Tag: new speaker

1. Move from the craft of teamwork to the art of collaboration.

A pioneering tape artist, Michael creates ambitious but temporary murals with painter’s tape and teaches a wide range of audiences to do the same. He’s run hundreds of workshops over nearly four decades, including 10 years at General Electric’s Leadership Development Center. Most organizations, he says, run on the craft of teamwork: creating and executing a plan together. But the greatest organizations tap into something different: the art of collaboration.

“Collaboration is where you say, ‘Here’s a direction, but we need to be open to the possibility that as we move towards it, it may change,'” he says. For true innovation, we need to learn to work through ambiguity, give and accept critique, and continue even when the ending isn’t certain.

2. Find a “good trouble friend.”

Michael and his collaborators built a secret apartment in a mall and lived there for four years—the documentary about that project hit the Netflix Top 10 list in its first day on the platform and has been watched for over 288 million minutes (548 years). He says that for any audacious project, worthwhile change, or sustainable momentum, you need a team: what he calls “good trouble friends.”

“Good” refers to the shared intention of making positive change, he explains. “Trouble” refers to understanding where the boundaries are… and when to push against them. “And ‘friend’ is the critical thing,” he says, “because that allows you to collaborate, have conversations, to monitor and grow ideas.”

3. Build trust by drawing a bad raccoon.

Organizations can have the best people and still trip themselves up if they don’t have the trust that enables collaboration. In some workshops, Michael says, he’s seen deference towards the top leaders stifle everyone else’s ideas. But there’s a simple way to change that.

He explains one technique he’s used to enable doctors to become more approachable: “We like to teach them the power of drawing a bad raccoon in front of their patients.” Anyone in a position of authority can build trust by allowing others to watch them struggle at something—even something as small as drawing. “It helps them connect to you as a person,” he says.

Want more from Michael?

Learn more about him here, then contact us to book him for keynotes and workshops!

“Listen out for Rutger Bregman. He has a big future shaping the future.”—The Observer

Rutger is a historian and author who has shared the stage with Yuval Noah Harari, been interviewed by Jon Stewart, gone viral at the World Economic Forum conference at Davos, and given a TED Talk which TED curator Chris Anderson named one of the 10 best of the year.

Trevor Noah, who calls Rutger a “superstar,” hails his latest book, Moral Ambition, as “a call to action for humanity.” His previous book, Humankind: A Hopeful History, looks into the story of humanity to prove that we are hardwired for kindness. It is currently being adapted into a major documentary series. His first book, Utopia for Realists, argues that the visionary ideas that seem impossible to us today are, in fact, wholly implementable.

Rutger is a warm, persuasive keynote speaker who makes big ideas both understandable and actionable for audiences of all backgrounds. As Lavin’s newest exclusive speaker, he sat down with us to explain 3 ways we can make the world a much better place—starting today.

1. Go big, don’t go home.

“Often, when people talk about their ideals, they say something like, ‘Let’s make the world a little bit better,’” Rutger says. “I’ve always disliked that phrase. Why ‘a little bit’? When I hear entrepreneurs talk about their company, they don’t say, ‘Let’s make a little bit of money.’ They’re ambitious. That’s the attitude we should have right now, as a species.”

Through his dynamic keynotes and his School for Moral Ambition, Rutger has inspired thousands of people to make a positive impact with their careers. To leave a real legacy, he says, we can’t stop at the bare minimum. “We’ve got to look for our moral maximum. How far can we push ourselves?”

2. Find people who stand out.

“People, by nature, are herd animals,” Rutger says. “But that very fact means that small groups of committed people who are willing to be weird, who are willing to stand out from the crowd, can make an outsized difference.”

So find a group—or form your own—and start recruiting other committed people. “96% of the people who joined the WWII resistance were simply asked to join it,” Rutger says. “That suggests that we don’t have to change our fundamental character. We just need to be exposed to this social virus of moral ambition—and we might be very surprised by the kind of person we can become along the way.”

3. Start now.

Changing the world may seem like a big ask. But Rutger says getting started doesn’t need to be daunting. “As a historian, I’ve always been interested in ‘social physics’: how change actually works,” he says. “Very often, that starts with small groups of people and small steps that galvanize big movements.”

In life-changing talks, Rutger argues that we’re not reaching our full potential, but we really do have the tools for change. Small actions that we take today can have a measurable effect on the kind of world we live in. “It’s not the easy path, but it’s the meaningful path,” he says.

Interested in hearing more from Rutger?

