322-SYB-Heike-Martin.mp3: Audio automatically transcribed by Sonix

322-SYB-Heike-Martin.mp3: this mp3 audio file was automatically transcribed by Sonix with the best speech-to-text algorithms. This transcript may contain errors.

Carol Cox:
We’re wrapping up our series for Women’s History Month, talking about changing the image women have of themselves with my guest Heike Martin. On this episode of the Speaking Your Brand podcast. More and more women are making an impact by starting businesses, running for office and speaking up for what matters. With my background as a political analyst, entrepreneur and speaker, I interview and coach purpose driven women to shape their brands, grow their companies and become recognized as influencers in their field. This is speaking your brand, your place to learn how to persuasively communicate your message to your audience. Hi there and welcome to the Speaking Your Brand podcast. I’m your host, Carol Cox. We are wrapping up the series we’ve been doing in the month of March for Women’s History Month. I wanted to talk about the image women have of themselves, how we think about how we look and how we can change that. So when I started thinking about this episode, I immediately knew that I had to have on as my guest. Heike Martin Heike is a photographer and she went through our Thought Leader Academy in 2022, so I got to know her better in this episode, we talk about growing up, how it is that we as women are told either implicitly or explicitly about how we should look and then how that shapes how we show up, how we show up in the world and how we show up for ourselves.

Carol Cox:
And Heike, as a photographer has seen this firsthand, whether she’s doing branding headshots for a woman entrepreneur or the book that she did for women athletes. Links to Hika’s website and her LinkedIn are in the show notes, so definitely make sure to connect with her there. Towards the end of the conversation we talk about timing and the importance of timing and how that can show up in your life and how that has showed up in Hika’s life. If you would like to join us in the Thought Leader Academy, you can get all of the details by going to speaking your brand.com/academy. Again, that’s speaking your brand.com/academy. Now let’s get on with the show. Welcome to the Speaking Your Brand podcast Heike.

Heike Martin:
Thank you so much for having me. I’m really excited.

Carol Cox:
I am too. When I was thinking about putting together this series in March for Women’s History Month and I started thinking about the the image that we have of ourselves as women and how much that is shaped by our external environment, the culture, the media that we grow up in. And then I instantly knew that you were the person that I wanted to have on the podcast to have this conversation with. Because you are a photographer and you photograph a lot of women in the work that you do, and you also have a book that you published last year around female athletes called Owning Our Game. And I know your mission is about helping women own their visibility as well. So I really wanted to talk about, you know, what is it as women, the image we have of ourselves, kind of these labels that we put on ourselves or what we how we think we’re supposed to show up or how we think we’re supposed to act or look versus what what is it like? How do we find our authentic selves? How do we feel comfortable being ourselves and showing up for ourselves as much as for other people? So, hey, God, let’s go ahead and let’s just dive right in. When you work with with the women who you photograph, what did you start finding, you know, over the years, what stood out to you and why did you decide that this was going to become your mission?

Heike Martin:
Great question, because, I mean, I’ve worked mainly with business women. I think I need to maybe do a caveat with that. Understand? Like who I’m actually my client is. And you think business women, a lot of them own their own business. A lot of them are incredibly experts in their field. They have high position CEOs, you name it, like with within their own different organizations. And yet when they come to me, I get, oh, I don’t like the way I look. I’m not photogenic. Like, oh, I’ve been pushing off getting headshots done because I just hate the aging process. So it’s like so right away it’s like, okay, fear, fear, fear. Like all these different fears are popping up. And so then it’s like, okay, time to ask questions. Let’s dive a little bit deeper here. What is really going on? And so I’ve been over the years figuring out there’s like usually three different parts for me that that shows up with women. There are fears, obviously, of like, I am a certain persona when I’m in my in my expertise and all of a sudden this is a very vulnerable part, like showing up. Because you have to admit, I have aged. I’m not 20 anymore. I might be 40, 50, 60. Forgetting that in that process you have actually gained even more expertise. You have become a person that people look up to admire and ask for, for for help. And yet when it comes to showing up, you’re pulling back. So we have to sort of work with that fear, age, ageism, obviously very much in then for us women, that’s a huge one, like dyeing your hair, not having wrinkles, needing to wear certain kinds of clothing that make us appear younger. So all of. All of those pieces all of a sudden come to the forefront. And those are big fears.

