From the producer behind the camera, the face in front of the camera, to the coach of another generation of on-camera talent, Katy Temple is an expert in presentation and delivery. Now she delivers her secrets of how to thrive no matter what comes your way.
Podcast Transcript
Reischea Canidate-Kapasouris:
Hello and welcome to the show. Alongside Julie Holton, I’m Reischea Canidate-Kapasouris. Audrea Fink is on a break. Our third today is our guest, Katy Temple. As the CEO and founder of Katy Temple Media Coaching, she focuses on executives, entrepreneurs and professional athletes maneuvering the on-camera delivery waters.
Julie Holton:
We are in great company today, you guys. Katy has an extensive background in broadcasting, an Emmy award winner with more than 25 years in sports journalism. While honing her own talent, she realized there are a lot of people out there on camera who struggle to present themselves in the best way possible. Yes, even people on camera right now struggling with how to present themselves. We’ve all seen them a time or two. So Katy decided to do something about it. She’s now leveraging her expertise to help others be their best on-camera selves.
Reischea Canidate-Kapasouris:
Also, a San Diego Press Club award winner, Katy happens to be a very good friend of mine, as we worked alongside each other for a bit with competing stations. Watching her develop her brand by helping others do the same is awesome. And it is an absolute pleasure to welcome you to this show. Hey, Katy
Katy Temple:
Hi, Reisch. So nice to reconnect with you and to see your beautiful soul on camera.
Reischea Canidate-Kapasouris:
So good to see you, too. I know you all can’t see us, but that’s okay.
Katy Temple:
Hi, Julie.
Julie Holton:
Hi, Katy. I love that you guys were frenemies before you were friends, working at competing stations.
Reischea Canidate-Kapasouris:
That’s the thing in the broadcast business. As you well know, Julie, you were in the broadcast business as well, you become friends with those people that you were “competing” against. And at the end of the night when the show is over, you’re all at the same bar.
Julie Holton:
Right. It’s all those late nights and holidays.
Reischea Canidate-Kapasouris:
Exactly, exactly. Let’s start from the top, Katy, where you are carving out your own niche in sports broadcasting to begin with. You’re working with head coaches at the collegiate and professional level. You’re doing shows with them, with athletes. How did you gain the respect from a side of the world that tended to be a little bit, does she even belong here?
Katy Temple:
It’s a great question, Reisch, especially since when you and I were doing it was a while ago. I mean, my first on-camera full-time opportunity was in 1996. And people will say, “What’s it like being a woman in sports?” And my response is, “I don’t know what it’s like to be any other thing in sports. This is just me. This is my passion, I’m focused and I’m going for it.” And what happened is that you just work. You work, you work, you work and then you work some more and you keep working. And you’re focused. And then all of a sudden you get these roadblocks, where you get the naysayers say, “You know what? I don’t think this is a good fit for you. I think you should find another career.” Or, “How did you even get hired here?” Or, “What you got going on after the game?”
All these things that come at you, and because you’re focused, you don’t see them coming. And then they do. You take a couple steps back, check yourself and then you move forward. We just got used to it at that time, to be honest. And you stick with the people that are in your corner and your mentors and you just keep your head down. And when the players and the coaches are respecting you and part of these relationships [that] you’re building, then the people around you are going to have no other choice but to have to see that. And quite honestly, when people ask me about that time, I’ll tell them, “Listen, the athletes weren’t the biggest challenge. It was the people that I was working with that were the ones that were very skeptical and critical.”
JH:
What made you want to keep doing it, Katy? I ask this because this is so common, whether it’s in sports or even just in broadcasting in general, where you have things coming at you from all angles. And so many people who haven’t lived in that world would look at me and say, “Why in the world would you want to keep doing this?” So I ask that of you. What made you keep doing it?
