It is no secret that being able to challenge yourself means identifying what are some of the beliefs that may hold you back from identifying what you are meant to become. Whether that source of limiting beliefs come from the activities you engage in, the individuals that you surround yourself with, or something else, being able to challenge yourself to see "beyond the beyond" is really important not only for perspective, but to ensure that progress, in a healthy way, can be made. How do you exactly do that? Today's guest, Maisie Trang, shares her unique profession that has allowed her to not only step outside of her comfort zone, but to also create opportunities that would of otherwise not been experienced if she did not challenge those beliefs. We are all capable of being able to overcome our limited beliefs, but with the right influences, we can become better versions of ourselves by listening to "what is in our hearts" at the right time.

Guest Bio

Maisie is from a quaint little town in Idaho. She spent years conforming to the expectations of others, living life with a small mindset and loads of negative self-talk. However, her journey took a transformative turn when she granted herself the freedom to dream big, break out of the conventional mold, and liberate herself from the need for validation, even from her cultural roots as a first-generation Asian American. She has realized it's okay to have unconventional dreams and diverge from the norm. Her perspective on life has shifted, viewing the world as unfolding "for me, not to me."

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Website: https://maisietrang.com/

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Intro/Outro By: Michael Dugan, Podcast Host: Voice4Chefs

Welcome to the podcast where relationships, confidence, and

2

determination all converge into

an amazing, heartfelt experience.

3

This is Speaking From The Heart.

4

Joshua: Welcome back to episode

number 134 of Speaking From The Heart.

5

Today we have Maisie Trang as

our guest, and Maisie is from

6

a quaint little town in Idaho.

7

She spent years conforming to the

expectations of others, living

8

life with a small mindset and

loads of negative self talk.

9

However, her journey took a transformative

turn when she granted herself the

10

freedom to dream big, break out of

the conventional mold, and liberate

11

herself from the need for validation,

even from her cultural roots as a

12

first generation Asian American.

13

She has realized it's okay

to have unconventional dreams

14

and diverge from the norm.

15

Her perspective on life has shifted,

viewing the world as unfolding for

16

her, not for others, and I have to

say, this is one of the more unique

17

interviews that I've had as Maisie will

talk a little bit about her career as

18

a voiceover actress, something that we

haven't had yet on the show, but what

19

we also haven't had was the ability to

have a conversation with someone that

20

is challenging her own beliefs, what

she has been raised to believe, and

21

to create her own destiny, despite any

obstacle that might stand in her way.

22

Now, I get it.

23

Many of you might not believe in this

manifest destiny, or even setting

24

your own tone for what you ultimately

can become, but when you listen to

25

her story today about how she's been

alright to navigate through some of

26

these healthy alternatives that she

has laid out in her life, we can all

27

understand that we are all pieces of work.

28

In other words, maybe pieces of clay,

if you wanted to have a more visual

29

representation, to being shaped

in a variety of different ways.

30

We have to celebrate, though, the ability

for us to have that freedom, that choice

31

to express ourselves in more ways than

one, and hey, for somebody that has been

32

raised on a farm for most of my life,

I can certainly appreciate not only

33

growing up in a small rural community,

but also challenging the status quo,

34

because status quos don't always mean

that everything that we're doing is right.

35

It means that we have to work on

connection, finding ways in which

36

we can discipline ourselves to have

bigger and better aspirations, but

37

also being able to do things that

we never thought we could ever do.

38

But with that, let's go to the episode.

39

Alright, we're here with Maisie Trang.

40

Maisie!

41

Thanks for sharing your

heart with us today.

42

Maisie: Thank you, Josh.

43

Happy to be here.

44

Joshua: Yeah, I'm so happy that you're

here, too, and I have to tell you that

45

with your profession, which I just shared

with the audience, you have broken another

46

milestone here at Speaking From the Heart.

47

I love what you do for part of

your work and I will get into it.

48

I don't want to jump the gun, but I

want to start off with this, because

49

one of the biggest things that stood

out to me is that your cultural roots,

50

first generation Asian American.

51

I found that so interesting

to point that out.

52

I wonder if you could tell me a little

bit, and my listeners, your story about

53

being raised in that sort of environment.

54

What did that mean for you?

55

What did that create for you?

56

What made you, you?

57

Maisie: That's a great question,

Josh, so me, growing up in a

58

little town in Idaho; it's called

Burley, the little city in Idaho.

59

It's a very small town.

60

I think it's a population of about

10,000 people or less, might have

61

grown since then, but I was born in

Twin Falls, and then I grew up in

62

Burley, so they're both small towns,

so I've been in Idaho born and raised,

63

and I was pretty much the only Asian.

64

We were the only Asian family, pretty

much, in that city, and there was

65

maybe one or two other families,

but we were surrounded by other

66

people who didn't look like us,

but I got used to that, growing up.

67

I didn't really see it as any different

than me being different than them.

68

I just tried to belong, I guess-

69

Joshua: Mmhmm.

