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Deborah Gardner

OCEAN DEPTHS TO CENTER STAGE: Strategies to help leaders and teams stop drifting and start thriving.

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Fee Range: Contact Speaker Exchange Agency

  • Professional Speaker
  • Competitive Performance Expert
  • Hospitality Today Live broadcast podcast show
  • Researcher
  • Author of 6 books
  • Broadcaster
  • Consultant

*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.

DEBORAH G (GARDNER), CMP, CVP – The New Guinness World Record Holder

Deborah isn’t your typical keynote speaker. She’s a powerhouse of energy, humor, and bold authenticity who transforms every stage into an unforgettable experience. Known by many Fortune 500 companies as “The Pit Bull in a Skirt,” she delivers interactive, electrifying, and transformational keynotes that get audiences laughing, thinking, and taking fearless action.

Her signature program, “OWN YOUR LANE,” along with “Be Ambitiously You” and “Lead Ambitiously,” inspires people to stop treading water and start making waves, personally and professionally. These aren’t just presentations; they’re high-energy, full-body experiences that move people to act with courage, confidence, and conviction.

A Marine Brat, Olympic Trials swimmer, and now a Guinness World Record Channel Swimmer as the oldest woman to conquer the 21-mile Catalina Island Channel, Deborah knows what it takes to push limits, overcome fear, and perform under pressure. She’s proof that ambition has no expiration date.

A former CBS and NBC Sports broadcaster and hospitality industry veteran, Deborah has spent over three decades inspiring excellence and resilience. Today, she’s a superhero in a business suit, empowering audiences to lead and live ambitiously. Trusted by Fortune 500 companies and global associations like American Express, Intel, Marriott, Assurant, Direct Selling Association, Canadian Association of Professional Speakers, and the International Association of Exhibitions and Events Women’s Leadership Conference, among others, Deborah knows how to deliver results that last long after the applause fades.

Named a CNN Top 75 Keynote Speaker, Smart Meetings Top 50 Smart Women Leader, and Meetings Today Trendsetter, Deborah brings her trademark blend of humor, heart, and high performance to every event.

When she’s not making waves on stage or in the ocean, Deborah calls Phoenix, Arizona, home with her husband, Jerry, and their spirited dog, Bear.

Deborah Gardner doesn’t just make a splash; she creates a tidal wave of ambition, laughter, and unstoppable confidence while inspiring the world to live and lead ambitiously.

OWN YOUR LANE: Navigating Changing Waters and Making Waves

Get ready for an empowering and transformative experience like no other, based on Deborah’s bold and inspiring recent feat. Equip leaders and teams with a simple, actionable strategy to align your inner drive with impactful external action. This program provides the tools to take ownership, embrace challenges, and thrive in a world of constant change and turbulence. This high-energy, interactive keynote dives deep into the mindset of owning your lane, tapping into your competitive edge to outdo your past self and navigate personal and professional growth. Whether you’re conquering workplace obstacles or life’s ever-changing currents, you’ll be ready to make waves with confidence, purpose, and ambition.

This keynote is for leaders, teams, and professionals ready to shift from surviving to thriving confidently and purposefully. Ideal for anyone seeking clarity, ownership, and actionable tools to manifest goals and take bold action, it’s a transformative experience that inspires personal “ah-ha” moments and empowers participants to make waves in work and life.

  • 1. Master Self-Competition Learn how to shift your focus from competing externally to elevating yourself— unlocking confidence, resilience, and unstoppable momentum.
  • 2. Set Ambitious Goals: Transform “what if” into “what’s next” by creating bold, actionable goals that drive change and amplify results.
  • 3. Celebrate the Journey Discover the power of celebrating every win, big or small, to fuel motivation, build momentum, and energize your path forward.
LEAD AMBITIOUSLY: Mastering Bold Leadership in a Resistant World

In today’s fast-paced, high-pressure environment, leaders face mounting demands, fierce competition, and constant change. The chaos is real, but so is the opportunity. Your secret weapon? Ambition. This isn’t your typical program. It’s a fast-paced, game-changing experience that recalibrates your thinking, challenges your mindset, and turbocharges your leadership skills. Ready to lead ambitiously? Buckle up! This is your moment! Let’s GO!