KT:
Well, I would say the same thing to you, Julie and you Reisch, because you guys were both in it. I loved it. It was my passion. There was no way that I was not going to do it. It’s easy to say now. Obviously, hindsight, as they say is 2020 or a Monday armchair quarterback. But I was so focused that the sacrifices were okay with me. And maybe in an unhealthy sense, I just kind of took it. I mean, I just took it. And I was so excited about the small wins and I loved so much telling stories and I felt it’s where I belonged that the other stuff was noise. And I’m not saying that they weren’t big setbacks. I mean, I had to start going to therapy, not because of a romantic relationship, or the way I was raised, but through some people at work that were emotionally abusive and I didn’t know how to handle that as an example.
However, as they say, you can read any self-development book around there, but passion is passion. And I never even thought about not doing it, because the sacrifices were okay. And when you know something and you’re listening to yourself inside and you just keep moving forward, it’s just one step in front of the other.
RCK:
Can we just take a step back for just a moment? Julie heard the keyword that I heard, therapy. And let’s put it out there. What do I say all the time? Everybody needs therapy. I hear that and it was a light bulb moment of, “Oh, my gosh!” How are you working in an environment that makes you feel like I need to go seek some professional help, because of something that’s happening in my workplace? In my workplace! That doesn’t make any sense. How did you wrap your head around the fact that I need help with this? This is my job. Like you said, this is not a relationship. This is my job. This is my workplace. This is where I do my living. I make my living. This is what I do. I need to go talk to someone about this.
KT:
Well, when you look at these young women on TV now, and well, they’re young for me, and these broadcasters, what I love the most is that they’re using their voice. And they don’t put up with it anymore. And I love to see that. And they’ve got support of their colleagues. As progress progresses, for lack of a better phrase, that’s the stuff that gets erased, even though we still have a long way to go. And I don’t have any hard feelings about it. That’s kind of the beauty of it, is that at that time I didn’t know how to use my voice. And I had friends, like Reisch, and a couple other friends who were our age and we were at competing stations and we would talk to each other. We all were going through this stuff. And we would say to each other, “Can you make it through one more day? Can you do it one more day?”
And the fear of going and complaining about being a woman in sports and the way you were being treated, at that time, there was so much fear that you would just lose your job, because nobody likes the squeaky wheel. And so I’m not saying that that’s right. I’m saying that that’s how it was for me. My fear was that I can’t do that and cause tension to myself and act like I can’t handle this stuff, because I was so young. And I didn’t understand that I had a voice and that I was being mistreated, because I didn’t understand that somebody could talk to me that way. And so I went to get professional help, because I thought maybe they could help me do that. Because going to the boss, for me, not saying it’s right, but for me, felt weak. And I was fearful that nobody wants that woman that’s going to cause problems.
And then say I get let go from that station, this is how bad it got, then nobody else is going to want to hire me because I’m complaining about this. Versus seeing these amazing women these days put their foot down. I love watching it. I didn’t have that strength or courage or knowledge at that time.
JH:
It just wasn’t part of the culture then, like it is now. My mom and I have even had this conversation where she has said to me, “How is it that Millennials or Generation Z, that they’re so outspoken about wanting even benefits, time off from work, more PTO, things like that?” And she and I had this whole conversation, because it’s not that her generation didn’t want those things. They just weren’t empowered to be as vocal about it. And what I love about these generations that we’re seeing come up through broadcasting, as you’re describing, is we’re actually seeing that transform in real time as they develop their voice. Because I’m just over here nodding my head at everything you’re saying, Katy. I experienced it, too. And you’re taught that, “Oh, go to HR if there’s an issue,” or, “Go talk to your boss.”
But those things aren’t actually accessible, because as soon as you try to access them, suddenly the person using their voice is pushed out of the inner circle. But I think back, the best thing that ever happened to me once was a toxic boss sent me as punishment to a coach, to a career coach, who was going to supposedly teach me how to be a better newsroom manager. And so at the time, it was this punishment. But in actuality, it was the best thing that ever happened to me, because I was only 24 at the time. I needed a coach. I needed to be learning these leadership lessons, that obviously, weren’t actually coming from my boss. And that coach also taught me about therapy. That was my first introduction.
