Vocal coach, public radio producer, and Peabody-Award winning journalist Veronica Rueckert inspired about 60 women and a few men with her “Speaking While Female” talk at the Truax Campus on March 27. Through the course of the address, she gave tips on public speaking, owning one’s own voice, and speaking authentically with confidence.

The Madison College Women’s Leadership Network and the student group WomenLEAD (Women Leaders for Equity and Diversity) co-sponsored the talk. These two groups seek to inspire women through service and leadership, while also promoting more equity and diversity practices at the Madison College campus.

As event organizer and director of the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL) Sarah Fritz noted in her event introduction, it is “More important than ever that women find their voices and participate in politics.”

Rueckert followed this statement by asking attendees to notice the spaces where women are not talking. Research shows that once one woman speaks, others follow. Thus, speaking up in a meeting or gathering is “something you can do for other people,” says Rueckert. She continues, “The more voices there are, the more diversity of experience, the better decisions are.”

Using the example of The Little Mermaid who gave up her voice in order to win the affection of the prince, Rueckert says, “Our voices are a gift. They are our fingerprint. We must never surrender them willingly.”

Audience members discussed that women choose not to speak up in meetings due to fear of sounding dumb, feeling intimidated, fearing negative repercussions, and more. Rueckert encouraged attendees to not let the moment pass by due to fear.

In order to combat this fear, Rueckert told attendees that the three pillars of voice work are to take up space, be authentic, and know the ground rules of confident speaking.

To practice taking up space, Rueckert led participants in an exercise speaking in pairs where one person folded up and hunched over while the other leaned back in their chair and spread out. The partner who stretched out spoke more loudly, deeply, and confidently than the partner who hunched over into what Rueckert referred to as a “lady pretzel.” At the end of the exercise, Rueckert advised that women should “Give yourself permission to take up space. The more that women use up their full vocal real estate, the more normal it becomes.”

Rueckert also emphasized that authenticity while speaking is key to people buying into a message. Audience members will overlook crispness and clarity as long as the speaker is authentic and true to themselves. “Take a risk. Find your voice,” says Rueckert. “It’s more efficient for us when we are just one person all the time. It’s time to embrace who you are. Your best qualities, your strengths, should come through in your voice.”

Overall, because of her vocal training in opera, Rueckert spoke often about the voice as an instrument that must be practiced, tuned, and used as such. “It’s given me such joy in life to learn to use my instrument,” says Rueckert. “The voice is really a fingerprint of who we are. It’s unique. The more we move into that zone where we are more ourselves, the more confident we become.”

For personal coaching with Rueckert or information on her upcoming speaking engagements, visit www.veronicarueckertcoaching.com.

Upcoming WomenLEAD Brown Bag lunch talks include “Sexual Assault Prevention and Awareness” on Wednesday, April 5 and “Workplace Rights and Responsibilities” on Wednesday, April 19. Workshops are held from 12-1 p.m. in the Health Education Building, Room 228, and are open to the campus community.