Get in touch to learn more, and to book him to speak at your next event!

“Isabelle is a visionary who combines intellect, heart, and action. She doesn’t just ask what’s next in learning—she helps us build it, wisely.”—Sal Khan, Founder of Khan Academy

Isabelle is a go-to advisor for AI companies and the director of the world-renowned Stanford Accelerator for Learning, as well as the author of Love to Learn. She sat down with us to explain one way AI will change our children’s lives, and one way it won’t.

1. AI tools will soon saturate the education world…

“The field of education is actually the fastest adopter of AI out of all fields,” Isabelle says. There are countless use-cases for teachers and students—from interactive lessons to better communication with parents—that can make learning not only faster but better.

There are, of course, concerns: could these tools atrophy our critical thinking skills? The research is divided, Isabelle says, because the results depend deeply on the conditions under which the technology is used.

“There is a big blank space right now where educators, researchers, and innovators will need to partner a lot more closely on defining new pedagogies that will actually accelerate learning,” Isabelle says. “But it’s been really energizing to see so many educators thinking through some of the big questions that could make the education sector a lot better.”

2. …but relationships with parents and teachers will still be paramount.

“Relationships matter most in education,” Isabelle says. Parents and teachers alike play a vital role in equipping children with the relational intelligence that is becoming increasingly important in the age of AI. “Parents are the core circle of relationship. So make sure that family time is relational time,” Isabelle advises. “Being focused on relationships doesn’t mean you have to always be present—but be present at particular times, and ideally with a routine.”

And this focus on relationships will powerfully improve our children’s brain development and their ability to thrive in the new landscape of AI, Isabelle says. “With the rapid rise of artificial intelligence, we need to start thinking a lot more about what makes us human.”

Interested in hearing more from Isabelle?

Get in touch with us to learn more, and to book her to speak at your next event!

“We want to take all the robotic stuff and give it to the robots—which then allows for us humans to be more human.”

—Hans Peter Brondmo

1. The robots are coming. In fact, they’re already here.

Imagine this: you’re at your desk at work when a robot rolls up to you. It has a head like a rounded rectangle and one long arm. It addresses you by name and asks if it can tidy up your desk. When you say yes, it picks up the trash on your desk (maybe a granola bar wrapper or a plastic cup), places the trash in a tray at its base, nods to you, and rolls away.

This isn’t science fiction. It’s already happening.

As CEO of Everyday Robots, Google’s AI and robotics moonshot, Hans Peter helped to build robots like these for simple tasks like cleaning cafes, sorting trash, and clearing desks. His ultimate goal? To make robots so functional and efficient that they could take on an ever-expanding variety of tasks, from making the bed to taking care of the elderly.

But Hans Peter wants us to know that these robots won’t be scary or off-putting, like the Terminator. Rather, like WALL-E, they will come to be helping hands and collaborators.

2. Robots can help us live a better life—if we play our cards right.

“AI and robots are the future of work,” says Hans Peter. “AI is going to touch so many aspects of our lives when it steps off the screen and into the physical world—which is really what robotics is about.”

If, in the future, work becomes a collaboration between the robots and ourselves, then we need to stop talking about the future of work and start talking about the nature of work.

In the short term, this means that we need to start playing with AI today. “Start using this stuff,” Hans Peter tells Lavin. “Don’t restrict your employees from using it, but hold them accountable to the output. Have them do the human layer on top, which is critical analysis and thinking. Have your business become a learning organization that learns how and where AI fits into your daily workflows.”

For more from Lavin’s newest speaker…

Get in touch! We’d love to tell you more about Hans Peter and help you bring him to your event.

Tip 1: Better beats more. Always.

“We can use AI to create a flood of derivative nonsense,” says Fab. “Or we can use AI to create novel, strategic, memorable work.” The choice is ours.

Fab has spent his career leading marketing for massive global brands. He knows better than anyone that marketers (and knowledge workers in general) face a tradeoff between doing more work vs. doing better work. “Success comes not from pressing an easy button,” he says, “but from using AI to amplify what makes us uniquely human: our strategic instinct, our creative spark, and our power to build something worth remembering.”

Tip 2: Use what you already have.

Most organizations sit on vast stores of accumulated knowledge, Fab says. For marketers, that might be past campaign data, consumer research, performance metrics, and more. But most of that knowledge is locked away. What if we could tap into that wealth of data and leverage its insights to drive strategy?

