someone as a speaker and as a person. But to be honest, I just never had a story that I had to tell. And so I couldn't. Every year it would come around and I didn't have anything to say. So I didn't join and I didn't enter. And I entered once in 2015, and this year was the next time that I entered because I finally had something I wanted to say.

I never had a story to tell. I'm not going to jump all over that. But looking back now, Verity, for those, our listeners and our viewers watching on YouTube, you said, I never had a story to tell. Looking back, is it possible you had a story to tell but hadn't identified it 100%?

I definitely had a story to tell. Maybe what I should say is I had a story for myself around what A contest speech looks like. So as a professional speaker, I had plenty of stories, but to put it into seven minutes and to perform and do all that thinking, it just felt really tiring, if I'm honest. I just couldn't. I didn't have one that felt like it could go on that journey. And I think the virtual space is where I suddenly was like, oh, I want to play with this now. This is fun. So that's when it started coming through again.

Real quick. Follow up. I hope you all caught this. Verity, as a professional speaker, saw the great challenge of trying to write a seven minute speech. Your challenge was to go from 60 to 7. And so many people are saying, how can I talk for seven minutes to get the icebreaker? Five minutes. What do I say for five minutes? It seems to be a matter of perspective. And by the way, your coach in Florida, that's a pretty cool American accent you got there.

Thank you.

Do you use that much?

I have in a few movies. When I've had small patrols, I've used my American accent.

Wait a second, wait, wait. So we've got a songwriter, a singer, an actress, a wife, a mom, a speaker. Is there anything Verity Price cannot do?

Cook?

You can ask my husband. So Greg is the chef then?

He is the chef.

Excellent, excellent. Darren.

Yes. So, and you were in Nashville for a while too?

I was. In 2005. I went to try and do a little bit of singing. My music wasn't really. It didn't fit into the country side of things, but I wanted to be in a small town. New York and LA felt a bit big and frightening for coming from Cape Town. And I loved Nashville. People were so welcoming and I did all the singer songwriter nights and pushed my. Push my comfort zone and meet beautiful people. And it was an incredible experience.

And how do you think that pushing yourself doing that night after night after night, how did that help you in the speaking world? Whether it's professional or toastmasters, I think.

It just helps you to show up and look for opportunities as a speaker. A lot of people when they become professional speakers, it's about, well, who's going to pay me? And for me it was who needs to hear my message. And so I said yes, and I have for many years. I say yes to the opportunities that have come to me if I think it's going to make a difference. And what's been beautiful is the money has followed as it's needed to, but I've always been open to going. If this audience needs what I have to give, I would rather give it than put a price tag on it. And that's not saying I give my work away for free, but it's the same as doing a singer songwriter night. You never know who's in the audience, you never know who you're going to meet, what opportunities could come out of it. So it's the saying yes that leads to the confidence to say yes to the bigger things.

Yeah, we always say money follows impact, and that's exactly what you're saying. Too many people are trying to get booked and get paid, going back to what you do professionally. So what do you speak about now? So prior to Saturday, when your life changed, what is the professional? And by the way, if you want to check out more about verity, go to iamverity.com iamverity.com so tell us about that. What do you speak about?

I've got two things that I've ended up speaking about, but they're very closely interlinked. And it's the two things I'm passionate about, which is how do we think differently and how do we think ahead of the crowd? How do we innovate when we hit obstacles in our lives? And that's based on the music industry. When I didn't have the money, I needed to record an album, and back in 2005, I came up with an idea where I asked people to buy something that didn't exist. I sold an album I hadn't recorded, and without meaning to, I became one of the world's first online crowdfunders. So I've been sharing that story for a long time. Like, how do you look at a problem that is you're stuck behind and just change the way you're thinking so that you can get different results? And leading into that, which is very linked in with my final speech, is a speech called Lead with Optimism, where I speak about how I overcame depression and anxiety using positive psychology habits, using my dad's letter to change the way. Again, I was looking at things, but more on a personal perspective. What I did on a daily basis to get myself out of a very difficult time, and then sharing with people how they can do that in their lives. So those are my two things. It's like, change your thinking, change your life. Is the same theme throughout both of them.

And in terms of your professional side, what is your target audience? Are there any perfect clients, any perfect industry that you help serve?

