Public Speaking & Communication Coach - helping leaders and teams transform their meetings, presentations and pitches!

Hey. Wanna hear a story? 

When I was 7 years old, I became a professional actor.

My first audition was for a lead role in a movie with Oscar Winner Anne Bancroft, and I got it.

This wild stroke of luck started a childhood acting career which included:

- 30+ film, TV, & theatre credits
- the lead role on YTV’s “Screech Owls”
- & constantly getting recognized as “that nerd from Life With Derek” (please don’t Google that)

I planned to go to theatre school, get some “real training”, and start my life as a movie star.

But when I was 17, my life broke apart.

My little brother Lukey died while on a canoe trip in Northern Canada.

I was destroyed. I turned to weed, alcohol, and eventually cocaine to try and forget the pain I was in.

I went to theatre school as planned, but my mental health was so bad I barely graduated, and quit acting after a year of living life as a working actor, i.e. waking up at 2 pm, working in nightlife to afford rent & substances, and going to the odd audition but getting very few parts.

So I ran away.

First to Spain, then to China, where I discovered teaching and entrepreneurship, respectively. This made me more confident, but I was still depressed, anxious, and self-medicating.

When I came back to Canada, I went to therapy, quit doing drugs and drinking, and eventually realized:

The more I told my story, the better I felt, and the more success I had. And I had the skills to teach others to do the same, onstage, in person, and online.

So I became a speaker & a storytelling coach. Since then:

- ~300 talks for Google, Remax, Boston Dynamics, & more
- 30+ leadership dev. cohorts for Ericsson, Wayfair, Bird Construction & more
- Helped tech founders raise $350 million thru TechStars, DMZ, Founder Institute
- Coached over 5000 individuals worldwide
- Published a book 
- Scaled my service biz to $250K 
- And multiple speaking / business awards, including “Best Small Coaching Biz in Canada” in 2024, and a "Highly Commended Speaker Award" in 2025.

But the things that make me happiest are: my wife, my 2 daughters, and my psychopathic Corgi Mathilda. 

AND my current missions:

1. Living my life as honestly as I can, in a way my brother would be proud of
2.Teaching aspiring speakers to create their Signature Workshop based on their Origin Story (vs trying to start out as a "keynote speaker")
3. Helping leaders & teams earn trust by vulnerably sharing their 3-Act Origin Story (currently writing that book).

DM me for availability, questions about any of the above, or partnering up. I hope to hear your story one day 🙏

Will Greenblatt

Me: “My 1st newsletter of 2026 is pretty good! Cant wait to see the response.”

Literally the only response:

“Unsubscribe me asap please”

😅

P.S. Now that you’ve had such a glowing review, check out the offending edition (I still think it was pretty good):

https://lnkd.in/gHwr9w6H

Recovering child actor 😂 I help coaches become paid speakers | As a speaker I help leaders build a culture of trust through storytelling | DM me if you’re a real human

This is who I make money for.

So yesterday when my webinar flopped - i.e. generated WAY fewer sales than I thought it would - I had (and still have) a crushing sense of guilt and shame for "letting them down."

I've hardly made any money this month (or "year", technically! HAHAHA!) and so I hyped this up in my own head as a moment when I'd finally make some sales.

Now:

I've been to therapy for years; I know it isn't "true" that I let my family down. And my wife supports me fully, and I know she's not mad or disappointed, and we'll be ok, and my pre-schooler and infant couldn't give a fuck, but it doesn't erase the feelings of:

- sadness
- confusion
- self-doubt
- self-loathing
- and depression

So much so that doing all the follow-up things today has been really tough.

My energy levels are in the dirt; I have to fight through the sense of "what's-the-pointlessness" just to send out the emails and DM with some of the attendees.

I know posting this is also probably not gonna help; admitting the webinar flopped is unlikely to make people line up for my course, and very few people buy off "pity points."

But that's not what I'm going for.

I made a promise to myself (and in many of my posts, to you) that I would share the messy parts of running my business. And the failures. And be vulnerable.

Not for followers, or "revenue," but cause it's how I want to be. What I want to put out into the world. And what I appreciate the most as a reader.

