Speak with Presence

Talk Nicely to Yourself features actor/singer, Shon Ruffin, a Kansas City-based performer. Jen V. & JRT spoke with Shon on location at the New Theatre and Restaurant in Overland Park, KS before she prepared for her nightly performance of Effie in the musical DREAMGIRLS. The show closed on Sept, 10, 2023 after a sold out run.

You can find Shon singing with the bands Freedom Affair and Lost Wax.

Jen Vellenga and Jennifer Rettele-Thomas are the co-founders of Voice First World, a communication and executive coaching company.  If you want to learn more, book a discovery call at www.voicefirstworld.com/chat.

Dani Welniak is the Vice President of Communications for the KC Current, the Kansas City soccer team for the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). Dani has an impressive career as an on-air reporter for the Kansas City Chiefs and as a superbowl champion with the Dallas Diamondz - Women's Professional Full-Contact NFL Rules Football.

Dani is a confident speaker and shares her stories of overcoming failures and being supported by allies in a male-dominated industry.

Jen Vellenga and Jennifer Rettele-Thomas are the co-founders of Voice First World, a communication and executive coaching company.  If you want to learn more, book a call at www.voicefirstworld.com/chat.

Allison Howard was named the first-ever President of KC Current on May 24, 2022. Howard joined the club after a ten-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers. She spent the previous five years serving as Vice President of Corporate Partnerships, where she was instrumental in closing the Lakers’ most successful partnerships and led the organization’s corporate partnership strategy that surpassed $350 million in revenue.

Prior to her time with the Lakers, Howard was Vice President at Premier Partnerships where she sold and managed naming rights partnerships all over the country. She was also recognized as a "Woman of Inspiration" from WISE LA (Women in Sports and Events, Los Angeles) and served on the WISE LA board for 10 years.

Sandra Bargman is a creative soul, intuitive communicator, and energetic servant.

It started when she was three years old, marched into her family kitchen, hands on her hips and announced that she was here on “a mission!" Every career choice she has made has ultimately rested on the ancient Greek maxim of “Know Thyself," the directive that is at the heart of every artistic, spiritual and leadership journey.

She hold a BFA from Carnegie-Mellon University in drama and music and has had a happy 30+ year career as a professional actor, director, teacher and presentation coach. She has performed on the stages of Broadway national tours, the clubs and cabaret rooms of NYC, off-Broadway, regional theatres and beyond.

Her spiritual life called her further inward, and in 2007, she was ordained as an Inter-spiritual Minister from The New Seminary for Interfaith Studies. She hold an advanced certification from One Spirit Interfaith Seminary in Spiritual Counseling. Unaffiliated with any single religious tradition, she has helped clients of all faiths and traditions (including none) in pursuing deeper self- understanding in their personal quest to ’Know Thyself."

Through decades of impacting experiences, Alison sees the world with a global perspective and with the straight up honesty and spirit of a Brooklyn-native, combined with California wellness-cool. She has a unique ability to see big picture opportunities very quickly.

With over 26-years in global tech enterprise Sales and Product Marketing Leadership within large and mid-sized enterprises, such as Cisco, Brocade, Autodesk, Riverbed, and a start-up exit to Microsoft, Alison has driven and experienced business growth across a wide range of perspectives.

Alison holds advanced certifications with the International Coach Federation - ICF (ACC), Co-Active Training Institute (CPCC), and from Cornell University in Women's Executive Leadership and Diversity and Inclusion.  She has a lifelong passion for whole wellness, incorporating her ‘Four Pillars of Wellness’ into her leadership coaching, and is a certified holistic wellness coach and former fitness trainer.  

In 2020, she received a diagnosis of Stage 3 endometrial cancer where she applied her warrior approach to herself.  Her journey through cancer treatment was the call she needed to move on from the enterprise and to build her own company, The Lens Leadership, a leadership coaching company specializing in coaching for companies, groups, and individuals, from young professionals to senior-most executives.

