The Speaking Retreat Lessons That Stayed With Them Years Later

A public speaking retreat can help you improve your delivery, practice stories, receive feedback, and create professional video. But the most meaningful result may be what happens after you leave: you trust yourself more, rely less on exact wording, and become more willing to let the audience meet the person behind your expertise.

That is what Dr. Karen Corbin, Dr. Nicole Rochester, and Brenda Reiss describe in this conversation with our lead speaking coach, Diane Diaz. All three women came to an in-person Speaking Your Brand retreat or workshop with experience and expertise. None of them was starting from zero.

Karen was already a scientist, registered dietitian, researcher, and speaker. Nicole was a physician, health advocate, health equity consultant, professional speaker, and TEDx speaker. Brenda was an emotional freedom and forgiveness coach, speaker, author, and podcast host.

They knew how to teach. They knew their material. The harder question was whether they could stop holding so tightly to the way they thought a professional speaker was supposed to sound and let more of themselves come through.

The answer did not arrive as one dramatic breakthrough. It came through small, concrete experiences: a phone with notes being taken away, a story delivered without preparation, a prop that initially felt awkward, a recording that looked better than it felt, a pause long enough for an idea to land, and feedback from women sitting only a few feet away.

Those experiences changed how all three women approached speaking long after the retreat ended.

What Does a Public Speaking Retreat Actually Help You Practice?

A public speaking retreat is an immersive, in-person experience where speakers step away from their usual work, focus on their message and delivery, practice on stage, receive immediate coaching, and learn from watching other speakers develop their material.

The in-person part matters. You are not only discussing what you might do differently in a future presentation. You are standing up, trying it, hearing a response, making an adjustment, and trying it again.

That can include:

• telling a personal or professional story without reading it
• practicing pauses, movement, vocal variation, and stage presence
• learning when and how to use a prop
• recording practice segments and reviewing the footage
• receiving direct feedback from coaches and peers
• noticing how the audience responds in real time
• capturing professional video and photography for speaking assets

Technique is part of the experience. But technique by itself is not the point. Each of these practices helps the speaker develop a more trusting relationship with her own message.

Why Experienced Speakers Still Rely on Notes

Nicole had been speaking for years before she attended the retreat. She had already delivered a TEDx talk. But after the intense work of memorizing that talk, she went right back to using notes as a safety net.

She was not reading a script word for word. Like many capable speakers, she used notes to keep track of the sequence and make sure she said everything in the right order.

That distinction is important. Dependence on notes does not always look like a speaker staring down at a page. Sometimes it looks polished. The audience may not even notice. But the speaker can still be devoting a large part of her attention to remembering what comes next.

At the retreat, Carol took Nicole’s phone—the place where she had her notes—and asked her to tell the story without it.

Nicole was not happy about it (understandably). She felt that she needed more time and more practice. That reaction will be familiar to many experts. We know the content, but we still believe there is one exact order of words that will make us safe.

Once the notes were gone, Nicole discovered that she already knew her story. She did not feel that she had done a great job, but the response in the room told her something different. The audience experienced her personality and connection in a way she could not fully assess from inside the moment.

She says the weekend completely changed how she delivers talks. She still keeps notes available when she needs to refer to statistics, but she no longer relies on them in the same way.

The goal is not to be careless or unprepared

Speaking without a full script does not mean walking onto the stage without structure. You still need to know:

• the central idea of the talk
• where each story begins and ends
• the point the story is there to make
• the essential facts or statistics that require accuracy
• the transitions that help the audience follow you
• the destination you want the audience to reach

 

What changes is your relationship to the sentence-level wording. You know the path without requiring yourself to take the exact same step every time.

Nicole now sees that the same talk can sound a little different each time she gives it and still remain the same talk at its core. That flexibility creates room to respond to the audience rather than recite at them.

What Happens When the Notes Go Away?

Brenda had a similar realization, although it showed up physically.

She came to the retreat preparing for a keynote that required her to share a personal story. Teaching came naturally to her. Telling a vulnerable story from the stage felt different. She wanted to present the keynote from the heart, but she was also very attached to the safety of her notes.

During practice, Carol noticed that Brenda was moving around a great deal and told her, “I think your feet are attached to your notes.”

Brenda had not realized how much her physical movement reflected her discomfort. When the notes were taken away, she became more centered on stage.

This is one reason live coaching can reveal something that private rehearsal misses. A habit that feels normal from inside your body may be obvious to someone watching. Once the coach names it, you can test a different choice immediately and feel the difference for yourself.

Brenda also recorded her practices on her phone. On the inside, she felt as though she had made a mess of the delivery. When she watched the recording and listened to the feedback, her reaction was different: it was not nearly as bad as it had felt.

That gap between how speaking feels and how it looks matters. Nervousness can be loud inside your body without being the main thing the audience sees. Video gives you evidence. You may notice something you want to adjust, but you may also discover that you looked much more capable than you felt.