Vulnerability is not a "trust-builder." 

It's a way to deal with the horrible reality of being a human being, even a very privileged one, by facing it head-on, talking about it, and making it easier for the next person to do so.

It's what allows me to live in a way I can be proud of, even if it's less lucrative, although I still believe it pays social and emotional dividends in the long run. Which, you know... often lead to money.

So:

There's no LinkedIn Lesson™ here. Except just to say if you're struggling this freezing cold January, in the year of your Lord 2026 (I'm Jewish), then you are certainly not alone, and there's a lot of way worse shit going on than my wittle webinar underperforming.

P.S. I'm didn't post the link to my course, so as not undercut this entire thing with a sales pitch. 

(It's hard. I want the money and validation so badly lol. But... 

Principles, and all that 🥲)

Last month, I posted about how much I hate GenAI for writing or creativity. 

Since then, I’ve had 3 DMs offering me their AI-for-content-creation services, all of whom explicitly referenced that post. 

With that in mind, lemme say:

I LOVE GENERATIVE “AI”. 

WHAT A GREAT INVENTION.

I USE IT EVERYDAY TO COME UP WITH WORDS AND IDEAS CAUSE WHY WOULD I USE MY OWN BRAIN AND EMOTIONS TO GET TO KNOW MYSELF BETTER, AND CONNECT WITH OTHER HUMAN BEINGS THROUGH THE ANCIENT, BEAUTIFUL PROCESSES OF LANGUAGE AND STORY WHEN I CAN TRAIN AN UNFEELING ROBOT TO EXPRESS MYSELF FOR ME AT A RATE OF A MILLION SOULLESS GARBAGE THOUGHTS PER SECOND.

I trust this clarifies my stance on the issue, please feel free to DM me accordingly.

Today I took a risk: 

I did a workshop at Queen's Entrepreneurs'​ Competition, for student founders about to pitch their startups for a prize of $15K.

(That wasn't the risk lol).

But I wanted to try something new:

Instead of delivering my Signature Workshop the same way I've done it a million times, I decided to make 2 changes:

1. No slide deck 😬 (shoutout Eric Harris)

2. Tell my origin story as if I was on The Moth (shoutout Matthew Dicks’s book Storyworthy)

I was terrified to do it without the deck. 

I was shaking before I got up there, I couldn't even hold my water properly. (That sounds like I pissed myself. I mean my water bottle).

BUT it was the best workshop I've done in a long time. Amazing feedback, and I felt like it went great.

My takeaway:

However you decide to deliver workshops, deck vs no deck, storytelling style, etc:

1. Keep them SUPER f*cking simple (Story, Big Idea, 1-2 Exercises, Feedback, Q&A is my structure)

2. Keep them fresh and take risks. It keeps you present and makes for a better audience experience.

Thanks to QEC for having me as always, and good luck to all the 19-year-old entrepreneurs! (Jesus f*cking christ I feel old)

P.S. If you're a coach, consultant or solopreneur who wants to start getting paid to speak in 2026, come to my Free "Workshop" Workshop on Jan 28:

https://lnkd.in/g6CzSPPr

Book now, only 448 spots left!!!!!!

I'm a hero.

Yesterday, I took the baby for half an hour.

My wife needed a break, so I rolled up my sleeves, and held my own daughter for 0.7% of my work day from the comfort of my home.

(while having a really fun chat with Lizzie Docel btw).

This basically qualifies me for:

- Father of the Year
- Time's Person of the Year
- People's Sexiest Man of the Year
- And the Nobel Prize for Peace, Economics, and Literature

Of course, I had to post this on LinkedIn, so you know what a good guy I am. 

Otherwise, what would be the point of spending time with my kids?

I could pretend it's to inspire other fathers, or to show how supportive I am of working mothers, or some other claptrap, but really:

I want you all to know how incredible I am.

I will accept praise, likes, follows, saves, reposts, and money transfers as recognition for my selfless act.

P.S. OR you can register to my Free Workshop Workshop on Jan 28th. 

