Conversations with Peacock Voices

About Conversations with Peacock Voices

A podcast about how communication sounds in real life. Interviews and mini-trainings to help you lead, persuade, and speak clearly. Host Margaret Izard Oskoui, CEO of Peacock Voices and a classically trained opera singer turned voice and communication coach, talks with professionals across industries about how they lead, persuade, collaborate, and handle tough conversations at work. You’ll hear two kinds of episodes: Conversations: interviews that show what works, what doesn’t, and why Technical Talks: short, focused mini-trainings on a specific topic about the voice Each episode promises newfound understanding and practical tips to transform your communication, emphasizing authenticity, confidence, and presence. peacockvoices.substack.com (https://peacockvoices.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast)

Publisher

Peacock Voices

Category

business · education

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

3 Feb 2026

Latest episode

18 Sept 2026

Latest episodes

11 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   18 Sept 2026

   Technical Talks: Stronger Presentations

   Have you ever sat through an amazing presentation, pitch, or meeting and thought, "I need to be able to do that"? Strong public speaking isn't a gift some people are born with and others aren't. It's a business communication skill. And like any skill, it can be developed. In this episode, voice expert and coach Margaret Izard Oskoui breaks down the exact 4-step framework she uses with clients to strengthen their presentation skills and become clearer, more confident communicators at work. 🦚 Get it into your body: read your pitch or presentation aloud until the words feel familiar, so you're never just figuring out what comes next 🦚 Assign purpose: go paragraph by paragraph, slide by slide, and decide what each section is actually trying to do (e.g. build excitement, prove a point, show expertise) 🦚 Find the most important word: every sentence has one word (and a close second) that carries the meaning. Identifying it removes room for misunderstanding 🦚 Showcase it: use inflection, silence, speed, consonant strength, vowel length, or volume to make that word land the way you intend No natural talent required. Just a process you can practice until it becomes second nature, in meetings, pitches, and presentations alike. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit peacockvoices.substack.com (https://peacockvoices.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1)

2. 

   3 Aug 2026

   Conversation with Jennifer Staretorp

   Early in her career, Jennifer Staretorp had an intern who quietly believed Jennifer hated her. Not because of anything she’d said, but because of how she’d said it: short, efficient messages, no emojis, no warmth. Jennifer didn’t find out until much later. When she did, it landed like a cold bucket of water dumped on her. She’d learned in college, and again in business school, that professional communication was supposed to be stripped of emotion: formal, efficient, all business. That advice turned out to be wrong, or at least incomplete, and it took an intimidated intern to prove it. In this episode of Conversations with Peacock Voices, Margaret sits down with Jennifer, a marketer who’s built her career across startups and, more recently, a Fortune 500 tech company, to talk about what it takes to keep your voice landing the way you mean it to, especially when the room, the company, or your own life keeps changing around you. About Jennifer Jennifer Staretorp has spent most of her career in startups, learning to build marketing programs from scratch and make them work with whatever she had. She’s been through two acquisitions, and at one point sat on an executive team reporting straight to the board. These days she’s in marketing at a Fortune 500 tech company, which meant relearning almost everything about how to get a message across. What struck Margaret talking to her is that none of this happened because Jennifer set out to master corporate communication. It happened because she had to, one difficult room at a time. What we talk about - The jump from scrappy startup communication to Fortune 500 succinctness, where you might only get one bullet point to make your case - Preparing to be heard: how Jennifer curates decks and docs, narrates alongside visuals, and practices out loud before it counts - The added weight of walking into male-dominated rooms with less time and more pressure to make it count - The physical toll of presenting through pregnancy: compressed lungs, shorter sentences, mid-meeting breathing breaks - Why she still loves marketing after all these years, and the human-centered principle she returns to again and again - Navigating an acquisition: when to conform to a new system, and when to teach a larger company how to reach the audience it’s missing - The intern story that changed how she communicates, and finding herself now on the other side of that exact frustration A few moments worth sitting with “Best case scenario, you may only get one or two words in at a meeting, or you get a bullet point. So you have to be even more thoughtful about what it is you’re sharing and the impact of that and how it will be used by someone else.” “I need to make sure that my voice is heard in arenas where women don’t often get the opportunity to speak.” “I eventually learned that she thought I hated her. She was intimidated by me because I didn’t use emojis in my communications to her... and that was really like having a cold bucket of water dumped on me.” Takeaways - Prepare like the room won’t give you a second chance. Curate what you share, and practice saying it out loud, before it counts. - Read the room’s constraints, not just the room. A five-word inbox and a five-minute meeting both call for a different version of you. - How you say it can undo what you meant. A message stripped of warmth can read as coldness you never intended. - Adaptability is a skill, not a compromise. Looking through someone else’s eyes first is what makes your message land. Jennifer closes the episode by naming Michelle and Barack Obama as her favorite voices, citing their warmth, richness, and calm. It’s a fitting choice from someone who’s spent her career learning that how you say something can matter as much as what you say. Listen to the full conversation on the podcast, or watch it on YouTube. Ready to bring more intention to how you speak? Explore Peacock Voices’ coaching and workshops at peacockvoices.com (http://peacockvoices.com). This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit peacockvoices.substack.com (https://peacockvoices.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1)

3. 

   20 Jul 2026

   Conversation with Angela Zentefis: Leading with Empathy and Authority

   Angela Zentefis has spent over 15 years leading HR through some of the hardest conversations an organization can have, from pandemic era layoffs to policy negotiations at Northwestern University. In this episode, she tells Margaret about the moment a senior leader called out her voice for giving away her power mid-sentence, and how that changed the way she reads a room and leads with empathy and authority at the same time. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit peacockvoices.substack.com (https://peacockvoices.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1)

4. 

