BigQuestion |
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 With many companies slashing meeting budgets and convention attendance spending, the Big question for
organizations is "Why bring in a speaker? Why Now?" We recently put this query out to some of our more venerated adventurists,
and the response from cultural anthropologist, mountaineer and global explorer, Jeff Salz struck us as particularly poignant:
Why a Speaker? Why Now?
As a cultural anthropologist and educator, I have given some thought on how people learn best. The answer is overwhelmingly - 'through direct experience'.
Why is this? In part, because it is what we have done for millennia.
We have lived as hunters and gatherers for 99 times longer than we have as 'civilized and citified' creatures.
Even after we entered the Neolithic and began to live in established settlements, 99 % of the time we sat around fires, assembled beneath trees and shared our stories.
 That indefinable magic that occurs in the presence of an actual performance is simply in our genes.
When it comes to receiving important information, we are biologically programmed to depend upon person-to-person communication. Our senses have evolved to intake the countless intangibles as we sort out truth from fiction, discern integrity from chicanery.
There is an energetic flow between a live performer and his/her audience that the biggest wrap-around screen with 3D quadraphonic sound can never even approximate.
There is 'interaction' between the presenter and the audience. Everyone experiences the 'relationship'.
Call it 'chemistry', because it is. That is why, despite instant replay and hanging cameras we still head out to the big game. Why we pour into the stadium to experience a performer who we could far more comfortably have viewed and listened to on our home flat screen.
 Why do we cry and laugh and leap far more at a live musical than at the movie theater version? Because there is an exchange of energy. There is an actual 'interactive' experience in which the response of the audience member matters.
I often describe a 'speech' as a 'conversation between audience and speaker'.
When attendees tell me how wonderful my talk was, I respond: "You are only as good as your audience. You were great!"
Speaker and audience work together and create a synergy that benefits both.
For conveying information, televised seminars, webinars even phone conversations may be the answer.
But when it comes to creating value-forming, events that share energy, inspiration or carry a component of emotion... live and in-person experience is what we are wired for.
My guess: It will be at least another few millennia before that will change.
So, in the meantime knowing that, you can advise your clients they can confidently book their keynote speakers for their conference in... 5009.
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BigLaughs |
Greg Behrendt |
Spring Forward Into A New Relationship.
Greg Behrendt, the co-author of the New York Times best selling book, He's Just Not That into You, which was adapted into the feature film, is now available for a new lecturer series with his wife, Amiira
Ruotola-Behrendt, who co-authored with Greg the follow up book, It's Called a Break-Up Because It's Broken. In their lecture series, So You Think You Want To Be In Love the Behrendts discuss the confusion
of trying to find love in the new Millennium and how technology has changed the romantic playing field. They offer their audiences unique insights into modern relationships based on the winning principals that have been embraced
by women worldwide. More than just a lecture, the Behrendts also weave their uplifting advice with Greg's stand-up comedy and finish each presentation with a rousing Q&A session.
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Matt Isemen
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The Iseman Cometh
Matt Isemen doesn't play a doctor on TV, but he is one in real life. Before Dr. Matt Iseman started dispensing humorous one-liners as a professional comedian, he dispensed medicine as a licensed physician. Today, his specialty is prescribing humor and healing for ailing healthcare workers everywhere. His inside perspective
and spot-on observations lend a unique credibility to his presentations. Every employee in the healthcare industry has felt the added pressure in an already stressful field. With job descriptions changing from week to week and enough paperwork to fell a good-sized forest, there has never been a more stressful time to work in healthcare. Insurance
payments are down, support staff is being cut, and job satisfaction is at an all-time low. In fact, the only thing that is up is stress. From antiquated computer systems to the seemingly constant "reviews", Dr. Iseman has seen it
all. But, more importantly, he sees the humor in it. With National Nurses Week coming up May 6-12, Matt Iseman would be the perfect speaker to show your staff how to use humor to combat stress, and prove that laughter really is the best medicine. |
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Steve Harvey
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Harvey Heads Up
Appearing on shows like The Kings of Comedy tour, The Steve Harvey Show, and Steve Harvey's Big Time Challenge, Steve Harvey is definitely no stranger to the big time. Now, with an appearance
on the Oprah Winfrey show, a book debut at No. 1 on the New York Times Best-Seller list, and a radio show heard on more than 60 stations with almost 7 million weekly listeners, Steve is giving everyone the low-down, in his
straight-up impeccable style. In his latest book, Act Like A Lady, Think Like A Man Harvey provides women with the "ultimate guide for dealing with men on their terms."
