Bob Gray

Meet Bob Gray: he’s like your favorite college professor but with a sense of humor.  With an unforgettable mix of fun, interaction and laughs, Bob is changing the stigma of what it is to be a “Memory Expert”. Not the pocket protector, white coat wearing kind; he immediately dispels the mystery behind memory. He says “An excellent memory isn’t a gift, it’s attainable by everyone.”

A recognized authority on memory systems, Bob has spent the last twenty five years traveling the globe entertaining and training corporations, governments, and associations to adapt memory systems for their particular needs. To date, Gray’s clients have included Wells Fargo, Ford, FedEx, GE, General Motors, Hilton Hotels, DuPont, and Great West Life, to name just a few.

His latest talk is called Digital Amnesia: How technology is stealing your memory (And how to steal it back). But just what is digital amnesia? It’s the experience of forgetting something important because you trust a connected device! In this highly interactive, empowering, and humorous presentation, Bob shows you how to keep your memory in shape, how to steal your brain back from technology…and how you’ll never again need to say “Sorry, I forgot your name”.

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Daymond John

From his wildly successful role on ABC’s smash hit, Shark Tank, to his distinguished status as a Presidential Ambassador for Global Entrepreneurship, Daymond John has become globally recognized for his relentless commitment to promoting and supporting entrepreneurs.

Daymond initially made his mark as the entrepreneur and branding expert behind the groundbreaking lifestyle brand, FUBU, which eclipsed more than $6 billion in global retail sales. From the streets of Hollis, Queens, Daymond started a global movement from the basement of his mother’s house by capitalizing on the then fledgling hip-hop culture. Today, the streetwear market that FUBU pioneered is a $20 billion dollar industry.

Since then, Daymond has continued to challenge himself and the business world in which he operates. In 2009, Daymond was tapped by lauded television producer, Mark Burnett, to join the cast of a new business-reality concept, Shark Tank. After 11 seasons, 4 Emmy Awards, multiple Critic’s Choice Awards and millions of dollars in investments, the show has become the most watched program on Friday nights, and one of the most successful business reality series of all time. Over the course of the series, Daymond has been a mainstay of the cast of Sharks and is now affectionately referred to as, “The People’s Shark.”

As a dynamic speaker with more than twenty-five years of proven business experience, Daymond has become one of the most highly sought after speakers in the country. He regularly speaks at Fortune 100 companies, conferences, universities, and independent businesses alike. Daymond’s high energy presentations give audiences relatable advice and practical takeaways. His S.H.A.R.K. Points are actionable principles that bring long term results. Entrepreneurship, marketing and branding, financial literacy and goal-setting are among his most popular topics.

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BIOGRAPHY:

An entrepreneur in every sense of the word, Daymond John has come a long way from taking out a $100,000 mortgage on his mother’s house and moving his business operation into its basement. John is CEO and Founder of FUBU, a much-celebrated global lifestyle brand, and a pioneer in the fashion industry with over $6 billion in product sales world-wide. Former President Barack Obama appointed Daymond John a Presidential Ambassador for Global Entrepreneurship (PAGE) to harness his energy, ideas, and experience to help develop the next generation of entrepreneurs both at home and abroad.

John is an award-winning entrepreneur and has received 100s of awards including the Brand Week Marketer of the Year, Advertising Age Marketing 1000 Award for Outstanding Ad Campaign, Ernst & Young’s New York Entrepreneur of the Year Award, and was named #2 on LinkedIn’s Top 20 Voices, a list of the top influencers, who are using their voice to help us analyze today’s changing world of work, navigate our industries, and find balance.  Most recently, Real Leaders Magazine named Daymond John one of the Top 50 Keynote Speakers in the World in 2022, a list of “real teachers — people who speak from experience.”

His marketing strategies and ability to build successful brands has made him a highly influential consultant and motivational speaker today. His marketing firm The Shark Group offers advice on how to effectively communicate to consumers through innovative means and connects brands with the world’s top celebrities for everything from endorsements to product extensions.

John is also an author of 5 best-selling books including his New York Times best-selling books, The Power of Broke (2016) and Rise and Grind (2018). In 2020, John released his fifth book, Powershift, that walks through his tried-and-true process of how to transform any situation, close any deal and achieve any outcome.  John’s most recent book is his first for kids.  Little Daymond Learns to Earn (March 2023) illustrates the process of starting a business and provides a glossary of financial literacy terms for kids 4-8 years old.

Finally, John is celebrating his 14th season on ABC TV’s critically acclaimed business reality show Shark Tank by renowned producer Mark Burnett, which has reinvigorated entrepreneurship around the world. Shark Tank has now gone on to win five Emmy® in the US and millions of weekly viewers world-wide tune into the show as John demonstrates his marketing prowess and entrepreneurial insights.

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Dr. Taryn Marie Stejskal

Dr. Taryn Marie is the #1 international expert on resilience, mental health, and wellbeing in leadership after conducting original research with hundreds of people over the course of two decades, giving rise to the resilience roadmap, The 5 Practices of Highly Resilient People, now a #1 WSJ bestselling book.

  • Author of the book The Five Practices of Highly Resilient People – Why some flourish When Others Fold. (A Wall Street Journal #1 Best Seller in 2023!)
  • Lead, Nike’s Global Executive Leadership Development Strategy
  • Former Head, Cigna’s Leadership Development & Executive Programs
  • Doctorate degree, University of Maryland, College Park
  • Neuropsychology Fellow with the National Institute of Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR), Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center

Dr. Taryn Stejskal is one of the leading authorities on Resilience Leadership.  Nike named her the head of their global leadership training and her work is resonating throughout the Fortune 500.  As she describes it, “We are a world in which our human experience is defined by facing challenge, change, and complexity on an order of magnitude to which prior generations have not been exposed. The concept of resilience is built on the very ideology that we have the capacity to face hard things: trauma, loss, misfortune, and the like, and come out on the other side; not diminished, but instead, enhanced.”

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BIOGRAPHY

As the #1 international expert on resilience and mental wellbeing, Dr. Taryn Marie has inspired audiences ranging from big stages of thousands to intimate gatherings of executives, sharing how we can all effectively face the inevitable moments of challenge, change, and complexity.