   6 Jul 2026

   Conversation with Lieve Hendren: Joy Is A Prerequisite

   Conversation with Lieve Hendren: Joy Is A Prerequisite What does a Mozart violin concerto have to do with surviving a hostile board meeting? More than you'd think. In this episode, Margaret sits down with Workflow Coach Lieve Hendren to explore the surprising overlap between vocal performance and high-stakes leadership communication. Lieve shares how years of panic attacks before presentations — despite being a trained singer — led her to discover that joy isn't a reward you earn at the end of a hard day. It's the prerequisite for showing up with your full voice at all. Margaret draws on her own experience as a violinist to make the case that silence is just as powerful a tool as sound — and that the same principle applies whether you're on stage or in a boardroom. Together they dig into reflective listening as a strategy for navigating hostile conversations, why knowing your message matters more than perfecting your delivery, and how to create a repeatable process for presence so your best voice shows up on purpose, not by accident. Lieve is the author of The Joyful Flow Formula and creator of the Focused Flow Planner Journal. She works with executive directors, nonprofits, and mission-driven innovators, and pursued a vocal performance career before building her coaching practice. -- 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/peacockvoices (https://www.instagram.com/peacockvoices) 🟦 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/peacockvoices/ (https://www.linkedin.com/company/peacockvoices/) 🎬 YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@peacockvoices (https://www.youtube.com/@peacockvoices) 🌐 Website: www.peacockvoices.com 🤓 Ready to start with the basics? Get our FREE video resource featuring our 3 favorite breathing techniques: https://peacockvoices.kit.com/freevideoguide (https://peacockvoices.kit.com/freevideoguide) 👋 Work With Us! www.peacockvoices.com/consultation This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit peacockvoices.substack.com (https://peacockvoices.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1)

5. 

   23 Mar 2026

   Technical Talks: Too Abrasive

   Margaret Izard Oskoui, a voice expert and coach, addresses common workplace feedback like being “too intense” or “not collaborative,” arguing that directness is valuable and the real issue is delivery, not content. She explains that the same words can land very differently depending on vocal choices, and offers three core tools to make direct communication feel inclusive: consistent inflection, continuous sound, and creating “wide” volume that feels like a “vocal hug” instead of talking at someone. She recommends practicing these elements together before meetings (i.e. rehearsing greetings, questions, and icebreakers) so your body is set up to communicate efficiently while still fostering a welcoming, collaborative environment.

6. 

   16 Mar 2026

   Conversation with Justin Berkowitz

   In this episode of Conversations with Peacock Voices, host Margaret interviews Justin Berkowitz about navigating nonprofit leadership while maintaining a performing career. They discuss how singers’ preparation, adaptability, and performance skills translate to fundraising meetings and boardrooms, including using vocal pitch and resonance to convey enthusiasm or executive presence.

7. 

   5 Mar 2026

   Conversation with Leigh Folta

   In this episode of Conversations with Peacock Voices, host Margaret speaks with singer and arts administrator Leigh Folta about her career path from teaching in Los Angeles to ticketing at Lyric Opera of Chicago and her current role running a discount ticketing program in the greater Boston area. Leigh compares communicating with ticket buyers versus a board of directors, highlighting the importance of listening, translating ideas into action, and adjusting delivery based on context. The conversation explores how breath support and physical preparation shape speaking presence, how breath functions as “punctuation,” and how these skills carry into parenting.

8. 

   24 Feb 2026

   Conversation with Francisco Hernández-Cáceres

   In this episode of Conversations with Peacock Voices, host Margaret welcomes three-time Emmy-winning producer and former television host Francisco Hernández-Cáceres. Francisco shares how his 15–20 year career in television evolved from being on-camera to running a production company focused on translating university and academic research into engaging, accessible video content—including documentaries and training videos—with an emphasis on reducing polarization and bringing communities together.

9. 

   16 Feb 2026

   Technical Talks: Pitching for Entrepreneurs

   In this episode of Conversations with Peacock Voices, voice expert and coach Margaret Izard Oskoui discusses how early-stage entrepreneurs can enhance their pitch effectiveness. Margaret addresses common issues faced during pitch competitions and investor meetings, emphasizing the importance of utilizing one's voice effectively. She outlines a four-step process for improving pitch delivery: learning and understanding one's voice, mastering essential vocal characteristics, speech diagramming, and consistent practice. Margaret also introduces the Pitching for Entrepreneurs Online course, designed to help entrepreneurs create compelling and impactful pitches to secure the investment they need.

10. 

    9 Feb 2026

    Conversation with Jeri Bingham

    In this episode of Conversations with Peacock Voices, host Margaret interviews Jeri Bingham, founder of the podcast Hush Loudly. The discussion focuses on understanding and embracing introversion, especially in an extroverted world. Jeri, who also works in higher education and marketing, shares insights on how introverts can thrive in both personal and professional environments. They explore topics such as managing energy, fostering effective communication, and leveraging introverted strengths. The episode also touches on practical strategies for navigating networking events and creating inclusive work cultures. Jeri highlights the importance of acknowledging and validating introverted attributes and announces World Introvert Day on January 2nd and Black Introvert Week from February 8th to 15th.

11. 

    3 Feb 2026

    Welcome to Conversations with Peacock Voices

    Unlocking the Power of Your Voice: Insights from Peacock Voices

Contact Conversations with Peacock Voices

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.