How Can Storytelling Strengthen a Technical Presentation?

Karen’s work sits at the intersection of science, nutrition, metabolism, research, and public communication. She understands the pressure technical experts feel to be serious, precise, and data-driven.

She also rejects the idea that science has no room for story.

Storytelling in a technical presentation is not about making anything up. It is about connecting information in a way that helps people learn, care, and become interested in the work. Brilliant data will not have its full impact if the audience is bored or cannot understand why it matters.

Karen attended a one-day version of the workshop while she was writing a children’s book and preparing to speak on a large stage alongside well-known people in the medical field. She wanted to strengthen her storytelling. Instead of slowly building toward a prepared segment, she found herself improvising a story without notes and even experimenting with comedy.

That was uncomfortable. It was also useful.

She saw women with very different levels of speaking experience make visible progress in one day. She received feedback not only from Carol and Diane, but also from the other women in the room. Audience questions helped her notice where a story needed clarity. Their reactions showed her which moments were already working.

A technical expert can be a trusted voice, not only a source of information

Karen’s reason for speaking has also evolved. As a dietitian working in a clinic, she saw patients arrive with health misinformation. Over time, she began to view public communication not simply as something scientists are required to do, but as part of her responsibility to help people interpret discoveries and use information to benefit themselves and their families.

She describes the difference as moving from knowing a great deal to becoming a trusted voice—someone people want to hear because they understand that she is not only knowledgeable, but that she cares.

That requires a speaker to reveal more than the letters after her name. It requires connection.

Karen now thinks carefully about which type of storytelling serves each audience. A keynote may include her personal journey. A highly technical presentation may use story structure without including intimate personal material. The point is not to force vulnerability into every talk. The point is to make intentional choices about what will help this audience understand and engage.

Why Immediate Feedback Changes the Learning Experience

All three women returned to the value of immediate feedback.

At a retreat, the feedback loop is short:

1. You try a section of your talk.
2. The coaches and other speakers tell you what they experienced.
3. You make a specific adjustment.
4. You stand up and try it again.

Brenda described the difference clearly. The feedback was not something to consider later that week or during her next keynote. It was, “Brenda, now try this.”

That immediacy turns an abstract suggestion into a physical experience. You can feel what it is like to plant your feet. You can hear the effect of a longer pause. You can notice how a story changes when you stop explaining and go one level deeper. You can experiment with a prop until it feels connected to the message rather than added for effect.

Feedback also becomes less threatening when it comes from people who understand the risk you are taking. Brenda realized that feedback was not the enemy. Given with care and specificity, it helped her trust herself more.

What Do Filming and Props Add to Speaker Development?

Filming can make speakers nervous, especially when a professional crew is in the room. But it serves two practical purposes.

First, footage gives you useful information. You can see fidgeting, pacing, facial expression, vocal energy, or a moment when the story landed more powerfully than you realized.

Second, strong footage can become part of a speaker reel or other materials used to pitch larger engagements. Event organizers need to see how you communicate on stage. A retreat creates an opportunity to practice and capture that work in a supportive environment.

Props can also deepen a message when they are purposeful and rehearsed.

Brenda experimented with a mirror connected to what she teaches. At first, using it felt conspicuous and awkward. Feedback helped her find where and how to bring it into the story more naturally.

Nicole later carried that lesson into a keynote called “The Elephant in the Exam Room: What Your Doctor Wishes You Knew.” The audience included people with immune deficiencies who had often had to fight for a diagnosis. Organizers asked Nicole to bring them behind the scenes and share the physician’s perspective.

Nicole was reluctant. Her work usually centered on advocating for patients, and this talk asked her to be unusually vulnerable. She was also recently divorced and chose to include that part of her life in a message about the unseen humanity of healthcare providers.

At the end of the keynote, she put on a mask and introduced herself in a regimented, doctor-like way. Then she removed the mask and introduced herself as Nicole: a human being, a mother, and a recent divorcee.

The audience gave her a standing ovation. Afterward, people formed a long line to speak with her. Some simply wanted to hug her. One woman wrote a thank-you note by hand.

The prop worked because it was not decoration. It made the talk’s central idea visible: the professional role can obscure the human being inside it.

Why Does an In-Person Speaking Community Matter?

None of the three guests described the room as a competitive environment. They described it as a place where women wanted one another to succeed.

Nicole expected coaching, useful ideas, and a speaker reel. She did not expect to form close friendships during a two- or three-day experience.

Brenda remembered the conversations that happened outside the formal practice time. Women told one another where a story had touched them. They found shared experiences and helped each other see connections they had missed. That input enriched the stories they later told on stage.

Karen had attended other Speaking Your Brand experiences and already expected to meet purpose-driven women. She had seen those relationships last. At her workshop, she watched Christina—someone Karen described as speaking on stage for the first time—begin a path that later included two books and regular videos sharing her work with children.

Watching another woman take a risk can expand what you believe is possible for yourself. It is not only validation. It is borrowed evidence.

