Audience: Parents

Dave Jonsson

Professional Skateboarder and Plane Crash Survivor

Topics: Bullying, Faith/Religion - Christian Based, Leadership Development, Motivation and Inspiration, Resilience, Stress and Anxiety Management
Audiences: Corporate, Educators/Staff, Elementary, Faith-Based, Middle/High School, Parents, University/College
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WORKSHOPS
AND TOPICS

The Brilliance of Resilience - Keynote

The attitude of resiliency is foundational to any success story. In fact, in order to succeed, we first must fall and make mistakes. It’s the pathway to growth and experience. Using his skateboard as a tool to communicate this truth, Dave takes the audience on a vibrant journey of his life. He shares his story of surviving a plane crash as well as some practical principles on how to leverage seasons of pain to gain a greater perspective. The audience will leave encouraged and challenged to dig deep and find an attitude of resiliency within themselves that they previously didn’t know was there.

Age range: Elementary, Middle School, High school, College, Corporate, Educators.

Kindness Counts - Keynote

What do you want to be remembered for in life? Even though your job, health, and money may seem like the most important things, are they really? No matter who you are, what you will be remembered for the most is how you treated those around you. That’s why Kindness Counts! In this presentation, Dave shares stories of immigrating from Iceland and experiencing the feeling of being an outsider. If it hadn’t been for the kindness of those around him, he wouldn’t be the same person he is today! Dave uses the art of storytelling to show how kindness is the one thing that counts most in life.

Age range: Elementary, Middle School, High school, College, Corporate, Educators.

Leave Life Empty - Workshop

One proverb says, “For I have been poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race!” That’s an interesting thing to say, to be poured out, empty! You see, the point of life is not to finish full of dreams, and full of ambition, but empty! Les Brown once said, “The graveyard is the richest place on earth, because it is here that you will find all the hopes and dreams that were never fulfilled, the books that were never written, the songs that were never sung, the inventions that were never shared, the cures that were never discovered, all because someone was too afraid to take that first step, keep with the problem, or determined to carry out their dream.” What is the lasting contribution you can make to this planet and to those around you? What is your talent? In this workshop, Dave challenges students and leaders alike to live their lives with service in mind. Using hands-on tools and engaging applications, students will leave challenged to give life their all, investing their talent into the betterment of others.

Age range: Elementary, Middle School, High school, College, Corporate, Educators.

TRUST: Build Bridges, Not Breaches - Workshop

It has been said that “trust is the currency of every relationship.” In today’s world, where trust is the foundation of meaningful connections, Dave’s workshop titled “TRUST: Build Bridges, Not Breaches” centers around the essential pillars that contribute to building and maintaining trust. Consistency, Transparency, Competency, and Empathy serve as the core pillars in fostering strong connections and nurturing trust.

Regardless of your position or title, trust is an essential ingredient for success. Through thought-provoking discussions, interactive exercises, and real-life examples, Dave provides practical tools and strategies to enhance your ability to cultivate trust across various areas of life. Whether you are a leader, a professional, or someone seeking to deepen personal connections, this workshop equips you with the knowledge and skills to establish and nurture trust in all your relationships.

Testimonials

Speaker Testimonials

Today we had Dave come in and speak to our students and the presentation was exactly what we hoped for – more in fact. Dave’s message on the power of kindness and resiliency was expertly woven through the story of his life. While telling us about his experiences surviving a plane crash, being a newcomer to Canada, and a little bit of world history, Dave highlighted the power of being kind and the power of being resilient. Dave’s message resonates so loudly with our school values but it was Dave’s public speaking ability that had our students captivated the second they entered the gym. Walking in and seeing a professional skateboarder doing tricks as they entered set the tone for what was to be, a wonderful experience to bring our community together. Dave’s excellent public speaking skills then took our audience on a wonderful journey through his story – all the while having the audience hanging on every word. Dave’s presentation was a dynamic way to start off our year.

Darren Stewart, Principal of Pitt River Middle School

Today we had Dave in to speak to the entire school in our gym. As the students entered our gym and saw Dave doing some tricks on his skateboard their energy level went up and the student’s attention was his. Throughout his presentation and the telling of his stories, the students were engaged and interested in what he had to say. Dave’s message was fantastic and very important for our students and staff to hear. His closing stunt left the kids cheering and wanting to see more. We all thoroughly enjoyed Dave’s presentation as his message was relative, passionate, and honest.

