Lois Strachan is an inspiring author, speaker, coach, disability advocate, blogger, podcaster, and sometime rock musician. And she is totally blind, having lost her sight at the age of 21 as a result of diabetic retinopathy.
Lois’s purpose is to help others overcome the challenges they face in their professional and personal lives. As a motivational speaker, she uses her personal story to teach audiences techniques to become resilient and manage change. Her curiosity about the world around her has led to her facilitating on numerous diverse topics – from writing and publishing books to digital accessibility of websites and training materials for those with visual impairments. She is also an experienced speaking and writing coach who loves to see her clients achieve more than they dreamed possible. Lois is the author of 6 books, including 4 illustrated children’s books, a memoir and a book written from the viewpoint of her guide dog. She has been hosting a podcast since 2018, originally focusing on travel for persons with disabilities but now focusing on more general subjects around her own brand of A Different Way of Seeing. Lois achieved a BA Honours (cum laude) at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, is a Distinguished Toastmaster and has a diploma in coaching.
In 2015 she was awarded a Tributes Excellence award in the category of education and literature. In 2017 she was a recipient of the prestigious Presidential Citation from Toastmasters International. She is a past president of the Cape Chapter of the Professional Speakers Association of Southern Africa, is a past District Governor of the Southern African district of Toastmasters International, and currently serves as a director on two boards. Lois lives in Cape Town, South Africa with her husband and a houseful of dogs, one of whom is her beloved guide dog, Fiji.
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Your hosts of Are You Waiting for Permission? are Meridith Grundei and Joseph Bennett. They're friends, co-hosts, actors, improvisers and coaches. She lives in NYC and coaches actors, business professionals and presenters to fully engage with their audience, and themselves. She also mentors young actors and directors. He lives in San Miguel de Allende, México, and coaches artists and other creative beings about the beautiful business of art — and life.
You can find Meridith: Meridith Grundei the performer artist gal Meridith Grundei Coaching
You can find Joseph: Joseph Bennett the artist/coach extraordinaire
*Special thanks to Amy Shelley and Gary Grundei of high fiction for letting us use their music for the Are You Waiting for Permission? podcast. 👉 And... while the podcast is free, it's not cheap. We'd be thrilled to have your support on PATREON
Thank you.