Deliver experiences that put everyone in the front row.

Whether your virtual event has 10,000 people on it or 100, follow these highly effective approaches to have maximum impact and lasting influence. I've been doing video production for years (starting with a vampire movie when I was 12 to documentaries to live feeds for World Championship Olympic Wrestling, etc). Couple that with me award-winning presentation skills and I know you'll benefit from this video. Meeting planners and C-Suite leaders agree that their most valuable asset, human capital, needs to be educated, entertained, and motivated for a successful online event. Watch this 1.5-minute video to make the most from your virtual meeting.

1. Go Spielberg, Not Fosse

Think production not theater. Use multiple cameras for a dynamic experience.

2. Hire a Production Host

Your IT Guy Aint' THE GUY. A Production Host knows Tech AND Production

3. Hire Presenters to Set Momentum and Tone

Pro Speakers Keep the Energy High. Execs Lead the Way.

 4. Assign Moderators for Optimum Flow

Ensure you have PreSet Polls, Q&A Plants and Meeting Rooms

5. Entertain, Educate and Motivate

Ensure each session has a healthy dose of each. 

6. Turn Your Panel into an Interview Festival

Assign 3 interviewers per panelist. Make your audience the hero.

7. Pre, During, Post Engagement Tools

Set the stage with Pre Event Materials that come-to-life during and after the event.

Everybody's running around trying to do what the competition's not doing, especially when there's chaos. Here's how to have a competitive advantage.

Instead of trying to do what the competition's not doing, imagine your competition is the highest performers, that person that does what you do, and instead of doing what that person's not doing, try this. Do what the competition is not willing to do. What is that high performer not willing to do?

Typically, those are the things you're not willing to do either. The biggest advantage of virtual presentations is we're creating a dialogue, people communicating better. The biggest mistake is we're taking a bucket of content and dumping it on people's head and hoping that it sticks. The only way content is gonna stick is through an experience, and it's especially true with virtual presentations.

For you, I've created a virtual presentation for you that accomplishes three things.

First, that it's ENTERTAINING. The people are engaged in the story because of storytelling. This recreational skier to Olympian in four years is also the motivational piece.

The second piece, being MOTIVATED to move forward and to be inspired by someone else's story that draws them in to that experience.

The third piece is the CONTENT, the content that gets inside their head that's both innovative and counterintuitive. The people go, "Okay, that's a great idea. "Hadn't thought of it that way." 

For example, use a gold dot is a trigger for your emotional buzz. I put them everywhere. On the back of my cell phone. On the odometer in my car. On the bathroom mirror. On my toothbrush. A gold dot triggers that emotional buzz of where you want to go.

When you have an emotional quotient attached to where you want to go, your people are going to get exceed their goals faster than you ever thought possible.

Listen, bring in a professional speaker. As an Olympian, a "New York Times" best-selling author, and Hall of Fame speaker, I'm able to take people on an unforgettable experience in a virtual presentation where they're engaged. It sticks for a lifetime. The best part of my virtual keynotes is they are interactive.

We had a comment the other day, the attendee said, "I felt like I was in the front row." Put your audience in the front row of this virtual presentation and given them an experience. We had zero people drop off the call. Zero. Zero people because they were entertained, educated, and motivated all at the same time.

Let's do those three things within your virtual presentation. 

The ratio between the conscious and subconscious mind is the exact same ratio between an ant and an elephant.

The ant is the conscious mind, the elephant the subconscious. The ant is on the back of your elephant making decisions on direction. You make a decision, I wanna go west, it starts marching on the back of the elephant going west. What if the elephant is headed east, which way is the ant really going?

East thinking you're going west. But it's human nature. We make decisions and owners and managers, I wanna go west, I'm gonna go on a diet. Subconscious mind, I don't think so. And so we may have unconscious reasons why not and end up in a place where we go how did I end up here again?

Yet, how much better would you compete with this kind of alignment?

How much better could you do what the competition's not willing to do if you had 2,000 neurons and four billion neurons headed in the same direction.

