Kerry B Barrett

Coaching you in on-camera communication to become compelling, competent and confident | Emmy-Award Winning Broadcast Journalist Turned Media Trainer + PR Coach | Speaker

Most communication problems aren’t information problems.

They’re connection problems.

I’m Kerry Barrett—Emmy Award–winning broadcaster, TEDx and keynote speaker—and I help leaders and teams become more influential by increasing what I call their Relatability Index™.

You can have the best strategy, the best product, the best deck… and still lose the room.

In television, I learned the hard way. I was polished, prepared, and professional—and my ratings dropped. The turning point came when real news forced me off-script, and I saw what drives engagement and trust in the moments that matter most.

That insight became my keynote: The Relatability Index™ 

What audiences walk away with:

A framework for building trust quickly
The 6 traits that consistently increase relatability (and why they matter in business)
Practical ways to show up with more warmth, clarity, and credibility—without trying to be someone you’re not
Tools that translate directly into stronger leadership presence, better sales conversations, and better client relationships

I’ve worked with corporations, professional services teams, and sales organizations to strengthen influence across platforms—keynotes, internal events, leadership development, and communication training.

If your team needs to connect faster, lead better, and stand out in a noisy world—let’s talk.

Business Development Specialist

We help Service companies design a custom video strategy, test it cost-effectively, and then scale it. We approach each project as true partners and will tell you if video can deliver results, and what are your best options. Our motto: "test before you invest"

I used to think confidence was the price of admission.

You know - that feeling you’re supposed to have before you speak up in meetings, pitch your ideas, or put yourself out there publicly.

But after two decades of performing live on television (where there’s literally no do-over button), I learned something that changed everything:
The most successful people I know function beautifully while feeling terrified.

They don’t wait to feel confident. 
They don’t wait to feel ready. 
They just… show up and do the work anyway.

I call it The Confidence Lie… this myth that confidence has to come first. 

Here’s what actually happens... 

you function first, and sometimes confidence follows. 
Sometimes it doesn’t… either way is fine.

But, it's important to know...

If confidence reliably followed evidence:

*we wouldn’t have imposter syndrome

*we wouldn’t have such widespread reliance on therapy and coaching

*and we wouldn’t see highly capable, credentialed people still hesitate to speak, act, or be visible

This is what I’m talking about in my keynote work now. 

Not because I cracked some confidence code, but because I spent years watching capable people (including myself) get stuck waiting for a feeling that doesn’t always show up.

Confidence is optional. Function is not.

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Keynote Speaker | Emmy Award–Winning Broadcaster | TEDx Speaker | On-camera coach | Public Speaking and Media Training

“She’s like Wile E. Coyote super genius about this stuff.”

My client Chris said this in his testimonial video, and I’m still laughing about it. 

But here’s what he got that most (attorneys or otherwise) miss:

The problem isn’t that you can’t communicate. The problem is you think the camera changes the rules.

Chris came to me doing exactly what 90% of lawyers do on video: trying to sound “more professional” than they actually are in real life. 

Stiffer. 
More formal. 
Less… human.

But your clients don’t hire robots. They hire the person who made them feel understood in that consultation call.

After 6 sessions, here’s what shifted for Chris:

He stopped trying to perform and started having conversations. Same expertise, same authority - just delivered like he was talking to a friend instead of addressing the Supreme Court.

The result? Not just better videos, but what he called “trusted advisor” relationship. 

Your courtroom confidence didn’t disappear - it’s just hiding behind the belief that cameras require a different version of you.

They don’t. They require the REAL version of you.

What’s the biggest difference between how you sound in person vs. on camera?
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If you’re ready to show up confidently on video and attract clients because of it, DM me “I’m in” for details on my 6-week live masterclass.

Keynote Speaker | Emmy Award–Winning Broadcaster | TEDx Speaker

“Ready” is a myth your brain invented to keep you safe.

Here’s the pattern...

Someone thinks, “I’ll speak up in that leadership meeting when I have all the answers.”
They prepare more. Research deeper. Wait for certainty.
But the meeting happens. They stay quiet. The moment passes.

Next time: “I’ll speak up when I’m more senior.”
They get promoted.
Then it’s: “I’ll speak up when I have more credibility on this topic.”

The goalpost keeps moving. 


Your brain is designed to avoid risk. And visibility, performance, putting yourself out there registers as risk.

