◈ Homepage — http://publicspeakinglosangeles.net/↓ Skip to Main Content SPEECH COACH LOS ANGELES Empowering Speech Main Navigation About Professor Duane Smith The Dyslexic Professor Public Speaking Women Services Empowering Speech Program Public Speaking Coach On-Site Speech Classes Speech Writing Fear of Public Speaking Children and Homeschooling Fees Workshop Testimonials Blog Contact Professor Smith (818) 723-2903 Los Angeles Speech Coach Duane Smith My name is Duane Smith. As a full time public speaking professor and professional speech coach, I have spent well over 12,000 hours helping groups and individuals in both, the corporate and academic worlds, develop and improve their public speaking skills. I can help you overcome your fear of public speaking by teaching you how to manage your nervous energy! Fear is energy, and energy, when managed properly, emboldens the speaker. A speaker’s energy lights up the room and the audience. Furthermore, energy is not something that can simply be removed, it must be spent! Basically you have two options regarding fear: As a speaker you can learn to manage and channel your speech anxiety into positive energy, or, you can try to ignore your fear and remain miserable! The two questions I am most frequently asked are, “How do I get over the fear of public speaking?”, and “How do I become a better speaker?” The answer is the same for both: Committed preparation! Preparation is Key for Public Speaking This is the key to a successful presentation… Always! My training will thoroughly prepare you for any presentation. I will introduce you to some very simple, foundational practice techniques that will not only guarantee your speech is a success, but will also help you feel much more confident! The truth is that if a speaker has a properly prepared speech, and is committed to a practice plan, he or she will deliver a successful presentation! I can help you prepare and deliver that very successful presentation. Additionally, I will provide you with a workbook authored for the sole purpose of helping speakers properly prepare, and deliver, any and all speeches. I will share with you a solid structure that will enable you to effortlessly organize your thoughts and information that will carry your audience through any presentation. Because discerning words require an equally strong structure for delivery, I will teach you how to choose your words wisely, structure your thoughts and information clearly, help you create attention grabbing introductions, write memorable conclusions, and teach you how to effectively cut useless words so that you can attain smart word economy. Win the Respect of Your Audience! A public speaker’s audience is always their number one concern! As a speaker you must be audience-centered and realize that each audience is different. Let me explain. You may be trying to sell something, earn a vote, sway a jury, explain a technology, motivate employees or troops, or just make a memorable best man speech. If you give the audience what they want, they will respond by giving you what you want! My coaching techniques will help you become an audience-centered public speaker. The ultimate goal of any speaker is to win the respect of the audience by demonstrating credibility and authority. I will help you capture the audience’s rapport by helping you build and sustain your credibility as a public speaker. Whether you are delivering a sales presentation, a political speech, court room testimony, a technical presentation, motivating employees or troops, or just giving a speech at a wedding, I can help you achieve credibility with any audience. Your Number One Skill Set For many individuals and organizations, public speaking is an important and necessary skill that needs to be practiced to reach professional goals. My public speaking training provides valuable presentation skills that will increase your self-confidence and allow you to become a more persuasive presenter. Enhance your presence, credibility, and success! You or your organization will definitely benefit from learning this invaluable skill. Whether you’re a professional, a student, an ESL learner, adult or youth, it is never too early or too late to develop your number one skill set! Whether you have a large organization or small business that requires a 3 hour speech workshop, or an in-depth 8 hour public speaking course for your employees, or an individual that desires a private speech coach, I can help you with all of your public speaking training needs and attain the results you want. What People are Saying… Helped Us Deliver with Clarity and Passion Duane Smith’s public speaking workshop empowered our staff to deliver effective presentations about our organization with ease, clarity and passion. --  Maggie Torres MEND Program Director Empowering Speech Duane’s Empowering Speech presentation was very captivating. Students were blown away by his success stories of how public speaking was a huge milestone that transformed… more “Empowering Speech” --   Diana Ismail Business Honors Association, California State University Northridge You’ll feel like a rock star when you get on a stage Mr. Smith’s coaching goes way beyond teaching how to speak in public.  