For more information on bringing top-shelf comic relief to today's trying
times, contact BigSpeak. Why? Because we are that into you…call us (we'll always call you back). |
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BigBen |
Benjamin Zander |
BigSpeak’s Virtuous Virtuoso hits the Big 7-0
 Conductor of the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra and
BigSpeak
Maestro of motivation,
innovation and creativity, Ben Zander turned 70 years old
this month. Showing no signs of slowing down, Maestro Zander brought his infectious energy and prodigious talent to an evening filled with festivity and music. The gala event took place March
11th at Boston's Symphony Hall, and featured Ben and the Boston Philharmonic (which, in a nice coincidence, is celebrating its 30th season) in a majestic rendition of Mahler's 2nd Symphony, "
Resurrection." All proceeds from the event go directly to supporting the Philharmonic's "Music Without Boundaries" program, which brings the transformational and healing power of great music to young and disadvantaged
people. To bring the inimitable style, bravura and inspiration of Ben Zander to your organization,
contact BigSpeak today…and Happy Birthday Ben!
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BigOrder |
White House Kitchen |
"Can we get that to go?" |
Recently, First Lady Michelle Obama held a summit at the White House…in the kitchen. The first
lady was joined by White House chef Cristeta Comerford, executive pastry chef Bill Yosses, social secretary Desiree Rogers, reporters from the New York Times and six culinary students from L'Academie de Cuisine, a culinary
school in nearby Gaithersburg, Md. to learn about preparations and menu planning for President Obama's dinner with the nation's governors. Also on the agenda: how to create healthy meals for children while satisfying their finicky tastes.
According to the Times, the first lady took the opportunity to put in a pitch for local and sustainable food and for healthy eating, a recurring theme of hers during the campaign and since she arrived in Washington.
"That's one of the things that we're talking a lot about, when you grow something yourself and it's close and it's local, oftentimes it tastes really good," she said. That's especially important, she added when trying to get kids
to eat vegetables. She should have also put in a call to BigSpeak. Our team of renowned chefs
including Domenica Catelli, Dr. John La Puma and Kathleen Daelemans
specialize in creating delicious, organic, health-conscious menus that everyone (especially children) can enjoy, without masking taste or "hiding" healthy ingredients. With more and more national school programs and
organizations adopting healthier food alternatives, these culinary experts would be the perfect addition to any conference, curriculum (or state dinner). |
BigGreen to Go Green |
 Speaking of
the White House, a significant portion of the recent $787 billion stimulus package that President Obama just signed, allocates $60 billion for clean energy, environmental projects and scientific research advocating growth in green jobs
and alternative energies. The stimulus also includes $500 million for green job training. With expansive projected growth in the green sector, it is critical to understand how this relates to effective growth and investment for
companies facing fierce competition and diminished demand. BigSpeak has an impressive team of sustainability
and green energy experts that can prepare your organization for the changes ahead and to recognize opportunities on the horizon.
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BigSound |
BigSpeak’s (undercover) guitar heroes:
It's no secret that at BigSpeak we have some incredibly talented musicians in
our midst, from the iconic sounds of Davy Jones to the healing genius of Michael Stillwater
and the comic virtuosity of Mike Rayburn. In fact,
Rayburn has been nominated for "Keynote Speaker of the Year" and "Solo Artist of the Year" by American Entertainment Magazine for 2009. But what is less obvious, is that lurking within some of our
other speakers, lies a latent guitar hero waiting to emerge. Leadership expert Steve Farber boasts a vintage axe
obsession and renowned cardio-health guru Dr. Dean Ornish has been known to
bust out a blues riff once in a while. Hall-of-fame speaker and sales legend, Jim Cathcart was once a
professional nightclub entertainer and has occasionally opened his presentations with classics like California Dreamin' and Brown-Eyed Girl. All of this adds a new dimension to an already amazing line-up of
accomplished speakers. To get a little music with your message, call BigSpeak today and who knows, maybe we can coax out some bonus tracks for you. |
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