It's been interesting for me, Darren, because most of my work has obviously been in South Africa up until this point, a Little bit extended in lockdown, which was exciting. But I've spoken across all industries in South Africa, and I've always been amazed that my message seems to land. And I think that's because it doesn't matter what business you're in as a leader and as a team or as an organization, people are hitting obstacles and they're getting stuck complaining about what's going wrong, and they need a way forward. And as a speaker, I'm not someone who's done something amazing like climbed a mountain or done something extraordinary, a physical feat. I'm just an ordinary woman who had a big problem and I figured it out. So I love speaking to organizations where they want their staff to have a mindset shift and they want them to stop complaining and start getting creative. So, you know, conferences where they're looking for that kind of energy and, like, the fact that I sing at the end of my talks is probably like a little added bonus, but it's just where people are wanting to see a shift in energy and a shift in positivity and creativity in their business. That's my happy place to play.

I think that's wonderful, Mark. I think at the next international convention, we ought to have you and Verity do a duet.

You know what's funny? We talked earlier before the recording, and she said, you know, she heard me do my Unforgettable. That's what you are. She said, mark, we ought to do a duet one day. So hopefully our audience can get at least a line from Verity, one of her songs, before the program is over today. So we can hear your singing voice as well. You're a bit tired of hearing mine, I think. So having that perspective as a professional speaker and you're establishing yourself, you're doing all these talks across industries in your country and now globally because of the virtual space you mentioned earlier, kind of diluting that down to create a message that fits in the Toastmasters speech speaking world. How challenging was that for you in a practical sense? I've got an idea. I'm used to doing 45 minutes to an hour to two hours. I must now do seven minutes. How did you handle that challenge?

I think what's interesting, Mark, I think if I was new to Toastmasters and had entered the contest, that would have been more of a challenge. But 10 years of giving seven minutes to speeches has really helped me to learn how you can say so much in five to seven minutes. So because I've been using the program to learn how to do short pieces, of delivering a message that wasn't too difficult. What the program's done for my keynotes is often my 7 minute speeches have turned into keynotes because it's much easier to take a short speech and make it longer than the other way around. So I think when you come with the discipline of I'm writing a seven minute speech, the programs taught me how to think in that way. And things like learning from previous world champions who their names escape me because I've read so many tips over the years. But someone spoke a lot about word count and when I understood that I was looking at between 110 to 125 words a minute, then I can look at what I've typed and I can start editing and realize what I need to do. So it's just using the discipline of writing a shorter speech and learning how to say one thing, not five messages in your five minutes.

Darren, you're laughing. Tell us why.

Well, it's just a common problem that we see all the time. So many people, even at the highest levels where they have even two or three competing messages, you don't have time. We sat down yesterday, Verity, with Lance Miller, your coach, and we got some of that inside scoop from him. But if you're listening to this, whether you're a toastmaster, professional speaker, emerging professional, I want to dive in a little bit to the process that you went through because a, that's what people really want to know about you. And now you have this huge opportunity to influence and inspire others. And I think, Mark, if you remember the conversation we had with our friend Bertram, who was also in the semifinals, where Mark held up all of his notes with his coach, back and forth, and Bertram was just blown away that he didn't realize there was so much work. He just thought Mark just wrote the speech, a couple tweaks and done. But I think diving into the truth, which is your name, Verity, truth of the process, I think it would be really inspiring. And I just have to brag for a minute here, one of the things I loved about your speech. So I have notes here. We took, took notes and it was so good. Like when you ever said that was a scary tale, I was just like, that's it. I love. Because a lot of people use cliches or they take a cliche, they try and make it their own, but they haven't really changed it. But this was a scary tale. I love that. And then even your dad's attitude. If, by the way, if you're listening to go on YouTube, watch the speech, just look up 2021, world champion of public speaking. Like your dad's attitude. We'll talk about this in a while, but I just got to, I just got to love on you for a minute when your dad said, aren't I lucky I have a glass. So many people, the glass is half full. Yeah, yeah, yeah, we heard that. But you twisted it. And coming from your dad and going to even deeper that having a glass versus half full, that was just beautiful. I loved, I stopped worrying about where I wasn't. Come on. Love that. Let's see what else is your story written for you or by you? Love that. Brilliant. And we'll talk about your dad in just a second. But I also loved your way that you authentically delivered your emotion. So a lot of people kind of overdo it or it's two staged. And just when you were eating your ice cream and binge watching Netflix, I could see a lot of emerging speakers just overdo that. And it's fake. But you did it in such a real authentic way. That's what I loved about you. There are no stories of 40 year olds living in their spare room.

On Facebook. Yeah.