70

Maisie: And so growing up, I found

that over time, the Asian culture

71

is really known for having high

expectations and discipline and hard

72

work and anything, and my parents, they

started a business there in the little

73

town, so we became quite popular in

our city, because they were known for

74

their restaurant, their food, in town.

75

They had to really work hard to survive,

to make our family the way it is, just

76

the three of us, and I noticed that

over time, just as I was growing up,

77

they never expressed any emotions or

opinions on anything, and they just did

78

the work that they had to do to survive,

and I understood that later on, but I

79

didn't really understand that back then.

80

It's just what they knew, and I respect

that, and I love them dearly of course,

81

but for me growing up, it was like a

split; three different worlds in a way.

82

Two different worlds at least, right,

so trying to live in the Asian culture

83

and following the traditions with my

family, my parents, but then also, trying

84

to follow the traditions in school and

learning the way to interact with people

85

in school, and hearing the different

languages also, so, it's just different

86

behavior, right, and I got confused,

I think, growing up, and then I became

87

more familiar with it and just said, "Oh.

88

Whatever.", so for me, I was

just often told by people around

89

me to keep focusing on school.

90

Excel at it.

91

Get that good job, but I kept

being told, "Don't dream too big.

92

Don't dream too big.

93

Just keep it small.

94

Don't have opinions on things, and just

do the work that you need to do.", so it

95

all had a profound influence on me, and

because of that, I grew up thinking I was

96

unworthy, that I wasn't good enough, or

intelligent enough, and I just ask all

97

these questions about why I even tried to

talk about my feelings on things, because

98

I didn't really know how to do that.

99

Joshua: I was going to say that I

think for some people growing up,

100

we're often stifled from being able

to share that, and recently I've had

101

some guests on the show that I've

talked about the fact that for the male

102

population that we usually are taught

at an early age, "Well, you can't cry.

103

You can't do this.

104

You can't do that.", and you bring up

something though that's very interesting

105

and I've had a lot of Asian American

friends, myself, growing up in school.

106

They felt almost the same

way as you described.

107

It kind of felt like they didn't

belong, maybe they had to conform to

108

what their parents had to say, and

you talked a little bit about what

109

those feelings are, but how did you

associate with others in school then?

110

I mean, I feel like you were

probably still well respected

111

and you had some friends, right?

112

Maisie: Yeah.

113

I mean, as a kid, I didn't

really think too much about it,

114

but later on I realized, "Well,

it's almost like anybody else."

115

When you're a kid, you just want to

have fun, but then at the same time,

116

you want to fit in with the groups of

people and make those friends, and it was

117

hard for me in a way and it might have

been because of the cultural background.

118

I always wanted to spend time with

my friends and make sure that I was

119

liked with the people in my classes,

but I was always told, "Okay, no.

120

You can't go to this.

121

You can't go to that.

122

You have to stay home and study and

do your homework, because that's more

123

important than making friends.", and so I

had to re-evaluate pretty much when I was

124

a kid and then growing up, telling myself,

"Okay, I guess I don't need friends.

125

I'll just do this and get it done and

do what's expected of me, and not have

126

opinions about it.", because that's what

I was taught growing up and it's not

127

anything bad to say about my family,

really, because that's really what they

128

knew, so it's nothing bad about them.

129

Joshua: Oh, no.

130

You're not saying anything

like that for sure.

131

I'm validating you in that, and for

your parents, if they are listening to

132

this, trust me, she is not saying that,

and I've worked with a lot of people

133

that definitely are saying the complete

opposite and I would know for a fact,

134

so Maisie, I validate you with that.

135

Maisie: Thanks Josh, but yeah, no, I just

always pretended to be happy, I think.

136

As a kid growing up and even into my

college years, just pretending to be

137

happy because that was so much easier

than explaining why I wasn't happy, and

138

getting all the questions from other

family members and friends, and because

139

I was just still recovering from all the

things that I haven't expressed, and so

140

it was exhausting to explain why and it

actually felt a little wrong to have to

141

express those emotions, or have an opinion

on anything, because I haven't done that.

142

I haven't really practiced that, so

it just didn't feel right, but it

143

makes sense that my self esteem and

confidence just weren't there, and they

144

weren't there for a really long time,

and just not knowing what I wanted, I

145

think also, and having to dig deep to

find that, and just trying to succeed

146

academically, and having a good career to

survive like everybody else that I knew.

147

I just kept working really hard,

because that's what I knew, and I

148

got that academic success, but I felt

like deep down there was something

149

else involved, but I didn't know

how to manage that until later on.

150

Joshua: What would you say was some of

the motivation for you to say, "I'm not

151

going to follow these precedents that

have happened.", and what led you to

152

realize that inner confidence in yourself,

because it takes a big step for somebody

153

to be able to say that, and wanting to

actually put action behind it, because I

154

mean, what we're going to get into is the

direct opposite, I would say, of what you

155

just described, so what was that catalyst

for you to make you turn that switch on

156

and maybe find what was inside of you?

157

Maisie: I think I just sat with myself

a lot, because I was alone a lot, and

158

there was something inside where I just

kept getting sad all the time, and I

159

didn't really like where that was, and

eventually, I got to a low point in my

160

life, and I didn't really talk about that.

