Biography

Vanessa is Lead Investigator at Science of People. She is the bestselling author of Captivate: The Science of Succeeding with People, translated into 16 languages, and Cues: Master the Secret Language of Charismatic Communication. More than 50 million people watch her engaging YouTube tutorials and TEDx Talk.

Vanessa shares tangible skills to improve interpersonal communication and leadership, including her insights on how people work. She’s developed a science-based framework for understanding different personalities to improve our EQ and help us communicate with colleagues, clients, and customers.

Vanessa works with entrepreneurs, growing businesses, and trillion-dollar companies; and has been featured on CNN, BBC, CBS Mornings, Fast Company, Inc. Magazine, Entrepreneur Magazine, USA Today, The Today Show, and many more.

Millions visit her website every month for her methods turning “soft skills” into actionable, masterable frameworks that can be applied in daily life. Hundreds of thousands of students have taken her communication courses on Udemy, CreativeLive, LinkedIn, and her flagship course People School.

Vanessa is renowned for teaching science-backed people skills to audiences around the world including SxSW, MIT, and CES. Her groundbreaking and engaging workshops and courses teach individuals how to succeed in business and life by understanding the hidden dynamics of people.

She regularly speaks to innovative companies including Google, Facebook, Comcast, Miller-Coors, Microsoft, Amazon, and Univision. She has been a spokesperson for Dove, American Express, Clean & Clear, and Symantec.

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Videos

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The Surprising Secrets of High Performers: How the Most Successful People Use Effective Communication to be More Productive

Highly effective people have a unique approach to productivity. Over the last decade, Vanessa has studied the patterns of successful people and found a surprising way we can all work smarter, not harder. The key is being a productive communicator. Vanessa will teach attendees how to maximize their relationships and streamline their communication with a simple, but powerful framework, as well as how to communicate like a human when leveraging AI tools. The goal is to empower attendees to increase efficiency by connecting and collaborating in a purposeful way. This highly actionable, engaging talk will energize every audience member to look at their to-do list in a completely new way.

The Three Levels of Connection: Build Stronger Relationships by Using the Science of People

Our desire for community and connection doesn’t end at work. While connection with colleagues looks different from purely personal connections, having authentic and healthy connections in the workplace is one of the main determinants of productivity and workplace satisfaction. While the increase of virtual mediums presents an added challenge, creating meaningful connections is possible. In fact, there’s a science-based blueprint to fostering connections quickly and maintaining them with professional intention. In this presentation, Vanessa Van Edwards teaches the three levels of connection that build trust and rapport. These principles can be applied at work, within teams, at conferences, and while networking, with colleagues and customers alike. Each level builds on the next, providing insight and tools on how to deepen relationships. Along with gaining a deeper understanding of the levels of connection, attendees will learn the practice of creating a safe space for vulnerability and ideas.

Charismatic Communication: The Art and Science of Presence, Confidence and Trust

Better communication skills pay dividends in every conversation for the rest of your life. There are no downsides to becoming a better communicator, but the upsides may be more powerful than we know. Studies show that people with high interpersonal intelligence (PQ) perform at higher levels, have higher salaries, have better immune systems, and help generate more revenue for companies they work for. In this research-based and reflective keynote, Vanessa Van Edwards teaches attendees powerful communication strategies based on new science that they can apply at work and in their personal lives. Pulling from her bestselling books Captivate and Cues, she shares the latest research on behavioral psychology and how it can be used to improve professional relationships, make positive and lasting impressions, and better connect with co-workers and customers. Audiences are left with a better understanding of their own communication pitfalls and the knowledge and confidence to apply new tools to become more authentically charismatic in their interactions.

Testimonials

Vanessa Van Edwards’s energy and enthusiasm during her session kept our audience of 175+ dance studio owners engaged and wanting more! Vanessa delivered valuable and actionable insights and ideas that was tailored to our audience, and she was ranked highest among our speakers for 2021. Her presentation exceeded all expectations, and her team was great to work with for logistics. I would not hesitate to recommend Vanessa for your next event!
– CEO, DANCE STUDIO OWNERS ASSOCIATION
Vanessa was phenomenal, and the highest-rated speaker out of the three we had.
– ‎PRESIDENT & EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, ‎INDEPENDENT INSURANCE AGENTS OF TEXAS (IIAT)
Vanessa exceeded all expectations! She did a wonderful job tailoring the content to our needs & providing relatable examples based on the information we shared prior to the session. Her energy captivated the audience and she sent everyone off with actionable takeaways that they could start applying in their day to day immediately.
– ENTERPRISE CUSTOMER SUCCESS MANAGER, TEAM LEAD, SAMSARA
That was fabulous – thank you!! We had people on the live stream from all across the world. I saw people in India, Costa Rica, Egypt, Spain, and our different offices in the U.S. Your energy was excellent – everyone was completely engaged – there were so many comments in the chat and people were sharing lots of great information. It really built an amazing feeling of community and connectedness.
– PRINCIPAL STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS LEADER, AMAZON

Booksby Vanessa Van Edwards

Captivate: The Science of Succeeding with People

Cues: Master the Secret Language of Charismatic Communication

Blog Posts

Why Leadership Speakers Are Essential for Today’s Events

Looking for the top leadership speakers to bring to your next event? You're in the right place. Imagine you're sitting in an auditorium, coffee in hand, waiting for yet another keynote speech. You're expecting the...

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Unlocking a Magic Mindset and Your Audience’s Awe of Christophe Fox

Think magic is just smoke and mirrors? Think again. Christophe Fox transforms events into unforgettable experiences through magic and interactive engagement.

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Designing Events That Captivate and Convert Beyond Venue and Swag

Learn how intentional design—innovation, inclusion, and neuroscience—powers unforgettable event engagement and lasting impact.

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Crafting Personalized Health & Self‑Care Practices with Johnny Crowder

Everywhere you turn, someone is talking about health and self‑care rituals. Keynote speaker Johnny Crowder shares why true self‑care is not one‑size‑fits‑all.

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Elevate Your Event With These Skills: Insights from Gabriella Robuccio

Think event planning is all about checklists and timetables? Think again. Emmy‑winning strategist Gabriella Robuccio shares more on The Keynote Curators Podcast.

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Celebrating Juneteenth with These Transformative Keynotes

Learn how intentional Juneteenth programming paired with transformative keynote speakers can turn commemoration into sustained equity and inclusion.

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