If you wanna learn how to milk your children/dog/aging grandparents for content, unfortunately I don't cover that, but I WILL teach you:

- Why workshops are better than keynotes for new speakers
- How to come up with a Signature Workshop
- And how to pitch it on LinkedIn via DMs to corporate buyers

https://lnkd.in/g6CzSPPr

P.P.S. Sorry Lizzie, hope you're cool with this pic 😂 she and I may have something in the works for this year!!

So far, 92 people have signed up for my Free Workshop Workshop.

Here's the problem:

THERE ARE ONLY 500 SEATS AVAILABLE!

What, do I have do the math for you guys?

Ok, here it is:

The workshop is on Jan 28th, at 12 PM EST.

(*It's really a webinar, structured like a workshop)

Right now, the webinar is 18.4% SOLD OUT.

Let's assume people will join at a rate of 100 per day (to be conservative).

And there's... seven... days in a week (?)

So... that means, uh....

Well, it's not good, ok?
 
SCARCITY!!! URGENCY!!!!

Hurry, drop whatever you're doing, or whichever child you're holding, and sign up below:

https://lnkd.in/g6CzSPPr

Final thought I wanna leave you with:

AI won't replace you.

Someone who attended my free webinar will.

Stew on THAT for a while.

Running a business is wild.

On Wednesday, your webinar flops and you feel like a piece of sh*t…

And on Saturday, you get a rejection email for a speaking gig THAT SOMEHOW TURNS INTO a nomination for a Workplace Leadership Award

😂😂😂

That entrepreneurship graph that Marina Byezhanova shared is 100% spot on.

Cheers to the rollercoaster. I’m back, mfers.

(Sorry for calling you a mfer. I mean it with the utmost love and respect.)

Happy Saturday everyone! 😘😘

P.S. I’m Will. I help coaches & consultants break into the speaking industry with a Signature Workshop, based on your 3-Act Origin Story.

I also try to be as honest, vulnerable, and unhinged as I dare on LinkedIn.

Follow me if that sounds chill, or whatever

graphical user interface, text, application, chat or text message

If you want to become a better storyteller in 2026, then might I suggest following:

Amanda Baker
Mark Leruste 🎤
James McCabe
Daren Colbert
John Cook
Renee Lynn Frojo
Elena Rogers
kristina flynn
Philipp Humm
Mohammad Khan
Nathan Baugh
Faith Harron
Niall Ratcliffe
Andrés Oliveros
Jay Acunzo
Jane Roper
John Gorman 🍊
Tovit Neizer
Collin Strachan

Well? MIGHT I SUGGEST IT??

P.S. There's probably so many more people that I'm forgetting, please add / tag them if so!

P.P.S. I'll also put my favourite storytelling resources like books, YT channels, etc in the comments. Feel free to do the same 🫡

On December 22nd, I ran a free webinar.

It was a terrible date to run an event:

Out of 50 registrants, about 11 ppl showed up; I assume most of them had more pressing end-of-year commitments than to listen to some jackass (me) talk about "starting your speaking journey."

But, one thing that would never have happened if I'd canceled:

A guy called Kevin Green showed up.

He was engaged throughout, asking questions in the chat, and volunteered to pitch his Signature Workshop idea in front of the group. We workshopped* it, like I always do.

(I say workshop* a lot. I know.)

Kevin's energy was infectious. His story (former chef) and concept were strong. I remember thinking at the end of the webinar that because of him and a couple others (like Rabih El Khodr and Natalie Perez, MBA) it was worth it.

Then, last week, we had a Zoom chat.

One of the first things he said to me, unprompted, was:

𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘦.

I started to say thank you, but he continued:

𝘐'𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘳 𝘫𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺, 𝘐 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘯, 𝘪𝘧 𝘐'𝘮 𝘳𝘢𝘸 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘪𝘵, 𝘵𝘸𝘰 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘵'𝘴 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘢 𝘴𝘭𝘰𝘸 𝘨𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘥, 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘦'𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘶𝘯𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘰𝘧𝘧.

𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘥𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘶𝘢𝘭 𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘰𝘯 𝘓𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘦𝘥𝘐𝘯 𝘱𝘭𝘶𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘪𝘭 𝘴𝘵𝘶𝘧𝘧, 𝘮𝘢𝘯, 𝘐'𝘷𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘴 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘭𝘰𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢 𝘱𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘱 𝘪𝘯 𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘬𝘴!

