You want a successful event and those attending it deserve a program that will propel them toward greater success. That is why this is one of the most important pages on my website. It is where you will decide the best message for your specific group. I have created some great programs that pull from my expertise in living and leading with courage. However if none of the programs listed below are a perfect fit for your group, then I will work with you to create one that is.
After talking with you, I can speak about the success your company has enjoyed, the challenges you’ve overcome and, most importantly, the courageous actions needed to meet your current challenges and achieve the next level of success. Of course I will adapt my message to reinforce the theme of your event and create even stronger alignment toward your organizational vision. My goal is to make your event a truly extra-ordinary one. Exceeding high expectations has always been my core marketing strategy.
So…take a look at the topics below, then give me a call and let’s talk about what YOU want for YOUR group!
Courageous Conversations
“What doesn’t get talked out, gets acted out. The price you pay for not speaking up far exceeds the discomfort you feel in doing so.”
Speak up to build influence, deepen trust and build more rewarding relationships.
What’s your toughest situation? Talking with an employee about his performance? Saying no to your boss? Telling someone her behavior is inappropriate? Handling an angry employee or customer? Difficult situations have a thousand faces but one common structure. This program will show you the structure of tough conversations, how to prepare for and get them started, how to keep them focused and productive, and what to watch for so you don’t get derailed. Come with some situations, and get ready to practice.
Inability or unwillingness to engage to address the issues which undermine performance, damage relationships and limit success can be profound. In this presentation you will learn not only how to muster up the courage you need to speak up but also:
- Strengthen your EQ and use it to better manage negative emotions in yourself and those around you
- Remove barriers to meaningful conversation (including self-limiting beliefs about your ability to handle confrontation)
- How to bridge the “communication gap” to avoid misunderstanding
- Express anger without insult; disagree without being disagreeable
- Ways to stand firm in the face of those who seek to intimidate
- Use awkward silences to enrich the conversation with greater ease
Target Audience: This program is designed for people at all levels of the organization as no matter where people are in an organization, their ability to communicate effectively is crucial to their own and their team’s success. This program is particularly helpful to employees moving into management positions as it equips them with the skills and tools they need to manage more effectively.
Think Bigger, Live Bolder!
“The greater danger is not that your dreams are too lofty and you fail to reach them but rather that they are too small and you do!”
Harness the power of vision, unleash inner potential and create extra-ordinary results.
For any great feat to be achieved, it must first be imagined. Drawing on the power of vision, your audience and your organization can move forward more productively and purposefully. Drawing from psychological research and contemporary examples, this program explores the steps required to harness the power of vision including:
- The three key conversations that take you from complaining about ‘what is’ to speculating about ‘what could be’ to taking the actions required to achieve it
- The power of stories and how to recognize the stories and fears that are sabotaging success
- Craft a clear, compelling and achievable vision for yourself, your team or organization and then break it into S.M.A.R.T. goals
- Dealing with naysayers and enlisting others in your vision
- Strategies to meet personal and organizational challenges, navigate change and overcome adversity
- Why taking risks is essential to success and how to assess which risks to take
Target Audience: This program is designed for people at all levels of the organization and can be tailored to address the vision of the individual as well as the vision for the team or organization. It is a great tool for newly created teams or departments which have come through periods of change and restructuring and are looking to gain alignment around a common set of goals and vision. This dynamic presentation lends itself well to both keynotes and workshops – it has been presented as a 30-minute keynote to as long as a two-day workshop.
A one page hand-out summarizing key points of discussion will be provided. A Think Bigger workbook is available for longer programs.
Leadership is a Choice
“Leadership begins with making a choice. When you make the choice to step up to do more, to achieve more, to give more and to become more, you are a leader. Leadership always begins on the inside.”
Redefine the leader you are, re-ignite the results you achieve and reclaim the power you have.
How others see you begins with how you see yourself! This powerful presentation will challenge self-limiting beliefs about what it takes to be a leader, teaching that few people are “natural born leaders” but that everyone has the capacity to lead themselves and others to superior performance, better results and a more valuable contribution. Margie will share skills, strategies and poignant stories guaranteed to empower every member of your audience to greater confidence, competence and recognition as a leader. Presentation covers:
- Why how you see yourself determines how others see you and how to rewrite stories that undermine effectiveness and stifle potential
- The importance of leading from a foundation of robust integrity and how to repair any cracks!
- Why self-awareness and EQ are critical to success and how to use yours to expand your circle of influence and recognition as a leader
- The 5 fundamental conversations leaders must engage in—with themselves and others—to achieve maximum performance, contribution and potential
- The three elements of trust and how to repair damaged trust
Target Audience: This program is ideal for employees in positions ranging from entry level to emerging leaders and those up to mid-management level.