LA Progressive magazine calls her “the go-to person” and “a secret weapon” for organizations and teams who want to find their edge and rise above the competition. She has received standing ovations from audiences on topics related to change, leadership, confidence, compassion & empathy, innovation, wellbeing, and, of course, resilience. Audience members say her keynotes are:

“Uplifting. Thought provoking. Unforgettable. Your life and view of the world will not be the same after hearing Dr. Taryn Marie speak!”

She is a #1 Wall Street Journal (WSJ) Bestselling Author of the book, The Five Practices of Highly Resilient People: Why some flourish when others fold, and the Founder and Chief Resilience Officer (CRO) of the Resilience Leadership Institute (RLI). By conducting two decades of original research on resilience, Dr. Taryn Marie developed the empirically based framework, The Five Practices of Highly Resilient People and believes that resilience is the key to individual, teams, and organizational growth and acceleration across the globe. Her mission is to positively impact the lives of 1 billion people through the practices of resilience.

Prior to founding RLI, she served as the Head of Executive Leadership Development & Talent Strategy
at Nike, as well as Head of Global Leadership Development at Cigna.

Global Gurus has recognized Dr. Taryn Marie as a Top 30 Thinker in Leadership, she is a Marshall Goldsmith Top 100 Global Executive Coach (MG100), and she was a finalist for the Tony Hsieh Award, named for the former CEO of Zappos, awarded to those who are leading human capital innovation. Her work has been featured by Fox and NBC News, Bloomberg Business, Thrive Global, and Forbes. Her TEDx talk entitled “How Resilience Breaks Us Out of Our Vulnerability Cage” has been viewed over 1 million times!

Dr. Taryn Marie earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan, along with master’s and doctoral degrees from the University of Maryland, College Park, and completed pre- and postdoctoral fellowships in neuropsychology at Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center. She is the host of the top 1% acclaimed podcast Flourish or Fold: Stories of Resilience, where well-known people tell their lesser well-known story of facing challenge to remind us that adversity is a necessary ingredient in life.

She is honored to be an ambassador for The African Community and Conservation Foundation (ACCF), along with serving as a sought-after trusted advisor and board member, to amplify resilience, engagement, and talent strategy. She also serves as Chief Product Officer (CPO) and Chief Happiness Officer (CHO) for Wicked Happy, a global aspirational apparel brand that promotes positivity and possibility through inspirational messages. Her two sons, Samson and Sawyer, are always teaching her about resilience! To learn more just click here.

SPEECH TOPICS

Flourish or Fold: The Five Practices of Highly Resilient People

What are the attributes that determine whether a leader, team, or organization will flourish or fold? After conducting 20 years of research to understand how people harness resilience in leadership and life, resilience is emerging as the key differentiator that sustains people in moments of difficulty, ambiguity, and adversity. Put simply, our ability to be resilient is the active ingredient that determines whether we flourish or fold. At a time when business is facing challenge, change, and complexity, enhancing resilience has never been more important. World renowned resilience expert and former head of executive development at Nike, Dr. Taryn Marie Stejskal, shares with audiences The Five Practices of Particularly Resilient People; the five behaviors we can all access to increase our resilience. Resilience, is fundamentally at the core of what it means to be human and to be a leader and has been the element of leadership development that has been both overlooked and largely misunderstood. Dr. Taryn Marie inspires and engages audiences with a practical, tangible, and relevant approaches to enhancing resilience. She inspires audiences with the practical, tangible, and evidence-based framework, The 5 Practices of Highly Resilient People, based on her #1 WSJ Bestselling book, where attendees will identify and adopt practices that will enhance their wellbeing and sustain their resilience. Attendees will:

▹ LEARN THE 5 PRACTICES OF HIGHLY RESILIENT PEOPLE
▹ APPRECIATE THE IMPORTANCE OF EMPATHY & AUTHENTICITY IN LEADERSHIP
▹ UNDERSTAND THE PERVASIVE MYTHS THAT OFTEN BLOCK THEIR ABILITY TO ACCESS RESILIENCE
▹ INCREASE RESILIENCE

The (Not-So-Surprising) Link Between Resilience, Innovation, and Creativity

How can organizations & leaders foster cultures that leverage innovation and creativity as fuel? While organizations have sought to understand the secret sauce that allows their people to effectively address challenge and pursue innovation, they often overlook a key ingredient that fosters innovation:
resilience. In this talk, Dr. Taryn Marie reveals how individuals, teams, and organization can harness and enhance resilience, through her proven framework, The 5 Practices of Highly Resilient People, that help eliminate fear of failure and take action toward amplifying innovation to make the seemingly
impossible, becomes possible. Attendees will:

▹ UNDERSTAND HOW PSYCHOLOGICAL SAFETY IS A KEY FOUNDATION FOR INNOVATION & CREATIVITY
▹ LEARN HOW THE 5 PRACTICES FRAMEWORK MAKES THE SEEMINGLY IMPOSSIBLE, POSSIBLE
▹ APPRECIATE THE MEANINGFUL RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN RESILIENCE, CREATIVITY, & INNOVATION

From Burnout to Balance – Practices to Restore & Optimize Engagement

The sheer volume of challenge and rate of change has left people feeling exhausted and overwhelmed. In this signature talk, Dr. Taryn Marie provides practical, actionable, and research-based solutions for individuals, teams, and organizations to find greater balance, peace, and well-being.
Drawing on her unique background heading global leadership development for organizations across the globe, and her empirical framework, The 5 Practices of Highly Resilient People, this keynote provides a roadmap for how we can we flourish in our places of work. Attendees will:

▹ RECEIVE PRACTICAL, TIME-TESTED STRATEGIES TO INCREASE RESILIENCE, REDUCE STRESS, & ENHANCE ENGAGEMENT
▹ FEEL EQUIPPED TO MANAGE THE UPS AND DOWNS OF LIFE
▹ UNDERSTAND HOW TO BUILD TEAM & ORGANIZATIONAL PRACTICES THAT ENHANCE WELL-BEING
▹ RECOGNIZE AND COMBAT BURNOUT, EXHAUSTION, AND STRESS

Harness Resilience to Advance the Future of Work: Effectively Navigating Uncertainty & Ambiguity

As the landscape continues to shift at lightning speeds with economic & digital advancements, including AI, leaders and teams have a golden opportunity to dig deep and uncover new ways to advance the future of work by harnessing courage, conviction, and candor.

