How Body Language Affects You and Your Audience with Natasha Bazilevych.

Welcome to Public Speaking with Peter George. Do you want to be calm, confident, and credible every time you speak in public? Then stay tuned as we discuss public speaking tips, techniques, and tactics that help you increase your impact, influence, and income.

Natasha Bazilevych is a speaker, public speaking expert, and founder and president of Change View Academy, where she trains entrepreneurs and corporate executives to deliver powerful presentations. With 14 years of teaching presentation skills to hundreds of clients across more than 20 countries, she was named one of the top 500 entrepreneurs by Brains Magazine in 2020, alongside Simon Sinek, Mel Robbins, and Jim Kwik. Here's my conversation with Natasha Bazilevych.

Body Language Can Reshape Who You Are

Peter: What do speakers and aspiring speakers most need to know about body language?

Natasha: Body language can shift your personality — or at minimum, reshape your character. That happened to me. I was very shy as a teenager, but I decided to become confident. I read that confident people sleep on their back. So I trained myself to do that. Then I worked on how I stand. Step by step, I used my body to reshape my mindset. The body sends a signal to the brain — and the brain believes it. If you want to speak with confidence, start by working on your body daily, not just in the moment of speaking.

The Foundation: Stand on Two Feet

Natasha: Stand with both feet flat on the ground, shoulders back and down, arms at your sides — open, not crossed or covering your body. That posture signals confidence to your audience and, more importantly, to yourself. Yes, it feels uncomfortable at first. But that discomfort is how you know it's working. Do it at the cash register, at the gas station, waiting for the microwave. One of my clients texted me after a gas station stop: "I was the only one standing up straight. I felt out of place — but also like I had a different sense of myself." That's executive presence.

Gestures: Open Arms, Open Message

Natasha: Gestures reveal confidence — or the absence of it. When nervous, people naturally pull their arms in tight to their body and gesture in small, constricted ways. That's the flying chicken. Instead, move your arms away from your body and gesture with open, neutral palms — not palms down (domineering) and not palms up (seeking approval). Neutral says: I have a message to share, and I'm confident enough to share it. Open gestures also prevent you from rounding your shoulders, restricting your breathing, and losing vocal projection.

Facial Expressions: Micro Signals Matter

Natasha: Audiences may not consciously register your micro expressions — but they will feel them. A slight twitch of the nose, a shift in the lip, a flicker of doubt in your eyes: all of these communicate incongruency. If your face says something different from your words, listeners sense the contradiction at a subconscious level, and their trust in your message changes. The fix? Be present. Focus on your message and your people. When your mind wanders — to what's after the interview, to a problem at home — it shows in your face. Watch yourself on video to discover what you're actually expressing when you're not thinking about it.

Voice: The Magic of Vocal Variety

Natasha: Remember two words: vocal variety. Play with pace — sometimes faster, sometimes slower. Play with volume — build to a point, then whisper what matters most. Use pitch intentionally: a higher pitch builds warmth and relationship; a lower pitch signals authority and persuasiveness. Change your rhythm. If you speak at the same pace, volume, and pitch throughout your presentation, you will hypnotize your audience — and not in a good way. Vocal variety is what keeps people leaning in rather than tuning out.

On Accents: Embrace Your Story

Natasha: Every human speaks with an accent. There is no pure language. What matters is that your message is clear — that people understand your words. Check your pronunciation when you're unsure, and focus on clarity. But beyond that? Embrace your accent. It's your legacy, your origin, your story. And stories are powerful. When a speaker tries to hide where they came from, they lose something authentic that audiences would have connected with. Be who you are.

Confidence Gives the Audience Peace

Natasha: When you convey confidence, it gives your audience peace of mind. They think: I know I'm going to get something out of this. I'm not wasting my time. Confidence is magnetic — it creates the kind of executive presence that makes people unable to look away. Conversely, if you're uncertain, your audience becomes uncertain. They start doubting you, doubting themselves, wondering why they're there. The emotion you carry onstage is the emotion they carry out. Give them confidence — and you give them peace.

Peter: Natasha, where can people find you?

Natasha: Visit my website at natashabazilevych.com — you'll find the link in the show notes since the spelling is tricky. You can also find me on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn as Natasha Bazilevych. And on my website, you can download my free course, Public Speaking 101, as my gift to you.

Thank you for listening to this episode of Public Speaking with Peter George. Are you ready to be calm, confident, and credible every time you speak in public? Then visit petergeorgepublicspeaking.com and let's make it happen. I'll see you next time.