Welcome to another episode of My First Stage! I’m your host, and today I’m sharing a conversation recorded live at the NSA Influence Conference, featuring an incredible speaker and educator: Davondra Brown. If you’re standing at the edge, wondering if you’re ready to make the leap from public speaking to full-time professional speaking, this episode is for you!
With over 20 years’ background in public health education and academia, Davondra Brown recently transitioned to a full-time professional speaking career. Her focus? Sexual wellness, its integration into health and healing professions, and building deep relationship connections. She’s made her mark as a sought-after voice for physicians, nurses, midwives, therapists, and business professionals who are ready to build authentic connections and break down the barriers to real conversations.
Here’s what you’ll hear us dive into during this candid and inspiring episode:
- The pivotal moment Davondra Brown decided to become a professional speaker after decades in public health
- The difference between public speaking in academia versus professional speaking—and why that leap matters
- How powerful mentorship and organizations like NSA changed her journey (and can do the same for you)
- The importance of community, finding your tribe, and why you shouldn’t try to speak to “everyone”
- Why authenticity and self-awareness are a speaker’s secret weapon
- Building a niche and embracing the message that’s truly yours (even if it’s not for everyone)
- Real talk about imperfection, “ums and ahs,” and sitting in your own lane
- Actionable advice for finding your unique voice and audience as a speaker
Inspired by Davondra Brown’s story? Here’s what you can do next:
- Connect with Davondra Brown – Find her on LinkedIn or Instagram, or follow “Dibs on Sex” on all social platforms to continue learning about sexual wellness, relationships, and authentic life transformation.
- Join a Community – If you’re thinking of becoming a pro speaker or are looking for your tribe, consider checking out NSA or finding a mastermind group that aligns with your values.
- Define Your Audience – Get specific! Whether it’s your podcast, your stage, or your business—clarity creates connection.
- Watch Evolution of Dance: If you haven’t yet seen Judson Laipply’s Evolution of Dance video, watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMH0bHeiRNg
- Subscribe & Review – Love the conversation? Make sure to subscribe to My First Stage, leave a rating or review, and let me know which guests or stories speak to you most!
- Step on Your Stage – Don’t wait for the “perfect moment.” Start imperfectly, share your unique message, and let your people find you.
Thank you so much for tuning in! Join me next week for more real stories, actionable advice, and inspiration from the world’s most compelling speakers.
Timestamped Summaries
00:00 – I welcome Davondra Brown to the show, and she introduces herself, sharing how the National Speakers Association (NSA) and mentor Crystal Washington have influenced her path into full-time professional speaking.
00:48 – Davondra Brown discusses her transition from over 20 years in public health and academia to intentional, purposeful professional speaking—and why those worlds are so different.
01:47 – We talk about what motivated her career pivot: planning for retirement, following passion, and designing a future on her own terms.
02:25 – Davondra Brown breaks down the role NSA played in making her transition easier, the value of mentors like Mimi Brown and Crystal Washington, and why the community refuses to “gatekeep” knowledge.
03:58 – We share stories about meeting heroes at industry events, how approachable role models really are, and why these moments matter so much for connection and learning.
05:20 – Davondra Brown gives her “$10,000 masterclass” advice for free: everything starts with knowing yourself, filtering advice based on your own values, and being grounded as a speaker.
06:20 – She candidly shares how self-awareness is built over time (and through failure), why imperfection belongs on stage, and the importance of just starting before you feel ready.
07:21 – “My message is not for everybody”—Davondra Brown talks about her focus on sexual wellness, relationship expertise, and the freedom that comes from serving a specific audience.
08:30 – We discuss the dangers of trying to appeal to everyone, why specificity matters, and how to find your true tribe as a speaker or podcaster.
10:00 – Davondra Brown explains how she found her own tribe: first through NSA, then through a women-in-business mastermind that’s been going strong for years—and how doing the work attracts your right people.
12:55 – We wrap up with an ode to mastermind friendships, continued growth, and a reminder that you’ll never be perfect out the gate—so just start now.
Transcript
Welcome to the My First Stage podcast. We are here live at the NSA Influence Conference and we are talking to some amazing speakers that we have been meeting over the last few days, including Ms. Davondra Brown.
Davondra Brown [:Hi, everybody. Thanks for having me. Thank you for being here.
Sara Lohse [:We are so excited to talk to you and tell us a little bit about why you're at nsa, what you're doing while you're here.
