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Step into the dark side of public speaking with “The Public Speaking Horror Show,” where we expose the chilling fears and epic stage fails of speakers who’ve lived to tell the tale. Join us as we dig into their nightmares and discover the killer tips that turned their terror into triumph.
Laura Reid: [00:00:02] Welcome to The Public Speaking Horror Show, where the mic is live, the stories are real, and the plot twists are fantastic. I'm your host, Laura Reid, and every week we dig into the gory glory of public speaking gone wrong and what it teaches us about courage and connection. So don't forget to like and subscribe and all those things, so you never miss an episode. Today's guest is someone who knows exactly what makes the media tick and, more importantly, what makes it say yes. She's an Emmy Award-winning television producer turned media and publicity coach with a powerhouse resume that includes CNN, The Oprah Winfrey Show, HGTV, CBS, and more. With over two decades behind the scenes of the biggest names in TV, she's now flipping the script, helping authors, experts, and entrepreneurs step confidently in front of the camera to share their message with the world. Through her work with programs like the National Publicity Summit, which I've been a part of, and its amazing, Super Connector media and the Maximum Publicity program, her mission is crystal clear. Turn experts into irresistible media guests. She would have booked herself. She's brilliant, she's bold, and if you want the media spotlight without the sweat, this is the woman to go to. Please welcome Danette Kubanda to the show. Welcome, Danette.
Danette Kubanda: [00:01:34] Oh, thank you so much for having me, Laura. I'm so happy to be here.
Laura Reid: [00:01:38] Awesome. I'm so excited to have you here today, too. So okay, so, you know, we start out with the killer 13. These are 13 rapid-fire, kind of quick, quirky and occasionally terrifying questions. So no overthinking. Are you ready to play?
Danette Kubanda: [00:01:56] I am ready.
Laura Reid: [00:01:57] All right, here we go. Number one, what's your biggest pet peeve that you see on TV interviews?
Danette Kubanda: [00:02:05] I would say people who try to be too perfect. You know, I love that real, raw, authentic, you know, media guest. So when people are a little too polished, I feel like it's kind of off-putting.
Laura Reid: [00:02:17] Yeah, I get that. It's almost like they're hiding something, you know? Like it's too rehearsed and scripted. Love it. Number two, what's your dream lunch date with a famous person? They can be dead or alive.
Danette Kubanda: [00:02:31] Oh, goodness. You know, I'm coming off a weekend high of the new Superman movie. So I would say Superman.
Laura Reid: [00:02:39] Oh, I love it. Absolutely. Any version of Superman? Or is there a particular one you love?
Danette Kubanda: [00:02:46] Well, I, I'm kind of partial to David Corenswet, the new Superman, mainly because the movie shot here in my hometown of Cleveland, and I got to be in the movie, so...
Laura Reid: [00:02:56] Wait, what? You're in Superman, the new Superman movie?
Danette Kubanda: [00:02:59] I'm an extra. I'm a Metropolis citizen. But yes, I am.
Laura Reid: [00:03:04] Oh my gosh, that is so exciting. Okay, I'm definitely going to ask you more about that. That's so cool. Um, number three, what's scarier? A no show guest or a guest who's under the influence?
Danette Kubanda: [00:03:17] Oh, that's that's really good. I would go with the one who's under the influence. Because they're, yes, because they're so unpredictable. And, you know, especially if it's a live show, you really don't want those kinds of surprises.
Laura Reid: [00:03:34] Yeah, yeah, I hear you. Who was the most unexpected celebrity that you ever worked with or saw in a green room?
Danette Kubanda: [00:03:42] You know, I will say the one who scared me the most was Jim Carrey.
Laura Reid: [00:03:49] Oh, really?
Danette Kubanda: [00:03:50] And I don't know that he meant to scare me. I think he thought he was trying to be funny, but he got a little too close and made, like this weird noise and a weird face, and it caught me off guard and it was kind of...
Laura Reid: [00:04:01] Wow. So he's like that in real life. He's like, wow. Yeah, that would be kind of terrifying.
Danette Kubanda: [00:04:07] I just wasn't ready for it.
Laura Reid: [00:04:10] I love it. If you could go back and tell your child self one thing, what would it be?
