AnnJoan Hyman, M.A., CCC-SLP

The coaching work I do with the Greiner team is for attorneys and legal executives who are looking to enhance their executive presence and leadership effectiveness, develop their public speaking and presentation skills, modify accents, and improve their voice and speech. All my clients have one thing in common – the need to communicate clearly and effectively. I prepare clients for all types of presentations – Board of Directors meetings, pitches, training sessions, and even TED talks, as well as day-to-day management and leadership interactions in the firm.

I earned my master’s degree in speech pathology from New York University and my bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland. Then, for 26 years I worked as a senior consultant with the former Sam Chwat Speech Center/New York Speech Improvement Services. Certified by the American Speech and Hearing Association, I am licensed in both New Jersey and New York.

That is a trick question – all of them, for a spectrum of reasons! I am certainly enlivened day-to-day by a wide variety of interesting, successful clients. If pressed, I would say that I most appreciate ambitious people, as they are committed to improving all areas of their performance. Not everyone considers speech as a vital piece of leadership and success, so the ones who select me as their coach are already poised for big gains, at any stage of their career. It is exciting to partner with a client who is weighing all aspects of their success, and who is driven to accelerate this nuanced and important area.

I love words and sounds, and have always been intrigued by how people present themselves, and how the voice is used as a tool for success. Most people do not discern the ways in which people utilize voice and language and how it can be a career asset or liability.

I am a voracious reader and enjoy how words are used to communicate thoughts and emotions. My work is all about communication and how words, style, sounds, cadence, and body language convey meaning and information. Each client provides a unique opportunity for me to hone in on what they need, what will make the most difference to take their performance and confidence to the next level.

I will narrow it down to a few key improvements that attorneys at all levels can count on; they will communicate with confidence and command respect. They will present more effectively when pitching and closing business, succeed on more cases, and achieve their goals wherever they are in their career.

For lawyers, control of voice and tonality, perfecting body language for maximum impact and executive presence, and dynamic effectiveness with large and small groups, allows one to express even greater confidence and authority.

It is important to highlight the coaching I am doing with attorneys at the Partner level. As a person advances, speech, voice, and pitch become even more important. We elevate vocabulary, prioritize body language – a senior partner is expected to be more controlled and portray oneself in a certain way. One of the enjoyable aspects of being a senior executive is they can actually relax a bit, and be more genuine and authentic. We work together to eliminate tension with confidence, knowledge, genuineness – credibility goes up.

As the demands on a senior attorney increase, my services become, dare I say, de rigueur!

Issues and needs vary, therefore, the process flexes. Yet, one thing that makes me unique is that from the first meeting, I take my client’s issue as my issue – it becomes personal for me. When the issue is transferred to me, the pressure and frustration with which the client arrives is off them, and on me! I am always 100% confident that I can fix the problem. My passion and keen listening drives the process, and then – of course – I have 30 years of precise, proven techniques, exercises, assignments, and practices, to draw upon.

Good listening enables me to craft our path together. We create goals together based on a swift determination of how to get to the next level. That’s why they like working with me.

Each individual is important to me, resulting in each person feeling special, supported, and safe. They know that they can reach out to me anytime and I will be completely focused on them. Loving my work inspires them to work even harder. When clients acknowledge these aspects of my coaching, it means a great deal. And, of course, when they share their specific wins – the results – I am thrilled. It’s been a thirty-year career of win after win, which keeps me devoted to my work and clients.