We didn’t learn about therapy back in the day from our parents watching them go to therapy or things like that. It just wasn’t as common as it is now. And so I’m actually really thankful that I was in that toxic situation to even realize that, “Hey, therapy’s going to help me manage difficult people throughout the rest of my life, whether it’s in broadcasting or any other situation because this kind of stuff goes on, I think, across any industry.”
RCK:
It’s interesting, because just the ability to verbalize, to discuss whatever it is bogging you down, is bothering you, is hurting you, be it in a professional therapist session or amongst a good group of friends or someone who can just relate to you, I cannot emphasize the importance of that. I remember, dating myself here, back in college, I remember, and this is a little off, but it relates to the therapy angle, is I blew out my ankle. I didn’t break it. I had a third-degree sprain of my ankle my sophomore year in college. And all of a sudden my track career’s done for the season. I’m not interacting with my teammates the way I was before. And then college, the university itself, life itself, is… I’m struggling with classes, which was a new thing to me because I was always the great student.
And now I found myself just holding on for dear life. And saying, “Dear God, please help me pass this exam that I’ve been studying my butt off for forever.” And I reached a point where I remember going… I used to go and visit the women’s basketball office. Cheryl Miller was the head coach at the time.
KT:
Who? I love it. I mean, can you imagine? She’s the head coach? It’s the best!
RCK:
Right? But it kind of is what it is. And I would go into their offices because their administrative assistant, Barbara Williams, a phenomenal woman, she was the sister of… Oh, my gosh, I’m blanking on his name right now. He was the Mets manager and he was the Chicago White Sox manager. But anyway, she was someone that I would talk to regularly. And she wasn’t there one day. And Cheryl was in her office and I would always pop in and say hi. And I remember one day, it was just an incredibly rough day and I saw her. And she said, “How are you doing?” And I said, “I’m okay.” And she could tell something was off with me on my crutches. And she said, “Come in.” She says, “Sit down.” She closes the door. And she’s like, “What’s up?” And I just fell apart, just blubbering, whatever. And I see her and I’m like, “What am I doing?” But I couldn’t stop myself. I didn’t know what else to do. I had reached this point of I need to talk to someone.
And she ended up being that someone. And she could have very easily said, “Listen, I’m not… You need to go…” She sat and listened to me and talked to me. And she’s like, “First of all, you need to take a deep breath. And let’s look at the overall picture of what’s going on.” And it was just a very simple… And then when I was done, she gave me a box of tissue. She’s like, “You okay? You want to stay longer? You can.” And I’m like, “No, I’m fine.” And she’s like, “All right.” She goes, “You know you’re welcome. The door’s open. You can come in here any time.” And I’m like “Thank you.” And we always used to laugh about that when we’d randomly run into… So this girl walks into my office, just starts bawling her eyes out. But it was something that was necessary, needed, because some whatever was going on had weighed itself so heavily on me that it had reached a breaking point.
I was ready to quit school. Had called my mom talking about I think it’s time to go. And had talked to my mom into letting me drop classes, but to which she called me the very next day and said, “You haven’t done anything yet, have you?” I said, “No.” She goes, “Good, because that was a devil speaking, not me.” But it just speaks to the fact that when things are going wrong, when something is wronging us, when someone is treating us badly, when we might be treating ourselves badly because we just don’t realize it, and we don’t address it, can lead to so many other negative things.
So the fact that, Katy, you went to seek out the help to figure out, what do I need to do here, the fact, Julie, that you’ve got this coach and even though it was supposed to be punishment, well, that’s a foolish thing on you, because it wasn’t punishment, it was a helpful thing, these are the things that people, I think, in the past would look at as weakness, recognize now, that’s not weakness. That’s strength. That’s recognizing that I need to take care of something and I need to access someone who can help me with that. And all that’s going to do is make me better. Like you said, it’s an amazing show of strength. And now, what do we have on air all the time? All these different ads for telehealth, and health this, and Michael Phelps is talking about the therapy that he had, and Simone Biles. And it now, having a mental health coach or someone to talk to is like the “it” thing. Who are you, if you’re not getting help?