161

I haven't talked about that with other

people, but, in the dark place that

162

I was in, I just didn't want to stay

there anymore, and I just really got

163

sick of feeling that way, because I

always felt that way, and it's almost

164

like the feelings just became numb, and

I think with all of that suppression

165

inside of me, it's just like my body

just went, "Let's go!", and it just

166

went all out, because it wanted to.

167

It was like almost involuntary in

a way, and it just completely just

168

released it all, and it felt good.

169

It felt messy.

170

It felt exhausting, and somewhat of a

relief, but I knew that I needed that.

171

It's just been so long that it's

held there, and just to finally

172

release that, oh my goodness!

173

I can't even explain the feeling

other than just now, but I just wanted

174

something to change, and because I

felt as small as possible at that

175

point in time, nothing else mattered.

176

Nobody's opinion mattered anymore,

and so I decided to do whatever

177

felt good to me and to just start

something, so no matter what anyone

178

else thought, I just said, "Okay.

179

I'm doing whatever, whatever.", so it's

just strange that it took me to go to

180

that point to make the moves that I

did, and I would say that that was the

181

main point to get me there, to make

that shift, and even though I didn't

182

really plan on doing that, it just did.

183

Joshua: Sometimes it just comes out

of nowhere and almost hits you like

184

a train, or a car, or a bus, which

physically that didn't happen to

185

you, so thank goodness it didn't, but

metaphorically, it did because it helped

186

you to kind of see that other side of

it, and you talk about the low point.

187

I think that many of us get to that low

point in a variety of different ways.

188

I know for me it was overworking,

not paying attention to myself,

189

not being health conscious.

190

I mean, now I work in my coaching

business to help others to kind of

191

see what those warning signs, those

triggers are, so that they don't fall

192

into those same traps like I did.

193

It's really good to have that perspective,

because sometimes some people don't

194

know what those signs are, but was

the catalyst what you do, which

195

I'm getting into now, which is your

voiceovers and also being an actress?

196

I saw this, and I'm like all fascinated,

and for my listeners, I said to Maisie

197

before we started that I had no idea

about a lot of these things until I

198

started to explore her website, and I

was so fascinated by the work that she's

199

done, not only for commercials, but other

things, so was it because of this, like

200

that was what you were looking to do?

201

Is that your calling?

202

Maisie: Yeah, so I don't know if it's

really my calling quite yet, but I can

203

say that for some reason, I just needed

something to express myself, and my voice,

204

and my thoughts, and this turned out

to be a really good avenue to do that.

205

I was able to learn how to control my

emotions, release them more, and express

206

myself, and be authentic, so it was

a really great outlet, and honestly,

207

Josh, I never planned on that either.

208

I just wanted to do something that

was different, and I fell into this

209

because I just was searching for, "Okay.

210

What are some creative things that

I can do?", and this is something

211

that came up, and I gave it a shot.

212

I tried it, and I loved it, and I loved

how it made me feel, and so I just kept

213

going with that, but yeah, there was

a hesitation at the beginning because

214

of all those previous thoughts coming

back again, but then I was like, "It

215

doesn't really matter at this point.

216

I just want to try it out.", and it's

led me to this point where it feels

217

good to grant myself that freedom

to dream big, no matter what anybody

218

else says or thinks, and I think

just having this new way of thinking

219

really allowed me to just continue

to do that because it feels right.

220

It feels good to do this.

221

Joshua: Wow.

222

I think you don't even realize what you're

saying right now is so powerful because

223

it takes great courage and fortitude to

be able to pull yourself out and say,

224

"I want to do something that's fun.

225

I want to do something that's for me."

226

I mean, not many people, Maisie,

nowadays, even across the world, because

227

I have international listeners as well.

228

Maisie: Yeah.

229

Joshua: That are willing to say that, so

you got to give yourself some more credit.

230

I think.

231

Maisie: Thank you.

232

Joshua: Yeah.

233

I mean, because I'm totally impressed.

234

I'll give you an example of why I'm

impressed, and for my listeners, if you

235

go to Maisie's website, you'll see exactly

what I'm talking about, but I played

236

your commercial demo reel before I got on

tonight, listening to this, and I loved

237

all the variety of different products,

all the different things that you pitched.

238

Your voice is so calming.

239

I always felt like for three

minutes or whatever how long it

240

was- no, it wasn't three minutes.

241

The poem was three minutes, but

the commercial demo reel that

242

you have for a little over a

minute made me feel like, "Wow.

243

This lady is so talented and I

don't even know she recognized it."

244

Now I'm hearing your story, so I have

to ask you this because for many people,

245

maybe just to set the groundwork for this

conversation, many people probably don't

246

even know what a voiceover is in terms

of what that falls into the commercial

247

world, let alone how you even get into

it, so I'm wondering if, just from your

248

perspective, can you share a little

bit about, first off, how you got into

249

this, and then secondly, how you got

some of the people that you got to work

250

with on some of these commercials as

voiceovers, how did you achieve those?

