Today in Professor Steven Allison’s Communication Skills class, our new trainees participated in improving their communication knowledge with industry expert Bri McWhorter. In this tutorial, Bri focused on interpersonal communication skills, covering techniques to strengthen focus and practice active listening. The exercises are based in acting techniques and are all interactive. The goal is to help people tune in to what is in front of them, rather than getting distracted by their own thoughts. Interpersonal communication is about connecting to someone else. This workshop covered ways to make that connection easier, like prioritize how to communicate with people, rather than to them.
Bri is the Founder and CEO of Activate to Captivate, where she teaches communication techniques from an actor’s point of view. She specializes in public speaking, scientific communications, interview skills, and interpersonal communications. She has taught workshops at Fortune 500 companies, privately coached CEOs at nonprofits, and led certificate programs at top universities. She is the creator of W.A.V.E.®, a program where she teaches speakers how to overcome nerves, use body language, and rely on their voice to tell an engaging story. She has an MFA in Acting from University of California, Irvine and a BA in Theater and Performance Studies from University of California, Berkeley.