Brad Downey, Principal at Scott Creek Middle School, Coquitlam BC

As a youth recreation worker, I have been given the opportunity to witness Dave Jonsson speak and connect with youth. Dave has the natural ability to engage an audience and motivate them to be the best versions of themselves. He really is a true inspiration!

Carissa Keenan, Manager at Greg Moore Youth Centre
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REQUEST TO BOOK Dave Jonsson

If comfortable, please use a personal email as many school boards have blocked external emails.

Nadia Ladak

Youth Entrepreneurship Speaker and Co-Founder and CEO of Marlow

Topics: College and Career Prep, Entrepreneurship, Environmental and Global Issues, Motivation and Inspiration, Women's Leadership
Audiences: Corporate, Educators/Staff, Middle/High School, Parents, University/College
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Keynote - Becoming a Youth Entrepreneur: Finding a Problem You're Passionate About Solving (High School, University, Corporate)

In this keynote, Nadia discusses her journey building her startup Marlow from a school project to a fast growing investor backed startup. She candidly shares her experience as a young entrepreneur and how it all stemmed from finding a problem she was determined to solve. Students will walk away feeling inspired and motivated to think about how they can tackle some of the world’s biggest challenges.

Keynote - Finding a Non-Traditional Career Path: Becoming a Youth Entrepreneur at 22 (High School, University)

In high school and university, there is a lot of pressure to find the “perfect” career path. After switching from a music degree to a business program, and going from management consulting to starting her own business, Nadia shares her career journey with students and shows them that it’s ok to not know what’s next. This inspiring and motivating talk will ensure students walk away with key insights on how to decide what’s next for them.

Keynote - Building a Community-Driven Brand (Corporate)

Designed for corporate professionals, this keynote covers what it takes to build a digitally savvy brand perfect for the modern Gen Z consumer. Through organic content marketing and effective storytelling, Nadia has grown her startup Marlow’s online community to 50,000 individuals. In this workshop, she will share the key principles to building a strong online presence around your brand.

Workshop - Navigating the Innovation Process

In this interactive workshop, students or corporate professionals will go through a design-thinking workshop and explore all of the principles of innovation. After this workshop, individuals will feel empowered to think differently, identify problems in their workplaces or schools, and go through a process to find effective solutions.

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REQUEST TO BOOK Nadia Ladak

If comfortable, please use a personal email as many school boards have blocked external emails.

Kwame Osei

Former CFL Player, Amazing Race Finalist, Resilience, Mental Health and DEI expert

Topics: Diversity and Inclusion, Leadership Development, Mental Health, Motivation and Inspiration, Resilience
Audiences: Corporate, Educators/Staff, Middle/High School, Parents, University/College
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WORKSHOPS
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Keynote: RESILIENT RESPONSE TO ADVERSITY (Teens and Adults)

Kwame uses the art of storytelling from his life to inspire his audience to overcome the adversity in life. Kwame urges his audience to understand that after stress comes success and from struggle comes strength. Kwame teaches his audience tools to help manage change and uncertainty. Kwame has learned this through the course of his life, as he overcame the negative environment he lived in. He overcame the stereotypes placed on him, countless situations in which he could have easily lost his life or been incarcerated. Kwame believes that perspective is everything and having the right mindset can change your inner and outer world. Kwame urges his audiences to not only find their passion but to also place themselves in the right environment to truly grow to their full potential. Find out how Kwame turned his obstacles into triumphs and turned lead into gold.

Keynote/Workshop: DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION (Teens and Adults)

In this presentation Kwame will dive into personal stories involving inclusion and diversity. Kwame will breakdown macroaggressions using his personal experiences while also teaching his audience to be aware of macroaggressions and unconscious bias. Kwame opens up about the trauma inducing experiences he has had in his life due to race and discrimination and the negative impact it has had on his mental health. In this presentation Kwame thoroughly explains what an inclusive work space looks like, and he teaches his audience how to create a diverse environment in order to produce cultural competence and cultural understanding. Book Kwame now and find out how you can create a culture that permeates inclusion and diversity.

Keynote/Workshop: MINDSET HACK - GROWTH MINDSET (Teens and Adults)

Kwame will help his audience understand that the differences between successful people and unsuccessful people is simply the way they perceive the events of life. Kwame acknowledges that dealing with internal and external change can be difficult and hard to manage. Kwame will teach his audience how to embrace change and find comfort in the midst of chaos. In this presentation Kwame will breakdown the importance of having a growth mindset and how your life can be completely altered in a positive way if you choose to have a positive mindset. In order to overcome adversity you must have a growth mindset which will build the resilience you need to never give up when life becomes challenging. Kwame passionately believes that perception is everything in life. Book Kwame now and find out how his perception helped him at critical times in his life.