If you're a coach, speaker, trainer, consultant, WHATEVER who teaches your own stuff, then you know:

THIS SH*T means everything.

To have someone tell you:

- they listened to your advice
- they acted on it
- it worked

AND THEN allow you to brag about it on LinkedIn??

Dude. 

So here's my brag, and pitch to you:

✅ Kevin came to my Free Workshop Workshop.
✅ He got 5 discovery calls using what I teach in the webinar alone. 
✅He hasn't signed up for the course, community, or paid me a single dollar for coaching.
✅ He just listened, volunteered, and then put the sh*t into practice.

Be like Kevin. 

Come to the Free Workshop Workshop on Jan 28th:

https://lnkd.in/g6CzSPPr

Obviously, I'm gonna pitch you my course + community at the end ("course-munity"?), but with results like Kevin's, that seems fair to me.

You can always take the knowledge and run, like he did. *shakes fist in mock anger*

Hope to see ya there 😘 

Pictured: my face when Kevin said "5 discovery calls booked in the next week"
😂 😂 😂

I f*cking hate Mondays on LinkedIn.

Not cause of anything you guys are doing, but on my "content calendar" (shoot me) it's the day that I'm supposed to make a "BOFU" post (shoot my corpse).

For those of you who don't know, BOFU stands for Bottom of Funnel.

It also stands for "Boy, Only Fans, Uh... sounds like a good option these days?"

It basically means: 

I'm supposed to try and sell you, the people at the bottom of my funnel (gross), a product or service today.

But man: I HATE sales posts.

"Then why do you do them, Will?"

HAVE YOU EVER HEARD OF CAPITALISM, HMM??

My kids need food, and I'll be damned if I know how to crossbow an elk or snare a Toronto street-pigeon.

So, here's my pitch to you:

I have a course for sale, specifically for coaches, consultants, and aspiring speakers.

It's called Create Your Signature Workshop, where I teach you how to:

✔️ create a 90-min corporate talk you can charge up to $5K for
✔️ base it on YOUR Origin Story, so you stand out in the market
✔️ use LinkedIn to get your first leads & clients for said workshop
✔️ how to design it & deliver it for excellent feedback & results
✔️ and how to use each gig to get MORE gigs and coaching clients

So far 35 students have purchased it, with results like:

✅ A paid talk in Slovenia, asked back the next year
✅ 5 discovery calls booked in one week
✅ 2 warm coaching leads from 1st workshop
✅ Came up with the idea for their new book
✅ Created first speaker reel & one-pager
✅ And able to charge $20K for one workshop!

Obviously, I can't promise any of this will happen for you if you buy my course (plus the 2 months of free community membership, i.e. 8 hours of group coaching with me).

BUT I can safely say: 

It's much more likely that it will, than if you don't do anything.

(Boy what a shitty sales pitch. No wonder I hate doing this).

Check it out in my Featured section. Make 2026 the year you hustle-crush all of your business goals, and what have you!

(Dig up my corpse and shoot it again, please).

P.S. if you're still not convinced, but also curious, come to my Free Workshop Workshop on Jan 28th:

https://lnkd.in/g6CzSPPr

I'll teach you as much as I can about this process in 55 min, then pitch you the course + community for 5, then answer questions for another 30. 

K? K. 😘

The biggest problem I see with most workshops:

Speakers trying to cram too much sh*t in. 

I've run almost 300 workshops in 6 countries, and coached 100+ speakers on theirs.

(Not bragging.)(Ok maybe I am.)(Or is it considered "flexing"?)

Anywhoo:

Here's my "Signature Workshop Structure" which will help you avoid the "Saying Too Much Sh*t You Don't Need To Say" trap:

1. Opener (1 min)
↳ A hook, question, statement, anecdote, or even "thanks for having me" if you're feeling vanilla.

2. Your Origin Story (3-5 min)
↳ Use this to earn your audience's trust and attention: https://lnkd.in/guCY_WTP

3. Agenda Set (1-2 min)
↳ Tell them how the rest of the session will work, and that there'll be a Q&A at the end.

4. Big Idea + Proof (10-15 min)
↳ State your main takeaway in ONE sentence. Put it on a slide. Then, PROVE it with a mini-lecture, using data, studies, stories, reasoning, etc.

