How AI Will Decide Who Gets Booked As A Keynote Speaker… And How I’m Adapting
In the past, visibility as a keynote speaker meant SEO... search engine optimization. You built a solid website, sprinkled in the right keywords, and hoped event planners would find you when they Googled things like “conference keynote speaker on networking.” But...
The CEO’s New Role: Leading Humanity Through the Age of AI
Leading humanity is the new role for C-Suite leaders. Things are changing...and society needs real leaders to show up and help guide the way. If we do not have good leaders, then charlatans who want to mis-lead people will have the ability to fill the void. Below is...
The Most Overlooked Habit in Business Development for Corporate Lawyers
In the world of business development for corporate lawyers, there’s no shortage of advice. Build your brand, show thought leadership, attend networking events, speak on panels, join boards. All of those matter... but there’s one simple habit that quietly separates...
Top Keynote Trends for 2025
What Meeting Planners Are Booking Now The phrase top keynote trends for 2025 is showing up in more and more speaker briefs and RFPs. If you are organizing a conference or corporate meeting, you are already seeing how audience expectations are evolving. The best events...
Austin Tech Keynote Speech
One of the most unexpectedly rewarding speeches I’ve been delivering over the past couple of years is my keynote titled “The History of Austin Tech.” What started as a fun idea to share some context about how this city became one of the world’s leading tech hubs has...
There Is No Perfect Room. And That’s a Good Thing
What group has the best networking? In almost every industry I work with... from law firms to tech startups to association leaders.. I hear some version of the same question: “What’s the best networking group?” Or its cousin: "Where can I go where everyone in the room...
The Network You Don’t Know You’re In
Most people think of networking as a deliberate activity. You go to an event, you hand out business cards, you follow up with LinkedIn requests. It’s active. It’s intentional. It’s transactional if you’re not careful. But networking isn't a verb (you don't "go...
I Spoke at 42 Conferences and Local Meetings Last Year… Here’s What Nobody Is Talking About
I have a weird vantage point. As someone who speaks at dozens of conferences each year, and also helps run a tech council that hosts our own events, I get a front-row seat to what’s working in the meetings industry... and what’s just coasting on autopilot. Conference...
The Key to a Great Law Firm Retreat? Choose the Right Speaker
When planning a law firm retreat, there’s a lot on the checklist; location, agenda, food, CLE credit, social time... but one element can make or break the experience: the keynote speaker(s). And yet, selecting that speaker often becomes a last-minute decision or a...
The Mingle Project by Michael Smerconish
We Need to Mingle More - The Mingle Project I recently watched The Mingle Project by Michael Smerconish, and I believe it’s one of the most important hour-long videos you can find on YouTube right now. It’s not a flashy TED Talk, and it’s not full of bite-sized...