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• Chapter Meeting: Still Standing. Still Smiling.

  • When
    Thursday, February 11, 2021
  •  
    5:30 PM - 7:00 PM (CST)
  • Location
    via Zoom

  Register

  Guest Speaker: John Kriesel

  Schedule
  5:15 - 5:30pm Registration and NETWORKING!
  5:30 - 5:45pm Welcome and Speaker Showcase
  5:45 - 7:00pm Speaker, Q&A, Closing Info

  
  Still Standing. Still Smiling

  Lessons to be Learned Listening to John Kriesel:

  • Challenges -- Everybody faces adversity. It doesn't matter the size or scope of your challenge, it is the attitude that you bring to the table that will help you overcome that adversity and it will make you a stronger person.
  • Acceptance -- You can't begin to resolve your challenge until you accept it. John lost his legs and two buddies in Iraq explosion. Rather than wallow in self-pity, he resolved to live his life to the fullest and to make the best out of his second chance at life.
  • Plan -- Develop a plan to overcome your challenge, make it into an opportunity. When told he might not walk again and would be hospitalized two years, John doubled his physical therapy regimen, working himself to exhaustion. He walked out of Walter Reed Medical Center nine months later.
  • Humor -- In his darkest moments, John found time to laugh. Always a lighthearted guy, he discovered laughter and not taking yourself too seriously are powerful medicine in any endeavor.
  • Support -- Nobody does it alone. Friends, family and people you don't know will help but you need to accept their help. Success is a team sport. John’s army buddies, medical staff in four hospitals, family, and scores of people, many he never met, got John up on his new feet.
  • Share -- Use your success to help others and you help yourself. The greater your success, the more you will enjoy sharing it by helping others beat their challenges, no matter how big or small those challenges may be.

  About the Speaker
  If Dr. Norman Vincent Peale was writing his incredibly popular book, The Power of Positive Thinking, today he would need to add a separate chapter on John Kriesel.

  In 2006 Kriesel was nearly blown to shreds by a 200 pound roadside bomb in the parched sands of Iraq, but battlefield angels in army uniforms kept him breathing long enough to reach a field hospital. He died three times and was shocked back to life. Somehow he survived through four hospitals, 35 surgeries and months of recovery. He lost both legs and suffered numerous other major injuries, but it was the loss of two close friends that hurt the most.

  The guy who wasn’t supposed to survive and was told he probably would be in a wheelchair the rest of his life walked out of Walter Reed Army Medical Center after nine months. Working with author Jim Kosmo, Kriesel reveals his motivational story in Still Standing: The Story of SSG John Kriesel, winner of eight national book awards.

  Four years after his near-death experience in Iraq Kriesel became a civilian marketing employee with the Minnesota Army National Guard and in 2012 was named Director of Veterans Services for Anoka County. He also is a part time host on KFAN Sports Radio and former member of the Minnesota House of Representatives. He was elected to the House in 2010 after a vigorous campaign where he was told he could not win in his district. He personally visited several thousand homes in all weather conditions and literally wore out the socket in one of his prosthetic legs. He won. After tours of duty in Kosovo and Iraq and a lengthy medical recovery Kriesel’s family wanted to spend more time with him and he chose not to run for re-election.

  As a legislator he was anything but a quiet freshman challenging even his own party and frequently speaking his mind. “Kriesel’s honesty is a breath of fresh air at the Capitol,” declared the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. In addition to serving veterans in the Twin Cities and being a frequent voice on KFAN’s Power Trip Morning Show, he continues to share his upbeat, motivational message with businesses and organizations throughout the United States.

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• Chapter Meeting: Humor Me

  • When
    Friday, March 12, 2021
  •  
    8:30 AM - 12:00 PM (CST)
  • Location
    via Zoom

  Register

  Guest Speaker: Lisa Mills

  Schedule
  8:15 - 8:30am Registration and NETWORKING!
  8:30 - 8:45am Welcome and Speaker Showcase
  8:45 - 10:00am Speaker, Q&A, Closing Info
  

  
  Humor Me: 5 Keys to Mining Comedy Gold

  For many, just thinking about developing comedy will make them want to breathe heavily into a paper bag. I get it! The good news is that everyone is funny. The bad news is that often it’s not on purpose. (Womp, womp. Tip your server. I'll be here all week.)

  However, I want you to know that there are secrets to making a room full of people laugh that do not require years of being on the road as a stand-up comic. Absolutely anyone can find the funny -- on purpose -- using these key secrets.

  If you thought that there was little or no hope for your sense of humor or comedy writing, I'm here to dispel that myth. Join Lisa for this session where you will discover how to take your keynote from blah to brilliant using five keys for mining comedy gold.
  
  About the Speaker
  Lisa Mills is an award-winning, 100% clean comedian, keynote speaker, and author. Her acting debut was working alongside network television’s favorite military gal Catherine Bell on the Lifetime Channel’s hit show, Army Wives.

  As an in-demand keynote speaker, she is known for her message of “Transforming Ordinary into Extraordinary: Using the power of connection and the art of engagement to impact, inspire, and influence.” Her always funny, laser-sharp wit has been featured on the Lifetime Network, NOW Network, Netflix, the Dove Channel, Dry Bar Comedy, and iHeart Radio.

  She resides in Atlanta, GA and can be seen headlining venues throughout the country while touring and promoting her latest book, Lord Did I Really Shave My Legs For This?

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• Chapter Meeting: The Million Dollar Tipping Point

  • When
    Saturday, April 10, 2021
  •  
    8:30 AM - 12:00 PM (CDT)
  • Location
    via Zoom

  Register

  Guest Speaker: Bill Cates, CSP, CPAE

  Schedule
  8:15 - 8:30am Registration and NETWORKING!
  8:30 - 8:45am Welcome and Speaker Showcase
  8:45 - 10:00am Speaker, Q&A, Closing Info

  The Million Dollar Tipping Point

  What does it take to build a speaking-centered business that generates $1M+ of annual review?  How do you multiply your best clients and build multiple streams of income?

  Bill Cates, CSP, CPAE will help you discover how to:
  

  • Acquire more high-value speaking, training, and/or coaching clients.
  • Use video to create high-dollar programs for corporations.
  • Turn corporate programs into online learning systems you can license for recurring, high-profit revenue.

  Even if you don’t aspire to generate $1M of annual revenue in your speaking-centered business, this session will deliver guiding principles, big strategies, and proven tactics to help you grow your business (that’s just right for you).

  As a founding member of NSA’s Million Dollar Speakers Group and a member of the NSA Board of Directors, Bill Cates knows the speaking business through and through. This not-to-be-missed program will help speakers at all levels grow their businesses.
  
  About the Speaker
  Bill Cates is a hard-working, successful speaker and business owner. Bill is a founding member of NSA’s Million Dollar Speakers Group and has sustained a 7-figure speaking business by becoming extremely focused with his business. 
  Bill is the author of five books:  Unlimited Referrals, Get More Referrals Now, Don’t Keep Me a Secret, Beyond Referrals, and Radical Relevance, as well as a number of corporate video training programs licensed by companies around the world.
  In addition to being a Certified Professional Speaker, Bill was inducted into the Professional Speakers Hall of Fame in 2010.

  Bill’s referral system has been featured in Success Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, the Wall Street Journal, and Entrepreneur Magazine.  And his own business success has been featured in Money Magazine. Bill doesn’t just talk about what it takes to be successful in this business – he’s actually done it! 

  
  

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