And I, I could just tell, I knew that there was so much time and effort and energy into writing and making your point so succinct. But I don't think a lot of people get that and understand the work to make it simple and clear. So Mark, I'm gonna toss it to you because I just. This is awesome.

You're gushing again, Darren.

You really, really are. I'm a good gusher.

Yeah, but you see.

But it's authentic.

Yeah, it's true. And Verity, that was one thing also. We observed the authenticity. You were telling your story and we could relate to your story. And here is a bit of the Mark Brown personal heart, you know, mushy thing that I want to share is you talked about your dad and the attitude he had. Losing his well paying job at 60, you know, having to sell the house and move into a camper van, you know, go mobile. And just the way he handled everything. And he bounced back, became top salesman. And you never know how deeply your message will resonate with your audience. And your audience is truly global for a guy like me, for example, I can relate to losing my job in my mid-50s, going from a high paid salary to zero overnight, no benefits, no insurance. I can relate to that. I can relate to the thoughts going through his mind. But I love your dad because in many ways he was the man I was not. He handled it differently. But my Point is, your story was not climbing Mount Everest uphill, both ways, backwards, barefoot, in the middle of July. No, it was about regular people like me. And I saw myself in your dad. So here's the thing. When you're writing your speech, do you think to yourself, I want the world to see themselves in my presentation?

I think, yes, I do think so, because I think we're so, we are so linked. And even that running into the friend and having that conversation in the supermarket, if I'd had a really honest conversation with her, I would have heard what wasn't working in her life as well. Because. And that's the thing on Facebook, of course we're going to see, it looks wonderful. But the minute you have an authentic conversation with someone, we're all struggling in different ways. And that's why I love someone like Brene Brown's work is when we own our vulnerability, when we talk about shame, we open up the space for everyone else to say, well, I've also been dealing with that. So I think for me, and that's why my dad was such an inspiration, because he went through a lot and he lost a lot. And I mean, again, talking about brevity in his speech, in the earlier versions, you know, we actually, the true story was we left Zimbabwe in a war and we were refugees. But you can't put that into a seven minute speech. You've got to make it accessible. Lost a job, lost our home, because that is what happened. But, you know, you can't ruin a good story with the facts. But he went through, you know, I was putting all of that in and it was like it was too much because people like, what war in Zimbabwe? You're going to have the audience now going, when was that? What is she talking about? Why did they have to leave? You know, as you say, all of us have been through these things and we can be inspired by how someone maybe dealt with it differently. And my dad was that person. Because anyone who watched my semi final speech would have heard, my mom ended up in rehab as an alcoholic and she went through her own journey. You know, so it's. We all deal with these things differently.

Well, real quickly on that, on that level, there are individuals who do not want to share the mess. My life was a mess, I was a mess. Spare room was a mess. We don't want to go that deeply into our existence. Did you at any time struggle with that or did you believe I need to share my vulnerability in order to impact my audience?

I think I've been speaking like that for so long, Mark, I don't actually know how not to. And the talk that came out of my crowdfunding, I had to share with people how miserable I was that the music career wasn't working out for me and how much I moaned. And, I mean, in that talk, I talk about arriving at parties with all my problems and then always finding someone and having to sit, tell them how hard my life is and let people laugh at me. And then I say, I hope you're not that person, because we all do it sometimes. But when I owned it, when I could own that I can be a victim and that I can feel sorry for myself and it's actually irritating for my friends and family to be around, that was when I started to heal. So I think I said in my showcase interview, don't talk about something until you've healed it in yourself. You know, you can't use your talk as therapy, but if you're okay with it, then you're gonna be fine talking about it. So I don't talk about the stuff I'm still struggling with. I talk about the stuff I've worked through.

Can I quote you directly from your showcase? Cause this was brilliant, and Mark said it so well. We've all heard, you know, don't use the stage for therapy. But I loved what you said, and I quote the world champion of Public Speaking, 2021, Verity Price. You have to be able to laugh about it before you can talk about it. That was brilliant. I've never heard it said so eloquently.

Wow, you're good.

You're good. I was telling Mark, too, when we were talking to Lance yesterday. I have a new teaching term that I've never used before, and it's. Do you know who Bob Newhart is, Verity or no?

Yeah.

