It’s a tough world. Pick up your phone and you’ll see terrifying news, dreadful predictions, and—perhaps worst of all—social media confirmation that everyone else you know of is doing better, having more fun, and living a more creative life. But for Cyndie Spiegel, the Brooklyn-based author, consultant, speaker, and all-around truth-telling powerhouse, that dark view is just one scarcity-based lens through which to look at the world.
She has a better way. And, as the keynote speaker for Catersource/TSE 2020, she will tell you, show you—and get you started toward living a life of positive collaboration and badassery. Her session, To Compete or Collaborate? A Truth-Telling Conversation on How to Shift the Norms of Collaboration (Without All the BS) will guide you into a new mindset about your career, and especially about the people you’ve been thinking of as competitors.
Spiegel is a TEDx speaker, certified in Applied Positive Psychology, is a former adjunct professor at Parsons, the New School for Design and Fashion Institute of Technology, and is a 500-hour trained yoga and meditation teacher. She has also been featured in Entrepreneur, Forbes, Teen Vogue, and HuffPost.
“During my keynote,” Spiegel told Catersource recently, “I’m going to bust some of the myths often associated with collaboration, and instead help you see why the success of your business can benefit from collaboration.” She is planning a practical, hard-working keynote in which you’ll leave with a clear set of guidelines for implementation.
Registration is NOW OPEN for Catersource 2020, co-located with The Special Event! Click here for more information or to register!
“I get audiences engaged and connected with each other in a way that’s unusual for a conference speaker,” she says. “It’s really a powerful way of workshopping this concept. I’ve had people come up to me after my keynote and tell me, ‘when I saw the topic, I didn’t want to get out of bed and come here—but you’ve changed my way of thinking.’”
Yes, it works
As an in-demand speaker and facilitator, Spiegel has had many opportunities to see her methods pay off for attendees. “One person spoke in the session about his dream to work with The Walt Disney Company, and there was someone right there in the audience who was able to connect him with the right people,” she says. “Another person created a collaboration with Nordstrom for her jewelry company, based on her ‘big dream’ idea that began in our session.”
Things like this happen for a reason, she says. “We humans want to help each other. Every single time I give this talk, there is always someone in the audience who can help someone else. It happens right there in the room.”
Matchmaking social
If the morning keynote has you ready to jump on the collaboration bandwagon, there will be a smaller-format afternoon session just for you. Described as a Collaborative Matchmaking Social, the event, facilitated by Spiegel, will guide attendees through the opportunity to use the collaboration tools she discussed earlier. “I promise that introverts and extroverts alike will find my method infinitely approachable and who knows—maybe even life-changing,” she says. “This session will make it easier for you to cut through the noise. As facilitator, it will be my job to make this concept of collaboration more accessible in a bite-sized format.” Space is limited. Go to schedule.catersource.com for the latest information on how to attend this Wednesday afternoon session. Both Catersource and The Special Event pass holders are eligible to attend.
No Plan B
Spiegel herself is an excellent example of how a willingness to collaborate with others can pay a big dividend. Before she built her successful consulting and speaking practice, she spent 15 years in the New York fashion industry, working in senior roles for brands like Coach and Narciso Rodriguez. After realizing that she was no longer passionate about the work, she gave her notice without a Plan B in sight. “That first year was rough,” she recalls. “I was burning through my 401K. But then people started coming to me for help with consulting or teaching, and I said yes to everything.”
What’s next
She recently launched a new community platform, Dear Grown Ass Women™, a diverse community and self-development platform for women ages 35 to 55. “It’s a way for us to come together in community online and in-person, to attend workshops and digital classes, host get-togethers, and equip women with the tools to continue developing personally and professionally,” she says.
“As I’ve grown into myself, I’ve witnessed the shifts that happen emotionally, physically, and spiritually. I know, at damn near forty-two years old, we exist differently than we did even a decade ago. We’ve become wiser but still feel misunderstood, we’ve grown stronger than ever. Still, we cry ugly tears when things go differently than we’d hoped. We learned because this is life.”
Get her new book at the show!
Spiegel is the author of A Year of Positive Thinking: Daily Inspiration, Wisdom, and Courage. It’s a guide to personal development that draws on positive psychology, neuroscience, and other schools of thought for motivating positive thinking. Day by day, Spiegel shows practical ways to choose to see the good over the bad, optimism over pessimism, and positive over negative thinking. “I’m an unlikely candidate to write a book of daily inspiration,” she says. “I grew up in poverty, to drug-addicted parents. This book doesn’t take a butterflies-and-rainbows approach. It’s a very realistic way to help you change your brain structure by consciously shifting your thoughts and changing your ‘default mode.’”
She will be conducting a book signing after her keynote address. More information can be found at schedule.catersource.com in the coming weeks.
