All of the presentations can be delivered as a
keynote, workshop, breakout, or retreat.
See full descriptions below…
The Future is UnScripted
How to Prepare for the UnExpected, the UnPredictable and the UnAvoidable
The future is UnScripted.
We are experiencing change at an exponential rate, and it is impacting all aspects of our work and our lives.
And more than that, the nature of change is changing. There is…
… more complexity
… more ambiguity
… more unpredictability
That means more wicked problems and more uncertainty at work.
Yet, we still have to make decisions (without all the information).
We have to solve new problems (without any prior experience).
We have to work with others (in new and different ways).
AND…
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No matter how much time and effort we invest to PLAN, change is going to continue to happen, and that means going off our plan and going off our usual script. And that is going to disrupt what we do and how we do it.
Instead, what we need to do is PREPARE for the UnExpected.
Bottom line: Change isn’t going to go away! We just have to get better at it.
All of this requires that we become comfortable working within uncertainty.
And that requires that we:
Tolerate ambiguity;
Become courageously curious; and
Work UnScripted.
What if instead of being frozen by uncertainty, your team could be inspired by change?
What could you accomplish if your team was energized by the opportunities found in the uncertainty? What innovations could you seek? What results could be realized?
Life will never stop throwing you curveballs, but…
When we no longer see change as a threat, it becomes our opportunity.
Working UnScripted blends the principles of improv and problem solving to help you face uncertainty.
Leveraging the skills from those whose work depends on uncertainty – improvisers – we can learn to be comfortable with uncertainty, welcome ambiguity, and accept bold offers in the moment.
While improvisers cannot rehearse, they can prepare and be prepared for the unexpected.
Outcomes & impact:
- Understand the importance of preparing for change and embracing uncertainty to create opportunity.
- Laugh while you learn the skills of successful improvisers to accept the offers presented in change and to use those offers to take advantage of change.
- Have the confidence and the courage to face unknown obstacles and challenges and handle unexpected situations with ease.
- Learn how to accept when things go wrong to leverage the opportunity in uncertainty.
Leading Through Uncertainty
Leverage Curiosity and Confidence to Build Change-Resilient Teams
“The more resilient you are the more resilient you will be.” Chaos2Clarity research
As a leader, you need to lead others even when you don’t know what’s going to happen next. And you need to make decisions when you’re in the messy middle of change.
How do you lead without a playbook?
With constant change there is no script, but we can prepare for it.
Prepare yourself and your team for any change by tapping into your innate curiosity, strengthening your confidence, and building your resilience.
We need challenge and change in order to build resilience, and the good news is there is no shortage of either!
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If, however, we don’t take the time to recognize what we have accomplished, that constant challenge and change can lead to burnout.
This keynote inspires your team to embrace change and find the opportunities in uncertainty.
Build your resilience and your team’s resilience IN change.
This keynote or workshop can focus on:
- The Change Resilient Leader, or
- The Change Resilient Team, or
- The Change Resilient Workplace
Consider having your team take the UnScripted Assessment to understand how comfortable they are with uncertainty and change.
Outcomes & impact:
- Feel prepared for any change, even if it hasn’t happened yet.
- Learn to embrace the opportunities that change presents by accepting the offers in change in order to take advantage of change.
- Recognize that you can tap into your innate curiosity and build your resilience so that you can always be prepared to face any change.
The Secret Truth about Uncertainty
What Research Reveals about the Unexpected Relationship Between Uncertainty, Resilience and Our Overall Well-Being
“Not everyone in a crisis is in crisis.” Chaos2Clarity research
How we handle uncertainty is the key to not only unlocking creativity and innovation, but also to our overall well-being.
Based on the one-of-a-kind research study Chaos2Clarity, this insightful presentation will have you laughing while you learn the secrets of those who are inspired by chaos and change, those who embrace the uncertainty of the situation, and who accept the offer to create opportunity.
Learn why “not everyone in a crisis is in crisis”, and the implications for you, your team and your company.
Every participant will have the opportunity to take the UnScripted Assessment which indicates how comfortable they are with uncertainty. Participants will receive their own customized report which will share how UnScripted they are overall and, since not everyone is UnScripted in the same way, they will learn how they are UnScripted, or what we call the UnScripted Edge.
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The results of the entire group can be shared as a team profile and can be compared with the population overall, leaders, women, BIPOC, or other relevant groups for your event.
There’s also an option to do a deep dive with leaders to understand where their team is and together, we can identify opportunities for improvement, areas to watch, and strategies to inspire where employees should focus to create a more change resilient team.
Outcomes & impact:
- Learn how you and your team respond to the uncertainty within change and how you can leverage your strengths to improve your results.
- Understand how to build resilience in yourself and others in order to face new opportunities and challenges.
Feel more comfortable and confident when facing chaos, challenge, and change.
The Curiosity Advantage
How to Lead Humans When You Would Rather be Doing ANYTHING Else!
People. Yeah, we get it. They’re the worst!
The hardest part about leadership is the people, however, leading people is also the whole point of leadership!