5. Signature Exercise (40-50 minutes)
i. Teach them something (your IP, ideally)
ii. Have them apply it
iii. Give them feedback on it

6. Q&A (20-30 min)
↳Let them ask you anything. Offer prompts if needed.

7. Call To Action (5 min)
↳ Offer them something in exchange for their feedback & emails, if they're interested. I use Talkadot for this. Also, encourage them to come talk to you after!

(*Times for a 90-minute workshop. Adjust as needed)

And that's it!

As with any form of communication, LESS IS MORE.

Focus on:

1. Your Origin Story
2. Your ONE Big Idea 
3. A Signature Exercise to apply it
4. And a long Q&A to let them get their money's worth

Do this, and you'll get fantastic audience feedback, stageside leads for more speaking gigs, and six-pack abs.*

*(Results not typical, or even possible)

K byeeee!

P.S. You don't need to comment "PDF, please, sir!" to get this document. 

But, if you're interested, check out my Free Workshop Workshop on Jan 28th:

https://lnkd.in/g6CzSPPr

K NOW bye. Comment or something, I dunno.

How to structure the perfect Signature Workshop

Wanna feel better in 2026? Like, emotionally?
Try sharing your origin story with people. Here's why:

1. Sharing helps others, which makes you feel better

• According to (well, pretty much everybody, but let's go with) a Gallup poll*, 'service to others' is a key factor in wellbeing.

• Sharing a tiny bit of your life's story, messy parts included, makes others feel less alone. (A beautiful act of service, I've experienced it many times from both sides)

2. Telling your story helps you let go of the past

• Sherry Hamby, PhD writes in Psychology Today: "People who... shared their story often find a sense of peace."

• Sharing can release trauma, as any psychologist will tell you. Just make SURE to start with talk therapy, writing exercises, and/or practicing in trusted groups BEFORE sharing in public, esp. if it's really painful.

3. A vulnerable story creates a bond with your audience

• Research from Paul J. Zak suggests that a vulnerable and emotional narrative elicits oxytocin in the brain of the listener, otherwise known as "the trust hormone."

• This is what makes us feel sad when a character in a movie dies. We feel like we knew them, or the characters who loved them, on some small level.

NOW: 

I'm not a scientist in any way shape or form (can you tell 🫠), but I've been reading as much as I can get my hands on about:

- storytelling
- communication
- and psychology

For the past 10+ years, and I feel pretty confident saying:

Learning how to tell your origin story, i.e.:

The emotional, vulnerable, honest & relevant details of how you came to be YOU at this stage of your life

...can CHANGE your life.

When done right, it's a gift you give the people who hear it, and it's a gift you give yourself.

And I think it could maybe change the world a little bit if we all did it. 

Or whatever.

Anyway sorry for the cheesy post, happy 2026 everyone! 

P.S. *Link to the Gallup poll in comments

We all know those LinkedIn posts that are like:

"My son said to me yesterday, 'Daddy, I'm scared to go to school.'

But then he went anyway.

That's courage.

And that's what missing from D2C food & beverage marketing conferences today:

Courage.

Agree?"

-------

Most of us roll our eyes at these posts; LinkedIn Lunatics maybe picks one up and roasts it on Reddit, and then we all move on with our lives.

But this week I found myself wondering:

WHY are these posts - which I call LinkedIn Lesson™ posts - so easy to make fun of, and ultimately uninteresting?

I came up with 3 reasons:

1. There's no risk
2. The format is unoriginal
3. Past stories are more interesting than present-day

I wrote about this, the antidotes to LinkedIn Lesson™ posts plus examples of good ones, in my newsletter this week.

Dropping at 2:07 PM EST today, because odd numbers = psychology:

https://lnkd.in/eT9yGuYW

Sign up now so you don't miss it. That would be a TRAGEDY.

In 2018, I stood on the carpeted floor of a New Orleans hotel conference room, in front of 40-something business-casual entrepreneurs.

