Jody Urquhart

Burnout Prevention Health and Wellness and Healthcare Expert

Topics: Corporate Culture, Employee Engagement, Communication, Crisis Management, Teamwork, Health & Well-Being

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Biography

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Jody Urquhart is a Canadian motivational speaker and workplace culture expert recognized for integrating stand up comedy with evidence informed insights on human connection at work. Her work centers on how belonging, nervous system regulation, and leadership presence influence engagement, retention, and performance.

Her professional background includes more than twenty six years of experience delivering keynote presentations and leadership sessions across Canada and the United States. Jody Urquhart presents at more than fifty events annually for corporate, healthcare, education, and association audiences.

Before entering professional speaking full time, she built a career in stand up comedy, developing an approach grounded in timing, audience awareness, and clean observational humor. This foundation informs how Jody Urquhart designs highly interactive sessions that rely on real time engagement rather than scripted delivery.

She has spent years studying workplace disengagement, burnout, and professional disconnection through direct research and observation. Jody Urquhart has conducted hundreds of interviews with leaders and employees to understand how stress, pressure, and pace affect communication and trust.

Her research output includes the creation and production of more than one thousand original videos examining burnout, presence, emotional regulation, and workplace connection. Jody Urquhart translates these findings into practical strategies leaders can apply immediately.

She is the author of the Canadian bestselling books All Work and No Say and Bliss Out, which examine the relationship between meaning, humor, and sustained performance at work. Her writing emphasizes clarity, accountability, and the importance of human centered leadership practices.

For more than a decade, she also wrote the self syndicated column The Joy of Work, which explored everyday workplace behaviors and cultural patterns. Jody Urquhart used this platform to document how small leadership choices influence morale and long term engagement.

Her keynote sessions focus on leadership presence, team connectivity, burnout prevention, and talent retention. Jody Urquhart addresses how leaders can create cultures where people feel seen, valued, and psychologically safe.

She is known for delivering sessions without slides or scripted lectures, relying instead on dialogue, humor, and audience participation. This approach allows Jody Urquhart to respond directly to the dynamics of each room.

Organizations engage her when teams are experiencing fatigue, change saturation, or declining engagement. Jody Urquhart works with leaders to rebuild trust, improve communication, and restore clarity around purpose and expectations.

Her work also addresses the role of the nervous system in leadership behavior, decision making, and stress response. Jody Urquhart helps leaders understand how regulation and presence influence how teams respond under pressure.

She regularly delivers both in person and virtual keynote sessions, adapting her content for distributed and hybrid workplaces. Jody Urquhart designs virtual experiences that maintain interaction, momentum, and accountability.

Her audiences include frontline professionals, senior leaders, and executive teams across multiple sectors. Jody Urquhart is frequently selected for conferences and internal leadership events focused on culture, wellbeing, and performance.

Throughout her career, she has maintained a focus on practical application rather than motivational abstraction. Jody Urquhart emphasizes behaviors leaders can implement immediately to improve connection and reduce burnout.

Her work positions connection as a functional requirement for effective leadership rather than a cultural add on. Jody Urquhart continues to support organizations seeking sustainable engagement, resilience, and clarity in an evolving workplace.

Videos

2025 Motivational Speaker In Canada | Keynote Speaker Demo Reel | Jody Urquhart

Speech TopicsExpand each topic to learn more

This Would Be Funny... If It Wasn't Happening to Me! : How to Navigate Change by Mastering Human Connection

Work isn’t just about tasks—it’s about people. Real, messy, complicated people who are just trying to belong and make sense of constant change.

Ever feel like you’re the only one struggling? You’re not. This transformative keynote is a no-filter dive into workplace transformation.

What We’ll Unpack Together:

- Communication strategies to turn workplace uncertainty into moments of real understanding
- Strategies for building a team that feels like ‘your people’
- Making everyone feel seen, heard, and valued—even in chaos
- Relatability isn’t just a skill. It’s a necessity

For every leader feeling isolated, every team member wondering if they fit in, every person who’s ever thought, “Do I belong here?”—this is your moment.

TOPIC – Change -Belonging -Teamwork -Transformation

How to Speak Human: Make Your Leadership More Relatable

Our leadership is at a crossroads.

Our teams are floundering toward fulfillment as we try to balance algorithms with basic human emotions. If your workplace has become a little bit robotic, Authentic leadership can resurrect your teams back to life.

Relatability is powerful.

If your brain feels like a browser with 47 tabs open, this session will give you relief.

It’s time we realize that it’s people, not processes that drive success.