Davondra Brown [:Oh, of course. So National Speakers association has been in my life for about a year or so, but actually before then, my wonderful speaking mentor, Crystal Washington, she made my very first logo, like years ago and she blew the stages away over the last 17 to 20 years. And finally my life has opened up enough for me to be a speaker full time. And so she was always encouraging me to join nsa and I finally did last year. And so now I'm here to develop my professional speaking skills as well as to get the business side.
Sara Lohse [:I love that. And I love when we get good advice.
Davondra Brown [:That's right.
Sara Lohse [:Gotta love the good advice.
Davondra Brown [:Definitely gotta love the good people giving good advice in your life.
Sara Lohse [:When did you first get on stage as a speaker?
Davondra Brown [:Sure. So I have been speaking as a public speaker and a lot of people don't know the difference, but like a public speaker. Right. So I've done public health and then health education, and I've been doing that for well over 20 years. But that's a different type of speaking. That's conference speaking. It's academia. It's very much.
Davondra Brown [:You're thankful that they're allowing you to talk about all of your big brain ideas on the stage in front of others, which is very different than being a professional speaker. And so I have been doing purposeful professional speaking for probably about two years now. Okay. Yeah.
Sara Lohse [:And what made you make that jump into that professional speaker?
Davondra Brown [:Yeah, most definitely. So for me, that is about retirement. Right. What does the rest of my life look like? Like I am turning 50 next year. So I'm super. Oh, my God, you're a lot of us. Yes, I am. And so I need to figure out what does it look like for me to not get a paycheck every two weeks anymore, but then still do what I love and get paid for doing it? So that's what brought me to professional speaking.
Sara Lohse [:I love that. How was it making that decision and making that transition into the professional speaking? And what advice would you have someone who's kind of on that cusp and thinking about it?
Davondra Brown [:Yeah, I think it's a really easy transition when you become a member of nsa. This organization really does surround you. It envelops you with information and love and family that no one tells you. No, no one says, oh no, I'm going to keep the secret for me. You come to influence, you go to thrive and you get all, all of the information. You get to meet all of the people that have been doing this for years. I mean years. Some of the big names, Willie Jolly, Les Brown, Lois Kramer, like those people I now know, like that's crazy to me.
Davondra Brown [:So it's a wonderful way for you to, to kind of get into the business and feel comfortable doing that transition. And there's all these levels and now my best, best favorite mentor is Mimi Brown and she is the one. We call each other cousins because both of last name is Brown. But I have to give her a huge shout out because she is the one that literally she sat down with me and gave me an entire master class. Who does that? Who does that? These speakers are charging $10,000 a day for a masterclass, you know, coaching session with them. And that's the kind of relationships and friendships that you make in nsa. That makes the transition so much easier to do.
Sara Lohse [:I love that and I love when people aren't gatekeeping information and their knowledge and their experience.
Davondra Brown [:That's right.
Sara Lohse [:There's so much that we can learn from each other and environments like this just really give that opportunity. And I love that you said all these people that you've met that you idolize. Because I met one of my heroes.
Davondra Brown [:Yeah.
Sara Lohse [:While I've been here. Do you remember 19 years ago, the video, the evolution of dance where he goes through all of the dances of like, of the popular songs over like,
Davondra Brown [:he's here, he's here. What?
Sara Lohse [:I met him at the sponsor night and they tell me who he is and I'm like, I think I'm your biggest fan.
Davondra Brown [:I think, I think I know you. Like I think I've known you.
Sara Lohse [:You don't know how many times I have tried to learn your dance in my bedroom since I was like 10.
Davondra Brown [:That is awesome. But that's the kind of moments that you have.
Sara Lohse [:You say, don't meet your heroes. But he was very nice.
Davondra Brown [:I believe that. I believe that this is the place to come where you see your literally your heroes, your idols, the people that you thought you would never be in a room with and they embrace you. Not. No. Everybody doesn't have time to sit down and do the masterclass. But the reality is, is that they will make you feel like you're the most important person in the world in that moment and interacting with them, and they are genuine about it. And that is beautiful.
Sara Lohse [:I love that now you are part of this. You're. You're a professional speaker. You have information and you have knowledge and you have that experience that you can share. What is your best piece of advice that you would put in your $10,000 masterclass that you are willing to share for free right now?
Davondra Brown [:So I believe my best piece of advice is to start with you.
Sara Lohse [:Okay.