A gift for Covid Campers everywhere!

The Heroes Climb, The Ascent from I to Us

Think back to the first time you realized you were meant for something greater. That thought was your first step. You set-out towards a peak beyond your sights. What happened to that journey of yours? Are you isolated in your Covid Camp? Moreover, what will you do in the months ahead?

There are scores of heroes. Look past the iconic heroes of legend or stardom. Turn your gaze to everyday heroes who pivoted from I to us.

As you widen the scope of possibilities, you become aware of a mountain, patiently waiting for you. As you ascend, your power will shift from I to us.

Normally, I give motivational keynote speeches about how “I” went from recreational skier to the Olympics in just four years. This was followed by how others could accelerate towards their goals through an award-winning speaking career and as a New York Times bestselling author.

Then, the “Great Recession” hit. And the journey uphill to find “Us” began. With this new mountain of a health and economic crisis, your opportunity awaits. This book is for you to venture on your Heroes Climb.

#setbacktobreakthrough

Hey COVID campers, how you doing?

You know what? We're trying to manage our way through this situation. We're trying to cope as things look like they might get worse before they get better. Yet, we don't manage our way to excellence, and then we don't cope our way to better outcomes.

Now when you think of what the opposite of managing or coping with a situation is, it's surrendering, well we're not doing that either.

The point here is to be able to supersede coping into the next level, which is to be able to be curious about the kinds of things that may work and then get creative within that. 

I mentioned this earlier, but I'll give you another example. My son Max is a musician. You know, he is kind of trapped at home with the rest of us. He's reaching out through social media, and he's saying, hey, tell me your story, I'll create a song for you. And then I'll give it back to you and I'll play it live for you. So, is that gonna bring in revenue for him? Who knows, that's not the point. He has an expertise, he got curious about the kinds of things he could do, and then he got creative with that.

Here's a link for you to be able to learn more about what Max is doing.

In the same breathe, how curious and creative can you be in these times ahead instead of just coping or managing the situation? Take care COVID campers, bye bye.

Enjoy this interview with the Passing Zone's Jon Wee. The Passing Zone is one of the most successful and sought-after comedy acts working today. This is their story.

Owen Morse and Jon Wee met in 1986 at a juggling convention and instantly knew they were destined to be a team. But they decided to graduate from college first. Which they both did. Rather than pursue careers in Economics and Psychology, they lit some torches, and started throwing stuff into the air. And things clicked.

Two weeks after their first performance together they won the Silver Medal at the International Jugglers’ Association Teams Competition. The next year they won the Gold. That recognition earned an invitation to appear at the renowned Comedy and Magic Club in Los Angeles, where on their first night they were approached by the “Tonight Show” talent scout and booked for their first national television appearance in September 1990. Johnny Carson enjoyed them so much they were asked back less than a year later.

Their first feature film followed, The Addams Family Movie, where Jon and Owen doubled for Gomez (Raul Julia) and Uncle Fester (Christopher Lloyd) in the climactic Mamushka dagger-passing scene. They also appeared in the award-winning comedy documentary, The Aristocrats. The Passing Zone’s first London appearance was in the Royal Variety Performance at the Dominion Theatre, performing for Prince Charles and sharing the bill with Tony Bennett and Riverdance. They expanded their US national television audience by passing clubs over the heads of the Miss America Pageant contestants during the swimsuit competition, demonstrating almost inhuman concentration skills!

They were finalists on NBC’s “America’s Got Talent” performing in Seasons 1 and 11, and both times losing to a young, female singer! Jon and Owen are known as much for their comedy as their juggling skills. They were featured twice on the gala stage at the Just for Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal and have opened for comedians Jay Leno, George Carlin, Bob Newhart, Bob Hope, and Penn & Teller. Television appearances have included “Comic Strip Live,” “CNN’s Road Warriors,” “Hell’s Kitchen,” “An Evening at The Improv,” “MADtv,” Penn & Teller’s “Sin City Spectacular,” “Steve Harvey’s Big Time,” and regular returns to NBC’s “Today.” And they were commentators on ESPN for their coverage of the World Juggling Federation competitions, and the Moxie Games at SkillCon. Several years ago they were guest performers at The White House.