Danette Kubanda: [00:04:16] To keep on dreaming. That whatever those dreams are, you can make them come true. And I think that's true for everybody. I think a lot of times people feel like their dreams are out of reach, but if you really stay focused on them and work towards them, you can make them come true.
Laura Reid: [00:04:31] I love that, that's beautiful. What's your one must-have snack?
Danette Kubanda: [00:04:37] Anything chocolate. Whether it's cookies or candy bars, I always, I've got a roll of Oreos sitting on my desk. I always have chocolate close by.
Laura Reid: [00:04:47] Oh, I know what to send you. Okay, we have my go-to gift for people is we have the best, like it's macadamia nuts covered in chocolate and it's just what? You know what you get when you're here on the Big Island. And it's like they're just so good. Are you good with nuts?
Danette Kubanda: [00:05:03] I am thankfully, yes.
Laura Reid: [00:05:04] All right, all right. Awesome. What's one thing that you wish every guest knew before going on TV?
Danette Kubanda: [00:05:14] That people are a lot less judgmental than you expect them to be. You know, like, I feel like a lot of people worry about, you know, the tiniest little thing that, oh, you know, if I do that wrong, someone's going to notice. And truthfully, the audiences are watching the big picture. They're, you know, they're listening to what you have to say. They're not noticing that you had a pimple on your cheek today. You know, it's those little things that people really obsess about that the audience really isn't going to notice.
Laura Reid: [00:05:42] I think that's such good advice, because I think so often we're just, we put the mirror on ourselves and we're so judgmental of ourselves. Worried about how other people think. But really, everyone's kind of in their own world too. But, you know, everyone wants you to succeed. Right. And they're kind of like, what's in it for me a lot, too, right? So they're not really thinking about you. Yeah. That's so good. Would you rather have lipstick on your teeth on live TV or call the host by the wrong name?
Danette Kubanda: [00:06:15] I would go with lipstick on your teeth. Because then at least it's just affecting you. I know, I think that when you ask the question. But then that way, it's only affecting me. It's not affecting the host as well. Calling him or her by the wrong name. You know, that's kind of like a double jeopardy there.
Laura Reid: [00:06:32] Yeah, yeah, those are little things. It's. I mean, yes, we don't have to be judgmental, maybe no one's really noticing, but I was recently on a podcast and I knew it was happening, but I didn't know how to fix it. And but I was kind of mortified. But one of my eyelashes? My fake eyelashes just started coming off, like hanging, and I didn't know whether I should just pull it off. I just kind of pretended like it wasn't happening, but, yeah, those moments can be awkward.
Danette Kubanda: [00:07:01] Yes. And if you're able to ignore it, like you said, nobody else probably noticed. But if you were trying to pull it off, they would have noticed.
Laura Reid: [00:07:10] Yeah. Yeah. Okay. Okay. Maybe it's not as bad as I think. We'll see. I still haven't shared that podcast though, but. All right. What's a song that just instantly gets you feeling pumped and in a good mood?
Danette Kubanda: [00:07:22] Oh, goodness. The first song that popped into my head was I'm a Believer by the Monkees.
Laura Reid: [00:07:27] Oh old School. I love that song.
Danette Kubanda: [00:07:30] Yeah, I love The Monkees in general, but that's literally the first thing that popped into my head.
Laura Reid: [00:07:35] Did you used to watch their TV show back in the day? Remember their show?
Danette Kubanda: [00:07:38] Yeah, I was second round when they came back in the 80s on MTV and yeah, that was when I caught them, and I was totally obsessed.
Laura Reid: [00:07:47] Yeah. So much fun. Oh, nice. All right. What's something that's totally random but you always have to have in your purse.
Danette Kubanda: [00:07:58] Crayons. No way. Really? I have little kids. And, you know, whenever we're waiting for servers at a restaurant or if we get caught in traffic or something, I can just hand them crayons and they can draw or write letters to each other or just do something creative. And I always, always have crayons in my purse.
Laura Reid: [00:08:17] Oh, wow. I've not have guessed that. I guess I did, well, I used to have back when my son was younger, Matchbox cars. Like, that was all the go, because that would keep him occupied no matter where we were. So I kind of missed those. I should have kept a couple of those. I don't think I have them so. Well, speaking of that, I know you balance a lot. You know, having kids. I know you have, like, a beautiful dog, too. And you're doing all these things. Like, what's one piece of advice that you would give to moms out there who are trying to just juggle a lot in their life.
