Life is a constant juggle of early starts, school runs, sports sidelines and work, but somehow among all this, she\u2019s created Confident Communication, an online course teaching practical skills for public speaking.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s hard to believe how she\u2019s found the time to build a business from scratch amid everything else going on in her busy life, but Toni says it\u2019s been a case of chipping away at it at weekends and after the kids are in bed.<\/p>\n
Since launching in July, Toni\u2019s course is already attracting plenty of interest and glowing feedback. Photo \/ Woman’s Day<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you\u2019re doing something that genuinely excites you, you find a new pocket of energy to draw on,\u201d she says. \u201cI feel tired, don\u2019t get me wrong, but it\u2019s a good tired.\u201d<\/p>\n
And since launching in July, Toni\u2019s course is already attracting plenty of interest and glowing feedback. Kiwis, says Toni, are in need of a self-esteem boost.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll too often, I\u2019m hearing from people that they\u2019re turning down opportunities because they don\u2019t have the confidence to put themselves out there,\u201d says Toni. \u201cWe seem to struggle when it comes to promoting ourselves, but we should be saying, \u2018I\u2019m confident<\/a>, I\u2019m good at what I do and I deserve to be out here!\u2019 I\u2019d like to think my course is motivational as well as practical.\u201d<\/p>\n The idea for Toni\u2019s exciting new side hustle was sparked when her children started taking part in speech competitions at school. She realised the help she offered them, thanks to her long career in broadcasting, could be useful to a wider audience. With her adults\u2019 course already out in the world, Toni is now starting work on a course for youngsters.<\/p>\n \u201cIt dawned on me that most kids don\u2019t have a broadcaster at home helping them with this stuff,\u201d she reflects. \u201cI realised that everything I\u2019ve learnt on the job could be really helpful to others.\u201d<\/p>\n Toni insists that confidence isn\u2019t something you\u2019re simply born with. Instead, it can be taught, practised and strengthened. She developed her course into 29 bite-sized lessons across five modules, covering everything from \u201cmastering your mindset\u201d to MCing, leading meetings, joining panels and handling interviews. Toni has even created an entire module on social media<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cLove it or not, social media can\u2019t be ignored,\u201d says the star, who has more than 90,000 followers on Instagram. \u201cI know a lot of people find the idea of making content or filming themselves really scary, but it needn\u2019t be. It\u2019s all about harnessing your ideas and your uniqueness, and having the courage to go for it. Being yourself is so important.\u201d<\/p>\n She recalls times in her own career when her confidence took a hit. Early on, after landing a hosting role on TVNZ\u2019s Breakfast, a viewer wrote in to say she smiled too much and seemed \u201ctoo happy\u201d.<\/p>\n Toni reflects, \u201cI should have ignored it, but for some reason, it knocked my confidence. I really contemplated if I should try to be a more serious and straight sort of broadcaster. I wondered if I needed to change who I was.<\/p>\n \u201cLuckily, my mum knocked sense into me and said I\u2019d be on a hiding to nothing trying to be someone I\u2019m not.\u201d<\/p>\nThe devoted mum hopes her journey inspires other women to step up and grab opportunities. Photo \/ Woman’s Day<\/p>\n