Keynote: TEACHING - THE UNCONVENTIONAL APPROACH TO THE UNCONVENTIONAL LEARNER (Adults/Educators)

There are many young learners who fall through the cracks of the education system, these learners are often the ones who can be deemed frustrating and challenging to work with for educators. Kwame was once this child and almost fell through the cracks however today Kwame has gone on to become an educator. He has worked in education for a school board for 8 years in Alberta and now teaches at a Federal Maximum Penitentiary in Ontario. Kwame compares and contrasts the duality of these experiences and provides educators with a new perspective on how to approach the unconventional learner.

More Information

REQUEST TO BOOK Kwame Osei

If comfortable, please use a personal email as many school boards have blocked external emails.

Swish Goswami

CEO at Surf, Investor, Author, 4-Time TEDx Speaker and LinkedIn Top Voice

Topics: Entrepreneurship, Leadership Development, Mental Health, Motivation and Inspiration
Audiences: Corporate, Educators/Staff, Elementary, Middle/High School, Parents, University/College
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WORKSHOPS
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You Inc

In this talk Swish will teach you how to cultivate your personal brand which you have whether you want it or not. By sharing the dos and don’ts behind engage and effective social storytelling on various platforms including his favourite platform LinkedIn, Swish will help you build a community while perfecting social storytelling, networking and selling yourself. This talk is ideal for those in Corporate, Universities/Colleges and Educators/Staff.

Starting a high growth company from scratch

Swish will candidly talk about the early days of building his company Surf and how they ended up raising over $5M from world class investors. Swish will share his entire playbook on how to start a business (everything from conceptualizing an idea, finding your co-founder, getting early customer feedback, landing your first customers, etc). This is a tactical talk for those that are interested in starting their first business. The talk also touches on aspects of Swish’s bestselling book “The Young Entrepreneur” which he published with Kogan Page.

Managing your mental health

Swish has dealt with anxiety for the last few years. Through his experience doing therapy as well as talking to others around him that suffer from anxiety, Swish will candidly talk about why everyone should be focused on their mental health, what people can do to manage it everyday and what limitations our minds put on us (ex. fear of not doing enough, fear of what others will think, etc). This is a talk that will directly aim to engage with audience members on an emotional level.
Testimonials

Speaker Testimonials

Swish is, without exaggeration, a one-in-a-million type of leader who clearly has a fantastic future…”

Forbes

“It wouldn’t surprise me if this kid one day becomes Prime Minister. Swish hunted me down and interviewed me on ideas around success. It was wonderful meeting one of our best and brightest up & coming young minds.”

Michael Hyatt, former Dragon on Dragons’ Den
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REQUEST TO BOOK Swish Goswami

If comfortable, please use a personal email as many school boards have blocked external emails.

Cara Filler

Youth Motivational Speaker and Prevention Specialist

Topics: Goal Setting, Improving Social Climate and School Culture, Leadership Development, Resilience
Audiences: Corporate, Educators/Staff, Middle/High School, Parents, University/College
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WORKSHOPS
AND TOPICS

The Drive to Save Lives Tour

Through this eye-opening presentation on traffic safety and risk taking, and peer pressure, Cara inspires students to stand up for themselves and their friends, have a good time safely and make better life-changing decisions. With entertaining, relevant and powerful messages, Cara encourages students to speak up and own the Power of Choice. #ISpokeup This is Cara’s most requested presentation.

Driven: Rules of the Road to Success

Life is a journey, and Cara gives students a road map to navigate through it’s speed bumps and roadblocks. Students learn how to create their own GPS (Game Plan for Success!), develop an unstoppable drive forward and the secrets of getting in the express lane to success.

Let’s get R.E.A.L

In this fast-paced presentation, Cara gets students Really Excited About Leadership. Students walk away with real answers to real questions, like what defines a true leader and how to be one, what L.E.A.D.E.R.S.H.I.P. stands for and how to make a positive, lasting difference in their schools and communities.

Canada’s Next Top Role Model

Do you have what it takes to be Canada’s Next Top Role Model? During this workshop, students go through extensive training to learn the characteristics of role models and how to be one, how to make a big difference by doing little things, and how to “walk” the role model talk. Interactive fun role model runway show at the end will keep students laughing for days.