Davondra Brown [:Start with you. We are all different being. We could talk. There's so many people that I hear that talk about business coaching, and there's so many people that are. That I hear talk about personality building, but each one of them does that in a very different way. And you have to be very grounded in yourself in order to know what information resonates and what information you kind of have to leave to the wayside and say, that's not necessarily for me, but I appreciate knowing it. Right. And that the only way you can do that, the only way you don't take in information constantly and trying to keep bouncing off the walls and, like, I got to do this and I have to do that.
Davondra Brown [:The only way you can do that, if you know yourself and you're grounded in that, how.
Sara Lohse [:What did it take for you to learn that?
Davondra Brown [:Oh, great question. What it took was time. Yeah, it took time. It took experiences. I think Ty Bennett hit the nail on the head this morning talking about his kids and how failure is a part to success.
Sara Lohse [:Right.
Davondra Brown [:And so it takes you to fail. It takes you to be in front. It takes you to do things like this on a whim and say, okay, I'm going to do it. And if I say too many arms and if I say too many odds, and that's okay, because the next time I talk, I won't.
Sara Lohse [:And the next time I talk, I still will. I still will. I'm still going to say my ums and ahs and. Because that's just how I speak. And I've. I've talked about this a lot that I feel like I'm. I'm a fine speaker. I don't like public speaking.
Sara Lohse [:Honestly, I hate it. Oh, no, I. I do it a lot just because I feel like I have to.
Davondra Brown [:Fair.
Sara Lohse [:But I don't think I'll ever be a, like, certified speaking professional. I don't think I'll ever be a TED TEDx speaker because I'm not polished.
Davondra Brown [:That's fair.
Sara Lohse [:And I don't necessarily want to be polished.
Davondra Brown [:And that their. Speaks to my point, you know, you.
Sara Lohse [:Yeah.
Davondra Brown [:Sarah says this is my lane in speaking, and that is fine. There are many of us that are will never make it to csp. Million dollar speaker. But for those of us who want to, for those of us who have that as an addition, you know, you can. When you get surrounded by these folks and when you know, you don't, you know you can be the best version of yourself surrounded by these folks. And so that is the great part.
Sara Lohse [:I love that.
Davondra Brown [:Yeah.
Sara Lohse [:Now, what is your thing? Like you said that my. My thing is, is that I know I'm not polished and I'm never gonna be. What's your thing as a speaker?
Davondra Brown [:Oh, I think my thing is my message is not for everybody.
Sara Lohse [:Okay.
Davondra Brown [:Right. I focus on sexual wellness. It's integration into health and healing professionals. So my focus is physicians, nurses, midwives, doulas, therapists. Right. I also work with business professionals that want to make deep relationship connections. But that's based in what I've learned throughout my life as a sex and relationship. There are expert.
Davondra Brown [:Everybody doesn't want to hear that.
Sara Lohse [:Y' all should hear that.
Davondra Brown [:Everybody does not want to talk about sex and how that relates to better business, more money, better sales. Nobody want. Everybody does not want to hear that. But I'm okay with that. Everybody. And that, you know, my. My journey in life is rooted in my Christianity. But there's so many Christians that are going to be like, oh, no, you talk about sex, I don't want to hear it.
Davondra Brown [:But I don't want you to come to my conference. I don't want you to speak to my congregation.
Sara Lohse [:Yeah.
Davondra Brown [:And that's okay. And sitting, once again, sitting in that and realizing I'm not for everybody. And that's okay, too.
Sara Lohse [:I love that. And especially in the podcast space, space, we work with a lot of clients that when we're. We're starting the launch process, we say, like, who is your audience? Well, I want to talk to everybody, right? No, you don't.
Davondra Brown [:No, you don't.
Sara Lohse [:If you're trying to talk to everybody, if everybody is your audience, you do not have an audience. You will be talking to nobody.
Davondra Brown [:You're talking to the air.
Sara Lohse [:You are. Because you have to make your message so broad that it's able to fit anybody.
Davondra Brown [:Yes.
Sara Lohse [:And it's going to be something that nobody needs to hear, to be quite honest.
Davondra Brown [:Ugly.
Sara Lohse [:No one's gonna need to hear it. You need to make it specific to one group, and you don't have to have the biggest audience you don't have to have the entire world as your stage and listening. You have to find that one little corner where your people hang out.