Okay. So Mark and I and Lance were talking about this yesterday. A new term is reaction. Dialogue. Reaction dialogue. Where we just see the reaction and we don't hear the actual conversation. And you delivered it perfectly. You mentioned this just a few minutes ago, but for everyone listening, when she went to the Ran into a friend at the store, and you already told us about, like, where you were at, and you said, oh, and you're married with kids and bought a house. Me, I'm great as a delivery guy and a dialogue guy. I was like, that's awesome. How did you create that moment? Because, again, a lot of people could say it in three times as many words, but it wouldn't be as effective. How did you come up with that dialogue? That concise and your delivery behind it.

So that piece of the story is actually from my keynote, leading with optimism and because my whole keynote there also speaks about this time in my life. And it happened very spontaneously on stage one day because I was speaking to an all female audience. So, you know, we really understand that Friend, as a woman spontaneously played into that, like, awkward. And the more they laughed, the more I was like, oh, and you're married? And the more I was like, I just kept going. And people, yeah, people loved it. So I have been delivering that little scene for a good six years now. And I really wanted to keep it in this speech because I think it encapsulates an experience that we all have, male or female. There's always that someone who's fitter or stronger or more money. And then they show you and you're like, really?

What's interesting there, Verity, is that sometimes we stumble into a technique that works for us. Sometimes we stumble into it, but we have to be. We have to have our antenna up to be aware that we can use it. Because sometimes new speakers say something that's wonderful, the line's great, and they don't realize that. They blow right by it and they don't realize that's a moment, that's a nugget. That's an aha, you know. And how would you advise a new speaker, a young speaker who's just starting out their dreams of being a world champion one day? What advice might you want to give them in terms of being aware of what your audience is telling you?

So with a live audience, it's obviously easier. You're getting the odds and you're getting the laughs and you can read that, I think virtually you need to record yourself quite a lot and watch and see, see how it's coming across and then it's also how it feels. But it's an interesting one, Mark, because sometimes there are things I thought were working well in the speech and in my semi final speech that I did over and over again because they delighted me. And then I had to listen to people going, why? Why do you keep saying that? That's been done. I had a thing around people going, am I on mute? You know, kind of this Covid time. And people kept going. That's all the comedians are doing that. It's not fresh, but I didn't want to hear it for a long time. So you have to be inviting feedback.

No, it's funny. You just don't get it. Just because you're laughing doesn't mean it's Not. Not laughing doesn't mean it's not funny.

What do you know? You're just the audience.

Come on.

Exactly. You're not the expert. And I have to ask you, when you first did it and that moment happened, like, that is just this unexpected, brilliant moment on stage. How did you process, like, had you been recording live back then? Or did you just like walk off the stage and say, ooh, that's good. How did you. Do you remember what happened?

It was just instantly that is staying. And it's never. It's always there. It's like, it's. And I have such a lovely moment with it when I have a live audience. So, yeah, it's one of my. I have such fun with that little piece of life that I get to play out. And it sets up a whole speech, actually, for understanding the comparison that we live with and how unhappy it makes us. Sometimes a lot of my lines have happened live with an audience. And if, you know, I think it was Paul McCartney and John Lennon used to say the Beatles when they would rehearse, they didn't write anything down. And if they still remembered the song the next day, they knew it was a hit. And so there's something in that. If something happens and you love it and you remember to do it the next time, it's a keeper.

Yeah, if you remember to do it next time, it's a keeper.

Cool.

I like that in your process, I've heard you say that you had a period of time going into your finals when you kind of got more serious. You didn't enter the contest very much. Between 15 and 21. You're like, why after all this time did you decide this was the year to enter the contest? What was it the switch that flipped for you to do that?

There was a little voice that said to me, this speech, and this was my semi final speech about my mom and leaving the world better than you find. It was like this speech and this message could do really well in a contest. And something in me said, I'm going to enter. And I just kept listening to that voice because it didn't go away. And I delivered early versions of that speech at open house meetings for my district. They were trying to build up membership and it was a great opportunity to practice before my club contest and my sister, I got a recording of it and I sent it to her and she shared it with a fellow toastmaster friend of ours, Anel, who sent a voice note going through, do you have a second speech? And I hadn't even entered the contest yet. And I was like, what? And then someone else said that after seeing it at the area contest going, do you have your second speech? You're going all the way. And then it started getting, what are people seeing? Because if you see the first version of my semifinal to my semi final, I mean, you've never seen a speech change so much in your life. But I was getting feedback from all around me to go for. Just felt like the year, it was virtual. I could do it as a mother. It was right here. I didn't have to travel. And something in me just said, give it everything you've got, see where it takes you. And, I mean, the fact that I'm here is just a dream come true.

I should preface this. Numbers are significant. Darren and I happened to work together 20 years ago this month.