Testimonials

Speaker Testimonials

“There are very few speakers who have the ability to relate to a student audience as Cara does. Cara’s passion and commitment to her message is obvious, and her ability to connect with a student audience is outstanding!”

D. Conlon, Communications Director, Canadian Student Leadership Association

“Cara Filler holds the perfect recipe for addressing serious issues in a memorable, relevant way with today’s young people… empathy, levity, authority and an unconditional pure interest in the choices and safety of those in her audience.”

L. England, Student Council Advisor, Eisenhower High School, Yakima, WA, USA

“Cara reaches and touches the life of every person in the room. She is an energetic, engaging, honest, humourous, and motivating speaker and passionate about educating students to make better choices. Her 4 P’s can save your life.”

D. Deacon. Principal, Burlington High School, Boston, MA, USA

“Today I was one of the thousands of students you inspired. I hope I can embrace your story and lesson for the rest of my life, and I hope you can continue to teach the world and spread your positive message. To be honest, I didn’t think today’s assembly would be anything special, but you proved me wrong. It makes a difference. Thank you, it was humorous, emotional, touching and inspirational.”

Tyler S., High School Student
More Information

REQUEST TO BOOK Cara Filler

If comfortable, please use a personal email as many school boards have blocked external emails.

Scott Hammell

Speaker, Magician, Stunt Artist, Storyteller

Topics: College and Career Prep, Goal Setting, Leadership Development, Motivation and Inspiration, Resilience, Stress and Anxiety Management
Audiences: Corporate, Educators/Staff, Middle/High School, Parents, University/College
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WORKSHOPS
AND TOPICS

Perspective

Magic is all about perspective. The same thing, seen from different angles can appear wildly different. Scott pulls back the curtain and examines how magicians use a combination of techniques to achieve the desired outcome. These techniques have been monumental in Scott’s life for his art, as well as understanding and gaining clarity on challenging issues. Subtle perspective shifts can lead to significant improvements.

Effective Goal Seeting Technique

Scott has built a wonderful life for himself by pursuing his dreams. He created opportunities for himself when he felt forward progress wasn’t fast enough. Some people look at Scott’s Guinness World Records as unique accomplishments. While Scott is very proud of these achievements, he views himself as an ordinary person who has figured out how to effectively set and accomplish goals!

Understanding Fear

Sometimes we push ourselves outside of our comfort zones, and sometimes we are pushed by factors external to us. In order to discover our true capabilities it is critical we move outside of our comfort zone.

Scott knows the benefits of pushing his boundaries all too well. He would not be a Guinness World Record holder today if he had not stepped outside of his comfort zone to attempt a gravity-defying stunt. Instead of being limited by his fear of heights, Scott faced the fear, embraced it, and ultimately overcame it.

Leadership

Scott knows what it takes to be a leader. He’s built, inspired and motivated his teams to achieve world-class results. Although his stunt experiences are unique, the wisdom he has gained and is able to convey is timeless and relatable. His leadership messages are about ideals such as protecting your crew, leading from behind, highlighting your team’s skill sets, delegation of tasks and successfully managing team members who are not contributing. Scott has toured the world, presenting at top leadership conferences and he is in demand for repeat performances.

Resilience

Sometimes our worst experiences can end up making us stronger. Scott sees opportunity in adversity and offers strategies to control perspective. We can’t control adversity, but we can control our perspective. Like most things in life, the more we practice resilience, the more naturally it comes. Scott’s passion-based approach to resilience offers a clear starting point as well as room to build solid foundations so that later work feels effortless.

Career Development

When you love doing something, it feels as natural as breathing. “Getting Paid to Breathe” is about finding your passion and making it happen.  Scott empowers his audience to examine their career development in the context of career satisfaction.

The Stuntman's Guide to Staying Calm

Scott Hammell has made a career by putting himself into stressful situations. No, I don’t just mean public speaking. Scott has tackled stunts in the air, on land and underwater. These experiences, combined with over 20 years as a hypnotist have lead to some interesting insights and techniques for staying calm during stressful situations. You don’t need to be attempting stunts to find the value in these simple practices.

The speech is designed to bring audiences into the mind of Scott as he’s about to perform one of his most dangerous stunts. His techniques for staying calm are broken down and elaborated upon. Scott also teaches the secrets to develop a super power.

The podcast is a free resource of relaxation recordings. These recordings are designed to help you sleep better, improve your memory, increase your focus and reduce your overall stress levels.