So your brain will ALWAYS find a new reason you’re not ready yet. 

You don’t need to feel ready to function… you just need to function.

I’ve performed live on television thousands of times. I can tell you with absolute certainty: I didn’t feel “ready” for a lot of them. I just went anyway.

Waiting for ready means waiting forever.

Authority doesn’t come from feeling prepared.

It comes from showing up before you think you’re ready… and doing it anyway.

Confidence is optional. Functionality is required.

Engagement isn’t the goal
Some of your most profitable videos will get:
0 comments
7 likes
1 save
And one DM that changes your revenue.
You don’t need to go viral.
You need to be visible to the right people.
That’s it.
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If you’re ready to show up confidently on video and attract clients because of it, DM me “I’m in” for details on my 6-week live masterclass.

We’ve been asking the wrong question about confidence.

You want to know: “How do I get more confident before I [speak up / go on camera / pitch the idea / take the stage]?”

Here’s what I learned across two decades in live television, on keynote stages, and building a business from scratch:

Confidence doesn’t show up before action. Not reliably. Not even for the most capable people in the room.

They feel doubt. Pressure. The weight of what’s at stake.
And they do it anyway.
I reported live on-air without feeling confident.
I took stages without feeling ready.
I started a business while terrified.

When I was coaching.. my best clients weren’t the ones who waited to feel confident. They were the ones who got on camera DESPITE the discomfort. 
Who acted before they felt ready.

Functionality doesn’t require confidence. It requires competence, preparation, and the willingness to act despite discomfort.

We’ve built an entire industry around “building confidence first” - and it’s keeping capable people stuck. Waiting. Hoping they’ll feel ready before they move.

What if we stopped waiting for confidence and started building functional authority instead?

That’s the conversation I’m bringing to stages in 2026.
Because your teams don’t need another “believe in yourself” talk.
They need permission to act before they feel ready.

They need frameworks that work when confidence doesn’t show up.

They need to know that their doubt doesn’t disqualify them.  
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PS: I speak on this idea in corporate and conference settings.

Confidence Is not a personality trait

It’s a trainable process.

You don’t need to be an extrovert.
You don’t need to “love the camera.”
You don’t need natural charisma.

You need:
clarity
delivery mechanics
presence fundamentals
a workflow

Confidence is a system, not a vibe.
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If you’re ready to show up confidently on video and attract clients because of it, DM me “I’m in” for details on my 6-week live masterclass.

Kerry Barrett

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If you're a woman attorney who knows video matters on LinkedIn but still hesitates to hit "record," this session is for you. I’m teaming up with personal stylist for female attorneys, Estelle… | Kerry Barrett

From 47 takes to one-and-done confidence | Emmy-winning broadcaster helping attorneys, business owners & professionals master video creation and on-camera presence & communication for any setting | TEDx Speaker

Before you record:
Shake your hands out
Drop your shoulders
Look at the lens
Say out loud: “I’m talking to one person who needs this.”
Boom.
Instant grounding.
Instant presence.
95% of bad videos are just unregulated nervous systems.
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If you’re ready to show up confidently on video and attract clients because of it, DM me “I’m in” for details on my 6-week live masterclass.

“I Hate How I Look on Camera”
If you've ever watched yourself back and thought:
“I look tired.”
“My face looks weird.”
“My smile looks fake.”
“I didn’t know my neck did that.”
Welcome to the club.
That voice?
It's bias — not truth.
You're not supposed to look perfect.
You’re supposed to look like someone worth trusting.
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If you’re ready to show up confidently on video and attract clients because of it, DM me “I’m in” for details on my 6-week live masterclass.

Most lawyers don’t struggle with expertise - they struggle with visibility.

The expertise vs. visibility gap in law isn’t just frustrating…
It’s costing you clients.

➡️ You know video is essential for your firm’s growth
➡️ You understand its power for thought leadership
➡️ You see others building authority through content

But when it’s time to hit record the doubts creep in:

“I don’t know what to say”
“I sound too stiff”
“What if I look unprofessional?”

Here’s what most “video confidence” coaches get wrong:
They try to turn lawyers into performers.
↳ But real confidence isn’t about becoming someone new.
↳ It’s about leveraging who you already are.

That’s why the first step in my On-Camera Authority program is a Gallup Strengths assessment.