KT:
Right. I mean, I have a client who is a psychologist that works with athletes. And when you’re working at such a high level, people only see the glamor. And it’s incredible to hear some of the stuff that she hears and that she’s managing, especially with athletes. I just say that when you talk about Phelps and Simone Biles. And so it’s just interesting to know that when you’re trying to be the best that you can at something, it’s rocky. It’s rocky, because the success, as my mentor, Jim Brogan, tells me, “The success is in the struggle.” And that’s why it’s important to really do something that you love and then focus on doing your best. It’s “The Four Agreements”. Always do your best. And then the other stuff works itself out, but it’s not going to be an easy climb. There’s going to be a lot of roadblocks along the way.
JH:
Speaking of roadblocks and the climb, I love “The Four Agreements”, by the way, Katy, you decided to start your own consulting firm. So out of this world of sports and broadcasting, you then decided to start coaching what you had been doing, essentially. Why did you start your own company?
KT:
It’s a great question, because I had always been so used to being the W-2. Sports broadcasting is such a small, small world. And our world that we live in is so big. And I loved it so much. And with all of the struggles, I have no regrets. And I loved all of it. And I had taken a break to work in technology for about six years, because I kind of wanted to get out of TV so that I wouldn’t get aged out and pushed out. And so I thought I would take it into my own hands. And I was trying technology, thinking that that was a gift to me that came in a different package that I didn’t expect. A friend of mine from college hired me to work in technology for six years. And I was humiliated for a while, because I was in such a new industry. But I also really enjoyed that opportunity to learn about the world, to be honest with you.
Qualcomm was my main client. And I was seeing this world of dot-com and all these things that had been going on that I really hadn’t seen because I’d been focused on sports TV. And so I had this great experience for six years learning about business, and spreadsheets, and technology, and storage, and IPs and the way that one of San Diego’s biggest and most popular company operates. And I learned so much about business. And I really, really appreciated that. That came to an end. Our office closed in San Diego. And there I was thinking, “Okay, what is next here?” I was still doing TV on the side. But as Reisch knows, as you get older and you think about, okay, what TV job works for the way that you want to live your life now…
I traveled with the Braves for three seasons. I loved every minute of that. And it was a grind. Three baseball seasons, the charter with the team, hotels with the team, you know get from one city to the other at 4:00 AM in the morning, you got to be at the ballpark the next day. Again, no complaints. But you get older and you just think, “Is that how I want to spend my time anymore?” So I was thinking, “What am I going to do here?” I love when people say, “Do something that will make you money. And then do things on the side that you’re passionate about.” I love that way of thinking, but it’s not who I am. I have to do something I love. And I had worked for a woman in my 20s that was a media coach, named Andrea Kirby. And she was really ahead of her time, because she was our parents’ age. And she had a business and I was working with her even before I was on TV. And so I always thought maybe that’s what I would do.
And then I thought, “You know what? I’m going to do it.” I was thinking about it. And I thought, “Maybe now’s the time to do it.” My first thought was, “Let’s just coach athletes,” because it’s what I knew, obviously. And I reached out to a manager. I still have some good relationships. And thought maybe I should try to find a bunch of sports agents and see if their clients needed media training, because I didn’t know what I was doing. I just was trying to get there, to be honest with you. And so I reached out to a manager and asked him his feedback. And he put me in touch with a couple of agents. And I talked to a couple of the agents. And I noticed that it wasn’t super profitable, but one I landed with, in San Diego and he said, and I don’t think Tony Gwynn Jr. Would mind telling this story, but he said, “Listen Tony Gwynn Jr.’s looking for a broadcasting coach.”
KT:
And Reisch and I both covered his dad. We covered his dad as a player. We covered his dad as a coach at San Diego State. So I knew his dad. And I said, “Okay, perfect.” So I talked to Tony. We figured it out. I coached him. He was my very first client. And he was going from playing. He also played, like his dad. And then he is now the Padres broadcaster. And so I worked with him for the first three months and loved every minute of it. And that was it. That was when I thought, “Okay, this is it. This is what I’m going to do.” And it started from there. And what happens is you still get to pass your passion along. You still get to do what you love. And as you all know, being on TV is humiliating, because you make mistakes live. And you get judged and people see you and you don’t feel great about yourself when you make those mistakes.