Additional Magic and Juggling Workshops

Scott has been teaching magic and juggling for over 20 years. He is able to provide participants with all the necessary tools to learn magic and or juggling. The tricks taught in these workshops can have specific tie-ins to his speaking topics. If you’re looking for a complimentary program that is fun and hands-on, ta-da!!!!

More Information

REQUEST TO BOOK Scott Hammell

If comfortable, please use a personal email as many school boards have blocked external emails.

Orlando Bowen

Founder of One Voice One Team, Game Changer and Speaker

Topics: Bullying, Improving Social Climate and School Culture, Leadership Development, Resilience, Team-Building
Audiences: Corporate, Educators/Staff, Middle/High School, Parents, University/College
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WORKSHOPS
AND TOPICS

Resilience

Making Sweet Lemonade of Life’s Lemons and Sharing it with Those Around You

Anti-bullying

One Voice One Team – There is No ‘Us and Them’… There’s Only ‘US’

Leadership

Leading by Example, We ALL Have Stories and Gifts to Give

High Performance

Creating High Performance Teams where Excellence is the Standard

Set the Tone

Creating a Climate and Culture of Excellence for Every Student

Resilience

Creating and Fostering Excellence in Light of Adversity… Bring it ON!!

Testimonials

Speaker Testimonials

“Orlando is very engaging. The students instantly connect with him. He has led an amazing life but his message is about encouraging students to do the same. The students feel like he is talking directly to them even though there are thousands of people in the room.”

R. Jones, Coordinator, Alberta Student Leadership Conference 2018

“Honestly, it was an honour to have you at our school today, you not only touched my heart but the hearts of all the students you talked to today. You make me want to be the best person I can, and from this day, I will. Thank you!”

Brittney, Grade 10 Clarke Road S.S. (London, ON)

“Orlando Bowen is the most powerful and engaging speaker I have ever had the pleasure of hearing. His vision for the world left me in awe. He connected with both the boys and girls in the audience, which is rare for a speaker.”

Erin, 4H Canada

“Orlando speaks from the heart with sincerity, enthusiasm, and most importantly, he speaks from experience. His biggest message is about forgiveness. Having lived through unspeakable, life-changing events, Orlando can teach students about forgiveness, because he has managed to unconditionally forgive all those who have wronged him.”

A. Cox-Twardowski, Teacher, Beaconsfield H.S., Montreal, QC
More Information

REQUEST TO BOOK Orlando Bowen

If comfortable, please use a personal email as many school boards have blocked external emails.

Cheryl Pounder

Two-time Olympic Gold Medalist, Speaker and Broadcaster

Topics: Goal Setting, Leadership Development, Mental Health, Resilience, Women's Leadership
Audiences: Corporate, Educators/Staff, Middle/High School, Parents, University/College
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WORKSHOPS
AND TOPICS

Pursuit of Excellence: “Growing for Gold” – Self-Awareness, Leadership and Teamwork

How does one grow and get gold, no matter their situation? Cheryl’s enlightening keynote is interactive, engaging and entertaining. She discusses the importance of building a vision while focusing on participation vs engagement and the importance of seizing every opportunity. Cheryl also focuses on the character dimensions of leadership, the importance of collaboration and how one individual can affect and impact the culture and mission of a group. By sharing information, understanding the importance of inclusivity and recognizing value, we build culture and efficiency. Growing for Gold involves trusting the process, tough conversations and clarity of the common goal. Thinking differently is essential to excellence.

Pursuit of Excellence: “Breaking the Barriers” – The Courage to Overcome Adversity

How do you take what cards life has dealt you and turn them into a win? Cheryl discusses adversity as it applied to her journey and how being ‘abnormal’ and taking chances helped her succeed in a world where many believed she couldn’t.Finding strength in vulnerability and having the courage to embrace change, leads to incredible opportunities. Cheryl takes you on a journey, discussing how she developed resiliency and how she has overcome her personal fear of failure in order to break barriers and prove to herself and others that she has what it takes to win.

Pursuit of Excellence: “End the Stigma” – Understanding Mental Health

Can you recognize the signs of mental illness? Are you doing what you need to do to take care of your own mental wellness? Cheryl talks about the pressures of leadership, being in the public eye and the importance of taking care of your own mental wellness in order to reach your goals and lead a fulfilling life. She also talks about the importance of encouraging your team and those around you to put mental wellness on their list of personal goals.

