Adam "Smiley" Poswolsky
About Adam "Smiley" Poswolsky
“Every interaction with each person was seamless. They were able to answer any questions we had and provide us with clear information to make our experience the best possible. Smiley was a great speaker and related to our colleagues leaving a lasting impression on all of us. Thank you!”
Speech topics
The Power of Human Connection: How Leaders Can Build Belonging at Work
How Leaders Can Increase Engagement + Retention, Motivate High-Performing Teams, Build Trusting Relationships, and Create Human Connection at Work
In a lonely, uncertain, overwhelmed workplace; as time spent face-to-face has been replaced with wall-to-wall Zoom meetings, 24/7 Teams messages, and the rapid rise of AI agents and ChatGPT; workplace connection has withered. 40% employees don’t feel a sense of connection to their coworkers, 40% don’t trust their coworkers, and 20% don’t even have one friend at work. As the war for skilled talent grows more competitive and employees spend less time face-to-face than ever before, workplace culture expert Smiley Poswolsky makes the case that the future work is human connection.
In this timely, inspiring, and highly actionable presentation, Smiley will share how leaders can attract and retain top talent across all generations, reignite human connection, and increase team and customer engagement by creating a culture of belonging. Smiley will share actionable tools for fostering employee engagement and supporting our people, customers, and clients, with the challenges of the new world of work including generational differences, hybrid work, well-being, and the impact of AI. At the end of this presentation, your team will have an easy-to-use action-based toolkit to create a culture of human connection for your people, your customers, and your company, and become an industry leader in the future of work.
KEY AUDIENCE TAKEAWAYS:
- Learn 5 ways to increase human connection at work.
- How to deepen trust and build better relationships with coworkers, customers, and clients.
- A concrete example of how one company built higher levels of human connection among their employees.
- Understand the definition of psychological safety and how to foster higher levels of psychological safety on your team, including a simple exercise to try at your next team meeting.
- A practical action-based toolkit every leader, manager, and individual employee can use to build a more connected, collaborative, and engaged culture of belonging at work.
Speaking videos
Books by Adam "Smiley" Poswolsky
“Friendship in the Age of Loneliness: An Optimist's Guide to Connection” (2021)
After a year of social distancing and lockdown measures during the pandemic, it’s more clear than ever that our friendships and social bonds are vital to our health and happiness. This refreshing, positive guide helps you take care of your people and form deep connections in the digital age We are lonelier than ever. The average American hasn't made a new friend in the last five years. Research has shown that people with close friends are happier, healthier, and live longer than people who lack strong social bonds. But why—when we are seemingly more connected than ever before—can it feel so difficult to keep those bonds alive and well? Why do we spend only four percent of our time with friends? In this warm, inspiring guide, Adam "Smiley" Poswolsky proposes a new solution for the mounting pressures of modern life: focus on your friendships. Smiley offers practical habits and playful reminders on how to create meaningful connections, make new friends, and deepen relationships. He'll help you develop a healthier relationship with technology, but he'll also encourage you to prioritize real-world experiences, send snail mail, and engage in self-reflective exercises. Written in short, digestible, action-oriented sections, this book reminds us that nurturing old and new friendships is a ritual, a necessity, and one of the most worthwhile things we can do in life.
“The Quarter-Life Breakthrough: Invent Your Own Path, Find Meaningful Work, and Build a Life That Matters” (2016)
How do you actually find meaning in the workplace? How do you find work that makes your heart sing, creates impact, and pays your rent? After realizing that his well-paying, prestigious job was actually making him miserable, Adam "Smiley" Poswolsky started asking these big questions. The Quarter-Life Breakthrough provides fresh, honest, counterintuitive, and inspiring career advice for anyone stuck in a quarter-life crisis (or third-life crisis), trying to figure out what to do with your life. Smiley shares the stories of many twenty- and thirty-somethings who are discovering how to work with purpose (and still pay the bills). Brimming with practical exercises and advice, this book is essential reading for millennial career changers and anyone passionate about getting unstuck, pursuing work that matters, and changing the world.
“The Quarter-Life Breakthrough” (2014)
An inspiring career guide for twenty- (and thirty-) somethings to get unstuck, pursue work that matters and change the world. This book is for people who want to get paid for who they are and what they believe in. Most books and articles about twentysomethings focus on the problem: why young people are doomed, in debt, depressed, lazy, unlucky, entitled, or addicted to Facebook. Instead, Adam Smiley Poswolsky writes about the solution, so that anyone going through a quarter-life crisis can turn a moment of being stuck into a breakthrough and find meaningful work. Insightful and inspiring, THE QUARTER-LIFE BREAKTHROUGH shares the stories of many twenty- (and thirty-) somethings who are discovering how to work with purpose (and still pay their rent). Despite being shackled by debt, recession, and the jobs crisis—these millennials aren’t motivated by money. Rather, they’re driven to make the world more compassionate, innovative, and sustainable.
At a glanceAdam "Smiley" Poswolsky
Recommended offer:
Get a custom quote for your event:
Get StartedBrowse Similar Speakers
Speaker Search is a marketplace of speakers designed for talent buyers. We do not represent or manage speakers; instead, we provide event planners with the most comprehensive resource to discover and book the right talent.