Keynotes on how motivation, self-belief and endurance can lead to success
UK
Motivational speaker, World Championship gold medalist and British athlete legend who broke the British 400 meter record twice
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About Derek
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Admirable Sportsman
Derek Redmond is a British athletic legend. During the 1980’s and 1990’s he managed it to break the British 400 meter record twice. He won gold with the 4 x 400 meter relay squad in 1991 at the World Championships, the European Championships and the Commonwealth Games in 1986.
In 1992 at the Barcelona Olympics, his performance became one of the Olympic moments in history. At the 400m semi-final race Derek, tipped for the gold medal in the final, tragically snapped his hamstring. After falling and despite the loss he motivated himself to make it across the finish-line with the help of his devoted father.
Derek is an inspiring example of how motivation, self-belief and endurance can lead to success. After retiring from athletics Derek Redmond has professionally played basketball and rugby. Additionally, he is working as an acknowledged coach and advisor for international athletes.
As a speaker, Derek Redmond has a truly moving personality able to use his own story to demonstrate successful strategies and techniques both teams and individuals can use to boost their organisation’s effectiveness.
By now, Derek Redmond has 17 years’ experience in motivational speaking and an extraordinary reputation. He delivers enlightening and charismatic carefully tailored speeches and is a great gain for any kind of corporate event or conference.
See keynotes with Derek RedmondKeynotes by Speaker Derek Redmond
You are an admirable example of willpower and endurance. Where does your energy come from?
I think my energy comes primarily from my attitude and I definitely got that from my Dad. He gave me loads of advice, starting from a very young age, and taught to take a business approach to my career. Not so much in terms of making money but more about meaning business and taking things seriously.
Dad came from a very poor background in Trinidad but, when he arrived in Britain in the 1950s, he soon realised there were opportunities to be taken – that’s what he did!
What similarities do you see between business and athletic teams?
Some might see it as a cliché but there’s something to it – sport is business and business is sport. If you look at the mind sets of successful business people and sportspeople, there’s not much difference at all. They’re self-starting, entrepreneurial and they never take no for an answer.
Why should clients use you for their next event?
Well, I think I have a unique understanding of what it takes to get to the top. No matter which arena you’re competing in, the same qualities are required and I have my own way of getting that across to my audiences. I know about the sacrifices you have to make and, from experience, I have learnt how to cope with setbacks and, ultimately, overcome them.
What do you personally gain from public speaking?
Simply put, I love doing it – I could talk for England and I really enjoy seeing people realise they can achieve more than they thought they could when they first walked in the room. I get a particular kick out of seeing the moment the penny drops for an individual, that moment of revelation – you can see it their eyes. That’s why I do it!
What is the most unique experience you have had as a result of your job as a motivational speaker?
Every presentation is different to all the others – unique surroundings, a fresh audience – there are different dynamics at work every time. I get a massive buzz passing on my message and I like performing for crowds, often the bigger the better.
An audience of 25,000 is a bit easier to read than an intimate one of, say, five people like one I did recently, as people tend to go with the flow and get involved. Small audiences perhaps make people slightly more self-conscious and the trick then is to relax them and get them to interact – that way I can feed off them.
As I say, I really enjoy motivational speaking and I’m privileged to be able to do so, but, to be honest, it doesn’t quite match up to winning a World Championship. We can’t have everything, can we?
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