Pursuit of Excellence: “Women in Leadership” – The importance of finding your voice, rising up and collaborating

As a professional hockey player and sports broadcaster, Cheryl Pounder will share her journey as a female in a male-dominated community. She discusses the courage needed to find your voice and how to find the strength to ‘stand on top of your story’. She will reinforce the importance of joining the conversation and how women can rise up to any challenge in any circumstance. She encourages the audience to talk about their own personal barriers while recognizing their role within a community. Cheryl also talks about the need for collaboration as women in leadership and how teamwork really does make the dream work.

Testimonials

Speaker Testimonials

“Cheryl was simply amazing. She connected with the audience by finding common threads and working those in to her talk. Her message was very applicable to our audience and people were hanging on to her every word. I’m still running in to people who were at the event and singing her praises.”

Event Coordinator, Clarington Sports Hall of Fame, Bowmanville, ON

“Cheryl was amazing! She connected with the guests, had her photo taken, let guests hold her medals, and her presentation was perfect. She integrated her story with our work and at the end, she had a standing ovation. Cheryl is a lovely person and an outstanding presenter. Her love for presenting and her passion for her story and her caring for others comes through loud and clear.”

Halton Healthcare Services, Oakville, ON
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REQUEST TO BOOK Cheryl Pounder

If comfortable, please use a personal email as many school boards have blocked external emails.

Mark Black

Resilience Expert and the Only Man in History to Run a Marathon Using Someone Else's Heart and Lungs

Topics: Bullying, Leadership Development, Mental Health, Motivation and Inspiration, Resilience
Audiences: Corporate, Educators/Staff, Faith-Based, French Speaking, Middle/High School, Parents, University/College
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WORKSHOPS
AND TOPICS

Do Tough Stuff

Format: Assembly Program or Workshop

Duration: 50-65 mins

Suitable for: Grades 7-12

We live in a world where convenience and ease are valued more highly than determination and grit. When students believe that better means easier they risk missing out on some of the best parts of life.

In this thought-provoking and inspiring program; Mark shares how the best things in his life came out of what initially seemed like terrible situations. Students learn practical strategies for reframing their challenges and embracing their flaws to become the best version of themselves.

Key Take-Aways:

  • Your results are created by your decisions. If you don’t like your results; change your decisions.
  • The best way to deal with your problems is to face them head-on.
  • It is great to dream and to have a positive attitude, but unless you DO something, nothing will change.
  • The most successful people are also the most determined: If you never quit, you succeed, or you learn.

Hold On

Duration: 50-65 mins

Suitable for: Grades 9-12 & University/College audiences

Teens are more anxious and stressed than ever before. 34% of high school students now indicate a moderate to serious level of psychological distress. Suicide is the 3rd leading cause of death in people aged 15-24, it doesn’t have to be.

Even while working as a “motivational speaker” Mark struggled with an anxiety disorder and depressive episodes for years. He has experienced how it feels, and he wants to help. Mark is not a therapist or psychiatrist. He is just someone who has been there and found a way out.

In this powerful presentation, Mark incorporates humour and humility to open an authentic and encouraging dialogue and provide a safe space for students dealing with depression and other mental health struggles. Students will learn practical strategies to cope and learn it is okay to ask for help.

Key Take-Aways:

  • Permission to talk: students will be encouraged to talk to people they trust about how they feel
  • Acceptance: teens need to feel accepted. Mark helps students accept themselves for who they are
  • How to get help: Posting the crisis / suicide hotline number is not enough.
  • Mark provides students with a number of resources and ways to get help after the presentation.

Level Up Your Life

Teens are at a critical time in their personal development. In “Level Up” Mark will use his life story of battling a life-threatening disease, surviving a Heart & Double-Lung Transplant, and running 4 marathons to help your students see new possibilities for themselves.

Key Take-Aways:

  • Discover what is holding you back from being your best
  • Stretch your vision of what is possible
  • Learn how to cultivate REAL motivation that lasts
  • Understand what drives you
  • If you need to stretch the vision of your organization and help your people set bigger goals, this is the program for you.

The Resilience Roadmap

You deal with adversity on a daily basis. In addition to the typical challenges you have always had to face, now there is covid-19 and all it brings. When faced with any adversity, people generally have two reactions: fight or flight. They either summon their resources and resolve, they retreat or sink into despair. Which will you be?

To succeed in the face of adversity, one tool is essential to have in your toolbox; resilience.  In The Resilience RoadmapTM Mark provides a framework for success despite the odds and provides a powerful dose of inspiration and excuse-eliminating motivation, in the process.