The Brave Leader
“Great leadership takes great courage. People will not follow those they don’t trust will stand firm in a storm, choose the right path over the convenient one, speak an inconvenient truth, and give in when the going gets tough.”
Inspiring positive change with greater clarity, confidence and courage. Great leaders have many strengths: from their ability to solve complex problems to their managerial skills and ability to align people around a common goal. But without the courage to create a truly compelling vision, to confront the forces that threaten to undermine it and to take the risks necessary to change what no longer serves the interest of the organization’s stakeholders, a leader cannot lead. They can only manage.
This powerful presentation will challenge beliefs that limit leadership effectiveness, enabling attendees to lead themselves and others to superior performance, stronger results and a much more valuable contribution. Your audience will leave feeling more purposeful in what they do, more passionate about why they do it and more courageous in pursuing the vision that inspires them. Topics covered include:
- The importance of leading from a foundation of robust integrity
- The three core elements of trust and how to rebuild it when damaged
- Why EQ is critical to a leader’s success and how to use the E.Q. matrix to manage the negative emotions which can undermine it
- The 5 fundamental conversations leaders must engage to maximize performance and potential
- How leaders can apply the Ontological coaching framework to improve collaboration, communication and influence across their team and organization
Target Audience: This program is most valuable for people in positions of leadership from mid-level managers up to senior executive. The ontological coaching material used in this program can also be customized into a more in-depth half or full day workshop or ongoing coaching program for people wishing to expand their leadership competence, influence and impact.
Success is a Balancing Act
“The challenge to finding balance is first being clear about what you want to say ‘Yes’ to so you can find the guts to say ‘No’ to the rest!”
Get back to basics with strategies to stay centered and sane despite the load on your plate.
Find the courage to say no to the good to make room for the great! In this fun and highly interactive presentation, Margie shares entertaining stories of her own “balancing act” as a working mother of four along with reasons why she thinks perfect balance is a myth. She will empower your busy, often overwhelmed audience members with fresh ideas and practical strategies for designing a work/life balance that will enable them to live a truly successful life—with more ease and less stress! Guaranteed to refocus, rejuvenate, and re-energize, this presentation includes:
- Uncover the disempowering myths around work/life balance to stop ‘shoulding’ on yourself
- Learn the #1 key to avoiding overload and burnout
- Set boundaries for yourself and others by saying no with more grace and less guilt
- Make more powerful requests and why it’s futile to try doing it all yourself!
- Three daily life enrichment strategies to reduce stress, increase energy and stay motivated
- Why the super woman cape is ’so last century’ and needs to be left behind… forever! (female audiences only)
Target Audience: This program is designed for professional audiences, where attendees are juggling multiple conflicting demands on their time and resources. It is ideal for female audiences who are not only juggling busy careers, but also the demands of children, dual partner careers, volunteer commitments and the like and who often fail to make time for themselves in the midst of looking after everyone else.
The Resilience Advantage: Master Change, Overcome Setbacks and Thrive Under Pressure
Resilience: the ability to recover from, or adjust easily to, misfortune or change. — Merriam-Webster Dictionary
We all know the importance of responding to the conflicting demands of work and family, relational conflict and unexpected difficulties in a flexible, calm and good-humored way. But doing so day after day, particularly during times of crisis and rapid change, can be exhausting to the body, mind and spirit. Drawing from the latest neuro-scientific research, age-old spiritual wisdom and her experiences as an executive coach and working mom of four, Margie will help attendees develop their own personal strategy for bolstering resilience and staying strong when pressures mount and adversity strikes. With her trademark Aussie pragmatism and humor, Margie will arm attendees with the inspiration and tools to face the challenges of an increasingly complex, competitive and changing world with greater courage, resourcefulness and resilience. Margie will discuss:
- Harnessing our brain’s neural plasticity to build resilience over time
- Strategies to build E.Q. and ensure emotions don’t high-jack rational thought
- The five steps to S.O.A.R.R. above crisis and stay calm under pressure
- Daily rituals for managing destructive emotional impulses
- Three steps to redraft sabotaging stories into ones that strengthen resolve, self-efficacy and promote self-confidence
Target Audience: While this program is valuable for both professional and non-professional audiences, it is of particular value for those who are dealing with rapid change (organizational or personal) and transitioning to new and more demanding roles. It is also excellent for emerging leaders, budding entrepreneurs and working women.