If you want to see if it's a good fit to work with Jen V. and JRT on speaking courageously as a leader, let's chat: https://www.voicefirstworld.com/chat

Dr. Novak has over 25 years of experience working in the fields of optical and wireless communications. She has a successful track record of R&D leadership and product development in the industrial and academic sectors. Prior to co-founding Pharad/Octane Wireless, Dr. Novak was a Professor in the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at The University of Melbourne. Later she led cross-disciplinary R&D teams developing WDM hardware for long-haul transmission systems at Dorsál Networks and Corvis Corporation.

Dr. Novak received the degrees of Bachelor of Engineering and PhD in Electrical Engineering from the University of Queensland, Australia, in 1987 and 1992, respectively. She is a Fellow of the IEEE and is recognized internationally as an expert in the areas of microwave and millimeter-wave photonics. Dr. Novak has published more than 300 papers in these areas, including seven book chapters. In 2018 she was awarded the IEEE Photonics Society Engineering Achievement Award for her work developing breakthrough technologies for the microwave photonics field.  She is currently serving as a member of the IEEE Board of Directors.

If you want to see if it's a good fit to work with Jen V. and JRT on speaking courageously as a leader, let's chat: https://www.voicefirstworld.com/chat

On April 2, 2021, the OSU/A&M Board of Regents selected Dr. Kayse Shrum as the 19th president of Oklahoma State University. A native Oklahoman, President Shrum earned her doctor of osteopathic medicine degree from the OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine and has completed executive leadership and management training programs at Harvard University and Stanford University.

Since taking office in July 2021, Dr. Shrum has forged a new chapter for OSU — boldly facing challenges like conference realignment and COVID-19 while positioning the university for future success by embarking on a strategic planning process. The systemwide strategy process will guide the future of OSU and secure its position as the nation’s premier land-grant university — with a focus on creating and discovering solutions to societal problems, providing students with a world-class education and sending them into the world after graduation well-equipped to handle the challenges before them. 

If you want to see if it's a good fit to work with Jen V. and JRT on speaking courageously as a leader, let's chat: https://www.voicefirstworld.com/chat

If you want to see if it's a good fit to work with Jen V. and JRT on speaking confidently as a leader, let's chat: https://www.voicefirstworld.com/chat

Jen Vellenga continues to fill the story bank with a story about singing in Shen Zhen, China in 1993.  This episode begins our celebration of International Women on the Speak with Presence podcast by Voice First World.

Jen Vellenga's "word" for 2023 is CONSISTENCY. Co-host Jennifer Rettele-Thomas challenged her to tell a story on the Speak with Presence podcast every day of 2023 starting on January 19, 2023.

Can Jen V. do it? JRT doubts it. 

Even if she's not perfect...how many stories can she tell and what structures will she use?

Robert has been a passionate supporter of gender equality throughout his 40 plus year consulting career. He helped set up the women’s network in Mercer UK and was the first man to join the Board of leading global women’s network, PWN Global. He has mentored and sponsored many women globally and is mentored himself by a number of women.

Today Robert runs his own consulting business, focussing on delivering keynotes, workshops and coaching for (mostly male) business executives to help them develop their leadership skills in gender balance and so build diverse and inclusive workplaces. He is a Board member of European Women on Boards, responsible for D&I Strategy, and is a Trustee of One Loud Voice for Women. Robert is also a Non-Executive Director of Spktral, the specialists in gender pay gap analysis and reporting. Connect with Robert on Linked In.

If you want to see if it's a good fit to work with Jen V. and JRT on speaking courageously as a leader, let's chat: https://www.voicefirstworld.com/chat

Jen Vellenga continues to fill the story bank with a story about William's award.  This episode is ripped from the files of group coaching for the Speak with Presence program by Voice First World.

Jen Vellenga's "word" for 2023 is CONSISTENCY. Co-host Jennifer Rettele-Thomas challenged her to tell a story on the Speak with Presence podcast every day of 2023 starting on January 19, 2023.

Can Jen V. do it? JRT doubts it. 