Using his life story of battling a life-threatening disease, surviving a Heart & Double-Lung Transplant, and recovering to run 4 marathons Mark will show you that you are limited more by perceptions than circumstances. But it goes far beyond emotions or attitude.

In this powerful and practical program, you will acquire skills you can implement immediately to improve your bottom line.

Key Take-Aways:

  • Re-frame challenges to create powerful opportunities for innovation and growth
  • Eliminate distractions and excuses that impede your success
  • Where to put your time and energy to impact the metrics that matter
  • Create milestones and goals that actually drive results
  • Develop an implementable action plan
  •  This program will not only provide your conference with a powerful experience ideal for beginning or ending your event with impact, attendees will leave with practical takeaways they can implement in their business the following day.

Live Today

Do your people struggle with stress, frustration, or worry? Have they lost some of the joy and passion for what they do amid all of the challenges and stresses they face? If so, Live Today is the perfect program to remind them how much their work matters and re-ignite their passion for doing it.

Live TodayTM is an inspiring and powerful way to open or close your conference with a message that will leave people inspired and rejuvenated. Through his powerful personal story, Mark will show your audience how to accept the things they cannot change, and focus their most precious resources – time and energy – on the things that matter.

  • Accept the things they cannot change, in order to
  • focus on what they can control
  • Re-discover the pride and passion they have for their work
  • Be inspired and motivated to be their best for themselves and their patients
  • Live Today provides your people with a fresh perspective on challenges and perceived problems and leaves them inspired and empowered to be their best.

Through Your Patients' Eyes

You care about your patients. You want to give them the best care possible. You can’t be expected to do that unless you know what really matters to them.

In this engaging presentation, Mark will the incredible impact made on him by the medical professionals who he lived with and cared for him as he faced the prospect of death. You’ll be inspired and affirmed in the value of your work. More than that, you’ll learn practical strategies to help you be a better professional, like:

  • The Do’s and Don’ts to ensure your patients feel cared for
  • The 3 things you can do to connect with your patients immediately
  • How to turn a patient into your ally
  • How to turn your workday into an energizing, rewarding and
  • fulfilling experience

Mark has worked with thousands of medical professionals, and spoken at dozens of conferences, including

  • Canadian Association of Critical Care Nurses
  • National Emergency Nurses Association
  • Canadian Association of Health Care Auxiliaries
  • National Pulmonary Hypertension Association

This program is perfect for the opening or closing keynote for your healthcare conference. It is also available as a 90 min breakout.

Testimonials

Speaker Testimonials

“It is rare to find a speaker who is able to both connect with teens AND provide a meaningful message that can immediately help them in their lives. Mark is one of those speakers. If you have the opportunity to bring him to your school, do it. We booked Mark for three virtual programs for our students and parents during the pandemic. I was impressed with how he effortlessly mixed humour with his remarkable experience, to make genuine connections with the audience even through a screen. Using various engagement strategies from hand raising to Q & A, he kept students engaged throughout. Mark’s program was exactly what we needed. The resilience strategies he teaches give students the tools to be better cope with the multitude of challenges they face, and the unforgettable story he shares inspires us to take action. After hearing Mark, students realize their capacity to thrive despite their circumstances and are empowered to face whatever life throws at them.”

“Recently our students had the privilege of hearing speaker Mark Black. Mark was chosen by our Students’ Council after they heard him speak at the Ontario Student Leadership Conference in Niagara Falls. Right from the start of Mark’s presentation, students were engaged and remained engaged throughout the entire hour. Mark did a great job of combining humour and anecdotes relevant to our teenage students to hook them up, and to prepare them to hear his practical and powerful message of leading a life that is positive and purposeful. As a Guidance Counsellor and Students’ Council Advisor, I would highly recommend Mark for any speaking engagement. Using his own personal life experience, Mark is able to offer students practical ways to feel more optimistic, reduce anxiety and worry, and start a change process to reach their goals.”

Adam Rowden, Student Council Advisor, Wellington Heights Secondary School

“The saying ‘speak from your heart’ certainly suits Mark Black’s presentation! His honest, down to earth conversation with our students made a huge impact! We tied his presentation to our school Career Fair and his words hit home. It is rare to see a standing ovation in a high school, but there was no question: he deserved it!”