Carol Cox:
I just wanted to to, you know, to echo and to validate this, the ageism, you know, and the fears of how we look, you know, in our culture. As we all know, youth is very much venerated. And, you know, women as they get older, not only are are kind of expected and told to do whatever they can to continue to look younger, but really older women become invisible. People don’t pay attention to them. People don’t want to listen to older women. And so like a young woman, have their own set of challenges. But then older women have another set as well. And you’re right that, you know, being photographed feels very vulnerable in that sense.

Heike Martin:
So like pulling pulling out and allowing those fears to surface, I think is usually a step one. To me, it’s like like instead of like, hiding behind those shadows of fear allows for an openness to to then step into that. You know what? I’m here to guide you. Like, let let’s talk about what it is about what you’re actually really fearing. Sometimes it’s also about experiences that come someone dissecting your photo. I mean, if you’ve grown up, like with like your aunts and grandma like, oh, look at her calves and look at her smiling. And I mean, it’s like so I mean, I get all these stories when I work with women and so sometimes dissecting, going a little bit into the background, figuring out what is it that is actually holding you back, and then let’s figure out how we can turn this around, put the turn this into a positive experience and looking into like, who are we actually needing to address? Like what do people want to see in you? It’s all about what what’s on the inside. Like, how do we pull out the amazing personality that you have? How do we pull out the inner actions that you actually want to have, like in your eyes how they shine and and sort of bring that in. But then the other piece that I find interesting is, is almost the voice. Like people have been told your mom first or your wife first or your like all these other labels that you bring. So, yes, you’re coming in for maybe a headshot for your business, but you’re still like being bombarded by all these other labels that you’re meant to be and you’re very conflicted about as who you’re actually showing up.

Carol Cox:
Oh, that’s interesting, right? Because, you know, they have multiple identities or we have multiple identities. And when you go to be photographed, there probably is a little bit of tension going on there for the woman. Yeah.

Heike Martin:
So the one thing I’m learning to do with it at the beginning I think was like, Oh, I need to help them check these other labels. And now I’m to the point where, again, like over the years as I’ve worked with women, it’s like, no. Instead of like getting rid of labels, It’s like find the label that who you want to be like, it’s your voice. You need to figure like what your voice really is. But these other labels have shaped you into the amazing person that you are. So let’s not get rid of them, hold them because all of them have added layers of to your personality, how you interact, like the mindset shifts. You’ve had to overcome the capabilities. Like if your mom and your your full time running a business and yet you’re also amazing at raising your kids. I mean, that is a plus that you bring to the table that no one else has. So it’s it’s learning to to live with your labels, but also not just being the mom label or the dog lover label or the coffee drinking label, but actually more like, okay, I’m a CEO here. All these other things have shaped me into the person I am today so that we want to bring all of that into the image.

Carol Cox:
Yeah, just bring like the coffee mug and the dog with you to the photoshoot and use them as your props. Right? Exactly.

Heike Martin:
But not just but it can be a good part.

Carol Cox:
Right. So let’s talk a little bit about that. What, you know, the women when you when you photograph them, you know, they may have be a little bit reluctant at first. You know, maybe a feeling, like you said, feeling vulnerable, feeling a little uncertain. How do they feel when they see the end result, the photos that you’ve taken of them?

Heike Martin:
It is a whole turnaround. But I think that the process actually happens during the photoshoot. It happens during the conversations we have ahead of time because they feel heard. So it’s like being transparent and open and for me to like ask questions, pull things out. It allows for for that transformation to happen even before the photoshoot. And then doing a photoshoot is actually again like where this affirmation just happens. Like I got excited when I get to work with women because they’re just like, I see it happen right in front of my eyes that all of a sudden, like the hesitation for the first five images that I take, we know they’re going to end up in the trash. But then it starts happening and I see it happen and then being able to watch and get the tears afterwards or just the, oh my God, I am I am who I am. And this is this is amazing. And I’m proud to use those images and and start focusing again on who I am and all of this. So it’s a beautiful thing to watch.