After years of being an actor, it was the first time I'd ever been paid to be "onstage" as myself. 

It was intimidating, speaking to this group. I was the youngest person in the room by at least 10 years, and they were all business owners who made at least $1M+ / year (the criteria for being a part of Entrepreneurs'​ Organization who hired me). 

And I'd never before been in a room with so many - at the risk of being crude - rich people.

But, with a confidence gained from 16 years as a film and TV actor, plus 3 years of theatre school, I launched into it without overthinking, which was good cause I did NOT have my shit together:

- I had no slides
- No handouts
- I didn't prepare a structure to my talk
- I was wearing light blue Levi's and a faded purple Star Wars t-shirt (sorry Kay Korsh 🥲)

Worst of all, my Blackberry went off mid-talk. (Like I said, 2018).

At one point, a man with his arms crossed pointed to the flip-chart standing off the side and said:

"Would you mind writing this stuff out for us?"

"Oh, uh, sure," I said, and started drawing what would later become my 1st piece of intellectual property, the "OutLoud Speech Settings" - the Signature Framework, in my Signature Exercise, in my Signature Workshop for the next 7 years of my life.

Then, I asked for volunteers to join me onstage, and started coaching them on their public speaking skills.

All in all, I spoke, coached and answered questions for about 2 hours.

When I got offstage, a cool middle-aged guy with long grey hair came up to me and said:

"Great stuff. You've got something here, you're a little green, but this is great." That feedback was like heroin to a validation addict like me 😅 

That was my first ever speaking gig.

Since then, I've been lucky enough to do almost 300 of them, in 6 countries, for all sorts of big-shot companies.

ALL of it started with that one gig, as embarrassing as it is now to look back on.

And all of THIS is to say:

If I can launch a speaking career in a purple Star Wars t-shirt, then what exactly is your excuse, HMMMMM???

P.S. Follow me to blah blah learn how to do that, or whatever. Sorry to sully this post with a skeazy ulterior motive like ASKING FOR A FOLLOW, IS THAT SO HARD??

P.P.S. Sorry for yelling, I'm getting a colonoscopy tomorrow and currently drinking only broth and Gatorade in prep

P.P.P.S. Sorry for the too much information

Should I apply for keynotes at conferences, or workshops?

I woke up to this question from a student in Morocco. He wrote:

"There's a conference called GITEX AFRICA coming up.

I wanted to challenge myself and push my career forward, so should I apply for a keynote instead of a workshop?"

Hunched over my kitchen table, with my 5-month-old strapped to my chest, my instinct was to type:

"Workshop, of course, C'MON!!" (not really, but that was my feeling)

But I decided to make sure of my answer. So I googled:

"GITEX Africa conference agenda" 

Know what I found?

Some official titles of the KEYNOTE speakers:

• "General Director" (of a major bank)
• "VP, Africa Markets"
• "HIS EXCELLENCY" (I'm not kidding)

By contrast, the WORKSHOP speakers have titles like:

• "Data Science & Analytics Instructor"
• "AI Consultant"
• "Project Manager"

My student is Ahmed Mahmoudi. He's a "Positioning Strategist" for B2B founders on LinkedIn; a solopreneur.

This is awesome, by the way. He's awesome. He's a brilliant thinker, facilitator, and has a lovely smile (irrelevant but true).

But he's not a "His Excellency." (yet)

I explained:

"Nothing against you, but you're way more likely to get a workshop at this conference than a keynote, because of who you'd be competing with.

(I would be too!)"

Here's why:

A keynoter's job is to help sell tickets. You have to be impressive ON PAPER.

A workshop speaker's job is just to TEACH something valuable, and create an experience for connection between the attendees.

If you can do that, they won't care what your job title is.

But they will if you apply for a keynote.

So: 

If you're just getting started as a speaker, and you can't compete with a "His Excellency" yet:

Start with WORKSHOPS.

The keynotes will come in time.

P.S. I'm teaching 143 people how to come up with (& start pitching) their Signature Workshop. Zoom, 12 PM EST today. Check it out here:

https://lnkd.in/g6CzSPPr

Hope to see ya there! 😘

Here are some screenshots.