Whether you have to present in front of a large audience, need to… more “You’ll feel like a rock star when you get on a stage” --  Demetrios Yagdjis CEO, CPO Footbone Biomechanical Inc., Specialized Orthopedic Solutions Blessed to Find Coach Duane Smith When the big challenge of presenting my first session in a Microsoft conference came, I was blessed enough to find a speech coach named Duane… more “Blessed to Find Coach Duane Smith” --  Anderson Gobbi Senior Program Manager Microsoft Helped Me Present to Thousands Only five weeks into a new assignment, I was tasked with communicating my strategic direction to a live audience of 4,500 plus an additional 2,000… more “Helped Me Present to Thousands” --  Doug Murtha Vice President Scion Division, for Toyota Motor Sales (TMS), U.S.A., Inc. Duane’s Teachings Helped Me Succeed I initially hired Duane on less than 4 weeks’ notice. I had a major speech to deliver and I was frightened. In my first meeting… more “Duane’s Teachings Helped Me Succeed” --  Scott Warmuth PC The Law Offices of Scott Warmuth Thank You for The Direction Hi Duane – Hope all is well my friend! I just wanted to thank you again for the help/direction you provided last winter. I had… more “Thank You for The Direction” --  Conor Life Marketing Director Exclusive Insurance Brokerage; Selected to Life Health Pro's 'Top 30 Under 30 - September 2015' Help Me With This Very Important Skill! I had a lot of confidence speaking publicly for many years and this was my biggest mistake. Wanting to improve my craft, I jumped at… more “Help Me With This Very Important Skill!” --  Lance Moore Principal Vanalden Avenue Elementary, Los Angeles Unified School District Highest Quality of Service … Great Teacher Duane provided the highest quality of service. He knows his field exceptionally well and is a great teacher. Most importantly, he is interested in helping… more “Highest Quality of Service … Great Teacher” --  Fred Cassity, Attorney Adjunct Professor and Trustee The King’s College and Seminary Former national President of the Christian Legal Society First Class Attention to Detail I was thrilled with the quick turnaround and first class attention to detail with the speech writing service you provided. Thank you very much. --  Steve Adler President Adler Tank Rentals Cured Decades of Public Speaking Phobia After suffering several decades with a severe case of public speaking phobia, it was such a relief to hear Duane say that it is completely… more “Cured Decades of Public Speaking Phobia” --  Maria Thompson CEO Agile Sourcing Partners (Empowering Speech Workshop hosted for Agile, and the Southern California Gas Company) Exceptional Communication Program Duane Smith offers an exceptional communications program that allows anyone to quickly and effectively master the art of public speaking. I have taken speech classes… more “Exceptional Communication Program” --  Michael Ray CEO Orchid Insurance Brokers, Los Angeles, California Graduate Students’ Success Duane Smith conducted an in-class public speaking workshop for my class of graduate students in the Master of Planning program at USC’s Price School of… more “Graduate Students’ Success” --  Jennifer Longabaugh, MPL Environmental Planner, LEED AP ND at Dudek Adjunct Instructor of Urban Planning USC University of Southern California Price School of Public Policy Teaching Approach is Highly Effective Duane offers an incredible package when it comes to sharpening your public speaking and presentation skills. Not only does he provide you with usable skills… more “Teaching Approach is Highly Effective” --  Cameron Shimy Manager Software Engineering at Rovi Corporation Effective Communicator In Court Testifying in court is not just a matter of answering questions. I need to be able to keep the jury engaged by telling a simple… more “Effective Communicator In Court” --  Lewis DesLauriers California State Investigator Duane’s Unique Workshop Duane’s relatable nature and captivating stories bring a uniqueness to his workshop. I plan to keep the workbook we reviewed during