In this insightful talk, Dr. Taryn Marie takes the audience through a proven framework to find grounding in times of high-stress and uncover opportunities that exist to propel the team & organization forward. Developing a culture of resilience is the antidote to the immense challenge, change and complexity we find ourselves in today. Attendees will:

▹ LEARN HOW THE FIVE PRACTICES OF HIGHLY RESILIENT PEOPLE CAN SUPPORT ORGANIZATIONS & TEAMS IN TIMES OF HIGH STRESS
▹ RECOGNIZE HOW TO FIND OPPORTUNITY IN TIMES OF UNCERTAINTY
▹ HEAR THE KEY MINDSET HACK LEVERAGED BY TOP LEADERS ALL OVER THE WORLD THAT OPTIMIZES PERFORMANCE
▹ UNDERSTAND WHY PERCEIVED FAILURE HITS WOMEN AND GIRLS HARDER AND HOW TO AVOID PARALYSIS

Women, Wellness, and Worthiness: How to Achieve the Seemingly Impossible

As a former executive at Cigna and Nike, Dr. Taryn Marie has a unique ability to support women with their ambition and desire to accomplish big goals without sacrificing personal life, well-being, or sanity. Her message of radical possibility, combined with The 5 Practices of Highly Resilient People, leaves audiences inspired and equipped with practical tools. Dr. Taryn Marie gives audiences a candid look at ways well-
meaning women sacrifice wellness, sabotage themselves and others, and feel unworthy. She provides insight to uplift not only themselves, but those around them, with the ability to find a flow in both work and family life, while believing more deeply in their inherent enough-ness! Attendees will:

▹ LEARN HOW THE 5 PRACTICES FRAMEWORK ALLOWS THEM TO ACCOMPLISH BIG GOALS
▹ IDENTIFY THE #1 THING THAT HOLDS THEM BACK FROM ACCOMPLISHING THEIR GOALS
▹ UNCOVER HOW TO LIVE A LIFE WITH LESS STRESS AND MORE MEANING
▹ APPRECIATE PROVEN METHODS TO AMPLIFY CONFIDENCE AND BANISH FEELINGS OF UNWORTHINESS FOR GOOD

TESTIMONIALS:

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Alex Banayan

Alex Banayan is the only nationally bestselling business author under 30 in America. His book The Third Door: The Wild Quest to Uncover How the World’s Most Successful People Launched Their Careers has been translated into more than a dozen languages. Over the course of his unprecedented seven-year journey, Banayan interviewed the most innovative leaders of the past half-century, including Bill Gates, Lady Gaga, Larry King, Maya Angelou, Steve Wozniak, Jane Goodall, Jessica Alba, Quincy Jones, and more.

The day before his freshman-year final exams, Banayan hacked The Price is Right, won a sailboat, sold it, and used the money to fund his larger-than-life adventure. Since then, Banayan has been named to Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list, Business Insider’s Most Powerful People Under 30, and been featured in major media, including The Washington Post, Fortune, CNBC, MSNBC, Fox News, and NBC News. An acclaimed keynote speaker, Banayan has presented the Third Door framework to business conferences and corporate leadership teams around the world, including Apple, Google, Nike, IBM, Snapchat, Salesforce, and Disney.

Why book Alex? Here are the top 10 reasons:

1.   HONED, POLISHED, AND RELIABLE

Having done hundreds of high-profile keynotes over the past decade, Banayan is a seasoned keynote speaker who comes prepared to set the tone for any event. Google has said that Banayan is one of the most professional speakers they’ve worked with.

Disney said that Banayan received the best feedback from any speaker they’ve had. And the president of Merrill Lynch said the feedback about Banayan’s keynote was off the charts.

2.   ELECTRIC ENERGY

Whether it’s a room of 50 executives or an arena of 5,000 salespeople, Banayan has a way of lighting up any stage and elevating the energy of an event unlike anyone else. Nike’s VP of Global Brand Creative said that Banayan’s energy was contagious, and Red Hat’s Senior Director said Banayan unleashed their team’s energy in a way they’ve never seen before.

3.   MEMORABLE AND IMPACTFUL

For years, audience members have sent messages after events saying Banayan’s keynote changed their lives. Intuit said that Banayan’s keynote received the highest rating out of all the speakers at their annual Quickbooks Connect conference. Banayan leaves a long-lasting impact after every keynote, ensuring that your event will be unforgettable.

4.   VULNERABLE AND AUTHENTIC

Stories of fear and rejection remind audience members that they’re not alone in life’s challenges. Banayan takes audiences on a journey of vulnerability, from curling up on the floor of a Motel 8 feeling cold, lost, and defeated, to the comforts of Jessica Alba’s office during a gut-wrenching discussion about both of their families’ battles with cancer. Through his humility, Banayan connects deeply with audiences, providing new insights to universal experiences.

5.   REMARKABLY PROFESSIONAL

Banayan is committed to making the jobs of meeting planners as easy and straightforward as possible. From the pre-event call to backstage on event day, Banayan’s professionalism and courteousness are on display every step of the way.

6.   WILDLY ENTERTAINING

From winning The Price is Right to his larger-than-life quest to track down Bill Gates, audiences go on a rollercoaster of emotion, from laughing out loud to sitting on the edge of their seats. Packed with wild stories, including chasing Larry King through a grocery store and hacking Warren Buffett’s shareholders meeting, it’s no surprise the CEO of Life Is Good said that Banayan is one of the best storytellers he’s seen.

7.   RADICALLY COMMITTED TO AUDIENCE CONNECTION

From his authentic interactions with the crowd during the keynote to his one-on-one conversations with audience members after the speech, Banayan builds meaningful connections, making him the perfect speaker both on and off the stage. Approachable and fully present at book signings and meet and greets, Banayan is focused on personal connections with every attendee he meets at your event.

8.   TIME-TESTED RESEARCH AND PRACTICAL LESSONS

Banayan has spent a decade researching exponential success, poring over hundreds of biographies and interviewing the most innovative leaders in America, from Microsoft founder Bill Gates to Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak. The Third Door is a #1 international bestseller and has been translated into more than seventeen languages.

