Coaching Services
I offer a series of training sessions and workshops with the help of the team at On Spec Podcast, which is also a production company, giving multilingual services at a fair rate. We’ve worked with other media partners, nonprofits, educational institutions, and students.
I’ve trained emerging reporters and writers from Kabul to Cairo, sitting side by side to help them find their inner novelist or journalist. The art of writing is a craft improved with practice and the guidance of an effective teacher. I owe my skills to my editors and English literature teachers. I’ve taught at universities and most recently a secret online school for Afghan girls, who are banned from learning beyond the sixth grade under the Taliban.
My strongest skill as a reporter is connecting with people I don’t know and building trust. It didn’t happen naturally – I learned with time and experience, and understanding the nuances of different cultures and communities. I teach tactics that will help put people in vulnerable positions at ease and avoid retraumatizing victims in an interview. But when it comes to questioning officials, I’ll teach you a different strategy to hit back against platitudes and scripted answers.
If you’re in audio, your voice is your most important asset. But how do you get the right pitch, tone, delivery? With a voice coach! I’ve been training local journalists around the globe who’ve worked with On Spec Podcast for years. You don’t need a professional studio – you need a good mic and blankets to get started.
The A to Z of narrative podcasting. I share my journey from print journalism to audio documentaries and help you build your voice, brand and audience. The team at On Spec is multilingual and I can offer the training in Farsi/Dari and English – or lead you to others who can teach in other languages.
From audio scripts, to books and expository speeches, I can edit structure, develop storylines and build a narrative to make your writing sharp and authentic – unlike AI.
Parenting Workshop
My two daughters speak three languages and are learning a fourth. I’ll tell you how I fostered that as a mother and share the strategies through interactive exercises and games in multilingual learning.
I moved my kids when they were 4 and 7 from suburban America to a Middle East megalopolis. We didn’t speak the language or know anyone. We learned invaluable survival skills in a global village where migration is the norm. This workshop teaches you the nitty gritty of life outside your borders and how to overcome the challenges while building a new community.
