From the Drama Room to the Boardroom

She’s been coined as the “Celebrity Whisperer” and the “Go-to Guru to the stars,” a title in which she immediately denies.

“Who comes up with this stuff? I mean, guru to the stars? I don’t wear a turban. I just communicate with people. I open my world to them and how I overcame a lot of abuse and then they tell me about their journey. We take the pain and create something real," said Ivana Chubbuck, Acting Coach and Owner of Ivana Chubbuck Studios.

Her resume speaks for itself. She has coached several Academy Award winning actors including Brad Pitt, Charlize Theron, and Halle Berry. She also was the one who helped Beyonce move to the big screen.

“Beyonce started from scratch. She only knew music. We had to get to the core of who she is. She’s a black woman from the south. That was our underbelly, said Chubbuck, who coached her for her role as Deena in Dreamgirls which earned her a Golden Globe nomination.

Chubbuck says her technique is simple, it’s all about empowerment. And her method is now slowly seeping into boardrooms of Fortune 500 companies.

“It’s not about acting. It’s about taking pain and trauma in your life and winning. It’s all about how you translate the ugly into success instead of self-destruction, said Chubbuck, who is the author of “The Power of the Actor.”

She says business leaders can benefit from her method by getting what they want in a more effective manner.

“Too many people think that being in a power position means that you have to break someone down, to generate performance. But often when someone uses these tactics, it creates an adversarial environment," said Chubbuck.

Maureen Cashin Bolog, owner of the Actor’s Craft in Kenosha, WI., the state’s fourth largest city, has been using The Chubbuck Technique to help executives at local Fortune 500 companies for over four years.

“I will say that businesses have trouble at first believing acting techniques can help “serious” business professionals. They expect this to be frivolous and find out that it is life changing. They quickly learn actionable skills they can start incorporating in dynamic ways both day-to-day in creating their own executive presence and in their presentations,” said Bolog, who is unable to disclose the companies due to a confidentiality agreement but says she works with companies specializing in home appliances and automotives.

Bolog says the same techniques that help actors find the power to portray confident, effective executives can help real-world executives project themselves with poise and personal power to achieve their objectives.

Chubbuck’s business and book are thriving as a result. Her studio is now a multi-million dollar business which includes offices and teachers from all over the world, in places such as Moscow and Milan.

“I didn’t have a game plan when I started in 1980. I just did the best job I could. I wanted my clients to prosper. Then I found the money and fame. I didn’t search for it. It just happened,” said Chubbuck.

The key to her winning formula?

“It boils down to using emotions, pain, and trauma as fuel to impassion your ability to overcome and win what you want (love, power, etc). To not only say I will win in spite of what you’ve done to me, but because of what you’ve done to me.”