Danette Kubanda: [00:08:50] I would say that it's not about having it all all at once, but being all the way in to whatever it is you're doing at the moment. So you're never going to feel balanced, you're never going to feel like you're doing exactly what you're supposed to do at any given moment. But if you're at work, give it your all. When you're home with your kids. Give it your all. Don't let that text that came through distract you from the game you're playing. Or, you know, if you're at work, don't be worried about whether or not your child wore whatever theme day it was supposed to be that day. You know, just, you know, really focus on where you are in the moment. I think that being present in the moment is so important, so that you can be successful on all the different sides of your personality.
Laura Reid: [00:09:38] Wow. I think that's the best advice I've ever heard to that, the idea of balance. In a way, it just doesn't exist, right? So just be balanced where you are. Be the most. Yeah. Show up for where you are at that time. And don't worry that this other thing you can't control at the moment is maybe, you know, going sideways.
Danette Kubanda: [00:09:57] Exactly, you can always fix it later. And I think that, you know, trying to find the balance just puts more pressure on us because we're so worried. Well, I should be able to do all of this. We were never meant to do all of it all at once. So, you know, really just be in the moment that you're in and then, you know, prepare as best you can so that when you are at work that your kids can be successful. And if you're with your kids, work is still on track. Prepare as much as you can. But don't stress about it when you're not in that particular space.
Laura Reid: [00:10:28] That's such good advice too for everything, for whether you're on a stage or being interviewed or, you know, in a kind of public speaking as well, I think, is just to in that moment, don't worry about the final outcome yet or how people are going to receive you later. It's just like, be as present as you can, right? And enjoying it as much as you can in that moment that you're speaking, you know. So I love that. All right. I got a little lost here. Let's see. Okay. On number 12 already. If you could produce one more episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show, which I loved, love, love that show. I miss it so much, what would it be about? And would there be any guest that comes to mind you would love to have?
Danette Kubanda: [00:11:07] Oh gosh, my mind is swirling. There's so many, so many. You know, I would say I what I really loved about Oprah were the shows where she did about living your best life. And I think a lot of that kind of is lost these days, that we're not as focused on how we can learn and grow and become better as people. So I would love to see another version of that. I know, I mean, I know she does does that on OWN and what she's still doing there, but it's not every day in front of everybody the way it was before. So that's the part I think I miss the most.
Laura Reid: [00:11:44] That has been kind of lost with the other talk shows are very reactionary now, to like reacting to news or whatever's, you know, trendy at that moment or anything. But it's not that like deeper reflection. Like you learn something from it, you know, to, yeah, I miss that. All right. Last question, number 13. You're doing awesome. If you had the world's attention for just one minute, what is the message that you'd want to share?
Danette Kubanda: [00:12:14] I think I'm going to go back to the idea of chasing your dreams, because I think that's something that so many people miss out on. You know, you know, when you're little and you're dreaming and, you know, I want to do this, I want to do that. And so many people just let that float away from them. And I think that's one of the things I'm really, really proud of is that I didn't let those dreams float away. You know, when people asked me when I was growing up, what I wanted to do when I, you know, what do you want to be when you grow up? I always said I wanted to work for Oprah. And I did, you know, and, you know, I wanted to be in TV. I wanted to win an Emmy, so I did. So it's just, I'm really proud that I didn't let those dreams float away. Like, I feel like a lot of people can. And I want to encourage other people that it's possible, you know, and I can be an example that it's possible.
Laura Reid: [00:13:02] Oh, that is so beautiful. I didn't know that. So this, like this leads perfectly into these like deeper dive questions like, give us a little bit of your backstory. And that is so cool that like from childhood, you kind of knew you had this very clear vision. And, you know, tell us more about that and then how you actually made that happen. And then we'll get into the darker side of some of the, you know, some things that went wrong, because we want to hear that, too, you know, not just the dreams but the nightmares, because we we learn from them, you know, all the time. Yeah. Like Jim Carrey in your face. There's something like a good reminder. Be prepared for anything, right?
Danette Kubanda: [00:13:37] Yes, yes. And it's always better to learn from someone else's nightmare story than it is to have to live it yourself.
Laura Reid: [00:13:44] Yeah, it's more comfortable for sure. Yeah, yeah. But yeah. So I'd love to hear more about that. You know how you made those dreams come true?