Carol Cox:
Well, and I would love for you to share some tips with our listeners for their own photo sessions. But before we get to that, I just want to say that so Heike, you went through a thought Leader Academy last year, and I know that you are friends with two other women who you all three of you live in the same city, the same area. And so all three of you have been through the Thought Leader Academy and I’ve seen the photos that you’ve taken of them, plus other photos you’ve taken of other women on your LinkedIn. And I can see it in the eyes because, you know, when someone smiles and it’s it’s they’re not really smiling because the eyes don’t show it. And like, you know, you pose for a photo and you kind of smile. But I can see the photos you’ve taken of them. I can see it in their eyes how much they believe in themselves in that moment. Yeah. And I think.

Heike Martin:
That’s really all it is. I mean, obviously they already have it in them. It is just giving them permission to show it. And I think that’s that’s sort of where where I thrive with them is, is like pulling that out and giving them permission to be to be visible in that moment.

Carol Cox:
Okay. Okay. So not all of us can come to Pennsylvania to have you be our photographer, although of course, you are welcome to fly to Heike and she can take your photos. But for those of us who are going to be in our local towns and we and we were looking for a photographer to to do this for us, what are some things we should look for, I guess, in in a photographer? And then we’ll talk about some tips for the actual session.

Heike Martin:
Yeah. I mean, when it comes to finding a photographer, it’s incredibly important to always look at someone’s portfolio and then also the process. Do they actually take time to listen to you? Do they ask questions? Do they allow you to ask questions? Because if there’s no communication and you’re just showing up for the for the session and it’s like, boom, here you are. I give you 15 minutes and you need to be happy, It’s really difficult. I mean, we as a good photographer, you can still sometimes get get the emotions going during that time. But I think especially if you’re coming with like deep fears or things that that need to be cleared up ahead of time, conversation is so important. But also looking at the style of a photographer. I mean, that’s again, like I would really browse through someone’s website and make sure that they’re consistent in what they offer, that the quality, first of all, is there. But to me, it’s like, are they getting do they get on a phone call with me? That is number one.

Carol Cox:
Okay. Now, this may seem very simple and basic to you, Heike, but what like, what do you mean by style? When you look at a photographer’s portfolio? Like is there is it like a simple as I look at their photos and yes, these look good to me and so they must be good or are there specific things to look out for?

Heike Martin:
Style is a little bit like is the lighting similar across all of the images? Are the eyes in focus? What do I have? Some blurry, some, like, yellowish tints over them? I mean, you want to make sure that the images across the board look similar. That just shows that they have consistency in providing the same quality to you. So that would be would be one. And then otherwise, I still would like to see some variations because, again, we each we’re all unique. So I don’t want to have a cookie cutter headshot either. So can I see again that personality coming out, maybe slightly different backdrops or how they have posed you again, looking at do I also see women of different shapes, of different skin colors? If I only see like modelesque certain kinds of people that again, our society tells how we need to look all with the perfect skin and no one else on their side, then it’s like, can they do someone in their 50s? Can they do someone who might have £30 more than they would like to have or £200 more than they than we consider acceptable? I want to be able to shoot to have people come in off of every size and shape. Um.

Carol Cox:
Basically also, as you’re looking through a photographer’s portfolios, do you see yourself represented in some of the people they’ve taken photos of? Absolutely. Okay. That’s really helpful. Now, so imagine that we found a photographer. We like their portfolio. They look, you know, high quality, consistent, all of that. So we’re getting ready for our session and then we show up. What are some things that we can do as the person being photographed?

