Ep 79: Speak your Truth with Step Into Your Moxie’s Alexia Vernon

I’m honored to invite you along for this conversation with my speaker coach and friend Alexia Vernon, about the responsibility we have to clarify what matters most to us and to speak our truth.

Recorded the afternoon before election day 2020, this episode arrives at just the right moment. Because no matter what comes next, we understand more than ever now the importance of using our perspectives, our stories, and our feelings, the full range of them, to deliver our message and create change.

I first met Lex during a workshop she led at Camp GLP (Good Life Project) and became instantly drawn in by her experience and presence. Branded a “Moxie Maven” by Obama’s White House Office of Public Engagement, Lex is a renowned speaking coach to entrepreneurs, coaches, and influencers who want to spread their bold ideas, grow their businesses, and advance their thought leadership. She supports thousands of speakers through her training, events, and mastermind, speaks at Fortune 500 companies, TEDx, and at the United Nations and her advice has been featured by CNN, NBC, and CBS, to name a few. She’s also the author of the award-winning book, Step into Your Moxie, the host of the Moxielicious podcast, and the creator of the popular LinkedIn Learning course, Communicating to Move People to Take Action.

Last year, I had the honor of hosting an Improv for Speakers event Lex led and then serving as an Ambassador and Affiliate for her signature speaking program, The Spotlight Speaker Accelerator. Half-way through the program, we found ourselves in the midst of a global pandemic, wondering whether our messages and voices still mattered, but showing up anyway with Lex as our guide.

Another member of the Mother’s Quest Community who kept showing up, someone I deeply admire, and one of my favorite podcast guests, is the Mom Center’s Graeme Seabrook who in this episode’s dedication shares about the impact that Lex had on helping her your voice and impact grow.
 

What’s happening for Graeme is what Lex calls Stepping into Your Moxie. She says when you step into your moxie, it means that you have the ability to walk into any room or onto any stage and speak up for yourself and the ideas and issues that matter most to you and you know that when you use your voice, you move people to take action with what you have said.

In this episode, Lex gives us so much Stepping Into Our Moxie wisdom by generously sharing stories from her E.P.I.C. life... from speaking the truth about her sexual abuse as a young child, to the ways she helps her young daughter find her voice, from the spark moment that helped her realize her calling as a speaker coach to the ways she has given herself permission to feel her feelings again and again, especially as she faces a current health challenge with thyroid cancer. 

In addition to the gift of this conversation, Lex is serving as the Mother’s Quest Ambassador in the private Facebook Group this November and leading a free upcoming virtual workshop called “Discover Your Secret Sauce as a Speaker.”

I will be tuning into all of this as I follow my commitment to Lex’s challenge for us to think about

1) What one idea more than anything we really want to be known for and
2) How we can start moving into conversations more clearly speaking up for that idea and doing it unapologetically.

I hope you’ll join me in Stepping into Our Moxie and Speaking Our Truth.

Much appreciation,


P.S. Know someone who would love this conversation? Pay this forward to a friend who may be interested.

 

This Episode is Dedicated by: Graeme Seabrook

Graeme Seabrook is a maternal mental health expert, advocate, and community leader who helps moms remove their capes and reconnect with their whole selves. As a certified life coach and founder of The Mom Center, an online community exclusively for moms, she has coached over 2,000 mothers on how to place their names at the top of their priority list, without guilt or shame.

Described as radical, honest, and uplifting, her approach to this work includes a methodology that sits at the intersection of capitalism, patriarchy, and self-care. Her message moves beyond the traditional themes of finding balance and improving productivity for moms, and takes a 360 degree look into strategies that encourage their complete mental and emotional wellness.