Danette Kubanda: [00:13:52] Yeah. So I was always a bit TV obsessed. I loved television when I was growing up. I loved watching old sitcoms from the 50s and 60s and Donna Reed. The Donna Reed Show was my favorite. And to learn after the fact that she was the first woman producer, she was an actual producer on her show. And that just, you know, again, opened up so many possibilities. So I love that kind of those things. And I, you know, to kind of put not necessarily a nightmare story in there, but I, you know, when people ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I wanted to work for Oprah. And the other thing I wanted to do was be a VJ. Do you remember the VJs on MTV? The video jockeys had introduced all the music videos, that was what I wanted to do. My first job out of college was as a DJ, but at CNN, a totally different idea. So instead of being a video jockey, it was a video journalist. And not that it's a nightmare, but it's like it's one of those things where be very specific about what it is that you want to do. If the universe heard me, just got it a little bit twisted.
Laura Reid: [00:14:57] It got the initials right. Yeah, yeah.
Danette Kubanda: [00:15:01] And, you know, and CNN was a great foundation for television. It you know, it really, I learned all the production and everything, but it was very sad. You know, being in breaking news all the time, I still have stories that we covered during my time at CNN that give me nightmares. I learned that I wasn't, I wasn't made for that. There are definitely people who are made for news who can really tell those stories and make those differences, but I was just too sensitive for that. I needed more happy, uplifting things. So, and so that was when I applied for Oprah and, you know, moved over there and I was much more suited to talk shows and lifestyle programing. So yeah. So that was kind of my journey from, I chose a college where I knew that I would get hands-on learning. I was able to do my internship my junior year. Senior year, I was able to be the news director for our television, our student-run television station, which gave me a great resume going into graduation, where I was able to go write to CNN and then write to Oprah. But then by the time I got to Oprah, she had already taken herself and the show out of the running for Emmys, which was another one of my dreams. I wanted an Emmy. So I knew to achieve that dream, I would have to leave the show and find another path. So I did, which I'm very proud of. And I got not just one, but two. I refer to them as my first set of twins. So there's one in the background there, and one next to me.
Laura Reid: [00:16:30] I don't think I noticed the one in the background too. They need to be right by each other, but that's so. Well, tell us about the Emmys and what were they for exactly. And yeah, what was that like?
Danette Kubanda: [00:16:43] Magical. It was absolutely magical. I was working for a show called Cristina's Court. It was actually just three months. I was, I signed on for three months to work in Texas. I figured I could work anywhere for three months, but I worked with an amazing team who, we actually won the very first Emmy that was given out to court shows, which was amazing. And then we got it the next year and the year after that. So they actually got the first three court Emmys for Cristina's Court. And it was just an amazing experience for me. Those three months turned into three years because I met my husband while I was there and ended up staying. But I got, out of that three month deal, I got a husband, two Emmys and a dog, so I call it a win.
Laura Reid: [00:17:28] Absolutely. Well, so were you up against Judge Judy? Those kind of, you beat Judge Judy?
Danette Kubanda: [00:17:35] She was not happy. She was not happy. Yeah, but once Cristina's Court was over, she had her time to shine, and she won the next year.
Laura Reid: [00:17:45] Yeah. Why did you have to give a speech or anything? Or you just got up on stage with everyone, and...
Danette Kubanda: [00:17:51] Yeah, the whole team got up on stage, and Cristina gave the speech for us all, but it was pretty, it was pretty amazing. Alex Trebek was actually the one who gave us the award. So, you know, it's just a night of really great memories. Cookie Monster was there. Yeah. So, like, all of these things that, you know, like, you spend your whole childhood kind of looking up to and being on such a magical night. It was great. I just absolutely loved it.
Laura Reid: [00:18:19] Were there any celebrities there that were just seemed so much different than how you imagined they would be like in person?
Danette Kubanda: [00:18:27] Truthfully, no. No. Everybody was so gracious and just happy to be there and celebrating everybody's wins. And.
Laura Reid: [00:18:34] Except Judge Judy.
Danette Kubanda: [00:18:37] You know, and I understand. I understand how she felt. But yeah. And it wasn't, she was still gracious, you know, backstage and that sort of thing. But I think in the moment, you know, the camera caught her face. But, you know, and again, she was able to win the next year. So it all worked out.