251

Maisie: Yeah, so, with voiceover,

I first took a webinar, I believe;

252

local webinar that was available, and

I remember thinking to myself, "Wow!

253

Am I really going to do this?", and I

said to myself, "Well, it's not going

254

to hurt to just learn something.", so

I enrolled in that class, that webinar,

255

and it allowed to give an introduction

to the profession and the industry, and

256

then they allowed like a free evaluation

on your voice and performance with

257

that webinar, so I did that, and they

told me that I actually passed that

258

evaluation, and I think just from that

evaluation experience, it basically

259

encouraged me and told me, "Okay.

260

Well maybe this is a possibility for

me to continue on.", so it started

261

from there, and then after that, I

wanted to know more information, right?

262

I just kept going.

263

It's like I started it and now I'm

like, "Oh, I want to keep finding

264

the pieces to make this work now.",

but I wanted to do it the right way.

265

I wanted to make sure that I'm doing

this correctly, because I think

266

every industry, you can always learn

mistakes from other people, and just

267

learning how to do it the correct way.

268

Joshua: Yes.

269

Maisie: So after that, I just sought

out other people online, and I found

270

out that there was someone else who

was a pharmacist, which I relate to,

271

because I'm a pharmacist by training,

so I talked with her and she did

272

voiceovers as well, and that inspired

me to continue that way too, so-

273

Joshua: My mouth is dropping open here.

274

A pharmacist group

essentially doing voiceovers.

275

This blows my mind.

276

Keep going.

277

I love this.

278

Maisie: I know.

279

It blew my mind too.

280

I was like, "Wow!

281

There is somebody else out there."

282

Joshua: Yeah.

283

Maisie: And so we talked, and she

encouraged me to try it out, and so

284

I did, and basically took off from

there, so I joined different groups.

285

I went to a conference that

was specifically for voiceover,

286

but I wasn't used to that.

287

I was used to more pharmacy, pharmacist,

professional conferences, and going to

288

this voiceover conference was totally

different for me, and networking with

289

people that way in this kind of creative

space, it just felt really good.

290

It felt fun.

291

It felt just really nice to know

other people in the industry who

292

are really kind in the voiceover

community, and I took lessons.

293

I was coached, trained, and still right

now I'm still enrolled in the different

294

groups, and I'm going to another voiceover

conference here coming up, so that, and

295

just learning from the different experts

in the field, and eventually, you kind

296

of get to know one another, because

we're a pretty small group, even though

297

there's thousands among thousands of voice

actors, but for some reason, it still

298

feels like a really small community, in

a way, and we're really supportive of

299

each other, and if we wanted to learn

more, there's always those different

300

groups on social media that have industry

experts in those and provide a lot of

301

the guidance and direction that's helpful

for newcomers who want to learn more.

302

Joshua: It's so cool to

just see such a small group.

303

I love- you doing- sorry.

304

For our listeners, we just

did a little happy dance.

305

It's like, "Yeah.

306

I'm doing what I'm doing.", and those

are the happy dances that I like

307

seeing from some of my clients when

they see that success, like, "I am

308

doing it now.", but you have a lot

of different things underneath your

309

belt with what you've done so far.

310

I've seen therapy voiceovers

you've done for some commercials.

311

I've seen some for healthcare providers.

312

I was listening to Panda Express.

313

I've listened to one of those.

314

You have reached all kinds of different

types of gambits with it, and I have

315

to ask, because I think this is awesome

question for me, and like I said, you're

316

my very first person on the show to

have that is done voiceover acting.

317

What would you say was your favorite

one to do thus far out of your huge

318

portfolio that I'm sure you have?

319

I know, that's a tough question.

320

Maisie: It is a tough question.

321

Honestly.

322

I don't have a single favorite one,

but I can say that I really, really

323

enjoyed the mental health space

service that I did; the project, mental

324

health project that I did with them.

325

It just felt good to do that, to help

tell the story, to help give something

326

meaningful, to send that message to

people that it's okay to have mental

327

health services and to talk about that.

328

It just felt really,

really good and meaningful.

329

Joshua: What would you say is one

of the reasons why you continue to

330

build upon your confidence in doing

voiceovers, because let's face it.

331

Let's integrate the conversation

we had earlier into this.

332

You had reached a low point.

333

You wanted to figure out what

those things are in your life.

334

That's what you were saying

in terms of the expectations.

335

Do you set yourself high

expectations with this now, or

336

do you try to have fun with it?

337

Maisie: You know, I

thought about this before.

338

I'm like, "Am I going back to

what I was before in a way, just

339

in a different version of it?"

340

I think I do set myself high

expectations, but I think it's in

341

a more healthy way than before.

342

I think that's because I'm more in

tune with my authentic self, and

343

by doing that it feels much better.

344

It feels right, and I think for anybody

listening, if you've ever experienced that

345

before, you'll know that it's the right

thing for you when you're doing something

346

that aligns with your spirit and yourself,

and even though it's setting high

347

expectations for you, you know it's okay,

because it's not in a very toxic way.

348

It's in a very supportive, growth,

inspiring type of way, and I think

349

that's what makes it feel right.