Even if she's not perfect...how many stories can she tell and what structures will she use?

Ushi’s mission and expertise is helping generous, trailblazing women know their value so they can build magnetic brands of positive influence and wealth. She is a globally recognized brand strategist, creative consultant and designer with an MBA. Her work has a collective reach of millions, including the visual direction of campaigns for the empowerment of more than 300,000 women in India and Africa. Ushi’s multicultural approach and heartfelt visual storytelling has inspired her clients to utilize her design talent and eye for their incredible homes, events, and weddings worldwide, in addition to the visual direction and mentorship she provides for their businesses. 

If you want to see if it's a good fit to work with Jen V. and JRT on speaking courageously as a leader, let's chat: https://www.voicefirstworld.com/chat

The nuance and why of the dress code.

Jen Vellenga's "word" for 2023 is CONSISTENCY. Co-host Jennifer Rettele-Thomas challenged her to tell a story on the Speak with Presence podcast every day of 2023 starting on January 19, 2023.

Can Jen V. do it? JRT doubts it. 

Even if she's not perfect...how many stories can she tell and what structures will she use?

Jen V & JRT and the co-founders of Voice First World, a communication and executive coaching company.

We all want it our way.  But are we listening?  If we aren't, artificial intelligence is!

In this episode, Jen V. talks about Kevin Roose's book, "Futureproof: 9 Rules for Humans in the Age of Automation" and shares his advice on what to do in an increasingly automated world.

Jen Vellenga's "word" for 2023 is CONSISTENCY. Co-host Jennifer Rettele-Thomas challenged her to tell a story on the Speak with Presence podcast every day of 2023 starting on January 19, 2023.

Can Jen V. do it? JRT doubts it. 

Even if she's not perfect...how many stories can Jen tell and what structures will she use? Subscribe on your favorite podcast app to find out!

Jen V & JRT and the co-founders of Voice First World, a communication and executive coaching company.

What's the difference?  Jen demonstrates sharing an actual story vs. only telling the facts about a story.

Jen Vellenga's "word" for 2023 is CONSISTENCY. Co-host Jennifer Rettele-Thomas challenged her to tell a story on the Speak with Presence podcast every day of 2023 starting on January 19, 2023.

Can Jen V. do it? JRT doubts it. 

Even if she's not perfect...how many stories can Jen tell and what structures will she use? How creative can she get about where she finds the stories she shares? Subscribe on your favorite podcast app to find out!

Jen V & JRT and the co-founders of Voice First World, a communication and executive coaching company.

"Manny" (not his real name) has an odd request. This episode is about learning to be grateful, even in surprising circumstances.

Jen Vellenga's "word" for 2023 is CONSISTENCY. Jennifer Rettele-Thomas challenged her to tell a story on the Speak with Presence podcast every day of 2023 starting on January 19, 2023.

Can Jen V. do it? JRT doubts it. 

Even if she's not perfect...how many stories can she tell and what structures will she use?

"Sally" (not her real name) calls out professionalism in the classroom. Triangulation lessons are learned the hard way.

Jen Vellenga's "word" for 2023 is CONSISTENCY. Jennifer Rettele-Thomas challenged her to tell a story on the Speak with Presence podcast every day of 2023 starting on January 19, 2023.

Can Jen V. do it? JRT doubts it. 

Even if she's not perfect...how many stories can she tell and what structures will she use?

Jen Vellenga's "word" for 2023 is CONSISTENCY. Jennifer Rettele-Thomas challenged her to tell a story on the Speak with Presence podcast every day of 2023 starting on January 19, 2023.

Can Jen V. do it? JRT doubts it. 

Even if she's not perfect...how many stories can she tell and what structures will she use?

1/20/23.

Jen Vellenga's "word" for 2023 is CONSISTENCY. Jennifer Rettele-Thomas challenged her to tell a story on the Speak with Presence podcast every day of 2023 starting on January 19, 2023.

Can Jen V. do it? JRT doubts it. 

Even if she's not perfect...how many stories can she tell and what structures will she use?