Laura Reid: [00:18:56] Well. I mean, you've seen it all from kind of behind the scenes, you know. And, tell us a story where something just kind of didn't go as planned, because that definitely happens. And then what you learned from it, how you recovered from it. Yeah. I'd love to know.
Danette Kubanda: [00:19:14] Yeah. Well, funnily enough, I had a situation this week. So I mentioned, you know, I was an extra for Superman, and we did this big giant premiere party here in Cleveland for the movie. We got to watch the movie for the first time and and then, you know, all these things were happening. And at the party, there happened to be a local news station there doing a live show covering everything, and I wasn't planning to be on TV, you know, I wasn't, I was there as, you know, part of the party. And he just, you know, announced has anyone seen the movie yet? So I stuck my hand up. You know, that's one thing I tell my clients all the time. Always be ready. That opportunity to do a media interview may not come around the second time. If they ask you to do something, be ready. And I heard my own voice in my head and I was like, yeah, I have seen it. So he came over. I had just taken a giant bite. It was catered and I had a mouthful. And I totally panicked because he immediately brought his crew over. I didn't realize it was a live shot. I thought he was just looking for people to talk to later. And it was live in front of the whole city, so I just kind of talked with food in my mouth and still did the interview. But like we mentioned earlier, I don't think anyone else noticed it until I said it. I was like, oh my God, I can't believe I did that with food in my mouth. And then they're like, oh, did you? So...
Laura Reid: [00:20:46] I love that.
Danette Kubanda: [00:20:47] Again, we make a bigger deal about things in our own heads than the viewers may see, but I do highly recommend not doing a live interview right after you took a bite of something.
Laura Reid: [00:20:58] So when you say like, be ready, be ready, in like all the ways you can imagine being ready, right? Finish your sandwich. Like I'll say, right.
Danette Kubanda: [00:21:08] Exactly. Have your TV outfit ready to go in your closet. So if someone says, hey, can you do an interview in 15 minutes, you already know what you're wearing and you can just go. Be as prepared as you can be. And generally you're that expert in whatever field it is. You know your topic backwards and forwards. A lot of times you know it so well you wrote a book about it. So really just have faith that even if you didn't sit down and prepare a list of talking points for this interview, that whatever questions come your way, you're going to be ready to answer. Have faith in yourself.
Laura Reid: [00:21:41] Such good advice. However, I also feel like if someone, like if someone called me, you know, right after our interview, and was like, okay, be ready. You're going on, you're going on live on this show in an hour. Even though, you know, I help people overcome nerves. Like, for myself, like, I might be ready because I've kind of prepared for it. I've already asked for that to happen, and now it's going to happen. But I would still probably have some panic come up. And I'm sure some of our listeners too, if they all of a sudden it's on the spot and they have to speak, whether it's at a PTA meeting or whether it's on TV or, you know, a job interview or whatever it is like, what's your advice for calming the nerves? You know, what have you seen kind of behind the scenes that really helps people and that's worked.
Danette Kubanda: [00:22:32] Yeah, some really big deep breaths. I think breathing, and I feel like that's so common. It's such a, you know, a nothing answer. But at the same time, it's so important for just regulating your nervous system and getting that oxygen into your lungs that you need. So take some really good deep breaths and give yourself a pep talk. You know, again, remind yourself, you know this topic backwards and forwards. You've been studying this topic for years. This isn't something new that you decided to talk about last Tuesday, so just remind yourself that you are an educated expert. You've done your homework, you've done the work, and the right answers are going to come. You know, if you have that hour to prepare that you just mentioned that it's going to be in an hour. Then jot down, you know, take that five minutes to jot down 5 or 10 talking points that you want to hit on. Because I do think if you review them right before you go on air, you're going to, you're going to be able to remember them and share what you want to share. But also just again, just give yourself that pep talk that, you know, you've been working for this for a while. This isn't something new that you just started and that you are the right person to do it. And this opportunity wouldn't come your way if you weren't, if it weren't meant to be.
Laura Reid: [00:23:48] I love that. I love that it's like that saying, you know, the universe only gives you, like, what you can handle, right? So you're, you are more ready than you probably ever think you are. Right?
