Inspiring audiences around the world.

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Watch Craig speak

Motivating, energizing, and empowering.
01

Evidence-based

Craig shares the latest insights from the science and practice of leadership, team, and organizational excellence.
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02

Interactive

Whether addressing a large crowd or a small executive retreat, Craig ensures each participant feels engaged.
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03

Energizing

Craig’s passion shines through in each talk, which participants describe as motivating and empowering.
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Hear what people say about Craig's keynotes

Click on the names opposite to see a few personal insights.
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CEO, Alterna Savings

ROB PATERSON

“I asked Craig Dowden to speak with our leadership team about the science and practice of resilience. The response to his presentation was so overwhelmingly positive, we rolled it out to our entire organization, including all-staff. He has been back to present multiple times since. The feedback from both leaders and staff is that Craig is highly energetic and provides tangible and practical takeaways that are based on the latest research. Personally, I appreciate his passion for his subject matter and desire to have a positive impact and deliver maximum value to his clients. If you are looking for a speaker that will leave a lasting impact on you and your organization, make sure you contact Craig Dowden."
coo, walmart canada

NABEELA IXTABALAN

“Craig is an energizing and engaging speaker and thought leader who weaves relevant scientific research into powerful presentations. Craig can take complex topics and make them relatable and approachable for a broad audience."
CEO, Franklin Templeton Canada

DUANE GREEN

“I had the pleasure of bringing in Craig Dowden to speak to our senior leadership team on multiple occasions. The group was initially struck by his energy and passion for the subject matter. We also greatly appreciated his evidence-based approach and how he used examples that all of us could relate to in our roles. If you are looking for a speaker who is on the cutting edge of the science and practice of positive leadership, look no further than Craig Dowden.”
Vp Human Resources & Governance, Scotiabank

BRADLEY HAMILTON

“I have had the pleasure of hearing Craig speak multiple times on the topic of positive leadership and consider him truly one of the best in this field. I am struck by how he continually engages his audiences in highly interactive, powerful conversations and interpersonal reflection. He provides important insights into our behavior without prompting defensiveness or sounding condescending. His command of the research and his ability to translate it into tangible practice is second-to-none. Craig inspires, educates, and empowers people to be their best selves.”
VP Human Resources, Make-A-Wish Foundation

DIMPLE JOSHI

“I first met Craig Dowden at a seminar nearly a decade ago. My colleague and I were blown away by his insights and ability to open the minds of those that attended the session. We all left that room with a new sense of possibility and this feeling of awe, “I’ve never thought of that before”. Since then I have brought Craig into every organization I have worked with to engage staff and leadership and broaden their ideas of what is possible. Recently I have seen Craig take a tired team, who have experienced a global pandemic simultaneously with a merger, and completely transform them. The team was aligned in a growth mindset and also speaking the same language in less than 2 hours. That’s what Craig does, he creates magic everywhere he goes with his unique ability to penetrate the hearts and minds of others with deep empathy, connection and true leadership.”
CHRO, Glen Dimplex Americas

LAURA DE FILIPPIS

“I had the pleasure of participating in Craig Dowden’s Masterclass – Do Good to Lead Well Through Crisis: The Science and Practice of Resilient Leadership. I was immediately struck by his passion and energy for the topic. His style was very engaging, and he made the experience highly interactive. Over the course of multiple modules, Craig provided us with evidence-based insights into practical strategies we could use when managing ourselves and our teams. He touched on key areas like mindset, emotions, and empathy. It was a pleasure to participate in this Masterclass and I would highly recommend Craig to any organization who are looking to bring in a topnotch presenter who delivers topnotch content.”
Head, International Sales Effectiveness & Enablement

EDMAR SELDA

“Craig spoke to our leadership team in a virtual forum about Empathy and Self-Awareness, two critical leadership skills needed to not only survive but thrive in this quickly-changing market. By combining evidence-based content with his highly engaging and interactive style, Craig was able to connect with the audience in a way that few have done before, and the attendees left with actionable tactics that they could apply immediately. If you’re serious about upskilling and investing in your people, then give Craig a call.”
Principal: Organizational Development at Payments Canada

CHRIS O'GORMAN

"Craig has a gift for bringing simplicity to complexity. I have seen first hand the impact of Craig's wise counsel on a wide variety of leaders. His down-to-earth and practical approach to teaching, coaching and facilitating is appreciated and refreshing. The rigor with which he finds and brings relevant data to organizational dilemmas at all levels is second to none. I have enjoyed working with Craig over the past few years and look forward to continuing our partnership."
SVP People, Lifelabs

NICOLE DESLOGES

"I know Craig as an energetic speaker, passionate about positive leadership. He successfully balances his knowledge of the science with real life examples and provides practical tools that are readily applicable. His interactive, down to earth style and his ability to inject humour in his programs, resonates wonderfully with his audience. I always learn something new when interacting with Craig!"
Overview

Presentation Topics

1

Building A Positive Workplace Culture: An Evidence-Based Perspective (Leaders)

  • Discuss the key role of civility in building an engaged and collaborative environment
  • Share the benefits of a healthy workplace culture for individuals, teams, and organizations
  • Highlight the importance of self-awareness in positive leadership
  • Discuss how our mindset influences our reality
  • Showcasing how leaders benefit from focusing on the positive
  • Communicating with impact
2