this course all throughout… more “Duane’s Unique Workshop” --  Leda Nasardad Senior Consultant Comcast Assurance and Advisory Team Academic Decathlon State Competition Success My brother in law was head of admissions for a major university. He urged me to find a speech coach for my three teenage daughters… more “Academic Decathlon State Competition Success” --  Christina Hsu Mother of triplet 16 year old girls who attended an Empower Speech Workshop Won Oratorical Contest We worked closely with Duane to prepare our son for an oratorical contest. Duane had an intensive session with our son and the improvement from… more “Won Oratorical Contest” --  Lisa S. Mother of a southern California high school honor student Best Speech I Have Ever Given Professor – the audience loved my speech. My agent said it was the best speech I have ever given! Thank you! --  Todd Bridges TV Star and Motivational Speaker Screen Actors Guild Proven Insight and Knowledge Duane advised me on techniques and strategies with regards to my speaking career. I recommend anyone who has the passion and drive to become an… more “Proven Insight and Knowledge” --  Kory Minor Speaker, Author, Coach, Restaurateur NFL Alumni: Carolina Panthers 99'-02' Fabulous Job Coaching My Team We enjoyed Duane’s workshop very much. He provided great tips and useful tools. It’s easy to be a speaker but not easy to be a… more “Fabulous Job Coaching My Team” --  Betty Young Business Development Officer HKTDC (Hong Kong Trade Development Council) Valuable Assistance to Command Officers One of the many challenges of a command officer is to persuade the public to get organized, get involved and take action to improve the… more “Valuable Assistance to Command Officers” --  Mark A. Kroeker Former Deputy Chief, LAPD, and Chief of the Portland Police Department Vice President of crisis management Walt Disney Co. Perfect Score in In Oral Interview The Los Angeles City Fire Department is one of the most desired job positions in the country. There are thousands of extremely qualified applicants with… more “Perfect Score in In Oral Interview” --  Brandon Smith Los Angeles City Fire Department Personal Attention to My Specific Case Every preacher should spend time developing and perfecting his public speaking skills. I have attended every major seminar but none have given me the personal… more “Personal Attention to My Specific Case” --  Tony Jaime Masters Seminary Graduate Quickly Helped Me Overcome Trepidation I was gripped with fear and trepidation over being presented with a new challenge of preparing a weekly lecture. Duane Smith quickly helped me overcome… more “Quickly Helped Me Overcome Trepidation” --  Jeff Voorheis President Voorheis & Voorheis Inc. Land Surveyors Got Role in Movie Thanks to your class I got a speaking role in Pirates of the Caribbean 4. Your public speaking course set me apart in the audition.… more “Got Role in Movie” --  Salomon S Passariello Actor Screen Actors Guild Enormous Impact in Our School Duane Smith’s public speaking class has made an enormous impact on our junior high (home school) class. He’s brought professionalism, expertise, and quality character to… more “Enormous Impact in Our School” --  Lisa Sullivan PSP Director Grace Community School Helped Us Deliver with Clarity and Passion Duane Smith’s public speaking workshop empowered our staff to deliver effective presentations about our organization with ease, clarity and passion. --  Maggie Torres MEND Program Director Empowering Speech Duane’s Empowering Speech presentation was very captivating. Students were blown away by his success stories of how public speaking was a huge milestone that transformed… more “Empowering Speech” --   Diana Ismail Business Honors Association, California State University Northridge You’ll feel like a rock star when you get on a stage Mr. Smith’s coaching goes way beyond teaching how to speak in public.  Whether you have to present in front of a large audience, need to… more “You’ll feel like a rock star when you get on a stage” --  Demetrios Yagdjis CEO, CPO Footbone Biomechanical Inc., Specialized Orthopedic Solutions Blessed to Find Coach Duane Smith When the big challenge of presenting my first session in a Microsoft conference came, I was blessed enough to find a speech coach named Duane… more “Blessed to Find Coach Duane Smith” --  Anderson Gobbi Senior Program Manager Microsoft Previous Slide Next Slide Read All Testimonials   Professor Duane Smith Public Speaking Coach and Presentation Trainer [email protected] (818) 723-2903 Operated by Empowering Speech, LLC © 2026 Speech Coach Los Angeles Designed By Visualis Web Design