Oh.

And he had a process of getting his last speech ready. And he'll tell you about his 77 days. I have come to understand for you the words 100 days were significant. Help us to understand how the hundred days worked for you.

So 100 days before the final, I woke up at 3 in the morning, finally with the speech that I would do if I made the final, the first version of it, and very similar story to the one I tell. But the difference was it was based around the fact that six years ago I did this Hundred Happy Days challenge. It's a beautiful challenge. Online people take a picture of one thing a day that makes them happy and it has amazing effects on how we feel. So I wrote it and I was so excited. I was like, this is my speech. And I said, I'm going to start the Hundred Happy Days challenge today because the last day of it will be the day of the finals. And regardless of the outcome, I'm going to be happy. So that was my. My decision to make this a fun journey. And then when I started delivering the speech, men did not resonate with it. They were like, happy days and get happy and be grateful. That's so fluffy. Like, oh, I didn't want to hear that because this is my story. And that's when I had to really start working with bringing more of my dad in so that there was more of a male energy and a man going through challenges, not just a woman hoping she's going to meet her princess. And it really started going. It's taken me on a journey of discovery in speech writing, but also in finding your message within. The story doesn't change, but the message can shift fundamentally.

And when you went through your practice speeches I think this is one idea that people didn't see coming until you get to the higher levels. Everyone who's been to the higher levels, so much feedback. Who do you listen to? What questions did you ask? So did you do round robin evaluations? Did you have specific questions that you asked? How did you deal with the feedback?

So I did do round robin and I had a Google form. So some interesting things here that I can share around feedback and I was sharing with Mark earlier, I've watched a lot of your podcasts on the different between feedback and coaching. So that was with me all the way. But that does not help the brain. I was leveled by some of the feedback I got and it didn't come in the sandwich format that asked for, but I had a Google form and I based it on the judge's ballot so people could rate me according to the ballot. And then I had what works for you? What do you think I could improve? Were there any gaps? And also use of the camera and the screen. And what messed with my head was seeing the graphs of the judges ballot because the ego at that stage for my ego was so involved. So if you're seeing someone put fair, that's all my brain could see. It wouldn't see the very good, the excellence. So eventually I just took the graphs off and I thought rather get written feedback, it's less confronting. But towards the end I started having to ask clubs to give me no feedback unless it was positive. Like the week before the semifinals I realized I was getting flattened by people with very good intentions. But sometimes like pulling something down, I will just share this. I was at a club and someone said to me based on the judge's ballot, I always start with giving everyone 50% and then the first contestant and then I judge around that. But if it was you, I would just keep it at 50%. And this was like a week before the semifinals or two weeks and it floored me for days. And as opposed to going that's just someone's process, the speech didn't work for them, that's not necessary. It was hard, it was hard, but it made me go right, how can I up my game? So the feedback side is confronting and that's where I think most of the growth probably happens as a speaker, once you get to this level of the contest is how do you manage that and what do you see as coaching versus opinion?

So did you then have to rely on people who you trusted more deeply? Because I have discovered in my 28 years of being a toastmaster, Everyone wants to help. Somebody joined a club last Tuesday. They've got ideas for you. They have no experience, but they want to help. And basically what we do is we tell you beretri, if I were you, I would do this. I would say that I move over here to tell you what they would do. So who do you lean on? Who gets your ear most in a case like that?

So this is where I leaned on my coach. So Lance, who you've chatted to, so you'll know, I leant on him a lot just to get his feedback, his perspective. Also just saying, I've walked this journey and this is why you're getting all this feedback. So he really helped me. And then my sister, who was also fundamental, she sat for hours helping me tweak. But I trust her. I know if she's telling me a sentence is too long or that word doesn't work, make sense and it doesn't sound authentic. She knows me better than anyone when I listen. And the kissing frogs line was her. I'd had something else. I'd been saying, I'm so glad I didn't marry any of my exes. And then she suddenly said, why didn't you say I should stop kissing frogs? And I was like, oh, best suggestion ever. So you've got to have those safe people. But then in terms of general feedback, what I started relying on was where people said they didn't understand something or there was a gap, and that's when I could start filling in for what the audience needed from me, where they needed a bit more information or clarity. And that was a big change for me when I started listening to what are the gaps for them? Yeah, it's not how they would deliver it, but is there something you didn't understand? Can I make this more accessible for you?

