Part message designer, part English-to-English translator, and now part doctoral student, Tamsen Webster helps leaders craft their case for large-scale change. A sought-after speaker and consultant, she’s spent more than 25 years developing the field and practice of persuasive message design, with a particular focus on the principles and processes that build buy-in that lasts.
In addition to her work in and for major organizations such as Harvard Medical School, Fidelity Investments, and Klaviyo, she built and delivers the message design curriculum for Elemental Impact, a leading investor in impact startups. She’s a judge and mentor for the Harvard Innovation Labs and a professional advisor at the Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship. She’s also spent over 10 years as the Idea Strategist for one of only nine legacy-level TEDx events and was named to the Thinkers50 Radar in 2022. She’s the author of two best-selling books, Find Your Red Thread: Make Your Big Ideas Irresistible, and Say What They Can’t Unhear: The 9 Principles of Lasting Change which was named one of the top 10 management books of the year by Canada’s Globe and Mail newspaper.
Tamsen Webster was a reluctant marathoner… twice; is a champion ballroom dancer (in her mind); and learned everything she knows about messages, people, and change as a Weight Watchers leader. True story.
She lives in Boston with her husband, two sons, and her two brindle Greyhounds, Hazel and Walnut.
In a world of constant change, how can leaders inspire transformations that truly endure? Tamsen Webster, acclaimed speaker and author of "Say What They Can't Unhear: The 9 Principles of Lasting Change," presents a groundbreaking approach to creating lasting shifts in organizations, markets, and individual lives.
Drawing from over 30 years of experience in message design and change communications, Webster challenges conventional wisdom about change management. She reveals why traditional methods often fall short and introduces a powerful new framework for inspiring change that stands the test of time.
Whether you're navigating a corporate pivot, launching a disruptive product, or seeking personal growth, this keynote will equip you with the tools to not just initiate change, but to make it last. Learn how to turn a momentary "yes" into an enduring commitment with ideas that resonate so strongly, they become impossible to "unhear."
Key Takeaways:
- Understand why change is a reaction, not just an action, and how to align your approach accordingly
- Learn to craft a case for change that resonates with your audience's existing beliefs and identity
- Discover strategies to overcome resistance without relying on pain or pressure
- Master the art of turning short-term agreement into long-term commitment
Getting your ideal audience to see your message as right for them—quickly—is critical, especially when there’s so much competition for time, attention, and resources. But what do you do when all the reasons your message is “right” aren’t right for those you’re talking to? In this practical and energizing presentation, 25-year message strategist and speaker Tamsen Webster will show you how to get people invested (literally and figuratively!) in all you have to offer, starting with the easiest storytelling elements for your audience to identify with: the principles that provide common ground for even the most uncommon messages.
After this presentation, you'll be able to:
- Understand why challenging people's beliefs is the enemy of action, and what to do instead
- Clearly and quickly identify who is, and isn’t, an ideal fit for your message—and why—so you can focus your efforts where they’ll have the greatest effect
- Follow a framework for simplifying them to their most important, and irresistible, elements and building in buy-in from the beginning
You may have noticed a problem with the age-old “problem/solution” formula for driving action from your messages and marketing: it doesn’t always work! That’s a big issue when your job, and maybe even your business, depends on your content converting customers and clients.
Unfortunately, presenting only the audience’s problem and your solution misses an important fact about them: your audiences aren’t rational decision-makers, they’re rataionalIZING decision-makers. They tell themselves stories to justify what they do. That means your content needs more than just a problem and a solution, it needs to create a moment of truth in your audience’s mind—a realization that makes inaction impossible.
In this keynote, learn to use a simple structure that creates both the logical and emotional change you need for content that creates long-term change.
No matter your role, you're often in the business of changing behavior. Often that means you need to change beliefs first. Or do you? What if some of the age-old wisdom around driving action actually works against creating real change?
By the end of this keynote, you'll be able to:
- Analyze your messages for the "red lights" that lead to "NO"
- Identify the three key concepts every message needs to get a “YES" (and know how to find them in your own)
- Tie those concepts to the "green lights" your brand is built on (and connect your audiences more tightly to them, too)
At the heart of business lies one seemingly elusive goal: how can we tell a story people actually want to hear? Thankfully, there’s a surprisingly simple answer, and it lies in how we come up with our ideas in the first place.
After this keynote you’ll be able to:
- Tailor your story to the audience and impact you want
- Identify the five building blocks of the “minimum viable message” (and how to find them in your own)
- Organize those building blocks so you can tell your story in any format, and at any length
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