Heike Martin:
So first of all, I hope that your photographer did his job and helped you think through clothing so that, again, like the whole styling that you’re wearing colors and clothing that fits you well, that bring out the colors in your eyes like you’re wearing your blue dress right now. I mean, it’s perfect color for you. I’m wearing a certain kind of pink that, again, is like completely and works with my my skin tones. So again, like giving guidance if a photographer needs to guide you the entire way. So that is that is key. One, if you have all of that at your fingertips, figuring out makeup that it’s camera ready, makeup and not throws, highlights because you have like SPF in there or things that all of a sudden gives you a greenish tint or so it’s it’s this little details that a photographer needs to guide you from A to Z and you need to have all of that at your fingertips before the session. But then coming in to the session, that’s where the magic then happens. Once mean when you’ve done all the prep work, then the magic can actually happen because you’re already relaxed. You know you’ve brought the right kind of clothing along. You have different outfits. You can try different different scenarios with that to give you options, but then the connection needs to happen and that is where your photographer just just needs to pull you in and allow you to to grow and shine and just relax in the process and allow that transformation to happen. And it should be fun. There should be lots of laughter happening.

Carol Cox:
Yes. And also, you know, thinking back to a photo session that I did a few years ago and and the photographer, she’s fantastic. And, you know, I recommend she’s in Orlando. So I recommend, you know, so many women who live here in Orlando to go to her. And it was not rushed like I think it was her only client the entire day. She you know, it did not feel rushed, like, okay, we got to get all these done. Let’s boom, boom, boom. We get them. And, you know, we had we had that, like, relaxing environment and it felt like she was truly there for me to make sure that we got what we needed.

Heike Martin:
Yeah, it’s sad because the last thing you want to have is someone standing at the door and looking at the clock. Right? Yeah. And pushing out the door. No, it’s. It’s again like that time that you need where. Where someone can relax and be in the moment and, and then you can pull things out of them that they did not expect out of themselves. Yes.

Carol Cox:
So for you know, she had helped me with some clothing options beforehand and then also with some props. So like I brought a microphone, you know, because obviously being a speaker and a podcaster, we have like my signature canvas board, all the Post-it notes as one as something for the background. So that’s another thing. I think that a lot of times we don’t think about when we go to a photo session, especially for like personal brand and business photos that we need. Are there props that would be helpful that represent what we do?

Heike Martin:
And that’s again, like all part of the whole intake that you do ahead of time is like thinking through like, I mean, I’ve worked in marketing before I started my own photography business, so bringing that expertise into knowing how to build websites and what goes into marketing is to help. Again, my women think through like, Do you have a workshop coming up? Do you have are you rebuilding, rebranding your website? Like knowing what your call to action graphics need to be? And how do we place you and what what tools do you need to bring along so that can happen. So yeah, it’s all in the prep work.

Carol Cox:
Yeah, it truly is to make it a successful session. Hika Let’s talk about the book that you published last year, which is called Owning Our Game Female Athlete Stories of Strength, Beauty and Athleticism. First, why did you decide to put together this photo book? And then what? What came out of it? What did you learn?

Heike Martin:
Well, the book was. Not my first intention. First and foremost, I wanted to do something creative for myself and then started in 2020. In January, had my first client or a friend willing to do some photography. She’s a boxer. She’s actually the one on the on the cover. And I said, like, I just want to come out. I want to try some new photography and do this with you. And also was curious about some action photos. And, and then as we’re doing this, she starts telling me her story. And that’s sort of what all of a sudden it’s like, oh, I need to hear more like your images, what you’re doing now and your story, how you ended up getting to be a boxer and having now her own studio was incredibly and amazing. And so I had a taper story, we wrote it down and so that was my first like, Oh, this is more than I had envisioned here. This is not just my own little side project. This is this needs to be more. But then unfortunately, the pandemic happened. So I got to do like six clients that that that year, in spite of all the the lockdowns and everything and every story was just like another eye opening story of not just an athlete athlete, but a woman who loves a sport.

Heike Martin:
And that sport has transformed how she views her life and how she interacts with her community. And that is what I found incredibly eye opening, that it wasn’t just like, Oh, I’m the Olympic athlete, or I have these goals for sport. It was all about how do I show up in the rest of my life and how did I get here? And the sport is something that that helped them. So then after the whole lockdown, it’s like I heard more and more saying like, Well, I want to see these stories. And so out of that came the idea of why don’t we put this into a book? Then the women have their story and we can actually share this with more people. And so I ended up photographing a total of 14 different athletes. They’re all more or less local from the area here, and and they’re very much community oriented business women, all of them. So out of that came actually the talk and why I ended up signing up with you because I realized I need to do more with this. People are so incredibly trying to figure like, what is my vision? What is what? How do I show up? And so the talk, like owning my visibility is what came out of that.