That's wonderful. So you had to sit through what you would receive. So you wanted to find out what did they not understand? So you were seeking clarity. And if you know Darren Lacroix at all, much of what he teaches is clarity, clarity, clarity. Darren also teaches that the most important part of a speech is the thought process in the listener's mind. It's not what you say, it's how they. What they think about what you say, not how you move, it's how they think about it. So if you. If there's misunderstanding or clarity in the audience's mind, if you discuss refugees, Zimbabwe, we had to go this way. What year was it? Begin to ask questions and begin to think about it. And we always say don't give the audience a reason to take a detour and go someplace else. So I really appreciate that idea, not only for us, but for those who are new and emerging, who are listening to this, you have to be aware. Is the audience unclear? You said to me earlier also, Verdi, there were times you were so sure, knew it was right, but it worked for you. And I have to laugh, Darren, because Verity revealed to me that her initial relationship with Lance in some way mirrors our relationship. When you wanted a few tweaks, Darren, but your ego began to tell you, yeah, if Mark can give me a tweak here or a tweak there, I know what I want. It's going to work. And Virgie confessed she had a similar initial start with Lance. Can you care to elaborate on that? For those of us who are considering either being a coach or getting a coach?

Absolutely. So I reached out to Lance a week before my district contest. So I had had a speech that had won three times. I was feeling really confident, and I was expecting this glowing feedback. And he had a lot of questions. There was gaps. He said, you've got a great story, but you haven't shown us how you've applied it in your life. And I was like, well, I guess one example. He's like, no, you need more. And I took notes in that meeting, and I have told him this, so he knows it, but my ego is going, you know what? He won in 2005. You know, things have changed. The way you're telling this is great. But I, like, pushed myself. I still wrote the notes because I teach growth mindset and fixed mindset to businesses. And there I was, so fixed, like, I don't want your feedback. What I'm doing is fine. So when I got off the call, I had to coach myself to read the notes and go, he's a world champion. He's done this. He is much more accomplished than you are. Listen. And it was so hard to go back to. I was only on about version 7 of the speech and start rewriting to what of that speech also went to about 30 versions. So it was a game changer. And luckily, by the time we got to the final speech, I was like, what are you throwing at me? What am I going to change? Let me pivot. Let me try.

That's awesome. That's growth right there. I mean, just going from. And we were there as well. I almost got in a fist fight with Mark. I don't know if you almost got in a fist fight with Lance virtually.

I don't think so.

Well, I'm leaving the meeting.

I'm picturing another scene for you, Verity. Oh, you think I should do that, huh?

Yeah.

Oh.

Oh, you think that wasn't clear? Nice. Huh? Oh, you think I should change that? Should you? Me? Well, I know that that was back in 2015 or whatever.

Anyway, you know, it's funny and Darren, real quickly, when Darren says here, and he always says, we almost got into a fist fight, the truth is, for those who don't know the truth, the truth is in 2001, Darren did drive two and a half hours to visit me in New York for a coaching session. And at one point he brought his other coach with him. And at one point I was strongly suggesting something. And Darren's ego was not quite in sync. And thankfully Dave McElhiney, who was other coach, rest his soul, was a. Was a wonderful referee. He called a timeout. We literally. We literally had a timeout. We had a timeout. Go to your corner, go to your corners. You know, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding. And that really happened because Darren was learning that I was trying to give him the best of my experience. And it's so funny to me that you and Lance had a similar experience. But the lesson for all of us is that, you know, we need to rely on those who we trust, especially those who have been where we want to be. So I'm kind of amused by that story, but I realized that I too need to hear what my coaches tell me when my ego says, well, you've got this. So thank you for sharing that. And I didn't mean to interrupt, Darren, but I just saw the parallel there and I wanted to give listeners the context behind your saying that and how similar those stories really are.

Any other little transformational moments or stories from working with a coach, working with Lance, any other moments stand out?

I'm trying to think. I mean, he just really held a space for me to think about my speech as well. He has an amazing way of starting all the meetings, like, where do you think your speech is at? How do you think it's going to? And then I always go, what's he going to say when I finish giving my feedback? He had a way of gently pushing me to consider changes and things that I could do differently. And the more open I became to it, the quicker I could move. We went on a big journey with the semi final speech where we were going in one direction and I actually came back with a whole new direction. But if he hadn't pushed me in that direction, I wouldn't even have rethought it. And we ended up exactly where we needed to be. So it was about trusting the journey, but also. Also come back to the semifinal speech. I eventually was like, I see where Lance is trying to take me. It's not. This isn't connecting. And when I came back, we'd got to exactly where we needed to go, but I had to listen to myself as well in that moment. And that was how we worked together. So that was a big shift. And it just showed me the power of being coached and being open to learning.