You also get so many wins, because you see yourself getting better every day. You also get so many wins, because you get to tell stories about people five days a week and have a blast doing it. I’ve always, since I was a little kid, I’ve always seen life through sports. Always. My mom said that I got a doll one time for Christmas and I threw it right over the fence. She said, “That’s all you wanted to do, was play sports.” So for me, that made sense. And then I started networking like crazy to kind of see what was going on out there. And I noticed that these executives were really interesting and wanted to be great. And I thought, when I talked to a couple athletes of mine, and friends of mine, and I just thought, “You know what? Maybe it’s not focusing on sports.” I like coaching athletes. But the guys that I have are all transitioning into other things, whether it’s broadcasting, spokesperson roles.
I’ve got athletic clients that played in the NFL that now have businesses and they need to create marketing videos that I work with. So I’m not working with current athletes. And so the athletes that I’m working with I still love, because it takes me back to my alpha male sports vibe, which I love and it’s my safe space. Also, here’s the greatest thing about athletes is that they’re so used to being coached. If I’m a pitcher, but I need help with my hitting, I hire a coach. They always have coaches. And they’re smart enough to know that they’re good here, but they need coaches. They’ve had coaches their whole life. That’s why I love working with the ones that I work with. Current athletes aren’t there yet. And these executives, all of a sudden, want to be great on camera. And they’ve been excelling in business, and technology, and math, and everything for their whole careers, but haven’t taken the time to work on this presentation skill.
KT:
So it’s not their fault. And I’ve noticed that even the most talented people haven’t taken time to work on that communication skill. And I just started learning that through networking. And I thought, “Oh, I’m definitely broadening. This is fascinating and interesting.” And so it just kind of happened where it started and I loved it and I felt like I had something to offer. And I loved seeing them get better right in front of my eyes. That’s really the best way that I can explain it. And that was five and a half years ago. February, it’ll be six years.
And what happened is once COVID hit, because nobody expected it and quite honestly, it’s not fun for people that have to communicate on camera. They didn’t sign up for that. Nobody told them they were going to have to do that. And so that’s kind of broadened my client base, where people again, who don’t need to talk to the media necessarily, but they’re having to present and knock it out of the park on Zoom and they’re now having to create marketing videos. And they never thought that was going to happen. And that’s been just a treat to really work with them to make, them more than anything, feel empowered and confident from the inside out.
RCK:
I love how you took the step. We hear this a lot. Just take that step. Just take that first step, it’ll be there. Trust in it. I love that you did that. You said, “Okay, I’m going to attempt this. I’m going to try to work with the skills that I have and know. I’m going to find someone who I can figure could use the benefit of my knowledge. And I’m just going to do it.” And then you took the next step from there. And built it from there. And then researched. You had nothing really tangible other than your personal talent and ability and said, “I’m going to leverage this. And I’m going to make it work, some way, shape or form.” And look at you now, I think that’s absolutely amazing.
KT:
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, because we do have transferable skillsets. And I think also, but being in business and technology, with bedrock technology partners, really helped me get perspective. And as opposed to going straight from sports to coaching, I had a sports broadcasting career, took some time off, was in technology and got a broader view of the business world.
RCK:
What are some of the common issues? So you talk about executives. And people don’t think about this with executives. What are the common issues that you see that people are struggling with when they’re trying to develop their on-camera persona?
KT:
The high level executives are a little more challenged with engagement on Zoom. Here’s what I have found since the pandemic. Confident executives who can read a room, own a room, make everybody feel like they’re the most important person, sell a product or a service and in a very authentic way have been shut down, in a sense, because now they’re having to do this in this box. Now, I know things are changing. But they’re going to be hybrid forever. And what happens to confident extemporaneous speakers, again, not all of them but a lot of them, is that they talk too much. And they’re having a challenge getting really concise and engaging people. Or at the very least, feeling confident like they’re engaging people. And so what I have found is that I work with a lot of executives on how to be more concise. And that comes from just the way that the world is now.