Her goal is to put moms in the spotlight and celebrate them for their courage to stand boldly in the truth of who they are - as whole human mamas.

www.graemeseabrook.com

www.themomcenter.mn.co

www.graemeseabrook.com

Graeme's Episode on the Mother's Quest Podcast: 
Ep 61: Reclaiming Ourselves in Motherhood: Revisited with Graeme Seabrook

 

In This Episode We Talk About: Full transparency: what happened the first time Lex and I sat down for an interview and why I asked if we could re-record 

Teaching our children to find their voices from a young age and how Lex’s mother helped Lex find the words to share about her sexual abuse at the age of four. 

Lex’s moments of “speaking bliss” throughout her life and what distinguished them

How Lex spoke her truth at an Entrepreneurial Competition where not a single women speaker was awarded and how that became a spark for her career as a women’s speaker coach

The ways that Lex uses inquiry and growth vs. fixed mindset and the innovator’s mindset to help her daughter connect to her voice and impact

Lex’s signature Speaker Spotlight Accelerator program, and how it helped me reconnect to my voice during the beginning of the pandemic

How Lex sees using our voices not as an opportunity but a responsibility

Lex’s health challenge with thyroid cancer and how it is causing her to make new meaning in her life 

Some people nurture their own dreams in their children and the importance of doing this for ourselves 

Giving permission to feel our feelings and how we can reframe and use our “sensations” to become more powerful speakers

Where Lex finds community among the cohorts of women she coaches and the gift of showing up to serve other people

  This Episode's Challenge:

Think about what one idea more than anything we really want to be known for and...

How we can start moving into conversations more clearly speaking up for that idea and doing it unapologetically.

Learn More About Alexia Vernon:

Branded a “Moxie Maven” by President Obama’s White House Office of Public Engagement for her unique and effective approach to empowering women’s professional success, Alexia is the author of Step into Your Moxie: Amplify Your Voice Visibility, and Influence in the World. A sought-after speaker, coach, consultant and media contributor, Alexia is the creator and leader of multiple speaker training programs and has delivered transformational keynotes and corporate trainings for Fortune 500 companies and professional associations, spoken at the United Nations, delivered a TEDx talk on the future of feminism, and been featured by media including CNN, NBC, CBS, ABC, the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Inc., and Women’s Health.

Follow Lex: Website: www.alexiavernon.com Instagram: @alexiavernon @alexiavernonTwitter: Spotlight Speakers Salon Resources Mentioned: Discover Your 'Secret Sauce' as a Speaker

Innovators Mindset for Kids

*The Spotlight Speaker Accelerator 

Moxielicious Podcast

The Episode where I reconnected to my voice with Lex's support:

A Special Mother’s Day Episode: Choose Yourself and Reclaim Your E.P.I.C. Life

*The links with asterisks above are affiliate links, which means if you end up signing up for a paid program with Lex, Mother's Quest may receive a commission or referral fee. I only ever recommend programs or services I believe in!

 

Announcements:

Discover Your 'Secret Sauce' as a Speaker 

Are you new-ish to your business and struggling to connect with ideal clients? Or, are you an experienced coach, consultant, or expert who is ready for more visibility?
After this virtual workshop, develop the mindset, confidence, and tools to create virtual and live presentations that get you plum speaking bookings (and clients!).

In this LIVE (and free) virtual workshop you will:

Slay speaking self-doubt that keeps you playing small as a coach, consultant, expert, or leader Illuminate the idea(s) you want to be known for so you can develop soul-stirring presentations that move live and virtual audiences to take action and work with you Clarify the best groups to pitch based on your top business goals Learn how to articulate your “secret sauce” so that event organizers, meeting planners, and corporate leaders are eager to book you to speak

Join the live & FREE virtual workshop 👉 HERE!

Mother's Quest Caregiver Circle

Join me and podcast guest, wellness expert and mom to two daughters with rare and chronic illnesses, Nancy Netherland in our first ever Mother’s Quest Caregiver Circle!!

I am beyond honored and excited to open registration for the last Mother's Quest Circle to embark in 2020, especially for Caregivers of children who are differently-wired, have disabilities and/or unique health needs.