Join us for a session that’s deep enough to ponder your life choices but funny enough to not take it personally.

Learn:

3 pillars of building a human-centered culture
How to prioritize the well-being of your team
How to ditch a stiff persona for something more relatable
Diversity and Inclusion: Create a culture where people belong
The comedic side of humanizing leadership
TOPIC–Humanizing Work -Inclusion -Belonging – Future of Work -Leadership

Crazybusy: Relief to Find Immediate Balance in a Fast-paced World

We’ve all been there, Drowning in to-do lists, feeling like we’re the only ones struggling to keep our heads above water. But You’re not alone. Not even close.

This isn’t another productivity talk. This is a lifeline for anyone who’s ever felt:

Like they’re failing at managing their life
Disconnected from what matters
Many of us get trapped in patterns of self-made chaos, believing we’re the only ones struggling. But here’s the truth: Your experience is shared by many. Your overwhelm doesn’t define you—it connects you.

Together, we’ll:

Create a genuine connection in a world that feels increasingly fragmented
Understand why we use busyness as a shield—and how to put that shield down
Learn How to Truly Belong to Yourself:

Uncover Personal Patterns That Steal Your Joy
4 Time and Energy Drainers
Why Your Struggle Is actually Your Superpower

TOPIC -Wellness -Productivity

Look, we’ve all been there. Drowning in to-do lists, feeling like we’re the only ones struggling to keep our heads above water. But You’re not alone. Not even close.

This isn’t another productivity talk. This is a lifeline for anyone who’s ever felt:

Like they’re failing at managing their life
Disconnected from what matters
Many of us get trapped in patterns of self-made chaos, believing we’re the only ones struggling. But here’s the truth: Your experience is shared by many. Your overwhelm doesn’t define you—it connects you.

Together, we’ll:

Create a genuine connection in a world that feels increasingly fragmented
Understand why we use busyness as a shield—and how to put that shield down

Learn How to Truly Belong to Yourself:

Uncover Personal Patterns That Steal Your Joy
4 Time and Energy Drainers
Why Your Struggle Is actually Your Superpower

TOPIC -Wellness -Productivity

Look, we’ve all been there. Drowning in to-do lists, feeling like we’re the only ones struggling to keep our heads above water. But You’re not alone. Not even close.

This isn’t another productivity talk. This is a lifeline for anyone who’s ever felt:

Like they’re failing at managing their life
Disconnected from what matters

Many of us get trapped in patterns of self-made chaos, believing we’re the only ones struggling. But here’s the truth: Your experience is shared by many. Your overwhelm doesn’t define you—it connects you.

Together, we’ll:

Create a genuine connection in a world that feels increasingly fragmented
Understand why we use busyness as a shield—and how to put that shield down
Learn How to Truly Belong to Yourself:

Uncover Personal Patterns That Steal Your Joy
4 Time and Energy Drainers
Why Your Struggle Is actually Your Superpower

Follow Me, I'm Right Behind You! : Where Leadership Meets Real-life

Think the best leaders are always out front? Think again. The magic happens when you’re walking alongside your people, listening to their stories, and having their backs.

Leadership isn’t a title – it’s how you influence others.

This motivational speech will turn traditional leadership upside down – because the best way to lead isn’t to make sure people fit the mould but to make sure people feel they matter.

Forget “culture fit” – we’re talking about culture transformation. When everyone belongs and brings their unique perspective, everyone performs.

You’ll learn how to:

Create a team that wants to show up, not has to
Make every person feel like they truly belong
Turn your workplace into a community people care about
Lead with heart, not just authority
Ready to flip the script on leadership? Sometimes the front of the line isn’t where the real action is. It’s about creating a place where everyone feels at home, valued, and part of something bigger than themselves.

TOPIC -Leadership -Work Culture- Teamwork -Belonging

Testimonials

“Jody Urquhart has a very warm and natural sense of humour – she’s very funi”

– Maria Shryer CIBC

“Thank you, Jody Urquhart, for coming out to speak to us. You were awesome and I received all good feedback from our attendees! We’ll definitely be in touch to have you come back for future events.”

– Shannon Dolezalik, Administrative Assistant Canadian Energy Workers Association (CEWA)

“Incorporating Brain-based training for enhanced learning and peak performance. The exercises and audience participation made the information really easy to use.”

– John Ricklin IPAC

“Well done. My colleagues were commenting on how we are privileged to have had you speak at our AGM. I agree! Excellent topic for nurses, well presented and very entertaining!”

– C. Hamming LPN