350

Joshua: Having that feeling of what

is right, and sometimes knowing what

351

is wrong, sometimes we put that shade,

those rose colored glasses on, so that

352

we don't see what's wrong, and I will say

to you, even at my age, which I'm over

353

37 now, I have still been dealing with

a lot of those sort of expectations and

354

trying to pull those down, and I think

that for all of us, we're always going

355

through that exercise, and you saying

what you're saying, it makes sense to

356

me that for all these kinds of people

that we have in our lives coming in and

357

coming out, maybe they have to be able to

work really hard to get what they need.

358

For others, it might just come easy to

them, and I think you're in this path of

359

figuring out what is coming easy to you

so that you can enjoy what's fulfilling,

360

so with that said, you are essentially,

as you said in your bio, you're trying to

361

break that mold; that conventional mold.

362

Do you think you're doing that?

363

I mean, do you think that you're honestly,

earnestly doing that, and if so, do you

364

think there's a lot more work that you

have to do to continue breaking that

365

mold, because yeah, it's one thing to

break it, but you could be unintentionally

366

re-shaping it into a completely

different shape that you might be setting

367

yourself up, so what's your safeguard?

368

Maisie: That's a good, good point.

369

It's probably more of like

reshaping it in a way.

370

I think there's, of course, plenty of

work to do to keep on reshaping it,

371

because of the work that I'm in now,

doing acting and voice acting and

372

trying to be a pharmacist as well,

and doing my day job and everything,

373

there's still a lot of misconceptions

or a lot of thoughts that come to mind.

374

When other people, when I try to explain

it, that it's just not a typical thing

375

for an Asian person to do, or a pharmacist

to do, and that's one of the ways I feel

376

like, when I'm working on these kinds

of projects, it helps me know that I'm

377

supporting and influencing that change,

and reshaping it, and educating people,

378

that you can be more than a pharmacist.

379

You can be more than an artist.

380

You can be many things.

381

Sometimes you may be better at one thing

at a given moment, but you can be all the

382

things, just maybe not at the same time.

383

You'll probably be working on one

thing and enhancing that at a given

384

moment, but you can also be an actor,

or a voice actor, or some other

385

type of artist, and that's okay.

386

That's okay, but I think a lot of

us are afraid to pursue those other

387

passions that we might have, because

of what other people think, and that's

388

stopping us from doing anything.

389

At least that's the way

it was for me before.

390

Joshua: This is a really

important question.

391

Are you getting in your own way now?

392

Maisie: Hmm.

393

I think, right now, not

as much Not as much now.

394

Before?

395

Yes, growing up.

396

In college, I just told myself to

stay low, stay small, don't try

397

anything else, just get that good job,

succeed, survive, and have the family.

398

Be proud, but, now, not as much.

399

Not in that same way, at least.

400

Right now what's really getting

in the way is having enough time

401

to do everything, but, yeah.

402

Joshua: Always the age old question

for even business owners for sure.

403

Where am I going to do with the

finite time I have every day?

404

Yeah.

405

Maisie: Yeah.

406

Yeah, but no, I think

it's a special thing too.

407

For me I really love doing this

because I found that I love creating

408

projects, and telling the stories

that need to be told, and having

409

people think in a different way.

410

It just feels really meaningful to me

to work on these kinds of projects,

411

knowing that I helped create those,

and that could potentially impact other

412

people to think in a different way.

413

Joshua: Potentially?

414

There has to be hundreds of thousands

of people that listen to your voice,

415

especially being on commercials.

416

You got to be kidding me, Maisie.

417

You are so still

underselling yourself here.

418

I'm like sitting here and

I'm thinking, "My gosh.

419

I wish I had some of her talents

because she has such a calm, soothing

420

voice and I'm like, big ruff and gruff

over here, a big masculine voice."

421

Maisie: But we need that too,

Josh, so you've got that.

422

Joshua: Okay.

423

Well good.

424

Can I be hired as a voice actor then?

425

What do you think?

426

Maisie: You probably could.

427

Yes.

428

Joshua: Yes.

429

Listeners.

430

Adios.

431

I will no longer be doing any episodes

after tonight because of Maisie.

432

She has given me the recommendation,

the green light to keep moving forward.

433

Maisie: That's right.

434

Triple green lights.

435

Joshua: See?

436

Now I'm doing my happy dance over here

too, so- Maisie, we're almost out

437

of time, but I want to ask you this

final question, and I've been really

438

enlightened by this conversation.

439

I got to tell you.

440

Like a quaint little town in Idaho

had this wonderful lady that was

441

being able to bless me on the show

today, and share a good piece of

442

her story and what you have done.

443

What's ahead for you?

444

What do you see as that big picture

down the road, that not only would

445

I like you to answer what it means

for you, but what would it mean

446

for my listeners listening too?

447

Meaning, what would you give

them as advice for being able

448

to dream big, and as you put it,

shift your perspective on life?

449

Maisie: Right.