We match your natural strengths to your video presence:

• Analytical? We build data-driven, logic-based messaging that feels natural
• Empathetic? We showcase your ability to connect with clients instantly
• Command? We bring out that courtroom authority you already own

The best lawyers don’t just win cases.
They win trust.
And video is one of the fastest way to build that trust at scale.

Ready to stop hiding and start showing up as the authority you already are?
Comment below and let’s discuss getting you confident on camera.
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If you’re ready to show up confidently on video and attract clients because of it, DM me “I’m in” for details on my 6-week live masterclass.

I spent my first year in live television absolutely terrified.

Every live shot felt massive. My nervous system treated a small-market newscast like I was reporting from a war zone.

Looking back] the stakes weren’t nearly as high as they felt.

But the fear felt real, was real,  in the moment. And I couldn’t wait for it to go away before I performed.

Fear is input, not instruction.

Input = data your body is collecting. “This is unfamiliar. This matters. There’s risk here.”
Instruction = a command telling you what to do next.

Most people treat fear like instruction. They think it means “don’t do this” or “wait until you’re ready.”

But fear doesn’t get to make that call.

Authority doesn’t come from eliminating fear or waiting until something feels comfortable. It comes from functioning despite it.

I’ve performed live thousands of times. The fear never fully disappeared. I just stopped letting it run the show.

That’s the difference between confidence (optional) and functionality (required).

You don’t need new skills. You need to use your existing ones… on purpose.

I had a client who was absolutely fantastic in person. Warm, engaging, could explain the most complex legal concepts in ways that actually made sense. 

Put him in front of a camera? He turned

 into some weird, robotic version of himself.
Gone was the natural warmth. Instead, he’d make these awkward, scripted hand gestures—like someone had literally written “GESTURE HERE” in his teleprompter. 

He sounded rehearsed, stiff, and nothing like the lawyer I knew him to be.

The camera wasn’t the problem. The formality trap was.

When you’re on camera, the stakes feel higher. This content lives forever. People are watching. So you think you need to “perform”—and you do. But here’s the thing: you perform as YOURSELF, not as some buttoned-up character you think you’re supposed to be.

The breakthrough? Helping him understand that he already had every skill he needed. That natural warmth that put clients at ease? Use it on purpose. That ability to break down complex ideas? Deploy it intentionally.

He didn’t need to learn how to communicate. He needed to communicate the way he already did—just with strategic intention to work with the medium, not against it.

The result? He went from sounding like he was delivering a hostage tape to being the same compelling lawyer his clients already knew—just on camera.

Stop trying to become someone new on video. Start being yourself… on purpose.
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If you’re ready to show up confidently on video and attract clients because of it, DM me “I’m in” for details on my 6-week live masterclass.

You know why coaches don’t create video?

It’s not because they don’t know how.

It’s because they don’t want to watch themselves back and feel like shit.

But here’s the thing nobody tells you:
That disappointment you’re avoiding? It’s not a verdict on your entire existence.

It’s just data.

And data is fixable.
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If you’re ready to show up confidently on video and attract clients because of it, DM me “I’m in” for details on my 6-week live masterclass.  It starts tomorrow!

Confidence is a lagging indicator.

It usually follows action, not the other way around.

As a news reporter, I didn’t feel confident during my first live shot. Or my 10th. 

Confidence didn’t show up because I prepared more, got more credentials, or waited until I “felt ready.”

It showed up somewhere around year three, after I’d already proven to myself I could do it. Over and over again. 

Not before. After.

I performed scared. Repeatedly. For years.

And eventually, my brain caught up to what my body had already been doing.
That’s how confidence works for most people. It’s not the starting point.

It’s the result of repeated action despite fear.

We’ve been taught backwards.
Build confidence → Then act.

The real sequence is:
Act (scared) → Build evidence → Confidence follows (maybe).

You don’t need confidence to start.
You just need to start.

The confidence catches up later….

if you give it something to catch up to.

Keynote Speaker | The Relatability Index: How Connection Creates Influence | Emmy Award–Winning Broadcaster | TEDx Speaker | On-camera coach

Confidence is a lie we’ve been sold.

Not because it doesn’t exist… but because we’ve been taught the wrong sequence.

We think: Feel confident → Then act.
But it’s usually: Act → Then maybe confidence follows. 

Or it doesn’t. And the work still gets done.