Danette Kubanda: [00:24:01] I don't think anybody ever feels ready. But if you if you wait for ready, you're going to let opportunities pass you by.
Laura Reid: [00:24:10] Yeah. So never miss those opportunities. I love that, and just also, no one else is going to give you a pep talk probably. So I think it's so important to get in touch with being your own best friend, kind of having your back at those kind of opportunities and having your own little mantras or things that you say to yourself, or a song that you play or whatever it is creating your own ritual or those moments, you know, when the opportunity arises and you're feeling those, you know, that nervousness come up or anxiety about it, that, you know, it's up to you like to really get in that state that you need to be in.
Danette Kubanda: [00:24:46] I agree 100%.
Laura Reid: [00:24:47] I love it. What have you seen kind of behind the the green room curtain really where, you know, maybe celebrities have had, like you, they've been a little nervous. Like are there any kind of things you've seen them doing to help them, or was there someone that you were really surprised was nervous, like during an interview and it didn't go well?
Danette Kubanda: [00:25:08] Oh, that's a good one. I'm not thinking of any celebrities that were like, like super nervous. I feel like, you know, if I have, you know, I did see them hyping themselves up, you know, dancing or singing or, you know, just kind of, you know, moving their bodies. I think that's a big part is just moving your body and kind of getting, you know, ready to be on stage, whatever kind of stage it might be. Because I think a lot of times we can get a little too stiff. So I think that's a good one. It's just to kind of move your body a little bit before. Get the, you know, shake it off, as Taylor says, shake off those nerves. You know, just kind of get yourself ready to really shine in whatever spotlight you're about to step into.
Laura Reid: [00:25:53] I love that. I think it's so important because, you know, Tony Robbins is kind of big on this. Like, your physiology kind of creates your psychology. So, you know, just getting in touch with kind of changing your body, how it feels. So whether it's like a power pose or, yeah, shaking it out, dancing a bit, like that helps your mind and your thoughts and your confidence. How you're feeling. So I think, I'm not surprised celebrities are kind of dancing it out a little, you know, behind the curtain there. Now, you coach a lot of experts who might be a little terrified of being seen, especially authors, you know, because sometimes authors, we get a little, you know, just in our own bubbles where writers, for reason, maybe we don't want to be in front of a mic. And yet it's a really important thing to get yourself out there, you know, be interviewed about your book, do a book reading, those kind of things. So what's the number one fear that you noticed that people share with you that they they need help overcoming? Like, have there been kind of a common thing?
Danette Kubanda: [00:26:52] I think it's a version of imposter syndrome, you know, or feeling too boastful. I think a lot of people worry about if I talk about myself, I'm bragging. And I think it can be a simple mindset shift. It's not so much that you're bragging about what you're doing, as you are letting people know how you can help them. So I think just kind of shifting it from, you know, I'm talking too much about myself, to I'm talking about this so that I can help reach Sally Jo, who's watching the show at home, or Betty Sue, who happens to be in the audience, if you're speaking on stage. You're reaching the people who need you, the people you can help. And I think that's really why most people get into whatever it is they're into. That's why they wrote this book. That's why they studied this topic. It's because they want to help people. You know, maybe they live the experience and they know what it's like to be in that struggle. And they came out the other side. So they want to help other people get to the other side faster. So just kind of shifting it from talking about yourself to here's what I learned, that I can help you get there faster, can really take a little bit of that imposter syndrome away.
Laura Reid: [00:28:03] That is such an important mindset shift. You know that it's not really about you. It's about, you know, this message that you have that could change someone else's life or they're just waiting to hear it. So it's almost selfish to, like, keep it to yourself. Right? There's someone out there that needs to hear it. So you, you know, empowering your voice, but in a way that empowers others, right? It's not just about you. So the more confidence that you can have, the more you can reach more people too.
Danette Kubanda: [00:28:32] That's exactly it. That's exactly it. And I like what you said, it's kind of like you have a responsibility to share that message so that other people can benefit from it.
Laura Reid: [00:28:41] Yeah. So yeah, talking about yourself, it's not really selfish at all or vain or anything because it's really about how your story can change someone else's, you know, for the better. So I love that. What are some misconceptions that people have about getting booked on TV or podcasts? You know, if they are an author or a speaker or business owner that just wants to get their message out there more. What are those biggest misconceptions and how can they get booked? Like get those yeses?
