Speaking & Events
Consistently well-rated. Highly professional.
As an event organiser, you’ll have a lot to sort. Events require careful planning and they are a significant investment in your people. I’m here to help you make the most of your event, to give the audience an experience and practical knowledge that will stay with them, long after the occasion. My content is research-informed, highly-practical and delivered with heart (with a good measure of appropriate humour in the mix, also).
Research-informed, highly-practical, and delivered with heart
The power of resonance
The topics I speak on resonate deeply with audiences because they touch on what we know of basic human needs; to feel safe, seen and heard, and to survive. When ‘big stuff’ happens - loss, grief, change - it can challenge us at our core. I speak directly into this reality, using rich story telling, wrapped in appropriate humour and heart. Yet the real ‘gold’ I bring to the stage is my ability to share tangible, practical tools that people can start actioning, immediately, at home and work. My message lands because it resonates deeply, and personally. I speak to people’s hearts and minds, to their lived experiences, offering useful tools to help them cope, and thus hope, that they WILL get through what they are navigating.
As a speaker I seek to give each individual in the audience an experience. I don’t speak to them, I strive to engage with them. That’s where the magic happens.
Looking for a speaker the audience will thank you for booking?
Let’s chat.
Keynotes
I will work closely with you to understand your specific context and needs, and customise my keynote, accordingly. That means that no two keynotes are the same. I draw on the science of grief theory, agency and change, combined with powerful story telling and 20 plus years of speaking experience.
My most requested keynotes are:
Knowing You’ll Be Okay, Come What May
Finding YOUR WAY Through Grief
What No One Tells You About Grief
Navigating Unwanted Change (at home or work)
Harnessing the Power Within
Leadership re-imagined: Mattering-reinforcing leadership
A Better Way to Care: Mattering-reinforcing Support
That said, rarely are these topics delivered as listed. Instead, different aspects of content are weaved together to meet the specific objectives and needs of your event.
And, if you have a bespoke topic you’d like covered, the researcher in me is always up for a challenge. Let’s chat!
From Invisibility to Mattering: rethinking care and support for grieving children
Recognised as a global authority on children’s postvention and grief support, I invite you to watch my TEDx talk (Bearing in mind that I bring a different type of energy to my speaking, depending on the topic!). Here I share the findings of my PhD research that lead me to develop the approach, mattering-reinforcing care.
These days, I choose to speak on suicide-specific topics, under the umbrella of Tony’s Place Charitable Trust. Co-founder and Director of Tony’s Place, the charity provides age-appropriate support for children, teens and adults affected by suicide, and professional development to professionals in care and support roles. Please visit www.tonysplace.org.nz for more information on speaking and professional development opportunities, if this is the area of interest to you.