9.   CUSTOM TAILORED MESSAGE

In the pre-event call, Banayan learns as much as he can about your organization, ensuring that every keynote is custom-tailored to the needs of each event. Want two pre-event calls? You got it.

10.   MASTERFUL STAGE PRESENCE

From his pacing and tonality to his movement on stage and through the audience, it’s no surprise why CEOs and event planners alike rave about Banayan’s world-class speaking style. Ford said that Banayan has a “masterful way of bringing the audience along for a journey,” and that out of all the events they’ve planned, Banayan’s keynote was one of the best.

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BIOGRAPHY:

ALEX BANAYAN is the youngest bestselling business author in American history. The Third Door chronicles Banayan’s seven-year quest to decode the definitive mindset of growth and success. The book is a #1 international bestseller and has been translated into seventeen languages.

Over the course of his unprecedented journey, Banayan’s research led him to interview the most innovative leaders of the past half-century, including Bill Gates, Lady Gaga, Larry King, Jane Goodall, Maya Angelou, Steve Wozniak, Pitbull, Jessica Alba, Quincy Jones, and others.

Banayan is one of the world’s leading experts on high performance and personal development, having been featured in Fortune, Forbes, CNBC, Businessweek, The Washington Post, MSNBC, Fox News, and NBC News. A renowned keynote speaker, Banayan presents the Third Door framework regularly to corporate leadership teams around the globe, including Apple, Google, Nike, IBM, Salesforce, Delta Airlines, Bank of America, Mastercard, and Disney.

SPEECH TOPICS

THE MINDSET OF EXPONENTIAL GROWTH:

HOW TO TRANSFORM YOUR THINKING, TAKE THE THIRD DOOR, AND ACHIEVE YOUR MOST IMPORTANT GOALS

We all face rejection. We all deal with fear. Whether it’s in our personal lives or careers, there are always dozens of obstacles holding us back from achieving our biggest goals.

But it doesn’t have to be that way. There are certain mindsets and tools that can not only clear the obstacles along your path, but can also add rocket fuel to your success. After spending ten years researching and interviewing the most innovative leaders, bestselling author Alex Banayan’s widely-acclaimed Third Door™ framework can help any organization achieve its goals and radically accelerate its overall growth.

In this riveting keynote, Banayan takes audiences on an unprecedented adventure, from hacking The Price is Right to chasing Larry King through a grocery store to the multi-year quest to learn from Bill Gates and Lady Gaga. Alongside these larger-than- life stories, Banayan takes the principles from his bestselling book The Third Door and pushes them to a whole new level, making them practical and applicable for organizations of all sizes. This powerful presentation teaches you how to:

  • Cultivate perseverance
  • Instill the mindset of persistence
  • Fuel growth, no matter the external economic environment
  • Become more capable of achieving your company’s biggest objectives

This wildly-entertaining keynote is packed with insights and lessons guaranteed to transform anyone to believe that, no matter what obstacles they’re facing… there’s always a way.

THERE’S ALWAYS A WAY:

HOW TO CULTIVATE PERSEVERANCE AND PERSISTENCE DURING UNCERTAIN TIMES

The pace of change in the business world is faster than ever. It has never been more critical to an organization’s survival for teams to cultivate a DNA of resiliency, perseverance, and solution-orientated problem solving.

In this empowering keynote, bestselling author Alex Banayan masterfully decodes the most critical and elusive skills needed for any organization to cultivate the mindsets of exponential growth, particularly during times of rapid change and uncertainty.

After interviews with Bill Gates, Steve Wozniak, and dozens more of the world’s most iconic leaders, Banayan uncovered that there are fundamental skills that every

organization needs—but that most people don’t talk about—to achieve their biggest goals during disruptive times. This keynote covers it all, with lessons including:

  • How do you transform persistence from being an esoteric word to being a living, breathing part of your day-to-day culture?
  • What are the unspoken dangers of over-persistence and how can you prevent them at your organization?
  • Why is the opposite of success not failure—and how does that shift in mindset help your employees take more risks and grow exponentially?
  • What’s the surprising difference between fearlessness and courage— and why does that critical difference lead to consistent breakthroughs in organizations of all sizes?

If you care about elevating your business—if you care about your employees being more resilient, more courageous, and more capable of making smart, innovative decisions—this keynote is what you’ve been waiting for. To learn more click here.

V.I.S.T.A. STORYTELLING FOR BUSINESS GROWTH:

HOW TO TRANSFORM YOUR ORGANIZATION AND ELEVATE YOUR CAREER USING THE 5 KEYS OF RADICALLY COMPELLING STORIES

The world has never been noisier.

How do you command the attention of your customers, sales prospects, strategic partners, or industry at-large? Once you have their attention, how do you transform those stakeholders into lifelong advocates for you and your business?

After a decade of researching the world’s most successful leaders and organizations, bestselling author Alex Banayan uncovered what the single most underrated skill is that can radically boost the growth of any company’s sales, marketing, or business development efforts.

The secret is storytelling—but not just any kind. Banayan’s research led him to decode the keys to remarkably compelling, gripping, and emotional storytelling that can be used by businesses of all sizes to supercharge their goals. This is a specific, teachable skill set that can transform prospects into blue-chip clients and customers into evangelists, and can inject an entirely new sense of possibility into the DNA of your company culture.

Drawing from his years of research and the international success of The Third Door’s unique narrative style, Banayan distills in this keynote how anyone in your organization—from C-suite executives to your newest team members—can use the five elements of Banayan’s V.I.S.T.A. Storytelling Framework to transform your business.

Because at the end of the day, everything in life and business comes down to a story. And it’s time your organization uses that to its advantage.

THE THIRD DOOR FOR TOP-LINE GROWTH:

HOW TO RE-TRAIN AND RE-INVIGORATE YOUR TEAM TO FIND A WAY THROUGH ANY DOOR

What happens when some of the hardest-to-reach people are your prospects? How does a salesperson or financial advisor persevere through the inevitable onslaught of rejections? Sometimes sales pipelines feel like pipedreams. Often weeks and months are spent on a deal, only for it to fall through at the last minute. Over time, the sting of rejection can multiply until it becomes crippling.

After seven years of learning directly from the most successful entrepreneurs on earth, bestselling author Alex Banayan gained invaluable sales lessons from Microsoft founder Bill Gates, Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh, and dozens more.