450

For me, I think what's ahead is to

keep on being my authentic self, and at

451

least trying to maybe not be at the 100

percent perfection, authenticity mode,

452

whatever that may be, wherever that may

be, but it's more of like encouraging

453

others to embrace and celebrate the

various aspects of their identity

454

and their life, because you can have

multifaceted things that you enjoy.

455

Everyone has unique and diverse aspects

to their personalities and to their

456

desires, and the ways that they want

to express that, so, just acknowledging

457

that, and integrating all of that,

all your feelings, and being okay,

458

and celebrating that about yourself.

459

I think that's something important

for us to realize, and I really wish

460

everyone listening to really reflect on

that and embracing that for yourself.

461

Joshua: Embracing that is always

a big part of that process.

462

Being able to feel like

you're in control of it.

463

Being able to say, "Yes!

464

I have this feeling.

465

I'm going to accept it.", and you

said something that I even say to my

466

clients, so you make me feel validated

that you don't have to be 100 percent

467

all the time, so for my active

clients right now listening to this.

468

Listen to her.

469

She's saying something I've been telling

you, and that's what's really important.

470

Maisie: Yeah, it sounds easy sometimes

when we're saying it, and I understand

471

it can be hard to do, and I think one

of the important things we can do is

472

really surrounding yourself with people

that support you and serve you, saying

473

yes to things that serve you, saying no

to things that don't, so that it leaves

474

space for the things that do serve you.

475

Joshua: So true.

476

Just so true, and I think that if we

don't surround ourselves with that, that's

477

what sometimes creates the unfavorable

Impressions, the low points in our life.

478

Maisie, I love that you've

transformed yourself.

479

I want to give you the last few minutes as

a result of doing that to pitch yourself.

480

I would love for you to tell my listeners,

how can they get in contact with you?

481

If they're interested in having a

project, maybe a voiceover done with you.

482

You have a nice calming voice

throughout this half hour.

483

I feel a little bit more sleepier

than I did when I started.

484

Maisie: No, don't fall asleep.

485

Joshua: Oh no.

486

Don't worry.

487

We'll get it through the rest of this.

488

I'm wondering if you could let them know

how they can get in contact with you,

489

but I'm going to give you the last few

minutes, go ahead and pitch yourself.

490

Maisie: Okay, thank you, Josh.

491

If you'd like to work with

me as an actor or a voiceover

492

actor, you can go to my website.

493

It's maisietrang.com, so it's M A I S I

E T R A N G.com, and all of my contact

494

information and demos and samples are

available there, and you'll also see

495

that I can do commercials, meditations,

e-learning tutorials, different narration

496

pieces, including medical narration,

and explaining different products, or

497

even podcasts, and I'm also available

on Facebook @MaisieTrang, and then

498

X, or Twitter, @MaisieTrang, and then

Instagram @Maisie.Trang, and then I

499

guess a final piece, I never mentioned

this, but I'm also trying to teach a

500

computer basics program because I do some

technology work at work, so I have that

501

available, and if you'd like to enroll

in a computer basics program at all,

502

I have a free intro call that you can

talk with me more about what you need

503

help with, and you can just email me at

maisietrang@gmail.com and we can talk from

504

there and talk over the phone after that.

505

Joshua: I'll put all that information

in the episode notes in case anybody

506

wants to check out and reach out

to Maisie, but I have to say.

507

Look, and I don't normally do this

and I feel like I almost lecture when

508

I do this, but you're one of these

guests that I just have to give you a

509

quick little pep talk before we wrap

up, so I hope your accepting of this,

510

and you can yell at me later if you

don't like it, but here's the thing.

511

You grew up in a community

almost like I did.

512

I grew up in a small town

called Oley, O L E Y.

513

It's in Pennsylvania.

514

It's this quaint little town, about

hour away from Philadelphia because we

515

were talking about how far away I was

from other locations when we started,

516

but I also had this feeling that I was

just not doing what I needed to do in

517

life, and I put that off- get ready-

for over 30 some years, until I finally

518

realized I needed to open a business

and help others because I was not doing

519

what I needed to do in life, so I'm

helping people figure out what the junk

520

is in their life and getting it fixed.

521

I'm helping people with their speaking.

522

I'm helping people get better jobs

with professional development.

523

I do all kinds of things, and I

even trying to break into the public

524

speaking realm by being a professional

speaker, and it isn't that I'm trying.

525

I am, so I want you from now on

today say, "I am a voice actor.

526

I am a voiceover artist.

527

I am the best in the

industry.", and I'll tell you.

528

You don't have to go around and tell

people that, but if that's your daily

529

affirmation getting up, Maisie, I swear to

you, I swear that you will do so much good

530

work like you're doing already because

you are doing some awesome work and I

531

would love that we talk at some point

down the road and you tell me that, "Yes!

532

I broken into this.

533

I'm no longer doing pharmacy work.

534

I'm doing this for big time corporate

entities with their commercials.",

535

so make me that promise that

next time we talk, you're going

536

to keep believing in yourself.

537

Okay.

538

Maisie: Oh yeah.

539

Thank you.

540

Thank you for that pep talk.

541

Yeah, no, I love that.

542

I love pep talks.

543

Yes, of course.