Now, thanks to AI, we can. At his company 99Ravens, Fab is developing AI tools that can connect with our resources and sift through it faster than we ever could, uncovering patterns and making that knowledge available to everyone who needs it.

Tip 3: Bet on AI improving fast.

“Everyone has had a ChatGPT moment where they use it and say, ‘It can’t do this thing that I can do, so let’s throw out the baby with the bathwater,'” Fab says.

But the real experts aren’t building for the AI of 2025, but the AI of 2028. “They’re betting on the fact that the technology will improve over the next 2-3 years and be able to catch up to the ambition,” Fab explains. So start small today—but keep an eye on the opportunities of tomorrow.

Want more insight from Fab?

Fab is a funny, deeply knowledgeable keynote speaker who offers accessible keynotes on AI, marketing, strategy, and much more. To learn more about him or to invite him to speak at your event, get in touch with us! We’d love to chat.

“Conversation feels like it should be second nature—but it’s surprisingly difficult when you look under the hood,” Alison says. We run into awkward or difficult moments all the time. But with the new science of conversation, we can learn to communicate more effectively both at work and at home.

Alison is a Harvard Business School professor who’s been named to the Poets & Quants list of the best 40-Under-40 Business School Professors. She’s also the author of the new book TALK: The Science of Conversation and the Art of Being Ourselves.

Alison’s work has garnered attention across the media: from TIME Magazine to The Wall Street Journal. She’s appeared on podcasts whose leadership runs into the millions—Hidden Brain, the #1 science podcast in the country, dedicated two back-to-back episodes to her work.

A funny, thoughtful, and dynamic speaker, Alison reveals the surprisingly small things that trip us up in everyday conversation—and the surprisingly simple things we can do to master them. With clarity and humor, she uses her TALK framework to reveal:

• How five minutes of preparation can make even the most difficult conversations flow more smoothly;
• Why you should be asking way more questions than you think;
• How conversations with strangers can make us happier;
• and much more.

​​”I want audiences to leave my talk with very concrete things that they’re going to try in their life,” Alison says. “If anyone asks even one more question than they normally would have, that’s a huge win—for you and for everyone else.”

“It’s our job, collectively and individually, to do our level best to ensure that our history isn’t forgotten,” says Caleb Gayle. “The work of justice can’t happen if we don’t first remember the people who came before. That’s the power of storytelling.”

A leading voice in conversations around how the past influences the present, Caleb has dedicated his career to telling the forgotten stories of our history, which reveal how deeply we are connected across time. As a Northeastern associate prof and contributing writer for The New York Times magazine, he shows us how, even in our polarized moment, our shared past can be the key to building a shared future.

His first book, We Refuse to Forget, is a landmark work of American history that tells the story of the Creek Nation, a Native tribe that both owned slaves and accepted Black people as full citizens. National Book Award winner Jacqueline Woodson calls it “an important part of American history told with a clear-eyed and forceful brilliance.” His forthcoming book, BLACK MOSES, chronicles one Black politician’s fight to establish Oklahoma as a Black state in the 1800s. Through these complex, untold stories, Caleb explores questions of citizenship, belonging, solidarity, and more.

In riveting, expansive talks, he draws on his extensive research and reporting—as well as his past corporate experience as a management consultant and venture partner—to unpack the history of identity, how it’s formed, and how we can use it to build a better future for everyone. He weaves together the threads of history and personal experience to make complex issues tangible for audiences of any background.

“You don’t have to be overwhelmed by the idea of digital safety,” Camille says. “Some small changes and intentional choices can allow you to feel—and be—empowered.”

A long-time leader in cyber and AI, Camille shows us how to truly leverage the power of AI by making surprisingly simple changes. To combat risk and create tools that actually serve us all, we’ll need to lean into our humanity now more than ever, she says.

Camille has an unparalleled perspective on what’s next in tech. As the first ever Deputy National Cyber Director for Technology & Ecosystem for the White House, she advised the president, sat on the White House AI Council, and spearheaded national initiatives on security and education. Previously, she served as Google’s Global Head of Product Security Strategy and as Deloitte’s Manager of Cyber Risk.

In talks that are accessible for leaders, cybersecurity teams, and anyone else, Camille explores:

• How aspects of your identity—like being an immigrant or growing up in a city—can make a huge difference in how you develop and use technology;
• How you can lean into these differences to keep your company safe—and even innovate more powerfully;
• Why diverse teams are essential in the age of AI (and how to build them);
• The small changes that can make your individual and organizational cybersecurity stronger;
• What companies need to know about getting ahead in this changing landscape;
• and much more!

