Meet the Ignite Denver 38 Speakers
Come see them June 15th at the Bug Theatre!
Sparks are voted in by the community. For one week, we open up the voting and encourage the community to take 5 minutes and vote. We strive to be a supportive community and ask that each person takes the time to rank each and every Spark. Anyone can speak at Ignite! There is no set requirement, other than that each talk is 5 minutes with 20 slides that auto advance every 15 seconds.
IGNITE DENVER 38 SPEAKERS
Brice Maiurro
Art: Self-Discovery, not Self-Destruction
Kate Neligan
Why Goats are Truly the Greatest Of All Time
Amy Morrison
Are You Connecting or Protecting?
Rebecca Leder
The Shortest Distance Between You & Someone New
Maximum Rosencrantz
Fishing with Safety Pins
Frankie Lee
My Mom Is Gayer Than I Am
Matthew Fox
Move through fear to form deeper connections
Gin Walker
I’m No Good With Balls …
Otis McGregor
The Trust Triad
Ignite Alumni
IGNITE DENVER 37 SPEAKERS
Koya Nyangi
It is no longer Africa to the world it is the world to Africa
Dr. Liz Wilson
Inclusion = The 8 Specific Needs of All People©.
Gena Ozols
Unsuitable
Gregory Layer
Edible epiphanies from my 31 yeas with Parkinson’s
Jacki Carr
My Children Chose this Shit Time, Let’s Listen.
Jasmine Rice
Create Your Own Life Recipe!
Jessica Peskin
Fear is a Liar
Kelli Melissa Hansen
How to Stay Sane in an Insane World
IGNITE DENVER 36 SPEAKERS
Becky Migas
Become a Pro Trash Talker
Chris Miller
Building our cities to better un-fuck the world
Frankie Millington
Drag is for EVERYONE
Gena Ozols
My Big Lie
Heather Curran
Mindfulness is a Mind-fuck (but in a good way)
Loren Hansen
One even way to fix oddly low Voter Turnout
Margaret James
The Nature of Rest: how rest can restore personal and planetary wellness
Mel Evans Colomb
Witch hunts
Nelson Holland
How I conquered my 1st 14er while being fat and black
Zak Roland
Crossroads: A Journey with Britney Spears
IGNITE DENVER 34 SPEAKERS
Abe Kaul
Why We Need Ranked Choice Voting
We need for electoral change, and ranked-choice voting system could be the answer. Ranked choice voting is the smart choice for the US. We should look at its history and also see if there are any potential negative attributes to it.
Amanda McCracken
How Longing Became My Lover
My essay, “Does My Virginity Have a Shelf Life?” was published in the NYT & resulted in an interview w/ Katie Couric. What I didn’t understand then is how easy it is to long for some fantasy than commit to reality w/ a chance of failure.
Angela Daniels
Confessions of a Reformed Slacktivist
My activism used to be from the comfort of my living room. I would gather all of my energy and courage and…. sign an online petition. This is the story of how I moved from the couch to the board room of a nonprofit.
Gena Ozols
Reproductive Healthcare in Hollywood
Hollywood has some pretty fun tropes to make fun of, like when “cool guys don’t look at explosion,” but some of these tropes can be harmful when they endorse falsehoods about women’s healthcare that become accepted as fact by everyday people. From myths about labor and delivery, to the lack of OBGYN’s in the Star Wars universe.
Greg Steward
Chess: The REAL Game of Thrones
It’s been around for over 1500 years but less than 10% of the world population knows how to play it. It’s proven to help improve IQ, creativity, problem solving, and memory skills, and it even helps prevent Alzheimers.
Heather Curran
The Sexy Library: A Campaign for a New Trope
While a library may not be able to let down its hair and take off its glasses to reveal a supermodel in hiding, it is stacked with enticing features for anyone who is willing to notice. I’m ready to talk about my love for DPL.
Jennifer Bilger
What Cupcakes tell us about our Sales Style
Learn how preferences predict your own Sales Style, Customer/Client Behavior and how simple, short term adjustments in your own style allow you to better connect with your customers, increase sales and overcome objections.
Alex Weimer
The Bug Theater
Mel Torgusen
How to read 50 books each year
Whether your goal is to read 1, 10, or 100 books this year, these are actionable, tactical things you can do to make reading a bigger part your life.
Phil Stone
How Music Saved My Life
Join me on a musical journey through my personal story of overcoming obstacles and setbacks as I strum my guitar and sing familiar Hooks of Power Anthems we have all grown to love over time. Hear how Music can heal, inspire and transform.
Mel Evans Colomb
The Feminist Impact of “Dirty Dancing”
“Dirty Dancing” taught young women more than the sweet moves for their wedding dance. It teaches female empowerment as it tackles abortion, sex, autonomy, and consent. Don’t put yourself in the corner – be the hero of your story like Baby.
IGNITE DENVER 33 SPEAKERS
Kaitey Davidson
Mental Health advocacy, the career for the brave.
What do you think of when I say mental health? I know it’s the topic that wakes me up at