The Passing Zone has been awarded five Guinness World Records and 18 Gold Medals from the International Juggler’s Association. They were presented with that organization’s Award of Excellence, for “excellence in the art of juggling through professional performance,” which is the most prestigious award in juggling (essentially the Juggling Hall of Fame). In addition, they have been inducted into the National Speaker’s Association’s Speaker Hall of Fame.

They can often be seen doing entertainment and keynote speaking at corporate events, for which they are a natural fit. Their act is clean, so it offends no one. They appeal to all ages, and all walks of life, so whether their audience is a group of mechanical contractors, software engineers, hairdressers, or billionaire business leaders, they are always a hit. Not only do they entertain, but they customize their performances by juggling a company’s product, incorporating their slogans, and inspiring groups to perform as a team, with excellence and creativity.

In addition, The Passing Zone has become popular at theaters and performing arts centers, bringing their zany and sometimes terrifying acts to communities all across the nation. Their most recent show, “The Passing Zone Saves the World!” is currently touring.

Jon and Owen reside in the greater Los Angeles area, where, when they are not throwing things, they spend as much time as possible with their families, and still manage to squeeze in hang gliding, surfing, mountain biking, and motorcycling, although not all at the same time.

Hey Covid Campers. You know what?

Some of us with the Driver Mentality are living in this state of scarcity. That might explain the whole toilet paper thing.

To be able to live in with a scarcity mindset is really going take you down. The abundance mindset is what's going to actually help you thrive through this time. One of the ways to have that abundance mentality is to be able to just target the things that you have.

Remind yourself of the things you have. Go through all those things that you're grateful for.

It's so easy to get stuck in the scarcity mentality, don't stay there. Stay in the place where there's enough for all of us. We can share ideas, resources, time and expertise. We can all be part of the solution. The scarcity mindset means you're becoming part of the problem.

Don't become part of the problem. Become part of the solution.

Take care Covid Campers. We've got this.

It's time to pivot.

The problem with pivoting from negative thoughts to positive thoughts, is that's pretty lame advice, you know why? Because you first have to set up your emotional buzz. Your emotional buzz is, where do I want to go with my life? What do I want to do? Is this state that we're in right now where you want to be?

Well, maybe not, with this whole pandemic, so let's actually pivot by first identifying what your emotional buzz is, then you can pivot and when you pivot, this, your emotional buzz is where do I want to go with my life? What do I want to do? Is this state that we're in right now where you want to be?

Well, maybe not, with this whole pandemic, so let's actually pivot by first identifying what your emotional buzz is, then you can pivot and when you pivot, this is a way to do it. Make sure your conscious, your mind and your subconscious might have a conversation.

In a book I wrote called The Ant and the Elephant the ant is the conscious mind, the elephant the subconscious mind, and what they do is the ant realizes the elephant, the subconscious mind, is having a negative thought.

The ant says to the elephant, "Thank you. That's not part of my vision. My vision is…" (Insert your emotional buzz here.) and it pivots onto that emotional buzz you had in the first place.

So set your emotional buzz, where you wanna be in your life, and then, and make sure it has an emotional quotient attached to it, then when a negative thought appears, that's when you can pivot. That's when you can go to the subconscious mind, the elephant, and go, "Thank you, but that's not part of my vision. "My vision is..." and then go onto the positive thought. And you can make it even better if you add the sensations of sight, smell, taste, touch, and sound. I mean, you'd be able to bring in the five senses and really experience that, that will be an effective way to pivot on where you want to go.

Take care Covid Campers.

We've got this.

Good leaders communicate. Great leaders have Champions.

Yes, good leaders are communicating to their people.

Great leaders are leaning on experts and seasoned professionals to help map out a game plan to defend the state and champion the cause.

In days of old, King's Champions would defend the crown against any challenger.