“If you are interested in understanding brains or in building human-like general AI, you should read this book.”Dileep George (Google Deepmind)

Lavin’s newest speaker equips us to not only understand but shape the future of AI by exploring the five breakthroughs that made the human brain what it is.

Max is the author of the widely acclaimed book A Brief History of Intelligence: a paradigm shift in how we understand neuroscience and Artificial Intelligence, hailed by the world’s top voices in AI and psychology. Grit pioneer Angela Duckworth says that it’s “a truly novel, beautifully crafted thesis on what intelligence is,” while bestselling author Brian Christian (Algorithms to Live By) calls it “absolutely riveting.”

In smart yet accessible talks, Max takes audiences through the five breakthroughs that made our brains: from the development of language (which AI is just now mastering) to the creation of an internal model of the world (which AI doesn’t have yet).

Drawing on his experience founding one of the first AI unicorns and developing AI technology of his own, he offers a forward-looking and practical framework for understanding our future with this technology. For example, he explains why the fourth breakthrough, which allows us to understand what’s going on in other people’s minds, remains out of reach for AI—and why human empathy and connection will be invaluable as we implement AI in our schools and companies.

“In a world that is increasingly filled with artificial intelligences that we offload decisions upon, it is becoming ever more important for us to understand the subtle ways in which AI systems differ from our own brains,” Max tells Lavin.

“Tessa West combines easy-to-apply tips with relatable, funny, and shocking stories that will have you taking notes. Anyone regardless of industry or level will benefit.“—Jonah Berger, bestselling author of Contagious

Tessa is the author of Jerks at Work, “a breezy and fun read for anyone who wants happier and healthier relationships at work” (Annie Duke, Quit), as well as the forthcoming Job Therapy, a leader’s guide to making sure your employees are not only happy, but fulfilled.

We all face uncomfortable situations at work. But Tessa can show you how to communicate well in these situations and actually turn them to your advantage, gaining outsized increases in creativity, collaboration, and innovation.

A friendly and engaging speaker, she offers a wealth of real-world stories and scientific strategies that you can apply broadly to any company or context. She shows you:

• The 5 causes of employee unhappiness that are making your company bleed talent—from the “identity crisis” to the “underappreciated star”—and what you can do to boost fulfillment and retain your best performers;
• How leaders can invite honest feedback from their teams (try starting with something non-threatening);
• How to manage conflict early and often, and create structures for healthy teamwork and decision-making;
• How to read other people (really!);
• And much more.

“I want audiences to walk away confident that they can actually improve communication in their workplaces,” Tessa says. “I’ll give you concrete action items: what you can do right now to facilitate change in your teams. It doesn’t matter if you’re shy, or think you’re not charismatic. These are tactics for everybody.”

“Mary inspired all of us doing mindset research to study how we could help create these cultures—by setting out to develop and rigorously test practices for teachers or managers.“—Carol Dweck, author of the multi-million-copy bestseller Mindset

Mary C. Murphy is the author of Cultures of Growth: a transformative look into how an organization’s mindset culture is the key to success both for individuals and for the company as a whole. One of the most anticipated releases of 2024, it’s a revolutionary shift in our understanding of growth mindset and in our ability to implement it in our organizations.

Mary has spent over a decade researching growth mindset in organizations and working with Fortune 500 companies. In practical and down-to-earth talks, she draws on her book to guide organizations through a Mindset Reset. You’ll learn:

• How to avoid common pitfalls, like the belief that you can succeed by just trying harder;
• The four “mindset triggers” that can help you move yourself and others from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset;
• How building a Culture of Growth can help you hire and retain more diverse talent, implement more effective DEI initiatives, and boost trust and commitment across all your teams;
• Simple and concrete ways to build the mindset culture you want for yourself, your teammates, and your organization as a whole.

“Even though, as individuals, we are powerful, we can only do so much alone. The best and biggest work of our lives comes from collaborating with others to realize our fullest potential collectively,” Mary says. “The very nature of a Culture of Growth is to strive for growth for everyone.”

Watch Mary discuss how the science of belonging can help us build stronger and more growth-oriented organizational cultures.

“LGBTQ+ folks aren’t some hypothetical person in your audience that you need to pander to,” says Raquel Willis. “Your company actually has these folks internally. So there’s a shift in culture that needs to be happening.”