That comes from people having Zoom fatigue. That comes from people having a smaller attention span. That comes from people, especially early on in the pandemic, having so many things to worry about that we don’t have the attention span to listen and be comfortable with an extemporaneous communicator, because now we’re on Zoom. And we really want to get in and get out. And so I work with a lot of executives on being more concise. The other one that I’ve seen a lot of is because, again, the way the world is, everybody’s an executive. The dot-com thing has made technology experts CEOs in a blink of an eye. And kind of what I talked about before, it’s not their fault, guys. It’s not their fault. They want to do science. And now, because startup is the name of the game, they’re being asked to speak.
But guess what? Again, they’ve been in this corner perfecting data. They’ve been in this corner perfecting numbers, algorithms, all of it. And we need them. But they haven’t had time, and nobody told them, because why would they, to-
RCK:
It’s not their skillset. It’s not their skillset.
KT:
Right! It’s not their skillset. And so how do we transition executives who have this specialty in getting in the weeds, because you got to get in the weeds with technology, but not, depending on your audience, you can’t. Because our brain can only remember half of what we’re hearing at the same time, number one. Number two, we remember information 30% more at least when told through story. I’m working with these technology executives in making their data a story. And it takes them a while, but then they get it. And so those are the two at the highest level. And then a lot of people, a lot of filler words, a lot of speaking too fast. There’s these kind of ticks that people have that don’t bother people as much in person as they do on camera, because as people say, you shoot something on camera and it doesn’t go away.
And so what I make them do is watch themselves. And it’s the most painful thing to do. But if they do it, they get it. And so I would say those are the kind of top tier of the highest level executives. And Reisch knows this and Julie, you do, too, the camera changes people emotionally and tactically. And emotionally, we know this, which is, “I hate it. I want to throw up. I never want to see myself on camera again.” And that’s 95% of the people. We get this. Okay? But it also changes you tactically, which is how you come across. Sometimes I’ll have clients say, “I didn’t even know I looked like that.”
And I’ll say to them, “I get it. And unfortunately, this is where we are. So you, as a business professional, need to make the camera love you. I know you’re confident in who you are, but the camera’s picking you up in such a different way that let’s work with that so that the camera loves you. And you can find that way to maintain your authenticity, but have the camera pick up all of your beauty.”
JH:
Women, how many of you are writing these things down? I’m telling you, Katy, I really think everything you’re saying is resonating. And it’s not just the tech founders. We always joke, my boyfriend’s a coder so he is always like, “Oh, I want to be behind the computer screen, not on screen.” But how many people, whether they’re executive level or all the way at the bottom, it doesn’t matter, everyone in between, you never expected to be on camera. How many people just want to slip in, maybe go to their morning meetings, start their work day, then go into their cubicle and get their work done? And now, all of a sudden, those meetings are on camera. You feel like you are front and center. And it’s just a skillset that no one had to learn, unless you were in broadcasting, or in some related field. Maybe you liked public speaking when you were in school.
So this is such a skillset. We joked early on in the pandemic that suddenly everyone’s putting Zoom on their resume, because we all know how to zoom now. But how many people are actually having to learn in this hybrid environment how to be on camera and be confident in that? I wonder, anecdotally, how many people, how many women especially? Because we know that we care about how we’re presenting ourselves. And if we don’t feel confident in the face that’s looking back at us on camera, because it’s not the same as when we look in the mirror. Or like you said, clients that you have that thought they looked different than they actually look. So I think this is something that a lot of people are facing and really struggling with.
KT:
And again, I work equally with men and women. I love women. I love being part of progress, and feminism, and empowering them. I also love being part of building confidence in men. It’s just who I am. I like the 50-50. But just like you said, the women are more self-loathing when it comes to seeing themself on camera. We’re just a little extra harder on ourselves. And I agree with you in that it’s just a different skillset, which means that you just need to set some time aside and work on it. And I promise, you will feel better about yourself. And that’s all any of us want in this short time on earth, is to find the peace and confidence from inside. And that’s what you can find that way, especially when you’re communicating. And it’s business. It’s people want to do business with people they trust and care about. And that is an impression that comes across on camera.
