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David Okerlund, a passionate, award-winning, speaker incorporates years of experience as a hospital administrator, national sales manager, newspaper columnist, and communications coach into his messages.  With his mastery of emotional intelligence and situational empathy, he touches audiences in a way that they will never forget.  Your organization will leave renewed and inspired and if they are like most of David’s past clients they will be asking to hear David again.

Maybe the best way to describe David Okerlund is to read what one of the speaking legends of all time, Nido Qubein, said after he hired David to speak to the students of High Point University and then to over 1,000 corporate leaders at the annual Thanksgiving Luncheon he personally sponsors. Nido said, “He was outstanding!  Both times.. His message was right on target and he is the easiest to work with. I admire him and I appreciate your recommending him.” President Qubein’s son, Ramsey Qubein, Account Executive of McNeill Lehman added even more by commenting, “David Okerlund’s presentation was a mesmerizing experience for our audience, and he certainly created an impression that many are still talking about today.  His mix of humor and poignant stories made it a memorable occasion.  We appreciate his professionalism and genuine style.  They loved him!”   How do you categorize a speaker who has accomplished the following:

• He’s a rare, cross-over speaker who can deliver a powerful, tone setting keynote - followed by a wide variety of seminar programs - and then set the place on fire with a humorous after-dinner banquet address.  As one person commented, “David Okerlund has the passion of Zig Ziglar, the depth of knowledge of Covey, and the humor of Bill Cosby, and it doesn’t  get much better than that!”

• David has given over 2,500 speeches to over 1,000,000 people without one disappointed client.

• Twice he finished in the final three of the World Championship of Public Speaking, a contest of over 20,000 individuals from over thirty countries.

• He taught speech and debate at Oxford University in England and was asked to debate Patrick Buchanan at the prestigious Oxford University Debate Club. 

• He was inducted into the International Hall of Fame for Speakers in 1984.

• He helped design a class in Persuasion and Ethics for university graduate students in Minnesota.

• David Okerlund has been described by Baseball Hall of Fame shortstop Ozzie Smith and others as the “best personal speech coach in the United States.”

• David has written three books with a fourth book, The 7 Traits of Dynamic Leaders in Leadership Roles due to be published this year.

•  He has won more speaking contests in his lifetime than any other professional speaker on the market today. 

• He founded The Creative Communications Institute, an organization dedicated  to assisting individuals and corporations with their communication needs.

• David has served as a personal communications coach for corporate executives, political figures, passionate beginners, Miss America beauty contestants, and celebrity figures like Ozzie Smith, Frank Robinson, Tony Little, and others.

• He is a poet, a newspaper columnist, and a pretty fair tenor.    

 

NATIONALLY ACCLAIMED IN THESE SUBJECT AREAS:

• LEADERSHIP TRAINING

• CHANGE/CHAOS MANAGEMENT

• COMMUNICATION SKILLS

• PERSONAL MOTIVATION

• EMPLOYEE ENRICHMENT

• SALES TRAINING

• HUMOR  

MOST REQUESTED PROGRAMS:

Mama Never Taught me to drive a Garbage Truck
A keynote or seminar about maintaining positive attitudes in time of change

The Joys of Stress
A humorous banquet speech that really gets things rolling

Think Like A "Pro," Sell Like a "Rookie"
Putting passions and expertise into the art of selling!
Or, perhaps it's his 25 years of training experience in  communications, persuasion and advocacy, employee enrichment and empowerment, sales training, and creativity/innovation that have helped him achieve this distinction    

Sacred Cows Make The Best Burgers
How to deal with the "psuedo-demon" known as change during changing times

Learning How To Dance With Elephants
Learn how to deal with tough customers, peers and a changing industry.

No One Can Whistle A Symphony... It Takes An Orchestra To Play It
A look at bringing harmony and teamwork into the workplace where fewer people are expected to do more with less.

David takes the best from Michael Vance, Robert Kriegel and John Kao, weaves a little of the legendary concepts of Marcus Bach’s serendipity, and has put together a very humorous and enlightening keynote that can set the stage for any conference that needs a high octane kickoff.  He confronts his audience with their reluctance to change but does it in such a warm and passionate way that it is not intimidating.  It’s fun, funny, and highly informative! “Vision, Passion, & Pluck” (How to master the art of vision questing)To get anything significant accomplished today, one must have a clear vision of what the outcome will actually be.  Then one must master the art of drawing others into that vision where they claim ownership and become as committed as you to bringing it to fruition.  That is a leadership tool that can be learned and used whenever you seek to move others into a higher level of motivation and commitment.  And that's exactly what this program teaches!