The size and quality of the room matter. A small group creates enough variety for useful perspectives while making it possible for the speaker to feel known. That sense of safety does not eliminate discomfort. It makes the discomfort usable.

What Lasted After the Retreat?

The most revealing part of this conversation is not what happened during the retreat. It is what each woman carried into her work afterward.

Nicole: vulnerability became part of her professional strength

Nicole stopped relying on notes in the same way. She became more comfortable allowing the wording of a talk to change from one delivery to the next. Her keynote about physicians’ humanity showed her what could happen when she brought more of herself to the stage.

She also described speaking as making her feel freer. Her medical training had taught her to follow clear paths and algorithms. Speaking—especially speaking with more vulnerability and less control—helped her reconnect with a more playful version of herself.

Her sentence at the end of the episode was direct: “Speaking became different for me when I realized that vulnerability is my superpower.”

Brenda: trusting herself helped her become more real

Brenda stopped treating feedback as something dangerous and began using it to deepen her stories. The experience helped her understand that stories she had discounted could be powerful to someone else.

Years later, she brought more honesty to her podcast during a difficult period in her life. Women contacted her in a way they had not during the earlier years of the show. She realized that she had been teaching and sharing stories, but had still kept part of herself behind a professional wall.

Her closing insight was that the more she trusts herself, the more real she can be—and she cannot truly connect with other people until she is real with herself.

Karen: authenticity helps expertise become influence

Karen became more intentional about pauses, audience connection, and the kind of story each room needs. She also expanded her mission: she wants other scientists to become trusted public voices who can rise above health misinformation without abandoning rigor or personality.

Her own story includes moving to the United States with an accent, being teased by other children, and becoming afraid to speak. She went from being very quiet to giving scientific presentations and inspirational keynotes. That personal transformation now helps other women see that their voices and everyday stories may matter more than they assume.

A Practical Checklist Before Your Next Talk

You do not need to attend a retreat before trying any of these ideas. Use this checklist during your next rehearsal:

• Can you tell one important story without looking at full-sentence notes?
• Are your notes supporting accuracy, or are they controlling every word?
• What does your movement reveal about where you feel uncertain?
• Have you recorded yourself and compared what you felt with what you actually see?
• Where could a pause help the audience absorb the message?
• Is there one place where your expertise is crowding out your personality?
• If your topic is technical, what story or connection would help the audience understand why it matters?
• Does a prop make the central idea clearer, or is it simply something to hold?
• Who can give you immediate, specific feedback and let you try the section again?
• What part of yourself are you keeping out because it does not fit your idea of “professional”?

The goal is not to manufacture vulnerability or remove every support at once. It is to notice where control is limiting connection and experiment with one different choice.

Frequently Asked Questions About Public Speaking Retreats

What is a public speaking retreat?

A public speaking retreat is an immersive, in-person experience focused on message development, stage practice, delivery coaching, peer feedback, and often professional video or photography. Unlike a lecture-based course, it gives speakers repeated opportunities to practice and revise in the room.

Do I need to be an experienced speaker to attend?

Not necessarily. Karen described a room that included women speaking on stage for the first time and others with years of experience. What matters is having a message you want to develop and a willingness to practice, receive feedback, and try new approaches.

Will I have to speak without notes?

Speaking without full notes may be part of the practice because it helps you test how well you know your story and structure. That does not mean accuracy is unimportant. Brief prompts and references for precise statistics can still be useful. The aim is to reduce dependence on exact wording so you can connect more naturally with the audience.

Why should speakers record themselves?

Video helps you compare your internal experience with what the audience actually sees and hears. It can reveal movement, pacing, expression, and delivery habits. It can also show that a presentation looked much stronger than it felt. Professional footage may also support a speaker reel and future pitches.

Does storytelling belong in scientific or technical presentations?

Yes, when it serves the audience and the information. Storytelling does not require inventing or oversimplifying. It can connect ideas, establish relevance, create a clearer learning path, and help an audience understand why the data matters. The right amount and type of story depend on the talk and the room.

What is the biggest benefit of in-person speaker coaching?

The guests in this episode point to the immediate feedback loop: practice, receive a specific observation, adjust, and practice again. They also emphasize the value of a small, supportive group that makes it safer to experiment with personal stories, props, movement, pauses, and less reliance on notes.

Give Your Voice and Message Focused Attention

If you have been thinking that there is more you want to say—or a bigger way you want to show up with your voice and message—it may be time to give that work real space.

We are bringing another small group of women together in Orlando for the Speaking Your Brand Retreat in February 2027. You will develop and practice stage segments, receive immediate coaching and feedback, and create professional video and photography that can support your speaking opportunities after you leave.

Learn more about the Speaking Your Brnad February 2027 Speaking Retreat.

You can also listen to Episode 488 to hear Karen, Nicole, and Brenda describe the experience—and what stayed with them—in their own words.