So he used questions and I remember, Mark, you talking about David, you're coaching coach, who he didn't tell you what to do, but he asked you questions to guide you and rethink. And it's like a great coach helps you with your thinking. So if you're listening to this and you're thinking about a coach, don't think it's just going to be easy and they're going to hand you answers. But you will transform because of the questions you ask and the experience you get. Make no mistake. And curious during your practice sessions, whether it was your semifinal or your final, when you were practicing, we heard about the feedback. Were there any moments or comments that you got from people that really said, ooh, I am on the right track. Ooh, that really helped this person. What were some of those stories?

Right towards the end was a club in London and when they were just giving round robin feedback and I wrote it down somewhere, I don't have it. I might even have it here. I'm going to look. Because it was such a beautiful. It was a moment when I was like, this. This is. This is where you write a different story. She said, my whole soul absorbed the message and it pervaded me.

Wow.

And I just was like, that is unbelievable. That, for me was like, well, that's. If that's all this has, that's as far as the speech goes, it's done what it needs to do. And that meant so much to me, just hearing that it was starting to just land and I was getting similar messages from men, or they would get these private messages, like, I've also been stuck in the spare room. I've really needed to hear that. And that's when I thought, even if I don't make it to the finals, every club visit is touching someone it needs to touch. And that. That was amazing for me.

Wow. Don't get stuck in the spare room. That kind of hits me right now. Don't get stuck in the spare room. Wow. I got a quick question for you regarding the coach. Can you give us one nugget or one way that coaching has changed you?

Honestly, because up until this point I've been a very self reliant person who does everything myself. You know, if I can design my own website, I do, I do too much on my own. And this contest, the minute I got through, I knew I couldn't do this by myself. So what you what coaching has changed in me is knowing that I need really good people in my corner who I can defer to and learn from and never again look at a big thing that I need to do without having someone that is guiding me and holding me through that process.

Wow. Wonderful. And you picked a good man in Lance Miller as well, Darren.

And when you were working, going back to your dad and how he fit into the speech, how did you know which lines were going to help tell your story or did you condense some of what he said? And, and by the way, Mark, this is going to be a keeper later. I love when she said you can't let a good story, you can't ruin a good story with the facts. How did you know what, how did you choose the lines and how did you finesse them to make them tighter?

So the biggest challenge of all of this was my dad's letter. And I went and found the real letter. The letter I held in the in the speech was actually a letter he wrote me when I was 16 because it was easier on screen. It was different paper. So I practiced with the original letter and it was too crinkly. But the actual message that my dad gave me and that's why the speech was it challenged me to find the message. The message that would work for a contest was right at the end of the last letter he ever wrote me. Trying to encourage me to start singing and believe in myself was my message to you, my darling daughter, is work on an attitude of gratitude, polish your goals daily and watch for a miracle. Because I'm watching too. And yeah, that's what I use in a keynote but in a contest speech it's attitude of gratitude. It's polishing your goals. And I tried using attitude of gratitude as the through line and it was again, it didn't work. So I kept changing what my dad said and the only thing that he really had said was watch for a miracle because I'm watching too. So that was the biggest journey for me around not ruining a good story with the facts because in essence, what he had been telling me to do was write a different story. And it did come through in the end, but it felt so confronting to change a word of that letter. But I had to. I had to for this journey. And as a result, it changed me.

And we often say you may not always tell the factual truth, but you share the emotional truth. And the impact was clearly obvious. It was palpable. And this is a. Was a memorable, memorable presentation. And I just. I just love your dad and the impact he had on you. And he makes me think of my dad as well. And that's the beauty of it. When your speech is authentic and genuine and your audience relates to it in their own experience. And that's really one powerful aspect of your presentation that earned you. That earned you the world championship title. And I'm just so thrilled to let you know that, to share from my heart, honestly. I'm glad you're part of our family, Darren.

Thanks.

What else do you want to say to the world right now?

I think there's two things I want to say. The. The big one is alone, I can't. Together, we can. It's an AA saying that I learned when my mom was in rehab. And this contest journey has shown me you will never arrive at the pinnacle of anything by yourself. And the two speeches I gave were shaped by all the clubs I delivered at, all the people that took time to give me feedback from Lance, from my sister, from my husband, giving me time to practice. That was not something I achieved by myself. And we do much better work when we include people. So don't be afraid to take people on your journey and be open for feedback. Learn how to filter it. That's the big journey. But be open to shift and change and go slightly in new directions because you might become more as a result. And the second one is. Is if there's ever a little voice that says, maybe I can do this, listen, listen and see. Because even if you don't do it, you'll do more than you would have done if you'd stayed at home and done nothing at all.