They're all of ppl saying nice things about my "Free Workshop Workshop," which is happening AGAIN this Wednesday!

I hope that, in sharing this, a small but not insignificant number of you will decide that giving me an hour of your time on Wednesday is worth it.

If you do, I promise to teach you:

- why WORKSHOP are superior to KEYNOTES for new speakers
- the only 4 things you need to come up with your Signature Workshop (and why)
- my "Free To Fee" method for getting your first leads via LinkedIn

Plus, we'll have 2-3 volunteers pitch me their workshop idea, with live coaching and feedback from me, AND a 30-min Q&A at the end.

I will pitch you my Signature Workshop course at the end of the workshop, for around 7 minutes, but ONLY after I teach the SHIT out of you for free for 53.

That's my promise.

(Then, you'll get like 2-3 emails, gently reminding you about the discounted offer, and then I'll stop bothering you if you're like:

"Fuck off, Will! Nobody likes you."

I TOTALLY get that attitude. I share it myself.)

Anywhoo, here's the link:

https://lnkd.in/g6CzSPPr

Hope to see ya there! 😘

The best way to get paid speaking gigs is NOT:

- cold outreach 
- posting on LinkedIn 
- or spending lots of money on a super-fancy speaking reel.

(Although that DOES certainly help)

The best way for big payday-gigs, in my experience, is through your "champions."

This is Nsuani Baffoe. (in the picture) He's one of mine.

When I spoke for free for the first time in 2017, he was there.

He was high-up at GoodLife Fitness at the time, and hired me for 3 separate paid speaking gigs for them, one to a packed theatre of 250+ people.

He also hired me as a speaking coach for his employees, then for himself as he left and became a badass fitness entrepreneur.

AND he's given me so much free game about business and life, I can't quite believe I've ever let myself take a dollar from him.

(He also happens to be one of the best and most inspiring people you'll ever meet, but that's just a nice little fact)

The POINT is:

Your champions will:

• hire you
• re-hire you
• mentor you
• vouch for you 
• recommend you
• give you testimonials
• and even set up Zoom calls with you - like Sachi Kittur did this week - JUST TO SAY:

"How can I help you get onstage?" (🥹🙏)

Because - like with everything - TRUST is the most important factor in deciding whether to give someone $5K or more just to make noises with their face and possibly gesture at big pictures on a screen.

And if your champion says to an event manager, or a program coordinator, or an L&D head:

"Trust me, this speaker can deliver."

And the decision-maker does trust them...?

You'll get your big paid speaking gigs.

So:

Make a list of your champions, and reach out to say thanks. Don't ask them for anything - chances are they'll just offer anyway, cause they're awesome - but let them know how important they are.

Your speaking business won't survive without them. And they deserve some verbal flowers. 💐 

P.S. I'm about to do a 60-minute workshop on this for my course + community members. If you'd like to attend stuff like this, click the pic in my Featured section, or come to my free webinar tomorrow:

https://lnkd.in/g6CzSPPr

P.P.S Here are some of more of my champions:

- Julie Mitchell
- David Everingham
- Craig Major
- Bashir Rahemtulla, CPA, CA, CPA (IL), CFE
- Sunil Sharma
- Jordan Jocius
- Rachel Garrity Butters, LCSW
- Marina Swartz
- Ches Williams
- Stephen LaMure
- Peter Petrik
- Adrienne Palmer
- Marina Byezhanova
- Nichole Petersen, CPSM
- Madusha Cooray
- Alex Gould
- Stella Alexandrova
- Mickey Campeau
- Tim Hoffmeister
- Rodolfo Salazar

... and so many more. I'm so sorry if I forgot you, please tell me I'm an asshole in the comments!

Thank you all, truly. I can't express how much your support has meant to me.

Now THIS is a keynote 🔥 🔥 🔥 

Brandon Sanderson, bestselling fantasy author and professor, on why he dislikes AI for art, and especially writing.

Well worth the watch for anyone who gives a sh*t about the future of our species, or anyone who likes good speeches (hopefully you’re both!)