Travis Frisinger
Get Ready For The 4th Industrial Revolution
First came steam and water power. Next came electricity and assembly lines. Then computerization. No longer just technology upgrades, the fourth industrial revolution will be the convergence of digital, biological and physical innovations.
Marpessa D Allen
My Digital 4Edom journey through
My life has been liberated as a mother. I am a digitally connected
Val Jones
Choose hard
Everyone is doing everything they can to avoid the struggle. I say, chase after that struggle. That is where the magic is.
Dylan Doyle-Burke
Spirituality: the Cheat Code your Business Needs?
Top businesses are harnessing the power of mindfulness and spiritual practices like yoga and meditation to alleviate employee burnout, increase productivity, and spearhead incredible company growth. How? Why? What can we learn from them?
Spike Spengel
Dirty Talk: Dispelling Taboos of Money Matters
I was 7 years old the first time I was told not to talk about money. Money, the want for & the lack of, is supposed to be hidden in our closets like Dad’s Hustler collection. Let’s have an oral financial orgy & release the tension.
Heidi Piper
Move through heartache with grace & rise, phoenix!
We all have the power to transform our lives, even in the most difficult situations. Through sharing her story, Heidi provides inspiration and practical tips for navigating your own transformation, moving from surviving to thriving.
Kirk M Samuels
The Week-long Orgasm
My head and heart fell in love. After a life of abuse, failure, porn addiction, and a broken heart, they had learned to live together but apart. They made love in public and the resulting orgasm lasted an entire week!
Jessica Covella
Emotional literacy will revolutionize our world
We can foster the compassion and understanding needed to tackle the complex current events of our day, eventually leading to the development of positive right action related to these current events, through emotional literacy.
Mel Evans-Colomb
The Spooky Tale of Silver Heels and Slut-Shaming
Celebrate Halloween with the sad tale of a dance hall girl who saved over a thousand miners from smallpox. Does she haunt Buckskin Cemetery to tend to the graves of the fallen or in the hopes that someone remembers her real name?
Shelsea Ochoa
Casa De Paz
IGNITE DENVER 32 SPEAKERS
Kaitey Davidson
Mental Health advocacy, the career for the brave.
What do you think of when I say mental health? I know it’s the topic that wakes me up at 2am & lights my heart on fire. We have a huge barrier to mental health in Colorado and in the U.S.A and learn why & how I am going to try to solve it.
Greg Steward
The ABC’s of hiring generations X, Y, and Z
Generations X, Y, and Z make up 73% of the workforce and it’s only growing from here. Let’s talk about a practical framework for hiring and retaining each of these generations.
Gena Ozols
Powerful Women Going Mad Isn’t Subversive
Game of Thrones became a worldwide phenomenon in large part because it broke fantasy and war story tropes in ways that were often devastating, but always human. But there is nothing devastating, shocking, or subversive about catty arguments, focusing on other women’s looks, or a woman going mad with power. Let me tell you why.
Graham Marsden
Why it’s more important than ever to buy DVDs
A physical media collector justifies his ever-growing collection of DVD and Blu-Ray movies and TV shows, and the considerable expense of purchasing, storing, repairing and replacing them in the cloud media era.
Russell Castagnaro
Making payments work for all 7.5 Billion of us
Cards, eChecks, Wires, even Venmo require banking and are susceptible to fraud. Only 3.8 billion people have access to any banking at all. I’ll introduce the current problems and how cryptocurrency solves many of them in plain language.
Mariam Shareefy
Fast fashion is unethical & harmful to the planet
Let’s talk about the fast fast fashion brands, their use of toxic chemicals, textile waste & unfair working conditions. How all that makes the brands unethical and harmful to the environment. I want to encourage conscious consumerism.
Amber Pember
Connecting With Purpose In Our Automated World
Today our culture has been obsessed with technology and we’ve lost our ability to really connect. Learn how to connect using automated marketing technology and still have face-to-face interactions.
Kira Maples
LinkedInder
The dating world is inundated by choice, filters and bathroom selfies. Enhance your dating life and finally “swipe right” on your future other half by applying these simple career search principles in the quest for a long-term partner.
Mel Evans
The Rise of Contouring as Told Through the Kardashians