Sheila Chad, Principal, E.D. Feehan Catholic High School

“It is not easy to gain the attention of middle schoolers. He engaged our 7-12 audience with skill. His content was everything that we try to deliver in our grade 9-12 Healthy and Active Living curriculum. It’s inspiring to hear a “stranger” make these connections with the students: resilience, consent, respect and the Golden Rule, etc. We look forward to linking his talk back to our themes in the curriculum in the coming months.”

D. Kealey, Principal, St. Peter High School, Orleans, ON

“It is rare to find a speaker who is able to both connect with teens AND provide a meaningful message that can immediately help them in their lives. Mark is one of those speakers. If you have the opportunity to bring him to your school, do it. We booked Mark for three virtual programs for our students and parents during the pandemic. I was impressed with how he effortlessly mixed humour with his remarkable experience, to make genuine connections with the audience even through a screen. Using various engagement strategies from hand raising to Q & A, he kept students engaged throughout. Mark’s program was exactly what we needed. The resilience strategies he teaches give students the tools to be better cope with the multitude of challenges they face, and the unforgettable story he shares inspires us to take action. After hearing Mark, students realize their capacity to thrive despite their circumstances and are empowered to face whatever life throws at them.”

More Information

REQUEST TO BOOK Mark Black

If comfortable, please use a personal email as many school boards have blocked external emails.

Jeff A.D. Martin

Youth Communication Specialist and Diversity & Inclusion Coach

Topics: Diversity and Inclusion, Leadership Development, Mental Health, Motivation and Inspiration, Social Impact
Audiences: Corporate, Educators/Staff, Elementary, Faith-Based, Middle/High School, Parents, University/College
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WORKSHOPS
AND TOPICS

You Are Worth It! (Student Session)

Coming out of COVID-19, some studies show that 1 in 3 students suffer from depression, anxiety and have suicidal thoughts. One of Jeff’s favourite keynote topics is about finding your self-worth and believing in who you are. Jeff helps to combat against this negative thinking by teaching on the positive effects of self-affirmations and raising your self-worth.

*Can be modified towards the students age of understanding, ranging from Grade 3 to College/University level.

Diversity & Inclusion (Student Session)

Many people do not recognize that although we are all different in gender, skin complexion, religion etc, as human beings, the only difference between any one of us, on a microscopic level is 0.01%. This means we are more alike than not. The sad part is people are being bullied, discriminated against and even killed over the difference of 0.01%. Jeff focuses in on the power of inclusion and embracing diversity.

*Can be modified towards the students age of understanding, ranging from Grade 3 to College/University level.

Your Why! (Educator Session)

For the many teachers who put their heart and soul into their students, as time goes on, you can sometimes experience fatigue and burn out. Jeff reminds you of why you got into the profession of teaching to begin with. Your job is greater than teaching 1+1, your job is shaping the future leaders of tomorrow. Jeff wants to remind you about your importance and of the fact that you could be moulding the next Prime Minister of Canada.

Do I matter to you? (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion – Teachers session)

In this special presentation, Jeff digs into the important topic of biases, where we learn them and how they effect the way we see and treat each other. He also discusses the term ‘Privilege’ and how we can actually use or own identified privileges to help others. Jeff shares useful tools and resources that assist the audience in discovering their own biases and also effective ways to speak to children about discrimination without shying away from the topic. Jeff uses Canadian examples in his presentation and reminds us that its not about blaming others for the past, its about taking both self and a collective responsibility to make change.

How do I speak to my child about race? (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion – Parent session)

In this special presentation, Jeff digs into the important topic of biases, where we learn them and how they effect the way we see and treat each other. He also discusses the term ‘Privilege’ and how we can actually use or own identified privileges to help others. Jeff shares useful tools and resources that assist the audience in discovering their own biases and also effective ways to speak to children about discrimination without shying away from the topic. Jeff uses Canadian examples in his presentation and reminds us that its not about blaming others for the past, its about taking both self and a collective responsibility to make change.

Do I matter to you? (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion – Corporate session)

In this special presentation, Jeff digs into the important topic of biases, where we learn them and how they effect the way we see and treat in the work environment. He shares the ways a corporation can win when fully adapting Inclusion to its core competencies. Jeff also shares useful tools and resources that assist the audience in discovering their own biases and also effective ways to speak on macroaggressions within the work environment. In this corporate presentation, Jeff reminds us that its not about blaming others for the past, its about taking both self and a collective responsibility to make positive and sustainable change to the work environment.

More Information

REQUEST TO BOOK Jeff A.D. Martin

If comfortable, please use a personal email as many school boards have blocked external emails.