Post-PCMA Reflections
3 Reflective Lessons from Keynoting Main Stage at Convening Leaders ‘26
When Tim called me in November, I couldn’t believe it.
“You free Jan 12 for PCMA in Philly? 5,000 event planners. A keynote, fireside chat and a masterclass. I think you’d be perfect.”
Before the next sentence even came out of Tim’s mouth, I jumped at the chance with both feet.
Then I took a look at the line-up.
Trevor Noah. Adam Grant. Tabitha Brown.
Zanny Minton Beddoes, Editor-in-Chief from the Economist.
Oh, and Pitbull.
It was a stacked lineup of all-stars.
And me. 👀
A lump in my throat started to form.
I was terrified.
Seeing Shawn Kanungo’s footage of his PCMA session from 2024, this felt like a dream stage.
After all, this would be my biggest stage ever.
And although I definitely didn’t feel ready, I was ready to embrace the effort of repping until I was ready.
Saying Yes pushed me to get over my fear quickly and focus on the work in front of me.
Reflection #1 Saying Yes before you feel ready paves the way for you to be ready.
It’s crazy to think that I wasn’t speaking in 2022 at all.
And now, 3 years later, I’m pacing 50 events a year, partnering with so many amazing folks like yourself (we’re at 16 for the year and it’s not even February!‼️).
As I reflect on this trajectory, I quickly come to the conclusion that this stems from a series of single moments.
A culmination of single decisions that you make.
To take a leap of faith and trust me with your clients.
Much like you have, Tim trusted me too (THANK YOU TIM! ❤️🔥)
And that single moment of trust led me to bring my best to life.
Reflection #2 When others believe in you, you’re able to bring your best to life.
How? Glad you asked.
An opportunity of this size invited me to level up to bring my best to life in three key ways:
VISUALLY BEAUTIFUL: I had to level up my visuals well beyond my capabilities. Despite never having done ultra-widescreen, I had 4x ultra-wide screens where I had the opportunity to use every single inch.
As someone who prides himself on beautiful graphics, I challenged myself to leverage the 2664x1080 ratio (over the standard 1920x1080) - and created an entirely new deck from scratch. Challenging myself to create visuals that complimented, but that weren’t distracting. Huge shout-out to Shawn Kanungo for sharing his wisdom along the way. Here are some graphics I had on the screen:SUBSTANCE OVER SIZZLE: Given an extremely tight runtime, I had to really question what my message was. As an innovation strategist, I decided to anchor my keynote in how AI Agents are shifting the future of work for event planners.
I walked through recent signals, showed the audience a customized AI Agent that I built for them (I do this for every keynote🤗), and asked a key question: “As event strategists, how do we leverage the latest in AI technology to BRING OUR BEST WORK to life?”
PLAY THE GREATEST HITS: Finally, with only 10 minutes on main stage prior to my fireside chat, in addition to the substance, I also had to be funny.
And relatable. And vulnerable.
No problem, right? 🤔
Pondering my predicament, I shuffled through my notes from a session that Speakers Spotlight hosted in December. On a random notepad sheet, I stumbled upon a scribble.
“Play your greatest hit.”
What was my greatest hit? What was a story that was uniquely me? A story that only I could tell?
So I shared about my cancer journey, my career and my catalyst.
And I hope one day, if you haven’t seen my Roger Kool x Stevie Wonder story, you get the chance 🤗
Reflection #3 Light the spark so that others can add fuel.
A year ago, I was stressing out over an ImpactEleven Bureau Agent Showcase (RIP 😢), where there would be 5 agents in the room (some of you are probably reading this post lol).
In the weeks leading up to the event, Shawn (Kanungo) and I were grabbing lunch in Edmonton and I shared my anxiety.
He responded “Dude. Just create heat. Because if you’re able to light the stage up, you won’t have a single problem after that”
And he was right.
It’s barely been a week since PCMA happened, and lighting my spark on stage has already led to spin, global stages, the World Bank (randomly) buying copies of my book for their whole Transformation office, and more.
Tim, if you’re reading this, thank you for believing in me and putting me forward to serve this amazing community of connectors.
And you, my dear reader, whether we have partnered together on dozens of events, or we are still searching for our first win together, thank you for continuing to trust that I’ll bring my best to life. As we deliver impact to our audiences, there is no question that you help amplify our voices…
And for that, I’m forever grateful.
