AUDIENCE: Adults in professional settings, leaders and managers, individuals experiencing change (in their personal lives or in their professional ones)

FORMAT: 1 hour workshop, in person or virtual. Uses slides. Digital workbook provided for all attendees.

BRIEF SUMMARY: There's no question that we've all faced a tremendous amount of uncertainty and volatility in the last couple of years. As it turns out, our minds hate uncertainty, and they respond in some predictable...and not very helpful ways. But, by practicing psychological strength, you can navigate uncertain waters with more confidence and more peace. In this workshop, we cover some key principles about the mind that help us understand why uncertainty and volatility can be so upsetting. Many times, if we can understand why we're having a difficult time, we can practice more compassion with ourselves. Finally, we'll cover a set of tools to help you create structure amidst and increase your tolerance for uncertainty.

NOTE: This workshop has been delivered virtually for several audiences including employees of a small healthcare company (under 100 employees), individuals interested in personal development and growth, as part of a corporate wellness program, and in partnership with Empoyers Health Coalition and Right Direction for Me.

AUDIENCE: Adults and older teens, especially high performers or those in high responsibility roles, employee wellness programs, individuals in demanding roles or at risk for burn out, and people who are interested in wellbeing but turned off by meditation

FORMAT: 1 hour workshop, in person or virtual. Uses slides. Digital workbooks provided for all attendees.

BRIEF SUMMARY: Mindfulness is a big buzzword right now, and it’s getting a lot of attention. Rightfully so. Mindfulness is a powerful thing that leads to positive physical and mental health outcomes, higher performance in various aspects of life, and higher social-emotional intelligence. It is also associated with decreased anxiety, stress, depression, anger, and pain. That said, it is oftentimes misunderstood. In this workshop, we’ll do a deep dive into this important topic. Attendees will learn what mindfulness really is (psst! It’s not meditation!), how it serves as a catalyst for so many other psychological strength skills, and how you can begin to cultivate it, even if they hate meditating.

NOTE: This content has been delivered virtually and as digital trainings to a variety of audiences including emerging leaders at a Fortune 5 company (UnitedHealth Group), a team at Franklin Covey, employees of a small healthcare company (just under 100 employees), and self-selected individuals interested in personal development and growth. Feedback from attendees has been overwhelmingly positive with statements along the lines of this content was transformative or hugely impactful.

AUDIENCE: Adults in high responsibility roles (e.g., medical and mental health professionals, educators, legal, entrepreneurs and business leaders), particularly good for leaders or managers

FORMAT: 90 minutes - 2 hour workshop (Can be shortened to 60 or expanded to 3 hours), in person or virtual. Includes instructional learning as well as hands on exercises. Requires slides. Digital workbooks for participants also included.

BRIEF SUMMARY: The closest thing to a psychological superpower is psychological flexibility. People with greater psychological flexibility have been shown to be higher performers at work and to be happier, healthier, and less stressed, anxious, and depressed. Psychological flexibility allows you to smoothly and successfully respond in challenging situations in every aspect of life. It involves understanding how your mind works and being able to deal with negative or unhelpful internal experiences (thoughts, feelings, urges) so that you can do what matters in an effective way. In other words, it's a set of skills that keeps your mind/thoughts/emotions from controlling you or holding you back. In this engaging and impactful workshop, attendees will build psychological flexibility while working through a current friction point in their professional or personal life. They will walk away with powerful insights, new actionable knowledge, and concrete steps to take.

NOTE: Versions of this workshop have been delivered in person and virtually to a number of audiences including: physicians, entrepreneurs and business leaders, design thinking and user experience conference attendees. Feedback from all audiences has been overwhelmingly positive. Attendees enjoyed gaining new insights, completing the hands on exercises, and walking away with new skills and actionable solutions to problems.

AUDIENCE: Adults at risk for burn out (e.g., those in helping or caring professions such as mental healthcare, education, medicine, legal, business owners and entrepreneurs, non-profit sector; parents and caregivers)

FORMAT: Originally designed to be 90 minutes, can be shortened to 1 hour. In person or virtual. Includes slides.

BRIEF SUMMARY: High-responsibility people, those who care for others in a number of personal and professional capacities, make a huge impact on the lives of others. They are also at high risk for burnout. Continually helping others, while rewarding, is also incredibly taxing without the right self-care measures in place. Unfortunately, self-care is often misunderstood as leisure or luxury activities, which can be difficult to prioritize or are seen as unnecessary. In this talk, we aim to change your understanding of self-care by introducing the self-care pyramid. Drawing from cutting-edge psychological research, attendees will gain new insights into some surprising reasons why they may feel spread thin or burned out, and these insights shed some light on effective solutions. Attendees will also learn what true, effective self-care means and strategies for creating their own self-care routine, designed for their unique needs and goals.

NOTE: This session was originally designed for a virtual conference for educators and non-profit/government workers in Canada. Feedback from attendees was very positive.

