Built by keynote speakers for keynote speakers.

Hey there,

I'm a noob to the speaking world (or at least my imposter syndrome tells me so!). But at one point I found the speaking community, and with their support I delivered two TEDx talks, a UN talk, and now many others. And time and time again, I heard the same thing about what happens once you've got real traction as a keynote speaker: the road gets lonely.

You're pricing a six-figure year by feel. You're guessing which bureaus actually deliver. You're rehearsing a new keynote to your dog because nobody in your life understands what “the close felt soft” means. Your friends think you have the dream job. Your peers are competitors, or at least feel like they should be. So you figure it out alone.

The real risk isn't a bad gig. It's plateauing — booking the same rooms at the same fee for the same audiences, and realizing five years from now that the practice you have isn't the one you set out to build.

That's why Heather, Jason and I launched Keynoters. And with the help of an incredible group of speakers who showed up early and gave generously, a real community took shape — built by keynote speakers, for keynote speakers.

We bring together working speakers who are serious about growing — and just as serious about helping the people next to them grow. You'll join a Pod of peers at your stage, virtual or in your city, that meets every month. Think of it as your personal board of directors for the business of speaking.

Nothing's off the table: fees and negotiation, bureau relationships, building your reel, landing the book deal, the slow season, the gig you lost and don't know why. You'll get the push, the perspective, and the accountability that's nearly impossible to find on your own.

Membership is curated, but not because we're trying to keep people out. We're building a room where everyone is invested in the upward journey of everyone else — you give as much as you get, and the whole group rises. If that's you, you'll fit right in.

Membership is by referral from a current member. If you know a Keynoter, ask them to bring you in. If you don't yet — reach out, and let's talk.

Dear Keynoters,

I work in two worlds: as a research scientist studying how the brain makes decisions, and as a keynote speaker sharing that science on stages. Both have taught me the same uncomfortable lesson. We are poor judges of our own performance. Without honest outside feedback, our sense of how we did drifts away from how we actually did.

Now look at how most keynote speakers run their business. We stand in front of thousands of people, then go back to a hotel room and make high-stakes decisions on almost no data. What to charge. Whether the new talk is working. Why the gig went to someone else.

There’s an irony here. We get paid to teach organizations about collaboration, trust, and the power of connection. Then we build our own businesses alone.

Igor, Jason, and I started Keynoters to fix that. It isn’t a place to trade business cards. It’s a monthly pod of peers at your stage who will tell you exactly where your talk sags. It’s real fee data, so you price on evidence instead of instinct. It’s a room where people pass along the gigs that aren’t their fit. And it’s a room where you can celebrate someone’s big win without secretly wondering whether that should have been your stage.

The speaking business doesn’t have to be zero-sum, and in Keynoters it already isn’t. I’ve watched members open doors for each other, push each other to raise their fees, and turn good talks into great ones.

That only works if everyone contributes, so we’re deliberate about who joins. Your fee, your TEDx count, and your follower number matter far less to me than whether you’ll share what you know and ask for help when you need it.

Thank you for making this room what it is. I’m so glad you’re in it, and I can’t wait to see what we build together.