Davondra Brown [:Yep. That's your tribe. That's your village. Find your tribe that'll support you and listen and give you feedback and challenge you and take what you say and elevate it and bring it back to you so you can elevate it for the next person. It's all about serving the people that want what you have.
Sara Lohse [:What would you say to people who are struggling to find that, to find their tribe?
Davondra Brown [:Yeah.
Sara Lohse [:How. How do you find that?
Davondra Brown [:I feel like one come to nsa. Right. That's just all there is to it. Because the reality is, is you start hearing payroll for them. I am not on payroll for nfc.
Sara Lohse [:We're going to talk to them.
Davondra Brown [:Here's the issue is that I did not know I needed NSA until I got here, and that's the reason why I'm a huge proponent.
Sara Lohse [:Right.
Davondra Brown [:For years, I have to keep saying, Crystal Washington told me come to NSA because she saw me speaking. She saw me doing these things in conferences and things like that. And she's like, I know you know your craft. Let's craft your speaking and get you paid for it. So that wasn't happening because I wasn't coming to nsa. So that's the reason why the guy
Sara Lohse [:from the Evolution of Dance is right there. He's not the one in the fancy jacket, but one behind him. He's in a black jacket with a purple shirt.
Davondra Brown [:I don't know.
Sara Lohse [:Right there.
Davondra Brown [:I don't know him. I know over there. I see him. I don't think I know him.
Sara Lohse [:Okay.
Davondra Brown [:I got to know him.
Sara Lohse [:You got to know.
Davondra Brown [:He's.
Sara Lohse [:He's the Evolution of Dance guy.
Davondra Brown [:I like dance. I love the dance.
Sara Lohse [:He's the guy that made the video Evolution of Dance.
Davondra Brown [:Okay. I got to check him out because I was sitting there like, I don't think I know that person's there. So. Okay, now I know. And I will make sure I introduce myself.
Sara Lohse [:You got it?
Davondra Brown [:Okay, now I've forgotten what I was answering.
Sara Lohse [:I'm so sorry. My ADHD just came out so hard right there.
Davondra Brown [:And I was. Okay, that's another thing. I sit in my adhd. I see. Sit in my adult ADD is what I call it, and it's fine. And so I'm okay with saying now I forgot.
Sara Lohse [:So where. Where you found your tribe is nsa.
Davondra Brown [:Where I found how to find my tribe was nsa. Right Where I found my tribe was in a group of business friends. So we had gotten a coaching package from another coach, you know, outside of speaking and everything. And we met. And so we started meeting every Saturday over, like, five years. And through that tribe, through just us saying we want to get together as women in business and learn from each other and grow together, I started realizing, oh, this is what a tribe feels like.
Sara Lohse [:Right.
Davondra Brown [:And then I started saying, now what does that looks like for me as a pussy professional, for me to find my tribe that clings to me? And that's how I found it. I found it by doing the work. Right. I did the thing before I knew the thing. That makes sense, right?
Sara Lohse [:It does. I think people wait so long to start something because they think they have to be perfect out the gate.
Davondra Brown [:Yep.
Sara Lohse [:And that just means you're never going to start because you ain't never going to be perfect out the gate.
Davondra Brown [:Not going to be perfect. And shout out to my mastermind, because you know who you are, girls, you rock. We're still together after, what, seven and a half years?
Sara Lohse [:Wow.
Davondra Brown [:We don't meet every Saturday anymore, but we literally check in every week by WhatsApp. Yeah.
Sara Lohse [:I love that.
Davondra Brown [:Yeah.
Sara Lohse [:That's awesome. Well, this has been great. And you have so much knowledge that you've been able to share, and we appreciate it so much for having me.
Davondra Brown [:This has been fun.
Sara Lohse [:Thank you. Ms. Evondra Brown. How can people find more? Find out more about you, get to know you, connect with you?
Davondra Brown [:Sure. So find me at vondra brown on LinkedIn or instagram and Facebook at dibs on sex. So that's d I B s the Vondra I. Brown services on sex. Dibs on sex. So you got to come and get the dibs on set.
Sara Lohse [:Oh, hell yeah. I'm gonna be there.
Davondra Brown [:You gotta be there.
Sara Lohse [:I'm gonna be there.
Davondra Brown [:All right, good.
Sara Lohse [:Thank you guys so much for listening. Go ahead and hit that subscribe button so you can keep hanging out with us and all these awesome speakers here at NSA and all the awesome speakers afterwards when we're done with this conference in a few days. So thank you all for listening and we will talk to you next week.
