Speakers

Emotional Intelligence (EQ)

How does raising your Emotional Intelligence affect your success in business?

Get to the “YES!” How to increase Trust, Connection & Likeability in 3 minutes or less

Professionals everywhere – in every industry - have come to realize that Emotional Intelligence (EQ) is just as important as general intelligence (IQ). So, it may come as no surprise to you that the higher your EQ is, the better you’re going to be at sales, and building relationships with prospects, clients, and candidates. This begs the question…

Is EQ a skill you can learn? Or is it a natural “IT FACTOR” where you either have it or you don’t.

Service-based businesses work every day with clients who need to trust their provider enough to share deeply personal aspects of their lives: their money, their health, their family. This means relationships between event attendees and clients extends far beyond transactional. The relationships are personal and intimate, and requires extremely high EQ.

Deirdre speaks on the importance of having high EQ in business, but also provides practical, and immediately actionable strategies to build your business brand EQ. Not only does she teach audience members how to observe how self and others are feeling and behaving, but she teaches the attendees how to share stories at a business-appropriate level. End result? A business culture that is objective, but empathetic…intuitive and self-managed.

Hiring and Retention Strategies (Human Resources Strategies)

How do you become a leader that people don’t want to quit?

How to Attract Top Taken in a Remote & Hybrid World

The STORY of the business or its founder is a powerful business asset that WILL impact hiring and retention. Whatever the business, the simple truth is that storytelling is one of the most powerful ways for businesses and hiring professionals to connect with AND keep prospective team members. That makes business storytelling a critical piece of branding and an invaluable and completely unique business asset.

When strategically chosen and packaged in an easily consumable way, stories can become an extension of the talent acquisition and talent management teams. STORIES work for the business and the hiring team, helping them attract talent that value the same ideals & beliefs of the business and its core culture. STORIES bring the right talent right to the front door (or Zoom Lobby!)

Storytelling over Stats

Why Choose Business Storytelling over Stats when Communicating

Imagine yourself at 5 years old. You're in your room getting ready for bed and you're talking with your mom about your day, as you pull up the zipper on your feety pajamas. You walk over to your bookshelf and with great anticipation you carefully select the perfect book. You hand the book to your mom and you say,

“Mommy tell me a…. (fill in the blank)”

Did you say “Story”? No! you don't say, “Tell me a story.” You say, “Tell me a fact, tell me a statistic, I don't really care what the Three Little Pigs wore what they said or how they felt, I just want to know the statistical probability of that wolf eating those pigs!”

You’d never say that right?

You don’t need to be a storytelling keynote speaker to know that…it’s boring! You don’t care, and you know your brain doesn’t process information that way. But you know who else’s brain doesn’t process information that way either? Your prospects, clients, COI’s and candidates! One of Deirdre’s favorite facts as a storytelling keynote speaker is that, our brains best process complex information through story.

Speaking Conveys Competence

Stand Out, Connect & Own the Room Every Time You Speak

As a masterful communication keynote speaker, Deirdre shares the powerful message that it is no longer enough to be the smartest or most skilled entrepreneur or financial professional in the room. Whether you’re speaking for 1 minute,1 hour, or 1 day, people will make judgments about your competency based on your public speaking skills.

Crazy Good communication skills will advance your business and career like nothing else can. Here’s why:

• It sets you apart in the marketplace. Sadly, when it comes to public speaking the bar is LOW. The ability to communicate as a confident, engaging speaker will put you miles ahead of your competition!
• You’ll be seen as a leader. Within your niche or organization, you want to brand yourself as a great communicator because you’ll be tapped for roles and elevated to positions you may otherwise never get. True or not, if you’re a great speaker, people will think you’re a great leader. In fact, today’s most popular platform for jobseekers and employers, Indeed, says the number one skill they find companies looking for in a prospect is communication skills.
• You’ll make a bigger impact on people’s lives. If people are engaged in what you’re saying, they’re taking in and digesting the information you’re feeding them. This means you have influence over them, and you can use this influence to positively impact their lives (Sounds a lot better than zoning out during boring presentations, right?).

Deidre brings great energy and more importantly she connects with the audience. Every time we have had her speak (Multiple) audience members always after the event say she was the best session they attended.
Todd Scott, Ameritas

Deirdre was the perfect choice to kickoff our year of membership meetings for Sales and Marketing Executives of Sioux Falls! Her energy and enthusiasm could be felt throughout the room and attendees walked away with knowledge they could implement immediately. I would highly recommend Deirdre to anyone who is looking to tell their story in an engaging and impactful way!
Kacey McCarthy, Sales & Marketing Executive of Sioux Falls, Inc., SME Sioux Falls

Deirdre was the highest rated speaker at GAMA International’s LAMP 2018. She turned what is typically considered a soft conceptual skill of being a powerful presenter into tangible practical strategies our members could use right away. I saw many members in the halls after her talk shooting videos applying what they just learned!
Kari Stringfellow, Senior Director, Leadership Development at GAMA International

I’ve seen many presentations in my 60 years and Deirdre was one of the best. As good as Zig Ziglar!
Jason Mascitti, Financial Advisor, Thrivent Financial

Most speakers just give us the sizzle.  You gave us the sizzle AND the steak AND you served up that steak real good!
Leader in Financial Services Audience Member at LAMP

Deirdre’s presentation was one of the best I’ve been to at Ameriprise. Super engaging and I’ve applied what I learned three times in less than 24 hours.
Leader in Financial Services Member Ameriprise Financial

My team and I agreed, this is the best leadership training we’ve ever had. Period.
Senior Leader Thrivent Financial

Deirdre’s main stage session at our Disability Income Specialist Annual Meeting was game-changing. She listened to my requests and feedback about the audience – the skeptics, the diversity of experience and the passivity of some. From there she showed up to the meeting with an open mind, listened to people, got to know them and incorporated their comments, challenges, and dialogue into her talk. And that got their attention – without knowing it she chose some of the most respected folks to quote. Most importantly, she was a fantastic close to a meeting where the folks were energized, interacting and open to trying something new. And the feedback continues to come in on how they’ve used something Deirdre said.

Crazy Good is an excellent description and one echoed in the feedback! Before she was even done I was getting text message from two of my biggest skeptics and folks who consider themselves the presentation experts saying “best speaker ever” ‘“Crazy good talk” and “thank you for giving us something new.

I’ve recommended Deirdre’s talks to colleagues and we’ve been reinforcing her messages during our coaching calls. As many people know, I’m hard to please and a bit of a skeptic myself – but watching the energy, hearing my most seasoned folks trying something new – I couldn’t be happier with the results both at the conference and weeks later. Thank you.
Stacy McCann, Guardian Life National Sales Director

Fire Your Fear: How To Grow Your Business by Changing The Way You Think