The teens of the 21st century will be remembered by a disaster greater than the Titanic or Lusitania. The events of the Downton Abbey-equivalent of the 2010s will indeed by kicked off by failed attempts at contouring. Why are we painting ourselves like Picasso paintings for day wear? Can anyone actually pull this off? I attempt to reconcile this fad through the ever-changing glam of the Kardashian sisters.
Lauren Dufault
I’m a badass mermaid, what size are my running shoes and why am I laughing?
Pete Winterscheidt
Educational Outcomes, Economic Impact and the Internet
The internet is increbily impactful on educational and economic outcomes, so why is fast reliable internet more accessible?
Kelli Raliegh
JDRF
IGNITE DENVER 31 SPEAKERS
Kevin Lockwood
What the hell is compassion?
Oxford says it’s “sympathetic pity . . .” and Merriam Webster says “sympathetic consciousness . . . with a desire to alleviate”, but true compassion begins with empathy and extends into a knowing of self and others as whole and complete.
Kevin P Hempstead
That bullet must’ve been a fertilizing pill!
He was shot in the back by his neighbor on Friday the 13th. My father’s heart stopped twice on that operating table before the doctors surrendered. They decided to leave the bullet in his back—afraid to risk his heart stopping again.
Nichole Wurth
Self care is boring(wa-waa-waa) I make it KICKASS
The key to changing your unhealthy habits (& talking poorly to yourself) is your mindset. I’ve found a super fun & creative way to get started on this and in my 13 years of coaching this is THE THING that gets people taking action
Chris Terry
What am I doing here and how did this happen?
Imposter Syndrome is a real pain in the neck. But it’s also perfectly natural, especially if you’re on your second or third career, or if you took the road less traveled to get here. This is my story of 10 years of wrangling it.
Terry Cabeen
So You Want to Buy a House (But It’s Intimidating)
Buying a house is part of the American Dream. But it’s basically impossible right now, especially in this market. Except it’s not. Follow one person on a 2 year journey (that only took 2 months) to home ownership. Then do it yourself!
Ali Owens
Playing Nice With Your Inner Critic
When we think of that voice in our heads that likes to tell us all the reasons we won’t succeed, it’s tempting to fight it, reject it, or kick it to the curb. I believe we’re better off trying to make friends with that voice, instead.
Lauren Panasewicz
Vertical feet for prosthetic feet
In 2015, we asked people to dedicate one day of their mobility to an amputee in need of a prothesis. In 4 years, 2000+ people have climbed mountains on all 7 continents to help 300+ amputees get prosthetic care to reach their own summits.
Danielle Dannenberg
16 Siblings, and Counting
As an only child, I longed for siblings my entire life. Ten years ago, that wish came true when I discovered 4 half-siblings who shared the same anonymous sperm donor as me. Since, that number has grown to 16. This is a story of discovery.
Ben Myer
Toxic Masculinity that Kills
Harmful culture and mindsets are causing the death and abuse of millions of girls around the globe. Gendercide is toxic masculinity at its worse. Yet, it is an issue few know about. It’s time to shine light on this global crisis.
BAILEY LEBLUE
Braedi And Beyond
IGNITE DENVER 30 SPEAKERS
Carlin Hixson
We all go through middle school like troubles in our daily lives. Weather you have a child who is struggling to get through school or you are having some problems of your own; we often forget the lessons we learned in middle school.
Sandy Sarge
I Am SOOOOOO the Boss of You!!
In today’s world of abuse, public scrutiny, and phone cameras, we’ve forgotten how to parent. Or better yet, we’re afraid to parent. Well, I’m here to tell you to Get Over It! Let me share some tricks on how to take back your parenthood.
Ben Lovejoy
You Are Creative
I believe every person is inherently creative. In this reprise of my Ignite Boulder talk I will talk about how we lose touch with our creativity, and how we can reconnect with it and tap into our creative genius.
Matt Ingwalson
The open office doesn’t have to suck
Are open office plans making us ill and killing creativity? Or is the real problem us? I’ll show you how to borrow work habits from artists like Warhol and Byron to make open offices cool again.
Norbert Peyfuss
Fuzzy dice…do we wish at-risk kids “good luck”?!
It hit me yesterday… I have 9 months in which to bring James, reading at 2nd grade level, up to 4th grade level. Thereafter…he’s on his own…
Alejandro Vera
Prosecutorial Discretion in Denver
When a prosecutor evaluates charges against an accused person they use a ‘Reasonable Likelihood of Conviction’ standard. I’m leading an effort in Denver to review the prosecutorial discretion privilege and improve criminal justice outcomes.
Joe Fleenor
Two Months and 10 Days on the Missouri River
In 1981 I and four friends paddled one canoe and one homemade canoe catamaran from Fort Benton Montana to Sioux City Iowa. That’s one thousand three hundred miles. It took two months and ten days. That trip changed my life.
Rich Hopkins
The TrumpSpeak Revolution
TrumpSpeak is truly revolutionary, freeing, and effective. It can be used to change every part of our lives, when we learn how to use it strategically and intentionally. And…hopefully…for the power of good.
Lora Polowczuk
The Most Underrated Skill to Master Freedom
What if we stopped being so serious? You work hard to have the dream life yet something key is missing. What if you can work AND have fun? What if you unleashed a playful spirit into everything you do?
Sarah Brown
ALS Association Rocky Mtn Chapter
Byron Stanford
I have been a presentation designer for companies big and small for the past 8+ years. Sadly, most people suck at powerpoint and don’t even know why. In this quick talk I go over basics of presentation design and how to make a killer deck
Elise Roth
Destroy, Build, Destroy!
What have you destroyed lately? Charting a pathway between divergent and convergent thinking can be a powerful tool, to increase creativity in all aspects of our lives. This concept holds true across personal and professional realms.
Lisa Akers
Twinkie, Twinkie, Little Star
You’re under pressure, thinking big, & you get the hungries. You grab a coffee & a twinkie to tackle the urge. Ack! You’re caught in the impulse of urgency. See the bigger view and be more productive, more energetic, and more spectacular.
Katie Bessert
Why We Swipe Left
Car selfies. Gym selfies. Bathroom selfies. Golfing. A step-by-step guide on how to create an online dating profile that gets you dates.
Stephanie Vail
The things you learn driving for Lyft
Kïrsten Blake
15,887 Miles of BEing
What if we stopped asking ‘what do you do?’ And started asking ‘how do you want to BE in the world?’ Last summer I traveled to all 48 continental U.S states on a 90-day road trip, talking to almost 400 strangers about their story of BEing.
Bruce Daley
How to Be a Difficult Employee
There are many books about finding your dream job, but none about how to get out of a job that sucks. The speaker has been fired from companies large and small, public and private and will show you how to be a difficult employee.
Eileen Lambert
Pets make us better humans. Pet food banks help us to keep pets through life’s bumpy ride.
Dave Glaser
BTW, Your Stoic Mask is Killing You
The masks we wear as business owners, parents, and partners holds us back from reaching out truest potential in life, love, and business. The stoic mask shows up as “I’m fine” or “I’m ok” and ruins our relationships!
Vance Watt
Revisiting Langtang
Hiking In Nepal 2015 50 miles from 7.8 quake epicenter in a narrow valley the hills suddenly become alive…
Michelle Lucero
Raising a Champion (& kickass girl)- no seriously!
Raising kids is fucking HARD! Raising a kickass girl, a champion, at a time when lots of kickass girls are needed is imperative Share a Tiger-Soccer Momma’s kickass & fun journey in raising a smart, confident, badass, literal…champion.
GT Bustin
Jungle boys guide to changing the world
We each are responsible for the voices we choose to listen to. They help set our attitude. Critically, attitude sets altitude. The equation:
Influence = attitude + altitude. Influence changes the world. So, who speaks loudest to you?
IGNITE DENVER 28 SPEAKERS
Chris Englert
10 Ladies Walk into Denver…
Walking Denver’s 78 neighborhoods in one year challenged our sense of self, fear, and connectedness. From Athmar Park to Wash Park, we found friendship while exploring Denver’s history. We’re all connected–one neighborhood at a time.
Michael Jennings
Even More Love…
It seems like our society needs more; more success, more money, more, more, more. As we pursue more, we have to be reminded that we also need more love. This talk will focus on the lessons of love learned while working at a high school.
Julia E. Torres
Love is a verb. Education is liberation.
No longer are teachers keepers of knowledge. Education today is about asking the right questions. Today’s students know we love them not only by how we show up and fight for them, but how we encourage them to fight for themselves.
Curt Bean
Creative solutions to modern day problems
In WWII there was a Unit called the Ghost Army. They were a unit of creatives that used creative solutions to the war at hand. I want to speak about finding creative solutions to modern day issues like depression, anxiety, loneliness, etc.
Jackson Stevens
You Should Delete Facebook
We don’t fully realize it, but every day we are trading our precious time for an experience that has been proven to make us unhappy. Imagine putting that time towards something else: reading, working out, meditating. I did. You should too.
Brian Inderwies
Rising Together: Growing With Foster Kids
As a technologist, I’m inclined to the predictable. Yet my world was turned upside down when we decided to grow our family with foster children. Allow me to share the beautiful, the hilarious, the ugly, and everything in between.
Gregory Kotsaftis
The Truth About Lies
Can telling just one lie put you on a path to prison? The Truth About Lies depicts one man’s story from a small businessman to building a 10M$ business, to ending up in a prison cell. All because he could not face the truth. He was a liar
Russell Agnew
One brave smile
Trauma is an epidemic, here is why. I needed a therapist to stare at me and say “dude you were shot at when you were 17” to open up to the idea that my problems (PTSD) anxiety, drinking, adultery, etc. What I did and what anybody can do.
Meridith Marshall
Captain Planet gave me a Complex
Remember the eco-concious 90’s cartoon? Five powers each protecting the Earth, but heart was clearly the fifth wheel. I related w/ heart as my super power and it gave me a complex! Let’s examine how we societally view our own super powers.
Pavel Reppo
Britney Spears said it best, you drive me crazy
What goes on inside the head of someone experiencing OCD? I’ll recount personal stories of fear, sadness, joy, and hope in my journey towards recovery. I’ll share the ways I have tried to feel ‘normal’, and why normal is overrated.
Jim and Louise Gunderson
Robots, AI, and the workplace of Tomorrow
Over the next few years robots and artificial intelligence will dramatically change the landscape of employment. How will this impact the arts, business, and individual lives? We’ll help you explore the possibilities.
Ellen Penrod
American Lung Association
IGNITE DENVER 25 SPEAKERS
Sarabeth Berk
Imagination: That Thing We Have But Stopped Using
It drives me crazy that most adults have forgotten how to use their imagination. On a daily basis, I require adults to brainstorm, and quite simply, they don’t generate anything wacky. Let’s remember how to tap into this awesome resource.
Teena Evert
Root Rot
Rejection is painful, it feels deeply personal and when the root of rejection stems from your family system, I call it root rot. It’s painful on the inside, but on the outside, it can be expressed as regression, rebellion or complacency.
Aaron DeLay
Middle Schoolers Are Not Demons
My field experience was the pit of despair – Middle School. I wanted to hate it. It took 5 weeks. And I fell in love with them. I”ll share what they taught me – from the tears of heartbreak to the joy of redemption and back again.
Ian Harwick
Healing Our Country Through Mandatory Service
I would talk why we should bring back national service. The reasons would include people getting know one another despite color/age/orientation, learning new skills, infrastructure improvements, small towns getting a boost.
Matt Need
Learning from Bullet Holes
In college, I heard a lecture from an aeronautical engineer who was stationed on an aircraft carrier during WWII. His unique experience in aircraft design sticks with me whenever I apply myself to a problem.
Sherisse Hawkins
This Isn’t Political
Why it’s worth standing up for someone different than you. (Delivered by someone with a little more melanin). Amusing ways to constructively deal with “isms” (sexism, racism, triumphalism, atheism) especially when they’re not directed at you.
Lauren Gardner
Jackpot! I’m Not Dead!
On July 7, 2007 I woke up from a coma after having survived a near death experience. I want to explore some of the key lessons I’ve learned my last nine years in recovery and how they highlight the privilege of being alive.
Jermaine Charles
How to Infiltrate Circles of Influence
Do you want to be considered a major player in your industry/field of choice? Do you want to go from asking how to get in the room to having a seat at the table? I’ll tell you how I built my network without ever handing out a business card.
Norbert Peyfuss
Dizzying Days – Dealing with the Needs of One Aging Parent, or Two?
Dad got cancer, died 2.5mths later. He was the crutch for mom’s ALZ. Their outlook changed radically, quickly. I educated myself on choices needed to guide & help them. Every day dad had one less, and I could only keep helping…
Greg Roche
Don’t count on motivation
It’s 2017, and you’ve already broken your New Year’s resolution. You fail because you rely on your buddy Motivation. He’s your friend who bails at the first sign of trouble. To succeed, don’t count on Motivation, count on Discipline.
Jason B. Kendrick
Heart Power
Consciously connecting to your heart as much and as often as possible in your everyday life will increase your happiness, groundedness, connection to others, improve your communications and make you a master manifestor!
Ethan Simonton
Starving, Dancing, And Surviving: The Homeless MBA
Shaking my booty on the streets of New Orleans taught me more about entrepreneurship, hustle, and courage in one weekend than 4 years of business school. I went seeking gratitude; I returned with a knapsack full of juicy nuggets of wisdom.
IGNITE DENVER 24 SPEAKERS

