Jackie Edwards Speaking Topics

• 5th Times the Charm: How Big Failures Can Become Even Bigger Successes

  Often times people's barometer for success is based on external factors and values such as trophies, financial gain, promotions or winning the Olympics. If your only measure comes from other people rewarding you or from comparing yourself to other people, the chance that disappointment is around the corner is ever-increased.

  Sometimes, not all the time, we win when we lose. Sometimes, we grow when we fail. Sometimes, we make giant leaps forward after we've taken a few steps backwards. The challenge is to figure out how to dust yourself off after a fall, how to see the light at the end of the proverbial tunnel, to find the courage to not allow one let down define you or your future. Even if that failure is on the world stage, when all eyes are on you.

  Sometimes the charm or the win is in the doing, in the effort that was given, the lessons that were learned along the way and the motivation that can be gained. Sometimes your biggest failure ends up propelling you into your biggest success!

• Managing Adversity, Transitioning and Owning Your Own Outcome Through the Eyes of Elite Performance

  Whether you are an athlete, a business owner, an employee or an entertainer, we all go through adversity. See a thriving entrepreneur or a world record holder and they'll tell you, the path to success is never one straight line. Most of us who claim any modicum of success, take the circuitous route to get our final desired destination.

  How do you deal with that adversity? Do you get stuck rehashing all the negatives? Are you deterred easily? Are you solution-oriented?

  This discussion delves into how we can not only experience adversity but thrive after that experience.There are 4 key stages that take us through whatever trials and tribulations we may encounter. The first stage is Preparation and the mindset we have. Everything starts with that. Preparation Prevents Poor Performance. Regardless of the endeavor, when we have foundational type preparation, when Adversity, which is the second stage, inevitably befalls us, we have to have a plan as to how to get through it. Third is the actual Transition stage where we put our plan that we have into action. It is usually process based with the focus being on an eventual outcome. Finally, we get to stage four, Owning Your Outcome. Once you put all the pieces of your plan together, your success is not by chance. You can duplicate it. You are prepared. You are purposeful. You are poised and you ready to not only handle the success you've earned but to navigate all other pitfalls that may still come your way.

How Competence Builds Confidence and Promotes Peak Performance

Some people are born confident. For others, it is an acquired skillset. Either way, once you gain confidence, your path to performing at a consistently high level becomes easier and easier. But how does a person become confident if they're not naturally born that way or if nothing they've experienced leads them to feel that they should be confident a person?

One of the best, most effective ways to build confidence in yourself or in another person is to build their level of competency. The definition of competency is "the ability to do something successfully or efficiently". As an athlete, the number one way to build competency and thereby confidence, is through repetition. They say to become an expert at anything, you need to do that thing 10,000 times! Seems like a lot right?

Let me show you how you get from 0 to 10,000, how you create short term goals in order to have long term success, how practice instills resilience, which increases motivation, which enhances your mindset, and ultimately your skill and competence. High competency directly translates into high confidence and high performance. This is the key to long term high achievement.

Leadership: What's Your Leadership Style and How Do You Motivate Others to Achieve?

Often times when people think of leaders, they think of someone who is a loud, take-charge, my-way or the highway, dominant type personality. That type of leader is an Autocratic Leader but there are several others.

I was the captain of my Bahamas Olympic team twice. I was also captain of the track team at Stanford University my senior year. I am nothing like an Autocratic Leader. My style is more Transformational, which if you look it up, some of the definitions of that style include "having a knack for encouraging participation", "talent for genuine communication", "an inspiring bearing/presence", more of a strong, silent type I would say. I wouldn't have naturally picked myself to be a leader but as it turns out, others did, which I will get into a little later on.

There are two other leadership styles that I will discuss • Democratic and Laissez-Faire. Each style has it's own benefits and drawbacks but I think what is even more critical than being given the title of "Leader" is your capacity to be flexible, to be able to ebb and flow through all 4 styles, if and when necessary, if the goal is to successfully motivate and inspire a group of differing personalities to achieve at a high level.