In this empowering keynote, Banayan shows teams how to deploy new approaches to establishing relationships with leads so that you’re more than just another name in an inbox, from re-imagining prospect meetings to making a lasting impression.

His presentation also sheds light on new frameworks to view rejections and failures, offering surprising insights on what to do next. Audiences come away with practical tools to apply the Third Door™ framework to their sales process, including:

  • Finding your “Inside Man”
  • Overcoming “The Flinch”
  • Utilizing “Borrowed Credibility”
  • The surprising science of cold emails

From Larry King’s interviewing secrets that help warm up prospects to Quincy Jones’ key to continued growth and success, this keynote is for any sales team serious about taking their top-line results to the next level.

WORKSHOPS

CAREER GROWTH WORKSHOP

FUEL PERSONAL GROWTH BY INSTILLING THE THIRD DOOR MINDSET

90 MINS

In this interactive workshop, bestselling author Alex Banayan guides your audience through easy-to-implement exercises that are derived from his ten years of research on high performance and success.

Banayan presents practical tools that garner on-the-spot results within each individual, along with take-home exercises your audience can utilize after the event to continue cultivating growth, both personally and professionally. These tools help your audience get unstuck, rediscover what makes them come alive, and find clarity on some of the biggest obstacles they are bound to face as they navigate their paths to achieving their biggest goals, no matter what stage they are in their careers.

If instilling a sustainable and consistent mindset of growth within your attendees is a priority, then this workshop is for you.

STORYTELLING FOR BUSINESS GROWTH WORKSHOP

ACCELERATE TOP-LINE GROWTH THROUGH RADICALLY COMPELLING STORIES

90 MINS

After a decade of studying and interviewing the world’s most innovative leaders, bestselling author Alex Banayan has honed in on the one lever that can be pulled to accelerate your business growth in a whole new way: storytelling.

This goes beyond telling stories for marketing or advertising—this is about elevating your team’s ability to tell emotionally compelling narratives. Participants will radically improve their approach to the most critical components of top-line growth, ranging from sales and client communications, to executive leadership and investor relations, to how quickly and effectively new initiatives can be implemented internally.

This workshop produces dramatic results in real-time. Banayan not only teaches your audience his proprietary V.I.S.T.A. Storytelling Framework that can be used at any level of your organization, but he also guides your group through an interactive exercise where your audience walks away with brand new, rewritten stories.

This experience brings your event to new heights—not only changing the way audience members see themselves and their colleagues, but most important, changing the way they’re able to fuel your organization’s growth for years to come.

EXECUTIVE GROWTH STRATEGY SESSION

TURN THE LESSONS INTO A TANGIBLE PLAN OF ACTION

60 MINS

This session is only available to groups of thirty attendees or fewer, and is strongly advised to be used only with executive leadership, select upper management, or a top-priority team. To be coupled with the Exponential Growth keynote, this highly- dynamic session creates the space to create an actionable strategy for the upcoming quarter or fiscal year of your organization.

This session turns the principles of the Third Door framework into tangible plans specific to your organization’s goals. Each strategy session is tailored for the specific needs and goals of each organization.

By the end of the Executive Growth Strategy Session, your team members will not only see new pathways and approaches to achieve your most critical business objectives, but they will also be infused with an energy of possibility, perseverance, and enthusiasm for the rest of your fiscal year

TESTIMONIALS:

Partial list:

“The speech was an absolute home run. And it changed my life.”

– CEO, Intuit

“The feedback about Alex Banayan’s keynote has been off the charts. It was an outstanding event! Alex knocked it out of the park!”

—Andy Sieg, President, Merrill Lynch

“Banayan is one of the most professional and polished speakers I’ve worked with. And his talk couldn’t have gone better. His stories were enthralling, his insights were incredibly tangible, and his message was spot on.”

—Megan Green, Google Play Business Development, Google

“After Banayan’s keynote at Disney, we sent out a survey to all of the attendees. I must say, it was the best feedback we’ve ever received from any speaker. Hands down.”

—Laurie H. Allred, Head of Y@DCPI, Disney

“Alex Banayan’s keynote was entertaining, informative, and most of all, memorable. Thousands of our team members were in the audience and Banayan’s storytelling made it feel like we were all sitting down with him, one on one, as he spoke directly to each of us. It was exactly the kind of engaging keynote we were looking for.”

—Mike Miedler, CEO, Century 21 Real Estate

“When Alex Banayan spoke at my department’s off-site, his energy was contagious, his stories were inspiring, and his ideas pushed my team’s leadership. If you’re looking for someone with insight and passion, then Banayan is your man.”

—Jesse Stollak, VP of Global Brand Creative, Nike

“As a keynote speaker for our employee retention series, Alex Banayan brought a perfect mix of lively stories and practical exercises for some of our most tenured colleagues. Banayan’s keynote was able to strike the rare balance of entertaining, informative, and useful—which is exactly what we needed.”

—Courtney Loomis, Director of Employee Events, Salesforce

“Alex Banayan is an unbelievable storyteller! His keynote was thoughtful, engaging, and dynamic. Banayan represents the energy of unlimited potential.”

—Arturo Nunez, Head of ALAC Marketing, Apple

“Alex Banayan was the closing keynote at our top advisor summit and his message of ambition, growth, and perseverance were phenomenal! It was everything I was looking for and more.”

—Frederick E. Yates, Corporate Vice President, New York Life

“Banayan’s keynote kicked-off our event perfectly! His charismatic personality draws you in, and then his insights and stories prove to be both immensely entertaining and deeply emotional. Whether you work in sales or marketing, every department will find tremendous value in Banayan’s keynote. On top of that, we then decided to gift copies of The Third Door to our top clients, and they all loved it. Once you start reading the book, you can’t stop. The keynote coupled with the book is magic.”

—Sevan Leipziger, Senior Head of SAE Entertainment Sales, Delta Airlines

“The feedback on Alex Banayan’s keynote has been terrific! Our team left more energized and more informed. It was the perfect way to close out our event!”

—Kevin Squibb, Senior Manager of Digital Field Sales,

General Motors

“It was a fantastic keynote! The team is still talking about Alex’s presentation and using his take-aways and repeating his quotes left- and-right. Alex’s speech was one of our company’s favorites by far, and possibly the best Q&A we’ve ever seen.”

—Elysha R. McMurtry, Director of Corporate Affairs,

Monster Energy Drinks

“Banayan’s keynote and Q&A were on point for our attendees, his topics and takeaways were very effective for our group of top advisors. Alex even took the time to do a book signing and connected one on one with our advisors afterward. He was an amazing person to work with before and during our event.”

—Sarah Potts, Senior Specialist of Field Meetings,

Northwestern Mutual

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Chris Mathers

Chris Mathers is a professional public speaker and trainer, and the author of the bestselling book, Crime School: Money Laundering.

Chris spent most of his life working undercover for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the US Drug Enforcement Administration, and the US Customs Service.  Posing as a gangster(!), a drug trafficker, and even as a money launderer, Chris takes audiences into the underworld that only he can describe, letting people in on the stunning stories and secrets harbored by terrorists and those involved in organized crime.

Touching on issues from cyber security, hiring decisions and background checks to money laundering schemes, corporate fraud, bribery, blackmail, extortion and more, Chris offers insights on human character and organizational culture that can help you to spot and avoid the perils of white collar crime. Chris is a unique, humorous, and fascinating speaker.

Also a popular media commentator and speaker, Chris has served as a consultant on several feature films and documentaries relating to organized crime, espionage and money laundering. He has appeared on television and radio interviews on CNN, PBS, MSNBC, all of the Canadian national news networks as well as media outlets in Asia, Africa, Europe, Australia and the Caribbean.

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BIOGRAPHY:

Chris Mathers spent most of his adult life working undercover for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, US Drug Enforcement Administration and the F.B.I., posing as a gangster, a drug trafficker and a money launderer.  He is the author of the Canadian bestseller, CRIME SCHOOL: Money Laundering.

Chris was the senior undercover operator at the RCMP Proceeds of Crime Section where he established and operated several “storefront” money laundering businesses in Canada and the US, targeting Colombian, Russian and Asian organized crime groups.  Chris personally infiltrated criminal organizations in North America, the Caribbean, Latin America and Europe.  His decorations include, the RCMP Long Service Medal and the Commanding Officer’s Commendation for Exemplary Action.

Chris now operates a successful investigation and consulting firm with offices in the U.S., Canada, and Panama.  His firm’s current focus is asset recovery for victims of large frauds as well as the use of artificial intelligence by criminal organizations.

Known for his unique style, Chris’ describes the secret underworld of gangsters and spies, explaining the realities of crime and espionage in a candid, no-punches-pulled style.

Chris is a popular media commentator and has served as a consultant on several feature films and documentaries relating to organized crime, espionage and money laundering. He has appeared on BBC, CNN, PBS, MSNBC, all of the Canadian national news networks as well as media outlets in Asia, Africa, Europe, Australia and the Caribbean.

He is currently involved in developing a Canada- U.K. co-production TV series based on his life undercover.

SPEECH TOPICS

AI and Crime

Artificial Intelligence is software that mimics human cognition in order to perform complex tasks and learn from them. Its positive potential is limitless but, like any technology, it can be abused.

Criminals are already using audio and video impersonation to defraud and extort us. Foreign governments are using AI to influence our political beliefs.

On the upside, AI can detect fraud, spam calls, and phishing attempts much better than people can. AI never sleeps or even gets tired and it won’t call in sick.

Join Chris Mathers as he shares the latest amazing advances in AI, describing how the bad guys are using this amazing technology against us and how the good guys are using it to catch them.

 

Cybersecurity: The Invisible War

You may not know it, but we are at war. Not in Iraq. Not in Afghanistan. But in our own country.

Every minute of every day, companies and governments are under attack from an invisible enemy. An enemy who is not limited by rules of engagement or ethical boundaries. An enemy whose goal is to develop the capability to disrupt our commerce, our infrastructure, and our military.

Here are some scary stats:

The energy company, BP, reports 50,000 hacking attempts every day.

The Pentagon reports 10 million hacking attempts every day.

However, it is not just companies who are combatants in this invisible war. It’s also you and me. Every single day criminals, spies, and vandals attack us online in an attempt to steal our identity and our money.

What can you do to reduce your chances of becoming a victim? Quite a lot, in fact.

Chris Mathers will explain who exactly the bad guys are, what they’re trying to do, and how you can protect yourself and your organization from becoming the next headline.

 

Chris Mathers: Undercover

Chris Mathers is an in-demand keynote speaker. Whether the audiences are frontline staff, sales managers, corporate executives, teachers, entrepreneurs, trades people, or parents, there are many lessons to be learned from his life of crime.

Touching on issues from security, hiring decisions, and background checks to money laundering schemes, corporate fraud, bribery, blackmail, extortion, and more, Mathers offers wise insights on human character and organizational culture that can help you to spot and avoid the perils of white-collar crime.

 

Future-Proof Your Business: Privacy, Safety, and Security Post-COVID

Although working from home has reduced some of the risk to employees and customers, it has drastically increased the risk to businesses, particularly as it relates to cyber crime and data theft.

COVID-19 also demonstrated how adept organized crime groups are at dealing with change. Within days of the outbreak, they had changed their business model, identified new opportunities, and found new ways to commit fraud and theft.

In order to safeguard information, business owners need to ask important questions of employees who will continue to work remotely:

Are they willing to submit to increased cybersecurity measures? Measures that may require use of their biometrics? Or location tracking?

How much of their privacy are they willing to sacrifice? For convenience? For personal security?

Join Chris Mathers as he describes how recent changes in the world have created new opportunities for organized crime and state-sponsored criminals and the profound impact it will have, both on the way we do business and how we live our lives.

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Tony Chapman

Tony Chapman is one of Canada’s leading communication experts. The media has labelled him a Marketing Guru and he is an authority on how to build brands, sell strategically and be profitable in today’s volatile marketplace. Tony has been at the forefront of pioneering innovative marketing and sales tactics, including social media, and many consider him a trailblazer for the strategies he has deployed to reinvent how companies engage with their customers and navigate the changing landscape. He has founded and successfully sold two internationally renowned advertising agencies, Communique and Capital C, and co-founded Fresh Intelligence.  His agencies have collectively won over 100 national and international awards including the much-coveted Agency of the Year. 