Danette Kubanda: [00:29:10] Yes. I think something that a lot of people worry about is, you know, they kind of put producers and editors on these pedestals, like, why would they want to talk to me? I think, you know, what do I have to offer them? But we're just people, too. We're people who are looking for solutions, who are looking for information to help our audiences live better lives in some way. So, you know, kind of realizing you're just having a conversation with somebody, you're talking. You have something to offer. They have something that they're looking for, and you really are benefiting both sides of it. It's a win win. So kind of getting, again, getting out of that mindset of, you know, they're going to help me do something. You're helping them at the same time. They have you know, if it's a TV show, they have hours they have to fill. If it's a magazine, they have inches they have to fill every month or every week. Same with podcasts and radio shows. They have hours of time they need to fill with great guests. So they're looking for you just as much as you're looking for those opportunities. It's just a matter of framing it in the way that they tell their stories, so that you can make the right matches and get in front of the right audiences.
Laura Reid: [00:30:21] I love that in some, you know, some advice that you had given me is never make the same pitch twice. Basically, like if you don't, you know, have a yes right away and you want to pitch again, to try to get on the show or podcast, whatever it is, come up with something new. So what's some of your advice you have to for how to make a pitch that really lands, whether it's, you know, sending someone an email or maybe you're doing it live, like in the National Publicity Summit, you know, authors have the opportunity to pitch live to people so they don't get a lot of time, though. But how can you make yourself kind of stand out and get noticed?
Danette Kubanda: [00:31:01] You know, really focus on the audience take away. What will the audience learn from this particular interview with you? And if you can articulate that in a sentence, maybe two sentences, that's really all you need. So really all they need to know is this is the problem your audience is facing, whatever that might be. Here's the catchy, fresh, new way you have of solving that problem. That's where your expertise comes in and how what your uniqueness offers some advice. And then thirdly, here's who I am and why I'm qualified to talk about this. So that's your credential statement. Of course we want qualified experts. So if you can tell us why, whether that's, you know, you've got a bunch of initials after your name because you've done so much schooling, or whether it's just the fact that you've gone through this journey already yourself and you have, you know, in the moment, down in the trenches kind of expertise, how you frame your credentials really carries that. So again, just, you know, lay it out for us. What problem is the audience facing and how can you solve that problem in a way that all the other experts out there aren't necessarily doing?
Laura Reid: [00:32:11] I love that so much. You offered us such good advice. Thank you so much. I mean, I think we've learned that the media spotlight isn't just for celebrities, right? It's really anyone can step into the spotlight once they get kind of connected with their message. And your dreams are always, I think once you get clear on your dreams, whatever it is, you know, whether it's an Emmy, you know, being on the show, writing your book, once you have clarity on it, like it's definitely anyone can achieve that. So thank you so much for that reminder. Could you share with us any last words of inspiration that you have and also where we can find you and possibly, you know, work with you or get involved in some way. That would be wonderful as well.
Danette Kubanda: [00:32:58] Oh, that's. Oh, thank you so much. I'm on all the socials so you can find me on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, all of that. It's, you know, just search my name. I'm unique enough that I'm the only one, thankfully. And then, you know, I would say is last minute advice is to, you know, really trust in your mission and what it is that you want to put out into the world. There are other people who are looking for your advice and your expertise. There's always somebody who's struggling with what it is that you can help them solve. So, you know, just, you know, just like Laura mentioned earlier, don't be selfish. You know let your expertise shine so that you can really reach out there and help somebody who might need you.
Laura Reid: [00:33:43] Thank you so much. I mean, this yeah, this conversation has been really just inspiring, you know, to me too, just all those good reminders to, you know, yeah, not be selfish. Get yourself out there, believe in yourself and keep chasing those dreams because they're, you know, they might be waiting for you and say yes to the opportunities and get ready. Get prepared. Finish your sandwich first and then raise your hand and be ready for, you know, be ready for that moment in the spotlight. And if you forget, you know anything goes a little wrong, it's always more of a nightmare in your head than anyone else's. Right? They're not even noticing it. So I love that story you shared as well. So that is a wrap. Thank you so much, Danette, for being on this episode of The Public Speaking Horror Show. For all the listeners out there, please be sure to subscribe and we will see you next time. And just remember, the scariest thing is staying silent. Thank you.