JH:
What brings the biggest smile to your face when you’re coaching?
KT:
I love it when they get it. I love it when they get it. And it’s like sports in that, take another, hit it again, hit it again, hit it again. You have to do small steps, habit based. So you’ve got to do a little every day. I had this client the other day. And what she did was when we were talking on our Zoom, she’s in Boston, we were working strictly on filler words. And she would stop herself. And it was uncomfortable. Not for me, not for her, but it’s uncomfortable. And that’s all we were working on. And then the next time I saw her, she had half the filler words. And I was so proud of her and so excited, because she did it. She worked on it. It was uncomfortable. This stuff’s uncomfortable. I tell people, pause when you hear a filler word coming up. Be really uncomfortable with that pause and then move forward.
I was just so proud of her. I get so proud of my clients when we work together and then they’ll send me a presentation on Zoom. And when I see their growth, that makes me smile, because they did it. And guess what? They feel better about themselves. And they know that they can do it. They’ve just added that to their repertoire.
RCK:
Well, it’s also because they are dealing with something that happens subconsciously. Generally speaking, when you’re using filler words, when you’re on the air, you don’t hear yourself do it. You don’t hear yourself do it in regular conversation. So the fact that you take that moment in time to stop and hear what’s coming out of your mouth, here comes that all right, here comes that okay then, it is a mental process that you have to do and the take the time to do it, which then becomes locked into your brain, which then now you are aware moving forward. Don’t say this. Don’t say that. Until it becomes second nature, until you are naturally not doing it. That’s really amazing to sense that in and of yourself.
I go through that. I still go through that sometimes with the filler words and trying to figure out how not to say certain things. And it’s hard, because you don’t know you’re doing it until you focus in on it. And then, all you do is, you’re like, “Oh, my gosh, how many times did I say that?”
KT:
And you know this because we got better on the air, as we practiced certain things and you get feedback, whether it’s filler words, or the way your eyes are, or your voice projection because the camera sucks energy out of you. If you’re quiet and soft spoken, you’re going to even be more muted and soft spoken. Certain things that the camera does that these people don’t know. And I say, “You have to adjust to the camera and then become authentic.” But Reisch, we had the luxury, and I know it’s funny to say luxury in sports broadcasting, but we had the luxury to find something that we needed to work on and work on it every day. And then look at the air check that night to see how we were doing. And that was a luxury, because we were getting paid, not a lot, but we were getting paid to be great on the air and be conversational and authentic.
What I love about my clients is that they have families. And they have a full-time job. And they’re dedicating themselves to getting better with this new skillset. And I commend them for that, because that’s not easy. Because who wants to look at themselves on the air and see how many likes they said? Or who wants to look at themselves on the air and not be great? That’s not fun. But it is the only way that you’re going to get better. I spoke at a conference on Friday. And I watched myself last night, because that’s what I tell my clients to do. It’s not fun. It’s not super fun.
I mean, I had to have a little glass of bourbon and see what I found. And I saw some mistakes. I’m speaking again soon and I will correct that. But it’s constant. It’s constant until it’s just like you said, Reisch, until it’s just, you don’t even think about it anymore. But you have to get there to not think about it anymore. And then what’s next? How can I be better over here?
JH:
Well, and like you said too, you can never stop practicing. Just because you master it once, maybe you, not that you ever really master it. Let’s be real. But just because you have that great presentation, that great Zoom executive session doesn’t mean that you’re going to nail it every time. Athletes don’t stop practicing. They have to keep practicing and keep honing their skills.
KT:
Human. We’re human.
RCK:
I’m hearing your energy, Katy. I’m hearing your energy with coaching and it’s awesome. And so I know that your clients are feeling that from you, too, which feeds into that I want to succeed, I want to do well, because I want her to be happy with how it turns out. I want to know what do you enjoy more? Because you’ve been on both sides of this now. Do you enjoy on camera more? Or do you enjoy the coaching more? Because the energy that I’m hearing from you with the coaching side is pretty phenomenal.