544

I try to practice different

affirmations a day.

545

I haven't done that.

546

I am a voiceover, like voiceover actor,

but I have done, "I am grateful today."

547

Joshua: Well, you should be grateful too.

548

Yes.

549

Maisie: Yeah, but yeah, that's great.

550

Thank you.

551

Joshua: Yes, absolutely, and for

all those reasons, and for you

552

continuing on your journey, thanks

for being on Speaking From the Heart.

553

It was really a joy and a privilege to

have not only my very first voiceover

554

artist on the show, but to know

somebody with your deep heart and

555

your deep story, you definitely were

your authentic self, so thank you.

556

Maisie: I appreciate that.

557

Thank you so much, Josh.

558

Joshua: I want to thank Maisie so

much for being part of the show.

559

She shows to me, just like we had

with other guests, the importance

560

of being able to have that small

town living feeling, but also

561

being able to have big aspirations.

562

It's almost coming out of a movie

directly, if you think about Maisie's

563

story, in that sometimes we have a lot

of different setbacks, a lot of different

564

people that come into our lives, influence

us, but yet at the same time, they

565

have all kinds of different problems,

situations, and other aspects that might

566

throw a wrench into the overall plans that

we have for our lives, but I think that

567

we also have great role models when it

comes to not only working with the variety

568

of different people that surround us,

but it allows us to be more disciplined.

569

The expectations that we have for

each other can be measured in ways

570

that sometimes we don't even think

about, but at the same time, maybe

571

those limits, those things that we

have as some of the lowest points of

572

our lives, might not be what we want

to do, and that's when we resist.

573

We often fight back because we

don't want to live up to those

574

expectations that we are given.

575

In other words, do you do that work that

you have to do in order to survive, to

576

connect, to follow tradition, or, are

you doing the work that allows you to

577

live free, to have aspirations and dreams

that you never thought possible, and

578

it allows you to think outside the box?

579

Many guests that we've had on the show

have even talked about the importance

580

of focusing, creating that value in our

lives, just so that we can influence

581

not only the positivity, but also the

variety of different things that we

582

have in store for our lives, if we're

just willing to connect with what those

583

opportunities are, instead of just

focusing on what is in front of us.

584

It means being proactive.

585

It means thinking about how we can have

a voice in this ever changing world

586

to change our perspectives, but even

with trying to shake, rattle, and roll

587

through our lives, how do we fit in?

588

What makes it really hard for us to be

liked, especially when we're challenging

589

that status quo, because let's face it.

590

If we do those things,

we might not be liked.

591

We might not be appreciated, and

truthfully, we might not even be able to

592

work through some of the problems, some

of the situations, or even achieve some of

593

the outcomes that we need to have in order

to just survive, so how do we do that?

594

Is it really hard to be able to step

outside of our comfort zone to be

595

liked, to be enjoyed, especially with

all the things that we have going on?

596

Well, if you think about it, the

rules, the breakthroughs, the things

597

that we're trying to do in our lives

to support one another, whether it's

598

friends, family, or something else, it

means that we have to understand that

599

just fitting in might not always be

the solution, so what's that catalyst?

600

Let's get to the heart of

really what this is all about.

601

How do we create that catalyst so that

we can have the things that we want

602

to have in our lives be achievable?

603

How can we do that to be able to

achieve some of the best dreams,

604

some of the best versions that we

have yet to unlock in our life?

605

I think that we need to understand

that we need to express ourself

606

and control our emotions in ways in

which we can not only achieve those

607

successes, but also understand that not

everybody's going to see our viewpoint.

608

Maisie shared so much about what those

differing viewpoints are, and even creates

609

that context about how we can be more

talented, more invaluable, by just simply

610

understanding what our differences are by

learning and leaning into what might be

611

our gifts, but the best way that we could

ever do what we ultimately want to do in

612

our lives means that we have to be able

to jump into any career that we want to.

613

We have to be mentored.

614

We have to learn from others, because

we certainly don't want to jump

615

into any sort of field, whether it's

being a nuclear scientist, a rocket

616

scientist, maybe even a blinker

scientist, which, yes, I'm making a

617

joke about headlights and blinker fluid.

618

I think that we all have to

understand that if any of those

619

sort of occupations, make believe

or not, we have to be able to learn.

620

We have to be able to be mentored in ways

in which we can jump into those careers

621

and be successful at the same time, but

that also means that we can't be afraid

622

of what we are ultimately able to become.

623

Look at my life.

624

Look at all the things that I've

been able to achieve simply by

625

stepping outside my comfort zone.

626

Does it mean that I have it all together?

627

The answer is no.

628

I still have to work through a variety

of different situations on a daily basis,

629

and we have to be able to work through

those problems by the knowledge, skills,

630

and abilities that we've talked about

on many episodes that allows us to feel

631

empowered, but even with jumping into

it, when people might be looking at

632

you strangely, especially because you

are doing something that is outside the

633

comfort zone, it's okay to still have fun.