Carol Cox:
Oh, okay. Oh, that’s really cool. I know. Heike You did the book launch while you were in the Thought Leader Academy last summer.

Heike Martin:
Yes, it was all like I realized I was launching the book and saying I need to have something in place because I know I’m going to get asked to talk and I will be probably sharing in other groups. And that is exactly what happened out of that. So I needed to get that talk ready.

Carol Cox:
Yes. Okay. So I want to ask you some more specifics about about the signature talk that you worked on when you were in the Thought Leader Academy. Before we get there, though, Heike, let me ask you, have you always felt comfortable being visible yourself?

Heike Martin:
Not really. My husband always laughs, he said, like, it’s so weird. Like all of a sudden, like you have no problem being in front of people like you used to be in the past. I would always push him to the front to talk and do whatever announcements or be the front of our family. And but I’ve found something that I love and that I know that I’m good at and that is helping other people and that I think that just has opened up something in me that now I can’t stop sharing.

Carol Cox:
What got you into photography in the first place? Since you said you have been doing marketing, where have you, have you did you always love photography when you were growing up?

Heike Martin:
I did. My dad is kind of the one who was a photographer in our family and from little on, I would I love when I was able to get a hand on his camera and do some family photography, but did not get serious until I actually worked for a small fair trade company and ended up doing marketing for them for 14 years. And out of that was like, Oh, I hated the marketing images we had to work with. And so my boss was just, Here’s a camera, go take pictures. And I realized I wanted quality images, so I had to learn. So it was like it really pushed me to to grow with that.

Carol Cox:
Oh, that’s such a neat story. You know, you just never know where your next, your next, like, career trajectory is going to come from.

Heike Martin:
Right. I know. So I feel like they sort of planted a seed in me. They were the ones who trusted me with the marketing too, and allowed me to take classes to get my certificates in digital and print design and and all of that. And so out of that, it’s like, I love designing websites, so I still do this on the side for some of my clients. And but, but out of that, realizing imagery is such an important part. And I love the interaction that I’m getting when I get to work with people. It’s just like being able to pull something out of a person and helping them grow and transform in front of my eyes. It’s just that’s just it lights me up.

Carol Cox:
Yes. Okay. So then Heike, let’s talk about your signature talk, what you worked on when you were in the Thought Leader Academy last year. And I know that you worked with our lead speaking coach, Diane Diaz, on your talk. So can you tell us what your talk is about like and kind of your goal of the talk? And then we’ll talk about where where you’ve been presenting it.

Heike Martin:
Yeah. So the talk is called owning our visibility or owning your visibility, leveraging your fear, your voice and your timing. And that is actually where the interesting piece comes in, because I’ve learned over the number of years of working with women, we’re all stuck at a certain place. For some, it’s that initial fear. And I talk about my own my birth canal story, which is sort of my my way of getting everybody hooked into the experience. Okay. No, no, no.

Carol Cox:
I want to hear more now. You can’t just say that and just leave us hanging.

Heike Martin:
So my birth canal story actually is this. It’s I’ve been through the birth canal twice. The second time actually happened, like my first year into business, we went spelunking like cave diving and ended up in a in a small cave. But we only had one exit, two exits. One was like through the roof, like climbing up the walls. And I’m like, I’m not doing that. Like, no skills, not athletic enough to do this. And the second one was called the Birth Canal, which was like, oh, just on the ground working your way through a tunnel. And I was like, okay, that’s not a problem until we were in that tunnel. I mean, it was the tightest I mean, I had like a little backpack on which did not fit through the tunnel. It was like on your belly, like inching your way forward, like, like, bit by bit by bit, which we couldn’t even see the exit. It was pitch black and you had to get your way out of there. So all kinds of thoughts went through my head during that time. And that’s sort of where the whole what I exploded my own fears and kind of came out of my own fears and realizing I was stuck. And that is that that whole experience was just like a rebirth and boom, just triggered stuff in me.