Beyond his role as a Founder and CEO, Tony’s body of work includes being a host, facilitator, strategic creator, provocative debater, idea maker and keynote speaker at conferences around the world. He is also a noted contributor on television and radio, with weekly appearances on prime time television and radio, and has been featured in documentaries on the CBC, the BBC and Australian Television. In recent years, Tony has been the host of Chatter that Matters, a radio show that airs in nine markets, and a podcast. He chats with ordinary people who do extraordinary things, and his guests include Olympians, Business Leaders, Thought Leaders, Entrepreneurs, Celebrities and more.

Passionate, provocative, opinionated and relevant, with an engaging personality, he speaks on a range of issues including consumerism, business strategy, politics, the economy, as well as sales, branding and marketing. He is a mentor who shares his knowledge with students and invests in the next generation of entrepreneurs. 

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BIOGRAPHY:

Tony Chapman hosts the national radio show and podcast Chatter that Matters. Five hundred thousand listeners a week tune in, and the podcast ranks in the top 1% of the most popular in the world. Each week Tony counters the storm of negativity and growing sense of impossibility by sharing stories of positivity and possibility. Tony talks to leaders in the for-profit and not-for-profit, Olympians, world-renowned thinkers, trailblazers and those who have overcome impossible odds.
Tony has hosted conferences and delivered inspiring keynotes in China, Poland, Spain, Scotland, England, Brazil, Mexico, and the United States. Tony draws upon his experiences building two internationally renowned communications agencies and a research firm. His work and approach to building businesses and brands have led him into the Marketing Hall of Legends, and the Canadian PR, Marketing and Advertising Hall of Fame.

SPEECH TOPICS

Stop Telling Your Story; Become Part of Theirs
Attention is the oxygen of all human endeavor. Attention breathes life into how we parent, coach, mentor, lead, collaborate, market and sell. The challenge is tin this age of noise, too much and too many are chasing a finite amount of time. Many brands, ideas, and pitches are starving for attention. Tony will show you how to get the attention you deserve by shifting the conversation from what you do to why it matters.
Key takeaway:
Forces of change that are rendering traditional marketing and sales obsolete.
Why stories engage… while decks create a PowerPoint coma.
The art of formula for great storytelling.
How to apply all to attract and engage the audiences that matter most.

The Experience Economy: From a place to buy to the place to be

Drive Growth and Profitability by engaging in the Experience Economy.

Tourism, Hospitality, Retail, Auto and Financial Services must shift from being a place to (visit, eat, buy or bank) to becoming ’the place to be’, steeped in experiences. Why? Experiences are personal and feed emotion. Experiences will counter Disruptors who use mobile and voice as their Trojan Horse to marginalize your brand, aggregate pricing and sell direct.

In this presentation, Tony will take apart the Platform Economy to show what we must do to counter these disruptions, stay relevant and give our consumers a reason to visit and spend. He will draw upon case studies from around the world to encourage ‘bricks and mortar’ to shift from a place to buy, eat or visit, to one that also offers personal experiences that are value-based, emotive and transformative, and that let people be who they want to be.

Key takeaways:
• Why the 5 P’s are under siege by digital-based disruptors in the Platform Economy.
• Identify the two points of entry where you are most vulnerable to disruption.
• How focusing on the right ‘Be’s’ will enable you to attract guests, increase spend, develop better talent, and guide your messaging and offer, and spark innovation.

Stop Telling Your Story. Become Part of Mine:

How to get the attention of the people that matter most to you

Attention is the oxygen of most human endeavor, but in the Age of Noise most brands, ideas and proposals are starving for attention. Too many choices and too much content are competing for a finite amount of our audiences time. So how do we get heard? We stop telling our story and become part of theirs. Tony will draw upon his three decades of crafting powerful stories that engage the ‘head, heart and hands’ of audiences across all industry sectors. He uses entertaining and enlightening case studies to show why any audience-employees, customers, prospects and investors and all face to face and digital channels respond to this powerful and emotive platform.

Key Takeaways:

  • The essential pillars to crafting a story & the four human motivators to generate audience response.
    • The critical roles in the story, and why your audience is the hero.
    • Why storytelling is the best way to be heard in the age of noise.

Workshop:

Tony offers a two hour workshop where participants learn how to create and present a story that engages the ‘head, heart and hand’s’ of any audience.

A Brand New World:

Make Things Happen Versus Wonder What Happened

 Tony outlines the critical forces of change that are rendering much of what we know about leading businesses and even societies obsolete. A growing divide has collapsed the middle ground. You are either making things happen or wondering what happened, there is no status quo.

Tony looks at how to make things happen by first identifying then giving the people that matter most to you – employees, customers, prospects, influencers, and investors ‘More and Less’. More of what matters to each of them – value-added personalization, with less friction and effort.

He shows how do dot the three ‘I’s’. Insight, Imagination and Intention. In this Brand New World there is no middle ground. You must make things happen versus wonder what happened. Click here for more info.

TESTIMONIALS:

Tony, the place is buzzing about you. You were at your best. I was so damn proud to have you there. We learned so much. I’ve already heard people talking about your fly fishing analogy. Omg you were so good.
-Mary DePaoli, CMO and Executive Vice President Royal Bank of Canada
He Solves Business Problems at the Speed of Life
-Ian Portsmouth, General Publisher, Profit Magazine
His post speech interview left us with actionable strategies
-Tom Egam, Vice President, PMMI
Just a short note of thanks for inspiring my Genesis team yesterday. Btw many of your comments are being used in today’s session. You had a big impact on these people.
-President of Hyundai Canada
Everyone LOVED you as I knew they would! Thank you Tony!
-Karin McNabb, VP Marketing IAIC
Tony Chapman is among the most brilliant minds in the business worldwide. His ability to tap into the real sentiment that drives consumers is driven by his intuition and ability to think beyond boundaries. His ideas have broken new ground in industries ranging from Financial Services to packaged goods. He is a tremendous asset to any organization looking to reshape their industry around the consumer.
-Rick White, VP Marketing – Scotiabank

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Ron Insana

CNBC Contributor, Trailblazing Financial Journalist Bestselling Author and Financial Professional

What are the forces driving the economy and how will they impact you, your business, your industry, and your investment decisions? Those are the questions RON INSANA has answered for viewers and listeners every single day for over three decades. Currently a contributor to CNBC where he also served as anchor and correspondent since 1991, Ron also hosts The Market Score Board Report, a thrice-daily nationally syndicated radio program. As a financial journalist, Ron stands alone as someone who ran his own hedge fund – experience that adds to the depth of his insights. He’s also written for Money magazine, USA Today, and authored four bestselling books on investing and reading the financial market. In Ron’s speeches, he explains how Wall Street, Main Street and Washington intersecttranslating the market signals and political maneuvers into actionable information everyone can understand and use to protect what they have and find opportunities in any type of market condition.

