Written by:
Renata Schoeman
What do a PSASA masterclass and a rogue bathroom bee have in common? More than I expected. While I was listening to Vivienne Vermaak unpack how she won Speaker Factor 2025, my little one started sobbing — a bee had flown in and stung him on the leg. Crisis management at home, gold-standard learning on screen. (And yes, at least now I know he’s not allergic.) This post shares what I took away from Viv’s practical, honest, and energising talk.
Viv is an award-winning journalist, writer, and public speaker, and is widely known in South Africa as the presenter of Going Nowhere Slowly. PSASA also describes her as an award-winning investigative journalist and notes her growing reputation as “The DisMotivational Speaker.
At the PSASA Virtual Chapter session, Vivienne Vermaak took members behind the scenes of her Speaker Factor-winning journey — not just the win, but the work. The session focused on what actually helped: understanding the competition rules, refining the script, sharpening screen craft, and making intentional choices about how you show up as a speaker. It was practical, generous, and refreshingly real. PSASA’s Speaker Factor is no small feat: speakers are judged on script, stagecraft/screen craft, delivery, and “bookability,” and the winner earns a keynote slot at the following annual convention.
Top 3 takeaways:
- Know the rules before you try to win the game. Viv made it clear: excellence starts with understanding the brief, the judging criteria, and the real objective.
- Rewriting is not weakness — it is craft. From script to setup to presence, strong speaking is built in drafts, refinements, and smart adjustments.
- Show up for yourself. My biggest takeaway. Winning starts long before the stage — in preparation, consistency, and backing yourself.
Between a bee sting, tears, and a virtual chapter meeting, the evening turned into an unexpected lesson in resilience. Viv’s talk was a reminder that great speaking is not magic — it is clarity, preparation, and courage. And sometimes, in life and on stage, the real win is simply this: show up.