Carol Cox:
That’s a that’s a okay, hold on. That’s amazing. Because as you’re describing that, like I’m feeling the claustrophobia for you and I’m not and I would be I would be so scared in that situation. But that it you know, they say that growth comes from the discomfort. Right or from like the fear and that sounds like that’s what happened to you. It totally.

Heike Martin:
Did. And it’s like I still look at this. I have one picture when I was luckily enough, one of the first ones in our group to get out, I took some photos of others coming through the finally to the exit. And it is I mean, it feels like it’s like all you can see is a face coming out and that’s it. I mean, it’s that tight even at the end. And so that experience, yeah, was definitely an eye opener, a really a release. Like really a release, really What birth does. It’s like a rebirth. So pretty incredible. But that that made me realize how many others have similar fears or just mean their own kinds of fears and how do we leverage that? So then the other piece of fear is the first thing I tackle with again in that talk. But then the other one is voice like finding your own voice. And again, through the the Athlete book that I did, one of my my athletes, she’s a marathon runner and she talked about running like everything said, like I’m a business owner, I’m a mom, I’m a wife, I’m all of those things. But she said, but my first thing is I’m a runner. That is everything. So her voice is finally being able to label herself and saying that out loud. Above everything else. I’m a runner and that is what I want people to find in themselves, that they can shed some of those labels. Like, I’m a wife, I’m a mom, I’m a dog lover. I’m a like again, not getting rid of them, but finding out exactly what your voice is. Okay. And so when I do so.

Carol Cox:
I’m sorry to interrupt, but this is just like I had this kind of little like light bulb moment here that it sounds like like her, her claiming for herself. This identity of a runner is something that is of her by herself, not an identity that’s in relationship to someone else as a wife, as a mother, as a dog owner, a dog lover. And I feel like as women, like we for the most part, you know, we are tend to be more relational because that’s, you know, that’s our survival, you know, strategy. That’s, you know, where we’ve come from as, as, you know, in our DNA. And so I feel like so many of our identities by default are about our relationship with someone else versus about ourselves.

Heike Martin:
Yeah, exactly. And again, like, I feel like you need to hold all of the other labels that you call yourself. They’re all part of you. And that’s a strength that we bring as women. But there’s still something and taking ownership of who you are so you don’t get lost in all of those labels. You have to find your way through that and claim the label that is true to you. And that is different for every person because we go through these stages of life like you’re a mom at some point, but all of a sudden the kids leave the house. So empty nest, boom, it’s like your identity is shifting. So but if you have that voice, you know what your voice is, then that transition is much easier. And so, like being able to find that voice and claim it, it’s like me. It’s always like naming things, like naming your fear, your. Want to name that voice. It just opens up something in you that that allows you to be true to yourself.

Carol Cox:
I like that. And then he could tell us about timing.

Heike Martin:
Timing is a whole other one. And that’s where everybody’s like, What do you mean timing? So I have one other story in there that I share and mean, and that’s, again, like everyone needs to find their own timing. But I’ve worked with, again, like women again, we’re being so pushed into showing up sometimes too, too early when we’re not ready or we say like, Oh, you need to wait until this is in place or you need to wait until you have this credential or you need to have so many followers before you can actually claim this and this and this. And it’s like, I want to again, like take ownership of like when I want to show up, how I want to show up, where I want to show up. And for like one of the stories I tell in there is a client of mine who came out as a lesbian when she was in her early 50 seconds, and it took her probably at least five years and did a branding shoot for her. And she said, like, I want to have a picture done of myself wrapped in the in the in the LGBTQ flag. He said that something she said like I never thought I would ever do. And so we did. This was like again, like an eye opening. Transformative moment for her. And since then, she has used this image in so many places for her marketing. It has opened up doors for her. But it was her timing. Nobody pushed her at the beginning to do this. She needed to be ready before she could claim that that piece of her. And again share with the world. I think timing for me is like, when are you sharing something beyond yourself, beyond maybe your inner circle? So claiming and choosing your time when it’s right for you is a big piece of being visible.