This keynote is perfect for ambitious leaders and teams who want to transform challenges into opportunities and achieve exceptional results in today’s relentless world. It’s designed for those ready to break through barriers, embrace bold decision-making, and foster a culture of unstoppable progress. Participants will leave energized, equipped to lead on their own terms, and empowered to take confident, immediate action toward their goals.

  • Transform Resistance into Opportunity Confront challenges head-on, turn obstacles into opportunities, and lead with resilience in a relentless world.
  • Unshakeable Decision-Making Learn how to make bold, confident decisions under pressure and turn uncertainty into growth.
  • Empower Bold Leadership Cultivate the tools to lead with clarity, purpose, and ambition, driving progress and innovation, even when the heat is on.

Are you ready to elevate ambition, ignite results, and lead boldly? Let’s do this!

BE UNSINKABLE

What if you were truly UNSINKABLE? Ever feel like pressure is coming at you from every direction? Like no matter how hard you try, the waves just keep crashing? Most people hesitate, stall, or sink, but not you. In this high-energy, interactive keynote, Deborah Gardner shows you how to stay steady, focused, and moving forward no matter what life throws at you. From ultra-marathon channel swims to global stages, Deborah has faced extreme physical, mental, and emotional currents—and emerged stronger every time. She delivers real-world strategies to stay resilient, lead with confidence, and push past doubt, fatigue, and fear. When others stop, you’ll keep going, growing, and winning—in work, in life, and in everything that matters. Be bold. Be brave. Be UNSINKABLE.

Pressure-Proof Mindset – Flip fear, stress, and chaos into fuel for action Resilience Reset – Rebound faster, smarter, and stronger every time life hits hard Momentum Method – Keep moving forward, even when everyone else stalls, and turn team friction into unsinkable progress. Who It’s For: Leaders, teams, and professionals ready to stop hesitating, crush obstacles, and lead life and work with unstoppable focus, confidence, and resilience. This keynote is for anyone ready to rise above the waves and be truly UNSINKABLE.

PICK YOUR GO!

What are you waiting for… permission, perfection, or a giant lifeguard whistle to shove you off the block?

Resistance, fear, and hesitation love to talk loudly. They tell you to play small, stay safe, and wait for “someday.” But ambitious people? They don’t wait… they GO!

In this high-energy, laugh-out-loud keynote, Deborah takes audiences on a bold ride through all the excuses that keep people stuck in the slow lane. Through powerful firsthand experience, an entire audience interaction, humor, and her signature swimmer-style motivation, Deborah introduces the fast-moving … The GO Method is a proven way to stop overthinking, trust yourself, and dive into action with confidence and courage.

Because the truth is … you don’t need perfect timing. You just need to Pick Your Go!

  • Discover how to blast past doubt before it steals your momentum
  • Learn the powerful 3-step, The GO Method, to move faster toward your ambitions

This program is for those who want to build confidence, energy, and bold action habits that create unsinkable results in work and life

NEVER SWIM ALONE: Where Splash-tastic Teams Win

Swimming solo in business or in life? Think again. When was the last time you truly succeeded alone… or crossed an ocean without a crew? In today’s fast-moving, hyper-competitive world, the teams that cheer each other on, build trust, and move together are the ones that outsmart the sharks and win big. Welcome to the G FORCE Experience, where Deborah Gardner takes you on a high-energy, laugh-out-loud, did-I-just-do-that? journey inspired by real open-water challenges. Through fast-paced interaction and powerful stories, participants will test their commitment, discipline, focus, and resilience while learning how to overcome obstacles, adapt to change, and elevate team performance. The result? A stronger, smarter, record-breaking team ready to take on any challenge—together.

Trust the Crew – Discover how trust, encouragement, and collaboration turn individual effort into unstoppable team performance. Adapt and Conquer – Learn how high-performing teams stay focused, flexible, and solution-driven when obstacles, pressure, and change appear. Win Together – Unlock the mindset and habits that transform a group of individuals into a unified, record-breaking team. This program is perfect for leaders, teams, and organizations who want to strengthen trust, elevate collaboration, and achieve record-breaking performance, together. It’s ideal for sales teams, leadership groups, entrepreneurs, corporate teams, associations, and high-performing professionals ready to move faster, adapt to change, and win as a united force.

Please contact us to see testimonials.
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