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From Stage Freeze to Soulful Flow: Shedding the Masks We Wear
Manage episode 509319706 series 3589118
Before becoming a keynote speaker and conscious leadership voice, Kremena Yordanova was known as “The Kremenator” — a corporate leader who could get things done, but at the cost of masking her softer self. In this first part of our conversation, Kremena shares her earliest experiences with speaking (including a childhood stage freeze), how yoga helped her dissolve fear and reconnect with presence, and the high price of wearing masks in the corporate world. Together, we explore the link between survival, performance, and authenticity — and the moment yoga entered her life to change everything.
Takeaways
1. Childhood stage freeze can echo long into adulthood — until we meet practices that set us free.
2. There’s a profound difference between performing a mask and speaking from truth.
3. Sometimes the part of ourselves we most resist seeing holds the key to our liberation.
4. Humor can be both a gift and a mask, depending on how we use it.
5. Leading from toughness alone comes with a cost. Sooner or later, it wears us down.
6. Yoga can be a doorway to both recovery and integration alongside a demanding corporate career.
7. As wild, untamed, radiant leaders, it’s important to tend to both fire and softness.
Soul Sucker Quiz
Take the Soul Sucker Quiz to learn which Soul Sucker screams the loudest in your mind so you can release them from being in charge and set your voice free!
https://voice-matters.com/soul-sucker-quiz/
Thank you so much for listening!
Take the free Speaker Alter Ego Quiz to find out which protective mask is hiding your wild, untamed radiance.
https://voice-matters.com/speaker-alter-ego-quiz/
Follow me on:
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/voice_matters_llc/
Linkedin https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauri-smith-voice-matters/
Chapters
1. From Stage Freeze to Soulful Flow: Shedding the Masks We Wear (00:00:00)
2. Childhood speaking freeze, finding yoga, & shedding fear (00:01:50)
3. Speaking masks & the Porcelain Doll (00:04:45)
4. Humor as mask vs. gift (00:06:45)
5. Speaking as an art form & spiritual practice (00:09:39)
6. The rise of “The Kremenator” (00:10:17)
7. Shifting from force to flow (00:15:59)
8. The magic of authenticity in communication (00:18:18)
9. Body signals: burnout & boundaries (00:20:49)
10. Weaving corporate, yoga, and voice (00:22:54)
59 episodes
Manage episode 509319706 series 3589118
Before becoming a keynote speaker and conscious leadership voice, Kremena Yordanova was known as “The Kremenator” — a corporate leader who could get things done, but at the cost of masking her softer self. In this first part of our conversation, Kremena shares her earliest experiences with speaking (including a childhood stage freeze), how yoga helped her dissolve fear and reconnect with presence, and the high price of wearing masks in the corporate world. Together, we explore the link between survival, performance, and authenticity — and the moment yoga entered her life to change everything.
Takeaways
1. Childhood stage freeze can echo long into adulthood — until we meet practices that set us free.
2. There’s a profound difference between performing a mask and speaking from truth.
3. Sometimes the part of ourselves we most resist seeing holds the key to our liberation.
4. Humor can be both a gift and a mask, depending on how we use it.
5. Leading from toughness alone comes with a cost. Sooner or later, it wears us down.
6. Yoga can be a doorway to both recovery and integration alongside a demanding corporate career.
7. As wild, untamed, radiant leaders, it’s important to tend to both fire and softness.
Soul Sucker Quiz
Take the Soul Sucker Quiz to learn which Soul Sucker screams the loudest in your mind so you can release them from being in charge and set your voice free!
https://voice-matters.com/soul-sucker-quiz/
Thank you so much for listening!
Take the free Speaker Alter Ego Quiz to find out which protective mask is hiding your wild, untamed radiance.
https://voice-matters.com/speaker-alter-ego-quiz/
Follow me on:
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/voice_matters_llc/
Linkedin https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauri-smith-voice-matters/
Chapters
1. From Stage Freeze to Soulful Flow: Shedding the Masks We Wear (00:00:00)
2. Childhood speaking freeze, finding yoga, & shedding fear (00:01:50)
3. Speaking masks & the Porcelain Doll (00:04:45)
4. Humor as mask vs. gift (00:06:45)
5. Speaking as an art form & spiritual practice (00:09:39)
6. The rise of “The Kremenator” (00:10:17)
7. Shifting from force to flow (00:15:59)
8. The magic of authenticity in communication (00:18:18)
9. Body signals: burnout & boundaries (00:20:49)
10. Weaving corporate, yoga, and voice (00:22:54)
59 episodes
All episodes
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