The Actor Award (formerly the SAG Award). Presented to actors by actors

It’s awards season, and we’re seeing a lot of acceptance speeches on big stages in front of stars in the room and fans at home.

And it’s thrilling to see our favorite actors not playing roles written by someone else, but being more… themselves. Fresh. Authentic. Spontaneous.

Here’s a poorly-kept secret: actors prep their award speeches. Most nominees write speeches to be loaded into the teleprompter, even—or maybe especially--if they don’t think they’ll win. There is a hilarious scene from Episode 8 of The Studio (which won multiple SAG Actor Awards earlier this month) where Zoë Kravitz explains how an actor prepares (and rehearses) her speech to achieve the right level of being surprised and in the moment.

I’m an actor—a proud SAG-AFTRA and Actors’ Equity member. And I can tell you that while some actors seem to have special powers to be “naturally” convincing, there is more to it. Sure, many have a good dose of charisma. Not to mention experience in front of a camera.

But the real power comes from a lot of hard work. Discipline. Knowing why you are saying what you are saying to a particular audience. And not just thinking about your message, but getting it in your body, So you can convey your meaning expressively, dynamically, convincingly.

Take a page from the successful actors’ script next time you have to do any kind of public speaking. Prepare. And practice what you are saying so well you really know it. Not just the words. The message underneath them. And the more you do that, the more vibrant you’ll be.

Not “stale,” or “too slick.” A real winner.