234: How to Create Content Using Your Authentic Voice with Ashleigh Rennie

The best way to describe this episode is to share what my guest, copywriter Ashleigh Rennie, wrote when she scheduled our podcast interview:

“When I was growing up in South Africa, the country was in the darkest days of the Apartheid. It was the 80s. Nelson Mandela had been in jail for twenty years. We were on the verge of a civil war. My parents were liberals who voted for democracy. And I was making speeches at school about social injustice, equality and marginalisation, and why Apartheid was wrong.

“Then I went to work for a non-profit, The Foundation for Tolerance Education, and I held workshops and made speeches about Apartheid, the Holocaust, and what it means to be a victim, a perpetrator, and a bystander.

“I'm passionate about being vocal about what you believe in. It's everything to me. It's a huge part of my business and my work as a copywriter. For me it’s feminism, human rights, animal rights, black lives matter, issues of privilege. I want my clients to find their voice and be unapologetic about putting it out there. But I also want my own voice to resonate with people.”

As soon as I read this, I couldn’t wait to interview Ashleigh!

Ashleigh and I talk about:

• Her background growing up in Apartheid South Africa
• How her early experiences influenced what she does now
• The importance of finding your authentic voice and weaving it into your business and your brand, in your copy and in your marketing
• Creating content that makes people fall in love with you because you're a little bit in love with yourself

About My Guest: Ashleigh Rennie runs The Story Team, her copywriting business. Her mission is to empower female entrepreneurs to embrace their authentic voice and weave it into their business, creating consistent branding and copy that converts. She works with female entrepreneurs from South Africa to New Zealand, from India to South Korea, from the UK to the USA, helping them with badass brand voice and copy tips. She is an unapologetic vegan who started her business from her car while working as a care worker. She swears too much, is far too loud, is working more and more on not caring too much about what other people think, and she wants to tell her story so that it may help other women to find their power.

About Us: The Speaking Your Brand podcast is hosted by Carol Cox. At Speaking Your Brand, we help women entrepreneurs and professionals clarify their brand message and story, create their signature talks, and develop their thought leadership platforms. Our mission is to get more women in positions of influence and power because it's through women's stories and visibility that we challenge the status quo and change existing systems. Check out our coaching programs at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com.

Links:

Show notes at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/234

Ashleigh’s website: https://www.thestoryteam.org/

7 of the Greatest Public Speakers (really, no women?!?): https://bigthink.com/stephen-johnson/7-of-the-greatest-public-speakers-in-history

A more balanced list of great speeches: https://blog.wsb.com/powerful-lessons-for-speakers-from-15-great-orators

Get on the interest list for our Thought Leader Academy: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/academy/.

Connect on social:

• Carol on LinkedIn = https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolcox
• Carol on Instagram= https://www.instagram.com/carolmorgancox
• SYB on YouTube = https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCS7AtXV0f_HL09mepAON65w
• Ashleigh on LinkedIn = https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleigh-rennie/
• Ashleigh on Instagram = https://www.instagram.com/thestoryteamldn/

Related Podcast Episodes:

• Episode 163: A Feminist Approach to Public Speaking with Carol Cox
• Episode 185: My Journey as a Thought Leader and How We’re Evolving at Speaking Your Brand with Carol Cox
• Episode 213: The V.O.I.C.E. of Thought Leaders with Carol Cox

Become Bookable Live Online Workshop - April 15, 2026
If you want to speak more but you’re not sure where to start or your efforts haven’t produced the results you want, I’m hosting a live online workshop called “Become Bookable: How to Get Speaking Invitations” on Wednesday, April 15th.

A lot of brilliant women assume they just need to pitch themselves more. But the real reason speakers get invited isn’t because they pitch harder — it’s because they’re positioned as bookable.

In this 3-hour interactive workshop live on Zoom, I’ll show you how speakers actually get invited — and help you clarify the positioning that makes event organizers say yes.

As a podcast listener, use the coupon code “Podcast100” to save $100 on your registration.

Learn more and register at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/bookable