Doubly honored to co-facilitate with MQ Circle alum, podcast guest, and self-proclaimed "momologist" Nancy Netherland. Nancy will be bringing her first-hand experience caring for her children with wellness practices to the Circle.

Ready to invest in yourself? And find community as you transition from 2020 to 2021 on your quest? Join us!

Not for you, but know someone who might be interested? Please help us spread the word. We start next week!

Apply 👉 HERE!

Join us in the Mother’s Quest Facebook Group   

At the time I’m releasing this episode, during the COVID-19 global pandemic, so many of us are seeking ways to connect with one another, even while needing to stay physically apart. If you identify with being a mother on a quest and you’re not yet a member of the free private Mother’s Quest Facebook Group, I invite you to join us for opportunities to learn together, to share what we have to offer one another and where we need support, and to find ways to make meaning of all we’re going through right now. Visit www.motherquest.com/community to join and I’d be honored to welcome you in. 

 

Season Five of the Mother’s Podcast is Under Way! – Help us Spread the Word

If you enjoy the Mother’s Quest Podcast, we’d love your support in sharing this or another favorite episode with a mother you think would appreciate it too! 

Another way to help spread the word is to leave a review at Apple Podcasts. Instructions for leaving a review are here:

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Acknowledgments:

A big THANK YOU to our “patrons” for helping to bring these conversations to myself and other mothers through financial and/or in-kind support:

Herve Clermont
Samantha Arsenault
Vickie Giambra
Casey O'Roarty of Joyful Courage
Kathie Moehlig or TransFamily Support Services
Anne Ferguson of MamaFuel
On the Move and etsuko Kubo
Kate Amoo-Gottfried
Nicole Lee
Olivia Parr-Rud
"Vince" of the While Black Podcast
Sara Brannin-Mooser
Lindsay Pera
Julie Castro Abrams
Alexia Vernon
Brooke Markevicius
Democracy Clothing
Michael Skolnik
Helgi Maki
Kari Azuma
Tamara Sobomehin
Katie Krimitsos
Carrie Caulfield Arick
Rachel Rosen
Chandra Brooks
Jen Simon
Monisha Vasa
Celia Ward-Wallace
Vanessa Couto
Desiree Adaway
Rachel Steinman
Katie Hanus
Denise Barreto 
Sage B. Hobbs 
Samantha Nolan-Smith
Jody Smith
Emily Cretella
Collette Flanagan
Titilayo Tinubu Ali 
Carly Magnus Hurt
Lizzy Russinko 
Suzanne Brown
Mara Berns Langer
Mallory Schlabach 
Katharine Earhart
Jessica Kupferman
Jen Jenkins Dohner
Genese Harris
Tonya Rineer
Liane Louie-Badua
Cristin Downs 
Erin Kendall 
Niko Osoteo 
Erik Newton 
Claire Fry
Divya Silbermann
Rachel Winter
Caren and Debbie Lieberman
Cameron Miranda
Fran and David Lieberman
Debbie and Alan Goore
The Sustainable Living Podcast
Samantha Arsenault
Attica Locke
Graeme Seabrook

 

Support the Podcast

If you’d like to make a contribution to Mother’s Quest to support Season Four of the Podcast and/or help provide coaching scholarships for mothers, follow this link to make a contribution.

If you would like to “dedicate” an upcoming episode to a special mother in your life, email me at julie@mothersquest.com

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Mother's Quest is a podcast for moms who are ready to live a truly E.P.I.C. life.

Join in for intimate conversations with a diverse group of inspiring mothers as they share how they are living an E.P.I.C. life, Engaging mindfully with their children (E), Passionately and Purposefully making a difference beyond their family (P), Investing in themselves (I), and Connecting to a strong support network (C).

Join our community of mothers to light the way and sustain you on your quest at https://www.facebook.com/groups/mothersquest/