KT:
I feel like this is what parenting must be like, where you’re kind of prepping these beautiful people in the way that you can for the world. It’s a good question. And I don’t even know that I have the answer, actuall, because I loved anchoring sports. I loved it. And I especially loved it when I was co-anchoring with C.S. Keys, for example, or Tom Helmer, or who you know. Or when I was in Atlanta I would do pre and post-game with Brian Jordan or Ron Gant. And I love the collaboration of that. And I love highlights. And I love that and the energy of live TV. And I would say that I love both.
RCK:
That is a fair answer. You don’t have to pick. You don’t have to pick. Enjoy them both and run with it. I just have to say this for the record. The negative ninnies as I call them and the ugliness that they decided to spew your way. One, I don’t understand where it was coming from. It made no sense. You’re beautiful. You’re smart. You know what you’re doing. You’d always known what you’re doing. So outside of they were just threatened by the fact that you have the gall to stand up and say, “I want to do this. I can do this. I don’t know what the problem is,” I don’t know where it came from. And I just love how you just put it off. You did what you had to do to get through it and succeeded in spite of it. And it’s a beautiful sight to see.
KT:
Thanks, Reisch. I mean, you guys had the same challenges. It’s funny, I don’t have any hard feelings. I just think that we all do our best. I think that we all do our best. And those are reflections of whatever anybody else is going through. And I’m not saying it wasn’t hard at the time, but I’m good. I don’t have any hard feelings. It makes me who I am today.
JH:
And I think that’s the beauty in pursuing your passion as a job, as a career. When you’re pursuing your passion in that way, you have peace with what everyone else is doing. Because that’s not what you’re doing. You’re in your own lane. You’re doing what you want to do. Katy, thank you so much for being on the show. This has been so much fun to talk with you today.
KT:
It’s my pleasure. And I love Reisch. We went through a lot together. We chose to be allies early on. And that’s important and it’s difficult. And we’ve stayed in touch. And it’s just been such a treat for me. And she went to ESPN, guys. She made it to the big time. She made it to the big time. And Julie, it’s great to meet you and knowing that you have a news background as well, it’s just kind of fun to geek out and talk broadcasting with two former newsies.
JH:
I love it. It’s been fun. But before we go, Katy, we collect advice on the pod from each of our guests. So we have three rapid fire questions for you, starting with, what is one thing that you now know that you wish you knew when you were younger?
KT:
Everything that you need, you have. The answers are inside. And my uncle, who was my godfather, told me that when I was young. And it’s true.
RCK:
What one piece of advice would you give to any woman?
KT:
You do you. Do you.
JH:
In today’s professional setting, what skill do you think is vital for a woman?
KT:
Confidence. Confidence.
RCK:
And this is also the media side of the person. You say rapid fire and she gives you straight, concise, to the point-
JH:
She wins the award.
RCK:
You win! I think you’re one of the few people who have done it quick, concise and to the point. It’s phenomenal. Katy, how can someone get ahold of you? Perhaps you’re looking to be a client of yours, you would benefit greatly from Katy Temple Talent Media Coaching. So how can someone-
KT:
If they reach out, tell them that they heard me on your podcast. I’m on LinkedIn. And Katytemplemediacoaching.com is a website. I’m on LinkedIn. And it’s Katy with a Y, everybody. Temple like the university. And I also have a YouTube channel. So I’m easy to get ahold of, Katy@Katytemplecoaching.com. But just the Katy with the Y and all that information is out there.
RCK:
Fantastic. Katy, thank you so much. It has been an absolute pleasure having you on the show. And that is all for this episode of Think Tank of Three.
AF:
If you have topics you’d like us to cover or guests you’d like to hear from, send us a message at thinktankofthree@gmail.com. Subscribe to the Think Tank of Three wherever you listen to podcasts and connect with us online. We blog weekly at thinktankofthree.com.
JH:
Follow us on social media. You can find us individually on LinkedIn and as Think Tank of Three on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Women, click to join our private group on Facebook, where we can all share advice and articles.
RCK:
And if you liked what you heard in the podcast, share it. You can find Think Tank of Three on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play, Amazon Music and SoundCloud.