I see this constantly in organizations: capable, experienced people who hesitate to speak up, delay visibility, or wait to “feel ready” before contributing.

Not because they lack skill.

Because they’ve been told confidence is a prerequisite.

It’s not.

Fear doesn’t disappear with more experience, credentials, or preparation. It just becomes something you learn to function alongside.

The issue isn’t the fear. It’s treating fear like it gets to make decisions.

Authority doesn’t come from eliminating doubt or waiting for an emotional green light… it comes from functioning despite it.

This idea is the foundation of my keynote, The Confidence Lie.

It reframes hesitation… not as a confidence problem to fix, but as a sequencing problem to correct.

Audiences don’t leave pumped. They leave with a more accurate mental model of how performance actually works.

The problem isn’t that you can’t communicate...

The problem is you think the camera changes the rules.

You argue cases. You negotiate deals. You command a room full of opposing counsel without breaking a sweat.

But when you hit record… suddenly you’re standing there like a statue. 
Or blinking like you’re sending morse code. 
Or forgetting to move your hands when you normally gesture constantly.

You think there’s a “camera way” to be. 
More polished. 
More perfect. 
More… something.

But the camera doesn’t want Camera You. It wants Conversation You.

The same person who explains complex legal concepts to clients every day.
The same person who builds trust through authentic communication. 
The same person who already knows how to connect.

You’re not broken on camera. You’re just trying to be perfect instead of being yourself.

The camera isn’t asking you to learn new rules. It’s asking you to have a normal conversation - just with a lens instead of a person.
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If you’re ready to show up confidently on video and attract clients because of it, DM me “I’m in” for details on my 6-week live masterclass.

Fear ≠ authority.

Most people treat fear like a stop sign.

Like it means: “Don’t do this. You’re not ready. Wait until you feel confident.”

But that’s not what fear is.
Fear is input, not instruction.

Let me break that down:

Input = data your nervous system is collecting. Information about risk, stakes, visibility. It’s your body saying “this matters” or “this is unfamiliar.”

Instruction = a command. A directive. Something telling you what to do next.

When you treat fear as input, you can still act. You acknowledge it, assess it, and move forward anyway. You don’t need it to go away first.

When you treat fear as instruction, you wait. You hesitate. You let it make decisions for you.

Authority doesn’t come from eliminating fear.
It comes from functioning despite it.

High performers don’t show up publicly because they’re fearless.

They show up because they’ve learned to treat fear as background noise, not a roadblock.

That’s the difference between confidence (optional) and functionality (required).

📉 POST 10 — Inconsistency Is Killing Your Authority
You post once.
Disappear for three weeks.
Post again.
Delete it.
Try again next month.
You’re not inconsistent because you're lazy.
You’re inconsistent because the process feels heavy and uncomfortable.
When you remove the friction, consistency becomes automatic
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If you’re ready to show up confidently on video and attract clients because of it, DM me “I’m in” for details on my 6-week live masterclass.

he Truth About Filters (And Why I’m Making a Change)
Holy hell, this is vulnerable to admit.
I’ve been using filters on my LinkedIn videos. Every single one.
Not because I’m vain or trying to intimidate anyone — but because I’m insecure as hell about how I look on camera.
Ironic? The woman who teaches camera confidence is terrified of her own reflection.
Here’s the backstory: My TV news days were brutal. Surrounded by gorgeous people, constantly critiqued on appearance, told to lose weight, change my hair, wear different colors. The camera became this magnifying glass for every flaw I thought I had.
So when I started coaching? I hid behind filters. Smoothed out the imperfections. Made myself “camera ready” before I’d even hit record.
But here’s what I realized this week: If I’m showing up filtered and “perfect,” how can I expect my clients — brilliant attorneys who think they’re “not photogenic enough” — to believe they can look good on camera too?
I’ve been accidentally reinforcing the very perfectionism trap I help people escape.
So here’s my pledge:
I’m ditching the filters. Not because I suddenly love how I look unfiltered (I don’t), but because authenticity beats perfection every damn time.
Your video isn’t supposed to look like a magazine cover. It’s supposed to look like YOU — the expert your clients need to see and trust.
If an Emmy-winning journalist can be insecure about her appearance, you’re definitely not alone in this struggle.
Done > Dramatic. Always.
What’s one “perfect” thing you’ve been hiding behind that might actually be holding you back?

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