634

It's okay to have healthy avenues in

your life that allow you to not only

635

propel yourself to that next level, but

we are also able to create some of those

636

opportunities that maybe are still being

shaped, because even as I mentioned at

637

the beginning of this episode, it's still

okay to be a piece of work, being able

638

to be shaped into whatever that final

product will be, but it means that we need

639

to continue to express the things that

we really enjoy and not suppress them.

640

Maisie shared even some of those

important lessons to us as to why we

641

should never hold ourselves back from

our unlimited potential, especially if

642

we had something that we always wanted

to pursue, even voice acting for that

643

matter, doing voiceovers for commercials.

644

Who would have ever thought in a million

years that this young lady would be

645

able to achieve so much, with not only

the things that she's learned growing

646

up, but to reinvent herself, despite

what the culture and society might have

647

told her otherwise, and that's exactly

why you shouldn't put yourself down.

648

You shouldn't say no to opportunities that

might come up, but it's also understanding

649

that there is a balance, and despite

what anybody might tell you, even if that

650

is the buzzphrase of the year to have a

work life balance, it's still very true

651

that you should try to strive to it as

much as you possibly can, but also not

652

indulging too much in one particular

form or another, though the question then

653

becomes: are you going to stay low, not

even acknowledge some of the opportunities

654

that you have, or are you going to

keep on putting your head down, always

655

ignoring what might be around you, because

society and culture told you otherwise?

656

We have to celebrate the various

aspects of our lives and accept

657

the feelings that are tied to it.

658

It's okay to be scared and

fearful, especially if you're

659

jumping into something brand new.

660

It's not easy sometimes being a business

owner, especially in this tumultuous

661

climate that we're in right now, both

economically and financially, seeing

662

businesses close all around me and

cutting back, but I know that the

663

heart and passion that I have deep

inside of me, wanting to keep this

664

adventure going for myself, and working

through all the variety of different

665

viewpoints that might come my way,

really empower me and want to empower

666

my clients to become the best versions

of themselves, but it means that I have

667

to surround myself with people that are

continuously working on themselves, and

668

continuously challenging the status quo.

669

Now, I could easily go into a tirade

about all the different things that might

670

be holding us back as a society, whether

that is the social, the cultural, the

671

different expectations that are put upon

each and every one of us, whether it's

672

through friends, family, jobs, all kinds

of other aspects, but the truth of the

673

matter is, is that if we're ever going

to grow individually, we have to, at some

674

point, listen to what's inside of us.

675

How we fit in does not always

mean that we have to fit in.

676

Let me say that again.

677

How we fit in doesn't always matter.

678

Period, because even if we did try to

fit in, does it mean that we're actually

679

living that best version of ourselves?

680

If we're restricting ourselves with just

rules and different avenues where we have

681

to follow, and that's not really what

we want to follow in the first place,

682

how are we ever going to create change?

683

How are we going to be able to become

those talented and valuable individuals

684

that can jump into any career or any

sort of adventure that we ever want to?

685

I started listening to this

podcast that follows a couple

686

that are traveling digital nomads.

687

I would love to have Austin and Monica

on the show at some point in which

688

they talk about how they started this

adventure, but I'm in awe and wonder of

689

how they've been able to create value

for themselves by simply diffusing what

690

society and culture says about them.

691

They are shaping the clay that allows

them to become not only more valuable,

692

but allows them to become more

acknowledged, and more attuned, to

693

what they have as undeniable freedoms.

694

Undeniable opportunities to go around

the world and live a life where they can

695

still support themselves, but also do

things that normal 20, 30, or even 40

696

year olds would never dream possible,

but even if you're in your 60s, 70s, and

697

80s, even if you believe in a completely

different work ethic, know that it's

698

not about just keeping your head down.

699

Know it isn't just about

trying to think differently.

700

It means that we have to be mentored.

701

We have to learn to understand

that we need to create a culture

702

that not only supports one another,

but also supports ourselves.

703

I believe Maisie's story today really

exemplifies the fact that we have to

704

not only lean into our traditions,

but how we can use those traditions

705

to our advantage to create things

that we never, ever thought possible.

706

If we're able to do that, and if we're

able to express ourselves in ways in

707

which we would never be able to express

ourselves before, if we're able to delimit

708

ourselves to create the opportunities that

we have, especially now and in the future.

709

I think we're not going to stay low.

710

I think that we're not

going to put our head down.

711

I think we're going to change our

healthy avenues into even more exciting

712

adventures, because even if we're

traveling all across the world or if

713

we're in that small little cubicle in

a office that we are always looking

714

to see what's ahead of us, just know

that each of us have an entitlement,

715

an empowerment if you will, to create

the best versions of ourselves by

716

simply speaking out loud, and affirming

ourselves that anything is possible.

717

Thanks for listening to episode

number 134 of Speaking From The

718

Heart, and I look forward to

hearing from your heart, very soon.

719

Outro: Thanks for listening.

720

For more information about our podcast

and future shows, search for Speaking From

721

The Heart to subscribe and be notified

wherever you listen to your podcasts.

722

Visit us at www.yourspeakingvoice.biz

for more information about potential

723

services that can help you create

the best version of yourself.

724

See you next time.