In inspiring talks for Pride, Black History Month, DEI events, and much more, Raquel draws on her singular experience—encapsulated in her forthcoming memoir, The Risk It Takes to Bloom—to show how we can achieve real belonging in the workplace for everyone. She explains what she calls “the three C’s” of real DEI: commitment, culture, and content (and a caveat). She demonstrates why you need to develop a company culture of real inclusion and solidarity, and shows you practical ways to ensure everyone at your organization can be their true self and do their best work.

This trailblazing Black trans activist grew up in the South, in a Catholic family. Over the course of her groundbreaking career, she’s become a crucial voice in the conversation around the intersections of gender and race and the fight for true diversity, equity, and inclusion. In addition to her positions at the Ms. Foundation and Out Magazine, she was the national organizer for the Transgender Law Center and has contributed to several anthologies including Ibram X. Kendi’s Four Hundred Souls.

“I want people to walk away with a curiosity about how the world could be better,” Raquel tells Lavin.

Watch an exclusive Lavin interview with Raquel, where she explains how we can use our different interests as a “painter’s palette” in our fight for equity.

“AI is the most transformative technology of our generation,” says Michelle K. Lee, “and it’s ripe for application now.” Michelle has a wealth of experience from the highest levels of both industry and government. She has held executive positions at tech giants Google and Amazon—she was Vice-President of the Machine Learning Solutions Lab at Amazon Web Services, where she helped companies identify and implement their most impactful AI opportunities. On the government side, she was the Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, where she brought AI and data analytics to the 200-year-old, 10,000-person agency.

Her unique and varied experience allows her to cut through the hype around AI, bringing the high-level talk down to reality with concrete examples and practical strategies for every industry—including yours. Drawing on her years of experience, she’s developed a 7-step process that any company can use to incorporate AI and outperform their competitors: starting from developing a data strategy and identifying your highest ROI opportunities, all the way to retraining, updating, and maintaining your AI tools.

“Even the most AI-forward companies are only just scratching the surface on using AI in their businesses,” Michelle says. “AI solutions get better over time and with more data—so the time to get started is now.”

Watch a Lavin-exclusive video where Michelle explains how data and AI helped Domino’s Pizza revolutionize their customer experience and get ahead of the competition.

As the former Artistic Director of Cirque du Soleil, the largest contemporary circus in the world, Caitlan worked on almost every groundbreaking show from 2000 to 2020. Out of over 4000 employees from over 50 countries, she’s one of only a handful of experts who have contributed to the Cirque’s creative process at such a high level and on so many shows. She led all the artistic coaches and coaching, working with her team to choreograph the acrobatic acts for all the shows, and taught creativity to world-class Olympians to transform them from athletes into artists.

Her two decades at the Cirque have taught her what it takes to develop creativity and foster collaboration in intense, high-pressure environments. Creativity not only helps us innovate better, Caitlan says, it also helps us to boost resilience and stay open to changing circumstances. “In today’s world of constant change, creativity has never been more important,” she says.

In her talks, Caitlan demonstrates the power of creativity and shows you practical ways to develop it in yourself and your teams. Drawing on her unique experience, she shows you how to balance the freedom and structure you need to be creative; how to maximize the creative potential of teams of all sizes; and how to leverage creativity to develop cutting-edge ideas.

Eddie Huang has never hesitated to step outside the mainstream. He first broke onto the cultural scene with his Taiwanese restaurant Baohaus, which he opened to tell an underrepresented story through food. He went on to write Fresh Off the Boat, the bestselling memoir which The New York Times called “a book about fitting in by not fitting in at all,” which was then adapted into the hit sitcom of the same name that featured the first all-Asian American cast on network TV in two decades. He hosted Huang’s World for Vice, and has written and directed multiple feature films.

But the secret to this incredible creativity and daring isn’t simply defying the rules that don’t work for you. “If you don’t like the rules of the world—cool! Be an iconoclast,” Eddie tells us. “But you have to create your own rules. That is your responsibility.”

In his smart and hilarious talks, Eddie shows how you can build the discipline and self-leadership to succeed wherever you are. The insights he offers from his dynamic and wide-ranging career are invaluable no matter who you are—whether you’re a leader looking to increase the creativity of your organization, an educator hoping to inspire and motivate students, or a student interested in pursuing your dreams and forging your own path. Eddie will show you how to find success and tap into high performance and creativity, all while embracing your differences and staying true to yourself.

Watch a Lavin-exclusive interview with Eddie about diversity, the Asian American community, and what the next steps are for achieving real equity and justice in America: