Ben Utecht
Inspires audiences to truly care about their minds and to discover how integral memory is to identity
Topic Categories:
Fee Range: Contact Speaker Exchange Agency
Inspire your team and energize your leadership with stories from the gridiron taught by a Super Bowl Champion, national speaker, and author.
*Fee ranges are presented as a guideline only. Speaker fees are subject to change without notice. For an exact quote, please contact your Speaker Exchange Agency representative.
It is rare to find a true Renaissance man anymore, but that’s just that you get with Ben Utecht. Ben has always chased his dreams, finding his way from a small river town in Minnesota to a Super Bowl championship field. Whether it was becoming a world champion in football, singing with major symphonies, serenading Muhammad Ali on his 70th birthday, or stepping into a national advocacy role, Ben has found success in many realms. He honed his already keen public speaking skills at the University of Minnesota, where he graduated with a degree in communications and even started a master’s degree in sports management before being swept up into the NFL.
Ben has established himself as a prominent national leadership and motivational speaker for corporations, conventions, and non-profit events. Both of his programs, The Champion’s Way™ and The MVP Program™, stem from lessons he learned in the locker room with Hall of Fame coach Tony Dungy and in the huddle with future Hall-of-Famer Peyton Manning. The Champion’s Way™ spotlights and breaks down “The 4 Ls” of leadership: listening, learning, language, and love. The MVP Program™ comes from Ben’s experience with concussions. It inspires audiences to truly care about their minds and to discover how integral memory is to identity. Both programs illuminate dynamic ways to succeed in business and life.
“I believe, as a speaker, that vulnerability equals connectivity. This is why I approach my keynote presentations with a mission of bringing you on an emotional journey through my life, into a hall-of-fame huddle, and onto a field of high-impact lessons. All our lives tell a story, and this is how I tell mine!”
As an influential advocate for brain health, Ben served as the national spokesperson for the American Academy of Neurology and currently sits on the prestigious board of the American Brain Foundation. Ben was given the AAN’s most esteemed honor, the Public Leadership in Neurology Award, in 2014. Also at that time, Ben released a music video for his song “You Will Always Be My Girls,” written as a love letter to his wife and daughters with the goal of emotionally connecting people to the importance of their memories. The video has impacted the lives of many, garnering over 1.3 million YouTube views to date.
Ben can now add “author” to his résumé, with the release of his new book Counting the Days While My Mind Slips Away, published by Simon & Schuster. The book is the first memoir from a former NFL player who left the game as a result of concussions. It takes the reader on a heart-felt journey through the ups and downs of Ben’s life with faith, family, and football. Ben has a message of hope that has reached a nation-wide audience, inspiring people to value every moment to its fullest.
On February 7th 2007, I stepped onto the Super Bowl field and into a Hall of Fame huddle with my teammates, including Peyton Manning and our head coach Tony Dungy. We became a world-class offense by creating a culture of champion leadership and dynamic communication. This culture was fueled by four foundational principles that together allowed each player to reach his greatest potential for the benefit of the team in a highly stressful and competitive environment.
After football, I began to realize these championship principles were the backbone for off-the-field success as well. “The 4 Ls,” Listening, Learning, Language, and Love, are foundational in both life and business.
Program highlights:
1. Utecht brings you into the NFL Huddle to discover the steps to championship listening.
- Stop – put others first
- Look – pursue information
- Care – choose empathy
2. Experience the daily schedule of a Super Bowl contender and discover the keys of championship learning. Creating a culture of:
- Questions – pursue clarity
- Execution – purposeful application
- Evaluation – intentional accountability leading to growth and development
3. Listen in on the most intricate offense and audible system in NFL history to discover the facets of championship language.
- Content – what are you saying?
- Purpose – why are you saying it?
- Delivery – how are you saying it?
4. Join the team and discover how a championship culture of love and respect can propel you to new heights of success.
- Value – hold precious what makes us human
- Trust – empowerment of others
- Affirmation – outward, intentional validation
I had dreamed of playing in the NFL since I was a little boy and was extremely blessed to have realized that dream in 2004. But after 6 seasons and a Super Bowl championship with the 2006 Indianapolis Colts, I chose to walk away for the sake of my family and my mind. Head injury, concussions, and memory loss from playing the game I love are all a part of my story, but they have set me on a noble path filled with hope and joy. After football, I’ve made it my mission to help people overcome difficult circumstances. You’ll hear stories about my family, my friends, and my football career, and you’ll be inspired to find the value in every moment. In doing so, you’ll discover a renewed purpose for living!
Program highlights:
- Discover with Ben that our mind and memories are the keys to overcoming difficult and uncertain circumstances.
- Using that knowledge, begin to see every moment with greater value.
- Walk away with a renewed purpose!
- Get a once-in-a-lifetime player perspective on the game of football and its connection to brain injury.
- Engage with Ben in an honest question and answer time in which he will field any question and answer authentically.
Want to bring Ben Utecht to your next event? Please tell us a little about your event, and we will get back to you shortly!