AUDIENCE: Adults, particularly those at high risk of burn out (e.g., caring professions such as medicine, mental health, and education), people who struggle to comfortably and confidently set boundaries or be assertive, people who want to foster healthy working and professional relationships

FORMAT: Originally designed to be 90 minutes, this workshop can be modified to be 60 minutes or expanded to 2 hours. Can be delivered virtually or in person. Includes slides.

BRIEF SUMMARY: Most of us yearn for healthier boundaries – in all areas of our lives. We know it would be best to say “no” to that project or request, and yet we don’t. Or we allow others to treat us in ways that we don't actually like. In this session, audience members will be taken on a journey of understanding what really gets in the way of setting and maintaining healthy boundaries. After exploring what gets in the way for you personally, you’ll get some concrete strategies for setting boundaries in any setting, responding to people who do not respect your boundaries, dealing with psychologically unsafe people, and helping others with boundary setting.

NOTE: This session was originally presented at the inaugural virtual Humanity at Work conference, and feedback from attendees was stellar.

FORMAT: 1 hour keynote style, with slides, in person or virtual

BRIEF SUMMARY: Our brains have the enormous job of quickly processing the tons of information coming at us every second of every day with the main goal of keeping us alive, not helping us be happy or successful. In order to do their job, they have developed some shortcuts. which are useful at times but can lead to glitches and biases in the way that we think. These distorted and negative thoughts dictate our actions and skew our perceptions of the world...unless you know how to make your mind work for you. In this talk, you will learn basic brain science as well as a powerful, easy-to-use strategy for recognizing and eliminating unhelpful and deceptive thinking so that you can lead a happier, more successful life.

NOTE: A shortened version of this talk was presented at TEDxEdina 2022. Early versions of this talk have been incredibly well-received by a variety of audiences including business owners and entrepreneurs, employees at a tech start up, and sales and management professionals in a large insurance company.

AUDIENCE: Ideal for adults or older teens - can be adapted for audience (e.g., high performing professionals, leadership, working parents, medical or helping professionals, educators, mental health providers and coaches, individuals with anxiety and depression)

FORMAT: 1 hour keynote, with slides, in person or virtual. Supplemental digital download provided.

BRIEF SUMMARY: Do you know how to maximize your wellbeing? It’s not just about boosting happiness, though that’s part of it. In this talk, attendees learn the 5 science-back factors that contribute to wellbeing, called the PERMA factors, and how to implement them in their own lives. Attendees will also learn 3 specific positive psychology strategies they can use to have a happier, more fulfilling life.

NOTE: Versions of this talk were well-received by the Anxiety and Depression Association of America's public education webinar series and by employees of TIAA. Watch here: https://adaa.org/webinar/consumer/thriving-anxiety-and-depression

AUDIENCE: Ideal for adults who experience high stress - can be adapted for the audience (e.g., high performing professionals, working parents, caregivers, medical professionals, educators)

FORMAT: 1 hour keynote/workshop, with or without slides, can be expanded to 90 minutes – 3 hours and incorporate more hands on exercises and experiential learning, in person or virtual

BRIEF SUMMARY: Stress is an inevitable part of life. Being stressed out, however, is optional. In this talk, you’ll learn the fundamentals of effective stress management. You’ll learn what stress is, how to transform bad stress into good stress, and actionable strategies for keeping stress in check.

AUDIENCE: Adults or older teens. This talk can be adapted based on the audience. Originally intended for adults ini a professional setting, parents or caregivers, or high responsibility individuals, it can also be adapted for mental health professionals and coaches (professional development training) or populations with anxiety disorders

FORMAT: 1 hour keynote style, with or without slides, can be expanded to 90 minutes or up to a full day workshop, In person or virtual

BRIEF SUMMARY: Every single person has anxiety. At times, anxiety can be quite helpful because it keeps us alive and safe. At other times, though, anxiety can cause problems. It can go to the worst case, overly focus on the negative, exaggerate risk, overestimate the likelihood of bad outcomes, and, in effect, keep us stuck. Understanding how anxiety works and, more importantly, how to keep it from holding you back in business and in life, can be transformative. In this talk, you’ll learn the ins and outs of anxiety and powerful tools for breaking free from it.

FORMAT: 1 hour keynote style, with or without slides, in person or virtual

AUDIENCE: Any

BRIEF SUMMARY: Life is full of hard things, and bad things happen. Learning how to effectively overcome setbacks and hardships is the key to thriving through the inevitable adversity that arises in life. In this talk, full of inspiring anecdotes and digestible brain science, audience members will learn 5 tips, rooted solidly in psychology, for overcoming adversity. This talk will help attendees adapt and conquer, whether it’s in business or their personal lives.

NOTE: This talk was originally created and delivered in person to an ambitious team of sales and management professionals. Feedback was very positive.