Danielle Norris
The Language of Poverty
There is a language barrier that separates us in ways that make it almost impossible to make change happen in our world today. When we think in the context of a language gap we tend to automatically make the assumption of language in the terms of foreign languages. But there is a bigger problem than not understanding a person if they speak Spanish, English, or Mandarin. That problem is the barrier in the “language” of socioeconomic status. The real obstacle is the hidden rules and languages that plague the people in poverty and everyone else from seeing the magic hidden beneath.

Pete Winterscheidt
Where’s my Rosie the Robot?
The Jetsons first aired 54 years ago, since then we put a man on the moon, built the internet, and have cars that can drive across the country. So why can’t I get a decent robot to clean my house for me?

Marjorie Alexander
The Future of Transit is in Coffee
There is a direct correlation between US cities with the best transit system and the amount of caffeine being consumed.

John L. Forrest
Science Fiction Saves the World. Or not.
Science fiction has gone mainstream, and what was once fiction is becoming fact: in communications, medicine, travel, manufacturing, and so on. Our stories of the future tell us less about these artifacts, though, than about ourselves.

Amanda Erck
Gut Explosions and Funnel Cakes
After being diagnosed with celiac disease and not being able to eat anything delicious without burning holes in my intestines, I started a food truck full of breaded deep fried things.

Danielle Bilbruck
Private Life, Public Forum: Sharing Your Personal Life on Social Media
Doesn’t oversharing private details on public spaces leave you open to scrutiny? I will argue that there is power in sharing one’s personal experiences and private life details on a public forum, including building community.

Lia Moran
Born at the Right Time
When I was a baby, my young unwed mother took me to an orphanage in New Delhi. I was cared for by nuns before my Midwestern parents chose me. As a kid, I wanted to be light skinned and blue-eyed; I wanted to fit in. As an adult, I know I fit in because of my differences and unique history.

Heather Nelson
The Win-Win-Win
Organizations look for a “win-win”–profit/fulfilled mission and happy customers. There is a third “win” right in the middle, the win for the staff. This is actually what the new American Dream is all about–a fulfilled staff innovates.
IGNITE DENVER 23 SPEAKERS

Matt Hyder
How To Be Taken Seriously As A Young Entrepreneur
I am a 23 year old Fail-a-preneur until recently. Through my journey I have failed many times and have four key things that helped me break down the doors to achieve success with professional athletes, teams and being featured on national TV. Here are my four keys: Passion, Research Research Research, Relationships and Honesty.

Jamie Shapiro
The Foundation of Leadership: Real Food
I am here to share with you what I have found both personally and professionally to be the foundation of leadership performance – Food. Food has a profound impact on how you lead and show up for others. We are in a culture where businesses are focused on driving for results and being fueled by caffeine and sugar.

Elizabeth Giorgi
My Bad Job Reviews Made Me an Awesome CEO
In my “grown up” jobs, I regularly heard that I didn’t smile enough, I was too competitive and too aggressive. Putting aside any misogynistic undertones, these same skills formed the foundation for being successful when I started my business three years ago. And believe it or not, I smile more because of it.