Full vid to Brandon’s YT channel, sharing here so more ppl on LinkedIn can get the message, link in comments.

——————

P.S. For anyone keeping score:

I know I talk a lot of sh*t about keynotes. 

I say “fuck keynotes”, because I believe they’re mostly a fool’s errand for newer speakers trying to get their feet wet in the industry.

Keynotes go to big names (like Mr Sandeson here) or big job titles like “VP of BigBalls Tech Finance AI Corp”

That’s why I advocate for workshops for newer speakers instead, specifically a Signature Workshop.

BUT, it’s not because I think keynotes are useless. 

Far from it.

I would love to do more keynotes some day, and create these kinds of speeches that are so well crafted and delivered, they can inspire hundreds of thousands of people online.

But I’m still building to that level of reputation in my career, and chances are, so are you.

So: 

Workshops > keynotes. For you. For now. 

Follow me for more on that.

Everyone wants to get paid speaking gigs.

Nobody wants to do all the boring work required. 

OR, maybe:

They don't know what exactly what that boring work is, BUT totally WOULD do it if they did. 

So, this post is for the ignorant among you, not the lazy.

(Just joking. I don't think about people like that. It's just fun to pretend to be an asshole on LinkedIn 😅)

Ok, back to the thing. 

Here's ONE way I've generated paid speaking gigs for myself and several clients:

(my highest paid one was a $13K gig in Panama City last year) 👇 

It's called the Free To Fee Method.

And it's based on my thesis, for newer speakers: 

"Fuck Keynotes. You need a Signature Workshop"  

(You may have seen that on my banner).

So the question is:

Are you willing to give up being a "keynote" speaker?

At least for now?

And follow the steps below, facing boredom, rejection, the unease of bothering people, and self-doubt, UNTIL:

Someone gives you your chance? And even pays you?

P.S. Kevin Green did. So did Tony Haresign. So did Namrata 'Nammy' Sirur. And Gabby Rosely. 

And they all came to my Free Workshop Workshop, to learn how:

https://lnkd.in/g6CzSPPr

Next one is next Wed, Jan 28, at 12 PM EST! Hope to see ya there 😘 

P.P.S. Kevin Green literally just came to the webinar, took notes, and booked 5 discovery calls the next month. Just sayin'.

You'll have to pry this from my cold dead fingers 😂 

Which team are you on? Pro or anti?

Discuss.

evolution evolution

Founder 

Phelps - Executive Search 

Executive Recruitment for C-Suite and Senior Leadership roles within Fundraising, Not-For-Profits and Health Care

Partner

Boyden

Global Executive Recruitment for C-Suite and Senior Leadership Roles

University of Toronto

The Faculty of Medicine at the University of Toronto is the largest medical school in Canada and one of the top five in North America. The Advancement Office of the Faculty of Medicine was part of the Boundless Campaign to raise $2 Billion Dollars. The Faculty of Medicine Advancement Office successfully reached a goal of $500M.  As Executive Director, the primary focus was working collaboratively on principal gifts and partnerships nation wide and globally.

Executive Director

Associate Director, Faculty of Medicine Advancement

Senior Development Officer, Neuroscience, Tanz CRND

NYU Langone Health / FACES

The mission of FACES is to improve the quality of life for all those affected by epilepsy. FACES is affiliated with NYU Langone Health and its Comprehensive Epilepsy Center. As Executive Director a yearly multi-million dollar campaign was focused on raising funds for ground breaking research and programs.

American Cancer Society

Primary Relationship was in managing Fortune 500 Companies based in New York City and their partnerships with the American Cancer Society for cancer research.

Director, Corporate Development

evolution evolution is a Global Coaching Company. Life - both professionally and personally is a continual evolution of seeking what brings us fulfillment and joy. This happens when we are aligned with our talents and values. I founded evolution evolution after over 20+ years of evolutionary growth from working with influential senior leaders, conscientious career change, international work, complex team management, the power of engaged networking and realizing true leadership is about being your authentic self.

I invite you to connect and visit www.evolutionevolution.com to learn more and how to continue your own evolution.

Make sure to watch, My Evolution, too!

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Will Greenblatt

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