Popular speaker and best-selling PM author Neal Whitten is a frequent speaker at conferences, seminars, workshops and special events—serving private companies, institutions and public organizations. His motivational messages include subjects on personal performance, soft skills, leadership and all aspects of project management. There is no limitation to audience size. Presentations typically span from an hour to a day, but can be longer.
Listed here are many of the more popular speaking topics; however, topics can cover a much broader area than shown here, as well as be tailored to your organization/gathering. The first seven presentations are among the most popular and, therefore, are briefly described. The Power Snippets link represents a one- or two-page handout summary (in PDF format) of the topics discussed.
Behaviors that Lead to Exceptional Performance (Power Snippet – PDF Download)
Success does not just happen—it is made to happen. Success is born of behaviors and choices that lead to exceptional performance. Neal Whitten reveals leading edge best-practice behaviors that will promote your professional and personal success. Some of these behaviors—intentionally or not—are often avoided. As you strive to achieve your dreams, these behaviors can lay the foundation for your journey. Be prepared to rethink what constitutes effective behavior. You won’t want to miss this! The presentation is based on Neal’s best-selling PM book, Neal Whitten’s Let’s Talk! More No-Nonsense Project Advice—Over 700 Q&As!
No-Nonsense Advice for Successful Projects (Power Snippet – PDF Download)
Successful projects—and careers—don’t just happen, they are made to happen. Neal takes leadership and project management to a personal level by revealing leading-edge best practices that make all the difference between leading consistently successful projects and playing the victim with troubled projects. Focusing mostly on leadership and soft skills, this thought-provoking seminar reveals choices to make and behaviors to adopt that are invaluable in helping a person become a successful project manager and leader. Learn to think for yourself, re-energize your initiative and drive, and take control of your destiny. The seminar is based largely on Neal’s best-selling PM book, Neal Whitten’s No-Nonsense Advice for Successful Projects.
Are You Too Soft? (Power Snippet – PDF Download)
Most project managers—most leaders—are not consistently willing to make the tough and unpopular project-related decisions, even though their instincts warn them that they are not taking the most effective action. Witness examples of project manager actions (or inactions) that are indicative of too-soft behavior. Will you recognize familiar behavior? You don’t have to be rude, insensitive, arrogant or a bully to avoid being too soft. None of these attributes is acceptable—ever! Be prepared to rethink what constitutes effective project management and leadership behavior.
Behaviors to Master When Dealing with Your Leaders (Power Snippet – PDF Download)
Your leaders want you to know—need you to know—the behaviors they consistently expect from you. Just because you have a leadership role doesn’t mean you are living up to their expectations. Not only will Neal Whitten identify what your boss expects from you, he will articulate what you expect from those under your direction. Topics include: don’t take it personally, don’t dump and run, make it brief, offer professional criticism, bring solutions with problems, wear one face, and many more. Learn how you can enhance your image, effectiveness, and career—while making your leaders’ jobs easier.
Eight Dumb Project Management Beliefs (Power Snippet – PDF Download)
There is much more to learn within the project management profession than meets the eye of the casual practitioner/observer. Many of the lessons are not obvious but become clearer once we have been exposed to them. In this seminar Neal Whitten reveals eight commonly held beliefs that are thought to be true, but all are false. Examples include: If you don’t lead project members, they will lead themselves and Committed dates are fixed. Be prepared for some “Aha!” moments.
Eight Life/Work Lessons to Help You Be Your Best (Power Snippets – PDF Download)
As leaders, we can benefit from listening to the wisdom gained from those who have gone before us. While working on my new book, The Gift of Wisdom: Lessons for a Lifetime, I interviewed 25 US citizens aged 67 to 87 who roughly represent the ethnic, religious, economic and social groups that make up the country. I found that many of their hard-earned lessons correlate well with the needs of becoming more effective project leaders. This presentation reveals eight key life/work lessons. The best leaders take deliberate actions, demonstrate discipline, learn from the past (but live in the present), listen to their instincts, make tough decisions, make time to have fun, put things in perspective and evaluate themselves daily. Is this you? If not, it can be!
Life Lessons (Power Snippets – to be added)
Are you living the life you most imagined? Veteran author Neal Whitten interviewed 25 elder Americans, roughly representing the country’s diversity, to capture the wisdom that they have acquired over their lives. Neal then recorded over 1000 unique passages of their life lessons into the book, The Gift of Wisdom: Lessons for a Lifetime. Neal has selected some of those lessons to share with you—lessons that may challenge you to reflect on your own philosophies and beliefs on living life. These lessons can help you be more on-point and deliberate with your life so you experience a more effective, balanced and full life—both at work and personally. This thought-provoking presentation reveals choices to make and behaviors to adopt that are essential in attaining the life you most imagine.
Samples of More Presentation Topics
- Change the Culture in Your Organization—Project by Project
- Escalate Is Not a Dirty Word
- Is Your Professional Behavior Respected?
- Recognize and Deal with Professional Immaturity
- What Good Is a Mentor?
- Foster Interpersonal Communications
- Turn Criticism into an Asset
- The Roles & Responsibilities of a Project Manager
- The Roles & Responsibilities of a Resource Manager
- The Roles & Responsibilities of a Project Sponsor
- Promote the Advancement of Project Management in Your Organization
- Ten Project Execution & Control Best Practices
- Ten Project Planning Best Practices