Decoding Psychological Safety: The Power of Inclusive Leadership

  • What is psychological safety?
  • The benefits of fostering an environment where all perspectives are welcomed and heard
  • How we can create an environment where we “dare to disagree”
  • How to manage our blind spots, including the effects of power
  • Evidence-based strategies to foster a psychologically safe environment
3

Do Good To Lead Well: The Science and Practice of Positive Leadership (Leaders)

  • What is self-awareness and why is it so important?
  • How to identify and manage our blind spots
  • Feedback: The foundation of self-awareness
  • Why should we care about empathy?
  • Is following the Golden Rule great leadership advice?
  • What does great listening actually mean according to science?
  • Why humility is the new smart when it comes to leadership
  • Be a Learner, not a Judger: The power of a humble mindset
  • Humility and psychological safety
4

Do Good To Lead Well Through Crisis: The Science and Practice of Resilient Leadership

  • What defines resilience?
  • The fundamental causes of stress
  • How to foster a resilient mindset
  • The powerful role of humility in resilient leadership
  • Why empathy matters
5

Enhancing Our Emotional Intelligence (All-Staff Or Leaders)

  • What is emotional intelligence?
  • IQ versus EQ
  • The benefits of emotional intelligence
  • How to foster EQ
6

Mastering Personal Resilience (All-Staff)

  • What is resilience
  • Where stress comes from
  • How our mindsets impact our well-being as well as our success
  • The scientific secrets of a resilient mindset
  • How we can stay in growth mode during times of crisis
7

Leading With Empathy (All-Staff Or Leaders)

  • What is empathy?
  • Common pitfalls and misunderstandings when it comes to empathy
  • Why we should care about empathy?
  • Why we need to abandon The Golden Rule
  • How we can demonstrate empathy – Lessons from science
  • The Empathetic Leader Question Guide
8

Managing Our Blind Spots: The Psychology of Effective Decision-Making (All-Staff Or Leaders)

  • The critical role of self-awareness in successful decision-making
  • What is the self-serving bias and how can we effectively manage it?
  • Different contextual factors that can derail our ability to make effective decisions
  • How to give and receive engaging feedback to build our self-awareness
9

Mastering Our Emotions (All-Staff Or Leaders)

  • The genesis and purpose of emotions
  • How to effectively label our emotions
  • How to manage our fears
  • The power of emotional contagion
  • The importance of reframing
10

Mastering the Breakfast of Champions - The Scientific Secrets Of Giving And Receiving Feedback

  • The definition of feedback
  • The benefits of giving and receiving feedback well
  • The ideal approach for a feedback conversation
  • Phrases that help our feedback to be heard rather than rejected
  • How to prepare ourselves to receive feedback
  • Barriers to receiving feedback
11

Play to Your Strengths (All-Staff Or Leaders)

  • Why leveraging our strengths is important
  • Why we often fail to utilize a strengths-based approach
  • Techniques for deploying our strengths
  • How we can apply strengths within our teams
12

Positive Leadership in a Hybrid World

  • Great leadership starts with great self-leadership: The critical role of self-awareness
  • How to identify and manage our blind spots
  • Why humility is the new smart when it comes to leadership
  • Be a Learner, not a Judger: The power of a humble mindset
  • Why positive leaders care about empathy
13

Positive Communication in a Hybrid World (All-Staff Or Leaders)

  • The implications of working and communicating in a virtual environment
  • Raising awareness about our own potential blind spots and how they may create or contribute to 'trust issues' with our colleagues
  • Evidence-based tips and techniques to foster positive communication when we are both sending and receiving information electronically
  • A powerful framework to use with their teams to create positive communication
14

Stay In Growth Mode: The Scientific Secrets of a Success Mindset (All-Staff Or Leaders)

  • Why mindset matters
  • What are the types of mindsets and how do they affect us?
  • How to identify our blindspots
  • Successfully navigating difficult conversations – Building a success mindset
  • What steps can we take to stay in growth mode?
15

Strengths-Based Leadership

  • The science of strengths
  • The return on investment of using strengths
  • How to identify our strengths (including a free assessment)
  • How we can use our individual and collective strengths to build resilience
16

Successfully Navigating Difficult Conversations: An Evidence-Based Perspective (All-Staff Or Leaders)

  • Draws on classic and cutting-edge research
  • Discusses various evidence-based tips, tools, and perspectives for navigating difficult conversations
  • Utilizes action learning techniques to apply these strategies in real-time
  • Empower participants to take action when faced with a difficult conversation so they can engage in a constructive dialogue and “dare to disagree.”
17

The Science and Practice of Resilience

  • What defines resilience?
  • How to foster a resilient mindset
  • How to effectively manage emotions
  • The secrets of leading remote teams
  • Leading with empathy
18

Maximizing Accountability (Leaders)

  • The barriers to accountability
  • Be the change you want to see in the world – Leader as role model
  • Apologizing - the magic move for driving accountability
  • A roadmap to accountability – leading with the 5 Cs.
19

Civility Matters! (All-Staff Or Leaders)

  • Define incivility and talk about its prevalence within our workplaces
  • Raise awareness around the causes of disrespectful behaviour as well as the shared responsibility that comes with building a positive work environment
  • Provide the benefits of a respectful workplace for individuals, teams, and organizations
  • How stress impacts civility
  • Discuss evidence-informed strategies that participants can immediately apply within their workplaces to foster a respectful environment, including positive communication