Thursday, September 15, 2016

"Be Less Shy Toronto"

"Public Speaking for Shy, Nervous Folks Toronto"

"Stop Being Shy Toronto"

"Be Less Shy Toronto"

"Social Anxiety Toronto"

"Public Speaking for Introverts Toronto"

I've gone from being literally too shy to speak unless spoken to, to being the raunchy wild singer of a rock band. I decided to become a different person, and spent several years rewiring my brain, and changing my reaction to anxiety. I've learned many things on my path from shy to screamer, and I can help you.

When I say "public speaking", I don't mean that everyone needs to be able to address a crowd of thousands. Maybe you just need to ask a question in class, speak to your crush beyond "hi", or tell the server you're allergic to fish. For extremely shy people, it's truly difficult to speak up and speak out - but I know how to get you there, without any traumatic fire walks or freaking you out.

If you're interested in a one hour workshop in a relaxed, low stress environment, please email me - when I have 10 people, I'll organize it.

We'll discuss:
- the science of fear
- the logic and illogicalness of shyness
- how to speak to strangers
- how to speak in public
- simple exercises so that you can babystep your way to becoming a more outgoing person

If you want to take that first step to becoming more comfortable in this world, being able to speak out when you really need to, please email cynthia.gould@gmail.com immediately!

Thursday, September 08, 2016

Haiku Deathmath & Show Hosting

I love hosting shows! I have always enjoyed event planning, crowd wrangling, and keeping the audience energy up, but when I'm hosting instead of performing, it allows me to be a cheerleader for the real performers. I know, a vivacious host is performing in a different way - it is both more and less stress at the same time, but I truly love it.

The annual Toronto Haiku Head-to-head Deathmatch was amazing. People really seemed excited about the death and destruction, and the fact that they got to be rowdy at a poetry event. Here's my quote on that philosophy: Click



If you know of any shows / events / shindigs / hootenanys that might require a host, please let me know! cynthia.gould@gmail.com

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Friday, September 02, 2016

Art: Part 2 - Visuals

I have always painted, drawn, doodled, created things that were visually expressive to me. Then I spent 3 years in college studying art history, typography, colour theory, composition, layout, and the ways of commercial art, graphic design, and visual communication.

Years passed, I was busy with work, running a zine, websites, moving to Toronto and falling in love with this city. I finally started painting again, this time in a very different style. It took a few years to evolve, but I hit upon a method of painting that was incredible enjoyable to do, and other people seemed to like it too. A friend was stunned once when I admitted that I've sold over 100 paintings. That doesn't necessarily mean they're good, just that it's a popular style that people want to hang in their homes. Happy hippie art. Abstracts with stuff in them. Dr. Seuss meets Miro.

But then I started assisting a friend with lighting. There is a lot of tech involved, and I really don't take to fighting with gear, but I learned, I listened, I fought through it. Then he took on the technical part of the visual projections at a monthly event, and I was able to concentrate on content - creating video clips, using samples, and mixing the projections live. Suddenly everything clicked - live visual performance art. This is what I've been wanting to do forever. Then that monthly event stopped running. Drat.

Now I want to VJ at least once a month, but there just aren't a lot of venues set up for it, or events that can pay a VJ (at least enough to cover my expenses & Uber home at 3am). Hopefully I'll find another regular gig again soon!

My vimeo page: https://vimeo.com/vj7thdeadly
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPenJP099rQzAGQliSCKbomOGan-ridjN


Next time - Photography!

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