You are an inspiring woman. Thank you. Thank you.

I gotta ask you one last question. Tricky one, though. Is there a line from a song that you can share with us to reinforce a message?

Well, I'm just gonna sing it.

Go ahead, go ahead.

You earned the stage.

Gonna change the world Politician, priest or person I said who's gonna leave it better than they found Just by being who they are? Is it gonna be you, you, you oh, you, you, you have an audience here. And then they all start going, well, we're your audience.

You, you, you.

And that's my message is, you know, don't wait for someone else to change the world. Change your world. Just pick it up and run with what you want to do.

Wow. Well, thank you so much for joining us. As Mark puts together the keepers, the wisdom that you dropped, how would anyone reach out to you or connect with you or follow Verity?

Definitely my website, iamverity.com you can see everything I do there. You can also follow the history of the music, which is quite nice, and I would love for more people to listen to my music. So go and find.

I have a feeling you're about to get a lot of listeners without any.

Music career, can make a comeback.

I hope you take this speech that you gave and write a song about that. That's what I. Yeah.

Ah, there we go. I can definitely do that.

You've already done the work on the story and the line. Bring your music to that. I don't know why, I don't know where that came from, but divine inspiration. I hope you do that and I hope you tell us that you did. Verity, if you were to sit down with, let's say, an emerging speaker over a cup of coffee, what wisdom would you pass on to them?

I think the big wisdom, especially when you're starting and you're wanting to get it out there, is to really distill what is it that you want to say and how can you share your journey authentically with people? But then speak. Go and speak everywhere and find opportunities to speak about what it is you're passionate about, because that's the only way you get better. It's not. You'll never write the perfect keynote and deliver it perfectly. You perfect it in front of an audience. And something I heard probably two years into being a toastmaster, a fellow toastmaster at my club, Two Oceans, she was a very nervous speaker. She was a bag of nerves her first few speeches, but she delivered a speech that I never forgot, where she spoke about the origin of the word perfect and how we live in this world where we want things to be perfect and everything's exactly how it should be. And she said, actually, originally it was an ancient Greek word and it was a verb, and it meant to follow through. And that's how you perfect something. You have to follow through. And if Joe, my coach, my singing coach, was coaching you, he would say, and you have to fall on your face and get back up and be okay with it and do it Again, so just keep following through with what it is that you want to say, but notice if it's landing for the audience and if it isn't, work with someone to help you make sure it does.

Wow. A great read, a great inspiration and a great song in your heart. And thank you so much for bringing the story of your dad too. What an inspiring man. Mark Brown, what do we have for.

Keepers keepers for this week from the 2021 World Championship of Public Speaking, Verity Price. It's not about who's going to pay me, it's who's going to hear my message. A thought on perspective. Say yes to opportunities when they come and with your life, you have to be able to laugh about it before you can talk about it. If you remember something resonates the next time you do it, put it in your speech. I love it. The story may not change, but the message can shift. Tell your story, listen to your coach, but listen to yourself as well. And don't get stuck in the spare room whatever you do. And you can't ruin a good story with the facts. Notice though, you will never arrive at the pinnacle of anything you do by yourself, be willing to shift. You will be better for it. Speak. Speak anywhere, speak everywhere. You'll never write the perfect keynote, but keep following through with what you want to say.

Wow.

Wow. Any from you, Darren.

One more worth mentioning is just a reminder you said this, but I want to make sure people, especially contestants, see it that a week before you stop listening to any of the negative, our friend Ed Tate says freeze the design and then just have people love on you and build you up. Because all you need is that one little one that just ding that you unfortunately focus on. I love your transparency too, saying on your Google forms that you would focus on that one negative one. You are a positive one, young lady, and I just love how you're beaming right now, just taking it all in. And we hope that lingers for a long time. Tell your husband thank you for letting us borrow you for a little while and I just hope you have a lot of time to love on your son. Your world has changed and you earned it. Mark Brown, Take us home.

Verity Price, the 2021 world champion of Public Speaking. Welcome to the World Champions family and keep speaking, keep sharing and keep showing others how they can not only become good, great, but unforgettable. See you all next week.

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