Here’s the reality…
- Some people love what they do – their technical area of expertise.
- Some people love working with people and being a people-manager.
- Sometimes those are the same people, but often…not so much!
Some people-leaders don’t actually enjoy… you know… people. They tend to focus more on the task than the person completing it. In today’s complex work environment, we can’t leave our employee engagement to chance. We need all of our leaders to be able to engage, connect and inspire.
The good news is that all leaders can be good people-leaders.
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The Curiosity Advantage can be targeted for those people leaders who don’t always enjoy… the people side. If your leaders are scientists, engineers, researchers, accountants, IT or other very technically skilled experts, they can use their strength to lead others.
And that strength is their curiosity.
These leaders can learn to leverage their innate curiosity to effectively lead others and to inspire their teams to work effectively and embrace change. Yes, it really is possible! And because it is research-based, they may even be curious about it!
The Curiosity Advantage is also good for leaders of all kinds, whether new to leadership or a seasoned pro.
The power of curiosity can be used to keep us calm and present and keep our minds open to the possibilities. When we are curious we cannot be anxious. When we are curious we are not furious!
Outcomes & impact:
- Understand how to tap into your innate curiosity to face change and lead others through it.
- Understand the importance of creating psychologically safe environments and how to lead with compassionate curiosity.
- Discover how tapping into our curiosity can help us connect with others, negotiate effectively, and build stronger teams.
What the #$%&!* I Didn’t Plan For This!
UnScripted Events: Leverage the Opportunity in Uncertainty when Sh!ft Happens
You have project plans, contingency plans, backup plans, and buffers. When things go sideways, you’re ready. You’re flexible, adaptable, and a MacGyver-level problem solver – and honestly, that’s what makes you great at what you do.
But here’s the thing: we spend so much time planning to control for the unexpected that we’ve started to see the unexpected as a threat.
What if it isn’t?
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Some of the most memorable outcomes – the breakthroughs, the pivots, the moments that actually changed things – happened when something went off script. Not despite the disruption, but because of it.
What if instead of trying to control for those moments, we learned to seek them out?
When we stop seeing uncertainty as a threat, it becomes something else entirely: an invitation. An offer. An opportunity that a more rigid plan would not have recognized.
What if giving up a little control was actually the key to getting better results?
Drawing on original research into how people navigate chaos and change, this session will challenge the way you think about uncertainty and give you practical tools to work with it, rather than against it. You’ll laugh, you’ll practice, and you’ll leave with skills you can use the next time sh!ft happens (and it will).
You’ll leave with:
- The mindset shift required to approach uncertainty with curiosity instead of panic, and how to build that muscle before you need it
- A new understanding of why not everyone in a crisis is in crisis – and what that means for how you lead, collaborate, and respond
- Techniques borrowed from the world of improv to help you stay confident, creative, and decisive when the plan goes out the window
- Because the best opportunities rarely show up on the agenda. The goal isn’t to avoid the unexpected – it’s to be the person in the room who’s ready to use it.
Fall in Love with Your Problem
Because the problems worth solving deserve more than a first date
Most people don’t just dislike problems – they’re in a hurry to make them disappear. The moment a solution appears, we grab it, commit to it, and prepare to defend it. Meetings stop being about understanding the problem and become more about confirming the answer we already chose.
And honestly? That makes sense. We get hired, promoted, recognized and paid for our ideas and our answers. Of course we fall in love with our solutions.
But here’s the danger: if we already “know” the answer, how much time do we actually spend understanding the problem? And what are we missing when we don’t?
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The most important problems we face – in our organizations, our industries, our world… aren’t simple puzzles with hidden solutions waiting to be found. They’re wicked problems: complex, uncertain, and resistant to obvious answers. They don’t reward the fastest solution. They reward the deepest attention.
What if we brought that same energy – the curiosity, the obsession, the excitement of falling in love – to our problems instead?
When we fall in love with a problem, we get curious about it. We want to spend more time with it. We wake up thinking about it. We stop skimming the surface and start diving deep – past the symptoms, past the obvious, toward the real problem underneath. And that’s where the genuinely innovative solutions live.
This keynote will shift the way you think about problems, decisions and the people trying to solve them. You’ll explore how to stay curious longer than feels comfortable, how to hear more ideas from more people, and how to use complexity and uncertainty – not as obstacles, but as your greatest advantage!
You’ll leave with:
- A new mindset for uncovering the real problem beneath the surface – not just the symptoms presenting themselves
- Proven problem-solving techniques you can put to work immediately
- Practical ways to tap into your own curiosity and spark it in others – so you hear more ideas, from more people, more often
- The Uncertainty Decision Matrix™ – a framework for getting clear on what decision you’re actually trying to make
*The keynote plants the seed. Pair it with a workshop and we’ll actually fall in love together – working through a real problem using the full toolkit, and leaving with solutions you couldn’t have reached any other way.
Whether you want to drive revenue, enter new markets, increase engagement, design new products, programs or services, or create change that actually sticks — it starts with falling in love
“Business moves
too fast
to be scripted.”
Jennifer Spear