The COVID-19 Pandemic is a formidable challenger to any company's position and livelihood. 

The time is now for leaders to call on Champions to enter the foray. Yet, that line of defense will come from:

• Expert on-line messaging,
• Superior video training, and
• Practical group coaching. 

It's even better if your Champion has a Jester's DNA. The Jester is not the fool, but a colleague in honesty. In literature, the court jester was used for insight and advice on the part of the monarch, optimizing his license to speak freely with frank observations. That is what a great leader, and his/her people, need!

Conventional training will not do. Radical impact and influence is the order of the day. The time is now for radical safety.

Be a great leader. Lock arms with your champion.* Speak in a united voice of honesty and urgency.

*Vince Poscente is a master communicator with over two decades of helping leaders champion a message. His presentations are broadcast from his desk, studio or stage to audience looking for increased resiliency and determination. Vince has lead expeditions to the summit of unclimbed peaks in the Himalayas along with overcoming the fear of skiing at 135 mph in the Olympic Games. He is an expert in taking on paralyzing challenges and thriving while doing it. He is the founder of Radical Safety and ranked at one of the World's Top 10 presenters in the corporate landscape.

Endorsed by LeBron James in Sports Illustrated, The Ant and the Elephant is now available as an on-line audiobook on Audible.

Click here to enjoy your own Audible version.

In The Ant and the Elephant, New York Times bestselling author and Olympian, Vince Poscente, weaves a clever parable around profound concepts that can have an immediate impact on your life. This is an entertaining parable designed to help you eliminate bad habits and instill a transformational process for your future. Its goal is to demonstrate how we can unite the powerful forces of conscious and subconscious thought to reach our peak performance levels as individuals, parents and leaders.

With his trademark wit and wisdom, Poscente shows you how to focus on and redirect the subconscious mind in order to accomplish the goals we consciously strive to achieve. This empowering story illustrates that understanding the dynamic relationship between conscious and subconscious thought is the first step toward transforming performance and outcomes in life. But harnessing the power of the subconscious is an experience commonly fraught with frustration. Even the most competent amongst us battles the subconscious fears, habits and attitudes that obstruct an authentic, fluid life. In fact, adjusting our own patterns of behavior as a means to motivate others is not unlike an ant trying to convince an elephant to change his ways.

Meet Adir the ant and Elgo the elephant. Like two teammates who must work together to realize a common goal, Adir (our overly conscious hero) and Elgo (Adir's stubborn and instinctual subconscious partner) must work as a single creature in order to reach the Oasis, their vision of paradise in the African savannah.

Their simple story is a powerful metaphor designed to bring out your best performance as a leader, so that you can do the same for those around you. Already a classic parable, The Ant and the Elephant is a must for those seek to transform their lives by reaching their full potential. 

"The ant has to train to the elephant to let him know, You are the biggest, baddest thing out here. I took a lot from that."

LeBron James, quoted in Sports Illustrated, April 30, 2012

 "A wonderful parable with powerful lessons for all of us. I can't stop thinking about it."

Patrick Lencioni, author of The Five Dysfunctions of a Team and Death by Meeting

"Whether you are at the beginning of your dreams, or in need of new dreams, I invite you to embark on a journey with 'Adir the Ant' and 'Elgo the Elephant' -- if you listen carefully, your life will never be the same." 

Robert G. Allen, author of Creating Wealth and Multiple Streams of Income 

"Although The Ant and the Elephant is an easy and enjoyable read, the message is powerful and thought provoking. Vince Poscente, a captivating storyteller, knows through personal experience the potential of harnessing the combined powers of the conscious and subconscious minds. Enjoy and live it!"

Pat Croce, author of I Feel Great and You Will Too! and 100%

"Read this book, enjoy the story, but most importantly, put the lessons into action and reap the rewards."

Peter Hearl, President and CEO, Pizza Hut, Inc.

"It gets to the heart of unlocking your true potential!" 

Mark Victor Hansen, co-creator of Chicken Soup for the Soul series