Brenton Weyi
Humans Are Paradoxes
The world is anything but a simple place. And as human beings, we fear uncertainty. And yet, life is a constant representation of tension — a juxtaposition of opposites that makes us feel truly alive. Good and Evil. Love and Hate. Altruism and Greed. From the best stories to the most compelling movements, we are inspired and enlivened by the paradoxical desires be unique, yet forge deep connections to others. Learning to navigate and accept this tension in both ourselves and the world leads to the greatest impact on the outside world and our own lives.

Doyle Hanks
Love: the Bridge to Laughter
Love and humor are intertwined. As a comic, I’ve seen many people who’ve sought both, frustrated because developing a sense of humor seems so elusive; at the same time, many people say they would have more love in their lives, and are equally frustrated when it doesn’t show up. But I say we get to have both…and they help one another. Having a sense of humor can improve our capacity for love and our capacity to love can improve our sense of humor.

Brian Gryth
Quitter
In 2014, I walked away from an award winning first of its kind program I founded and ran, and I ended my marriage of 8 years. Tl;DR I quit. I quit in a world that believes that winners never quit and quitters never win. So in that world, is it ever okay to quit? Of course and I’ll tell you why in my 5 minutes, based on my experience of being a quitter!

Sandee Billen Maas
“You Don’t Look Sick!” – When Public Opinion Goes Wrong
Everyone has a list of things they believe to be true. One of those beliefs is that sick people look a certain way- that they may be in wheelchairs, or disfigured. The real truth is that in 2011 I became a walking contradiction to most people. I was diagnosed with scleroderma, an autoimmune disease that causes hardening and tightening of the skin and connective tissues, sometimes without obvious visual symptoms. Over the years, I have found my strength in educating people about this disease and would like to share my story to encourage kindness.

Emily Stones
Ban the Brand™: The Dark Side of Marketing 101
Branding drives today’s market, as consumers are increasingly interested in the personality of a product, its positive effect on society, and its political message. This speech dissects feel good advertising – those brands that make you smile and say “awww” – and it reveals the dark underbelly of these advertising techniques.

Meghan Saylor
Square Peg, Round Hole
Ever feel like an outsider? A lone wolf? A troublemaker? Or just different? Yeah, me too. In a world full of round holes, I learned how to use my experiences as a square peg to build castles, bridges, platforms and shelters. Life is unexpected, and it’s easy to feel like an isolated, terminally unique outlier. This is how I made my difference my strength without cutting any corners.

Kelly Underell
Life Is Too Short To Not Do What you Want To Do And Be Who You Want To Be
We often talk about bucket lists and what we will do “one day”. About who we want to be when we grow up and the legacy we want to leave behind. But then we tuck these wish lists safely away in the drawer behind the excuses of our everyday distractions, always thinking we will get to it tomorrow. We blink and years go by, and we are left wondering how it can go so fast. It is hard to think about, but I often wonder what people will say about me in my eulogy when my time here ends. I know someone won’t be reading my resume out loud or talking about what is left in my bank account because that is what life should be measured by. Our bucket list should not just include what we want to do, but who we want to be and what we are going to do to get there. Achieving this requires vulnerability and intentionally. So, what is on your list? And what are you waiting for?

Lori Heisler
Enough is Enough: Somebody Needs to Speak Up
Martin Luther King did it. Blake Mycoskie did it. The Broncos did it. Why can’t we? What does it take to inspire a movement?

Chrissie Hodges
Pure OCD/Intrusive Sexual Obsessions: It’s Not As Pure As It Sounds
Welcome to the dark side of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. There are many forms of OCD, and one in particular is rarely talked about openly due to the shame and embarrassment surrounding the nature of the obsessions. I live with Pure O/Sexual and Violent Intrusive thoughts. As an advocate for mental health and OCD, I use humor and storytelling to help audiences grasp the severity and torment of this crippling disorder in a society where every other person claims they are ‘so OCD’ in one capacity or another. My talk will include my personal journey with Pure O as well as information on OCD and how to walk the road to recovery. I often say Pure O is like the dirty little secret of the OCD world, however it is one of the most common yet silent types of the disorder.
MORE COMING SOON!
Please visit the Videos page to watch past Ignite talks.