“Financial markets send messages. Heed them because forewarned is forearmed with respect to future economic, political and geo-political events.” – Ron Insana

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BIOGRAPHY:

In the midst of the chaotic forces impacting business and the economy, Ron Insana delivers clear insights business leaders and financial professionals can use to make smarter decisions. A pioneer in television financial news reporting, Ron is currently senior analyst and commentator at CNBC. He also hosts The Market Score Board Report, a daily nationally syndicated radio program. As CEO of iFi AI, an AI-powered stock research platform created in partnership with IBM watsonx, Ron has a front row seat to the transformative AI revolution. He is also founder and CEO of The Insana Entertainment Group, a film and TV production company. Ron is author of four books on investing and financial markets dynamics. In his speeches, Ron makes sense of the business, economic, technological, and political news – distilling it into actionable insights his audience can use to navigate change, protect what they have, and spot fresh opportunities. Besides keynoting, he is also an outstanding moderator and interviewer.
 

SPEECH TOPICS

THE ECONOMY 2025: WASHINGTON, WALL STREET, AND THE WORLD – WHO STANDS TO WIN, WHO STANDS TO LOSE?
For the first time in decades, regardless of which political party wins, the White House, Washington and Wall Street might find themselves at odds over critical economic policies. This situation potentially places Main Street in a difficult position. On one side, there are proposals for across-the-board tariffs and mass deportations; on the other, there are capital-damaging tax hikes, and both sides are proposing deficit-increasing budgets. The federal government may wield more influence over the economy than a “friendly” Federal Reserve for the first time in years.

The first year of a new presidency always brings uncertainty, and 2025 will likely be no different for markets, the economy as a whole, and, perhaps more importantly, for specific sectors and regions that could be affected by upcoming policy and political changes. Ron Insana outlines the potential for profits and pitfalls, risks and rewards, and gains and losses in the year ahead – domestically and globally. What happens in 2025 may well shape the economy and markets for decades to come. Ron tailors this presentation to suit each audience on topics such as:

• Central Banks: Have They Risked a Recession to Fight Inflation?
• De-Globalization & De-Dollarization: Fact and Friction?
• Geo-Politics: 5 Hot Spots to Watch Around the World
• The AI Revolution: From Infrastructure to Implementation
• Battling Climate Change: Big Business versus Mass Migration
• The Culture Wars: What’s the Economic Cost of Societal Change?

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Dan Thurmon

Dan Thurmon delivers experiences that go beyond motivation, teaching concepts and skills re change, innovation and peak performance. TED talker, author, entrepreneur, Hall of Fame inductee, (fitness advocate, acrobat, unicyclist even on mountains – yes, really, drummer, and flying trapeze artist in the making) Dan’s visual and interactive keynote presentation – Off Balance On Purpose – gives businesses and organizations the energy to embrace change and uncertainty – to innovate and perform at their best, “When it matters the most.”  Dan Thurmon is the author of two books, a renowned speaker, and a recognized expert in delivering peak performances – on stage and in the workplace. As president of Motivation Works, Inc., he has worked with hundreds of clients and delivered thousands of presentations worldwide. Dan helps organizations and individuals implement actions plans and move confidently through transitions.

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Gordon Chang

There are speakers who can talk about the Chinese economy…but then, there is Forbes Magazine contributor and columnist at The Daily Beast, Gordon Chang.

Gordon lived in China for 20 years and is the author of the book,  “The Coming Collapse of China”.  If you want to know what’s in store for China’s future( Politically, socially, and economically ), and how it might affect us in the West,  then Gordon Chang is a must hear.

His writings on China and North Korea have appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, the Far Eastern Economic Review, the International Herald Tribune, Commentary, The Weekly Standard, National Review, and Barron’s.  Gordon once wrote in a Forbes column:

“Chinese leaders do not distrust us because they have insufficient contact with us.  They distrust us because they see themselves as the protector of a political system threatened by free societies and their vibrant economies. The mistrust is inherent in their one-party state.  It can never be relieved as long as the Communist Party remains in power.  As Ronald Reagan taught us, the nature of regimes matters.”

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Nicole Malachowski

Col. Nicole Malachowski, USAF (Ret.) defies stereotypes. Yes, she was a jet fighter pilot, but if you think you know her based on that, you’d be wrong. A leader, a combat veteran, the first woman pilot on the Thunderbirds Air Demonstration Squadron, a White House Fellow, and an inductee into both the National Women’s Hall of Fame and the Women in Aviation International Pioneer Hall of Fame, Nicole’s distinguished 21- year Air Force career exceeded her wildest dreams. But the dream came to an end when a devastating tick-borne illness left her struggling greatly to speak or walk for almost nine months. An indomitable spirit, Nicole fought back against overwhelming odds and prevailed. Drawing on stories from her career and personal life, Nicole inspires audiences to rethink the challenges they face every day. She urges them to go beyond resilience and become resurgent. Nicole empowers people with three key beliefs: failure and risk is the price of entry for achieving something great; sometimes you need to yield to overcome; and her personal mantra – “Nobody wants to lead a scripted life.”

In her speeches, Nicole inspires audiences with lessons from her experience that can be tailored to meet program objectives.  Nicole brings her experience to the stage and holds audiences spellbound with an easygoing authenticity of someone who’s achieved greatness. She’s been a member and leader of exceptional teams. She has faced overwhelming challenges and adversity and has come out on top. When Nicole’s distinguished military career was cut short by a neurological tick-borne illness that, at its worst, left her unable to walk safely or speak intelligibly, she overcame those challenges, as well.

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