Carol Cox:
Yeah, I love love that story that is so beautiful. And this idea of timing really resonates with me. And I think about, you know, so much over the past ten plus years of our lives, so much being lived online, especially on social media, where it’s the expectation has been that we will give of ourselves to our online audiences, our social media followers, whether we have 100 followers or 10,000 or 100,000 or 1 million, whatever it happens to be. And yes, there’s definitely a lot of benefit of that visibility, that exposure building, that personal brand, having people know who you are and what you do. Yet it’s not costless. There is a cost to it in the sense that we are putting so much of ourselves out there as like a like a public performance, so to speak, for both the both the praise and potential criticism that comes with that. And I you know, I’m starting to think more and more about this, that it really should be up to us, you know, timing like up to us to decide when and how much of us we want to give to like, strangers. I mean, for the most part. Right. People who we don’t really know. Well, yeah.

Heike Martin:
Yeah, totally. Exactly. And I think we need to, again, like, take back a little bit of that. I mean, it’s a responsibility on ourselves and again, take taking ownership of where we want to show up and how we want to show up. So like to me, the fear, the voice and the timing they all need to come into in sync again so that that you get like true to, to who you want to be out there. Yeah.

Carol Cox:
Well, like I’m so appreciative of the important work that you do with the women that you work with, plus the work that you’re putting out into the world with your book and with your signature talk. What is next for you?

Heike Martin:
Well, next up actually is I will be speaking for a stem up program, networking group in March. And they were again, when they heard the leader actually heard me, heard me speak the first time last August. She said, like our women need this. It’s again, like women in STEM, incredibly intelligent, amazing women, but they are so afraid of their own visibility in a men’s world. And so I’ll be doing a networking sort of breakout session with them a little bit workshop to to get get someone to talk about some of those issues. Otherwise I’m constantly on the move with photography and claiming claiming that as I’m working, I’m also working on a on a workshop with several other women in our area on again, some of those topics. We’re all bringing our own different expertise to the table and hopefully we’ll have that in place by the end of October this year.

Carol Cox:
Oh, that sounds exciting. And go. Can you share with our listeners what your experience was like in the Thought Leader Academy? What did what did you enjoy the most?

Heike Martin:
And oh my God, first of all, having very, very detailed sessions with all of you, with with both of you leading you and Diane. But then obviously the VIP session of of doing putting the entire keynote together. I think having a person who walks you through the process is able to heal what you have to say, turn it around and say help you figure out like what these different pieces are, how to put them together. And within like a short time walking out of there and saying, Oh my God, you have you actually have a talk together and it makes sense and it’s comprehensive. And having like the feedback form that you guys suggested, like I use that in all of my presentations last year and that is why I’m now ready to do the workshop, because I have heard where my where women were stuck. I heard like somewhere in the Times and some in the field, some of the voice like being able now to put this now into the workshop could not have happened without that feedback form. So that to me was tremendous. Just getting all those pieces lined up and.

Carol Cox:
Oh, that’s great to hear. Yes. All right. Yeah, The feedback form is really powerful, especially for in-person events that you’re speaking at. And for those of you listening, if you haven’t yet heard me talk about the feedback form, I’ll pop a link in the show notes to a prior episode where we talked about that and so that you can you can learn more there. Hi Scott again, thank you so much for the work that you do and for coming on the podcast. I’ll make sure to include links in the show notes to your LinkedIn profile and to your website so listeners can find you there. Thank you so much. Thank you again for coming on the podcast. You are.

Heike Martin:
So welcome. Thank you.

Carol Cox:
Having these conversations on the podcast with women like Haika and from last week and Bibi Perez from the week before just reminds me of how many incredible women there are out there making a difference and how fortunate and grateful I feel that I have crossed paths with them, either as podcast listeners or for those who have been in the Thought Leader Academy. If you would like to join us in the Thought Leader Academy to work on your thought leadership and your signature talk and to be around amazing women, you can get all of the details of speaking your brand.com/academy again, that’s. Speaking your brand.com/academy next week for the month of April, we are kicking off a series on marketing. We’re going to be talking about how much marketing is changing and how as an entrepreneur, as a speaker, as a thought leader, as a content creator, what you can think about doing next. So you won’t want to miss that. Be sure to click, subscribe or follow in your podcast app Until next time. Thanks for listening.

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