Kate Delaney - Keynote Speaker

By: Tamara A. McCullough

Facing an unfamiliar landscape with uncertainty even more prominent than perhaps ever before, inspirational speaker, journalist, author, broadcaster and professional connector, Kate Delaney mulls over what the future of connecting and doing business will look like. As the world navigates through a new normal and tries to make sense of this uncharted territory, Kate sees her role as a connector as more important than ever. “I’m a connector; I connect. It’s truly what it says on my LinkedIn about connecting people and solving problems. I help people dig deeper to discover what they do best and how to leverage it to build stronger relationships, make more money or attract more members.” As an expert connector, Kate has used her vast skill set throughout her wide-ranging professional life. “Whether through my radio show, what I’ve done as a journalist, as an anchor, that was always the main thread.”

Since connecting is at her very essence, it naturally made its way into her speeches when she launched her inspirational speaking career. “When

I started speaking that was natural with the different things I speak about.” Kate describes her speaking style as a “humorist inspirational business speaker who is highly interactive” – basically, she’s not the type who’s going to lecture an audience. “I’m not going to stand on a stage and lecture you, even virtually, and I’ve done lots virtually. That’s when emotional intelligence comes in. With the audience, I want to know – how do you feel? Polling the audience is part of it.” As a humorist, Kate understands the difference that a light-hearted approach can take. “Humor is intelligence. If there’s no humor and it’s so dry, I don’t see how anybody can walk away with a goal.” No matter the size of the audience, Kate likes to tailor her speech to that specific group. “I want them walking away like they were included. I feel like I’m talking to one person whether there are thousands or hundreds.” Kate says while other inspirational speakers often focus solely on business growth, hiring and scaling up, she touches on the intangibles. “I think the thing that differentiates me is the fact that I really show people how to leverage what

they don’t realize that they have. What can you do to increase your odds to become extraordinary?”

gave, but that’s good. You’re always in progress, always in motion.”

Kate says that her favorite moment when speaking is the moment before she hits the stage, that behind the curtain moment. “I spoke in Atlanta a few months ago. You’re behind the curtain and somebody reads your intro. You come out and it’s the best. I take a breath; it’s the best moment. This is it. This is the work that it has led me to. I can’t wait to see the outcome.” Regardless of who Kate speaks to, she doesn’t let nerves get to her. “I don’t feel nervous. I take that breath. I feel excited.” She explains the anticipation before hitting the stage in a very relatable way. “When I was a kid, I loved riding the rollercoaster. You’re waiting in line, and the car finally comes, and you’re locked in. You’re locked in on the stage.” It’s that solitude on stage that makes many people fearful of public speaking, according to Kate. “That’s why people fear public speaking. All the eyes are on you. You’re there. You’re physically on the stage behind the mic. You’ve taken the reins.” After any speech, Kate says there’s a discrepancy that any good speaker can relate to. “There’s the speech you give and the speech you wish you

“Deal Your Own Destiny” is Kate’s latest book “about branding and personal branding.” “It’s a quick read, super impactful. It takes you through the decisions that I made through my career and what you can take from it.” The book is designed to help readers “find the balance between work and life and seek the path that’s your destiny when you’re making a life or career change.” The title is symbolic of the control needed to guide your own life. “No one gets to decide the hand their dealt. You become the dealer. You take control. What’s the million-dollar question: Where do you want to be? Who do you want to be? That’s what I’m about.” Kate draws on a poignant quote to further illustrate her point. “I love the George Elliot quote, ‘It’s never too late to be who you might’ve been.’ Take that step.”

How is Kate adjusting to the new normal? “I was traveling a lot. People are saying it must be weird, but I’m doing a lot virtually. I have a studio in my

space, and I’ve already been working out of my house for the media aspect. It takes a lot of getting used to.” With social distancing the law of the land, Kate says it’s important for people to take stock and re-evaluate personally and professionally about how to connect virtually. “It’s more important than ever since people are isolated in different forms and have boundaries that they’re trying to navigate, whether big families or by themselves. This is the new normal, this is new territory. You should stay in touch with people you’ve done business with, people you’ve intersected with. People are trying to find ways to connect.” Kate further explains, “It’s a different way of re-imagining who we are, but it’s still the art of connecting, that’s the most important thing.” It’s also important to take lessons from this situation. “What will we learn and take away from this pandemic as we move into those spaces that are unfamiliar? Some things will be eliminated, and other things will change dramatically. Being more flexible is key. It’s going to be tough for some people,” Kate explained. Further explaining how virtually every business is affected, Kate added, “Just like that book ‘Who Moved my Cheese?’ everybody’s cheese has definitely gotten moved. It’s a major shake-up for companies. A lot of what they did before, they have to do things differently.”

For Kate, it’s a matter of the three R’s as global events continue to unfold. “In this pandemic, people have to refocus, re-imagine and reinvent. There’s nobody who’s going to get out without these three things they have to do.” Not only individualsF but businesses are going to have to re-think how they fundamentally work and operate. “In the business world, they’ve had those routines where ‘we produce this, this is what we do, projected to make this.’ They’re not used to having to rip up the map.” She further pointed out that what businesses thought was solid is quite different now, so “re-focus is my word for connect.” Kate is challenging people “to refocus, re-imagine and reinvent” whether they want to or not. Kate uses another apt analogy. “Before, even in

journalism, take any profession, there was a road, there were steps, the ladder is gone, we’re all on a jungle gym. There’s a little over here, a little over there.”

Kate uses what used to be considered “soft skills” to help the business clients she advises. In today’s world, Kate warns that people “can’t afford not to be schooled” on these skills. “Something big I talk about is emotional intelligence. It is so important because so much of what we do in the future will be remote. The face-to-face has changed. How do you deal with your feelings and their feelings, and why does it matter?” A critical component of understanding others is to listen to not only what people say, but also what they’re not saying, which Kate describes as “influential listening.” “Influential listening is one of the things I have trademarked. What you’re not listening to can cost you.” Those costs could be in the form of prospective clients, closing deals, losing money and even forming valuable connections.

When advising clients on leveraging their assets, Kate has a unique term to help them understand what they have to offer. “I say: ‘What’s your wow? How do you clearly, confidently say who you are?’” Kate says while most people have an elevator pitch, the “What’s your wow?” helps them understand that they have something that they didn’t even realize they had. “We’re not thinking about that; it takes somebody else to dig it out.” Since everyone has different limitations, Kate understands that finding their “wow” and navigating through these new times will be more difficult for some. “For some people who are not as creative, it’s like trying to navigate a gray world. How do you navigate a space that you’re not familiar with? Some people are more flexible and some are more fixed.” Kate adds, “Even for people who can navigate, it’s about being flexible in the gray areas. That has been my life. It’s a different space every time, and I’ve had to do it.”

It may not be a fact that a lot of people would admit and definitely wouldn’t be proud of, but Kate