Here Comes Everyone John Brewer

For the latest episode in our occasional series featuring poets my awesome co-host Kate Jenkinson and I are joined by Shane Schick.

I've known Shane for many years both through his excellent writing on Customer Experience, IT and Men's Fashion as well as his work designing and emceeing business conferences.  Given what an accomplished writer he is it should have come as no surprise that he is also a wonderful poet.

Shane is less of a performer than either Kate or I, but we found much common ground in this conversation,.  While Kate and I get on the stage, Shane sees his work as a "diary you want people to read".   What his "private" poetry and public journalism have in common is a focus on detail, the ability to create new, valuable insights,  and a lightness of touch that makes him easy to read even when he challenges how we see the world.

I hope you enjoy this conversation.  You can check out Shane's business writing at https://360magazine.com/

As always you can find out more about Kate, her poetry and HR practice at https://nextstephr.co.uk/
For more info on my work as a conference emcee, spoken word artist, panel moderator and event designer check out my site at https://conferencebard.ca/

I first came across Tucker and his poetry at the start of the pandemic and was blown away by the power of his imagery and the way his delivery of his words take you to whole different realm.  His words create worlds.

It was great to sit down with him and my co-host Kate to discuss his work - as a poet, keynote speaker and leadership guide.  It's wonderful to hear about how he create work that is deeply spiritual and then puts it to practical use with business audiences.

I've witnessed the magic he can create for an audience (it was at a DEI event) and I hope our brief conversation here which includes him sharing his work, gives you a glimpse of the magic he can bring to your events.

You can find out more about Tucker at https://www.tuckerbryantspeaks.com/



For more info on my work as a conference emcee, spoken word artist, panel moderator and event designer check out my site at https://conferencebard.ca/

Forpartu this second episode my wonderful co-host Kate Jenkinson and I are joined by Phil Isherwood who is a Hospice Poet.  In this role he spends time with patients and their families and helps them navigate their illness and final journey through writing poetry.

Phil demonstrates the power of poetry in this particularly challenging environment.  He speaks about the comfort his work brings and the kinds of thoughts that occupy the minds of those nearing the ends of their lives.

While addressing the pain of grief,  Phil's work is above all a celebration of the lives of those he serves.  It was a privilege to sit with him and get a view into his world for half an hour.  I'm sure our listeners will feel the same.

You can connect with Phil on Linked in at https://www.linkedin.com/in/phil-isherwood-39a4ab23/

Kate's website is https://nextstephr.co.uk/
For more info on my work as a conference emcee, spoken word artist, panel moderator and event designer check out my site at https://conferencebard.ca/

For this first proper episode of Poetry Not Powerpoint, my co-host Kate of Next Step HR are delighted to have and our guest Rashad Rayford aka Rashad Tha Poet.

This is a fitting place to start our exploration of poetry and business as I first met Rashad when he opened The Conference Board's DEI event back in June 2020.  It was the first time I'd included a poet/spoken word artist on a conference agenda and he immediately created an emotional engagement with the audience that carried over for the following three days of the event.

I can only imagine the impact he has at in person events....

In addition to being a great poet, Rashad is an inspirational speaker.  In this conversation he shares his approach to his work and how poetry enriches the experience of those who attend his speaking gigs.  

As with all our guests he shares one of his own works as well as a poem that inspires him.

You can connect with Rashad on his site at https://www.rashadthapoet.com/

And Kate can be found at https://nextstephr.co.uk/



For more info on my work as a conference emcee, spoken word artist, panel moderator and event designer check out my site at https://conferencebard.ca/

POETRY NOT POWERPOINT is a new series of conversations published as part of the podcast Here Comes Everyone.

Co-hosted by Kate Jenkinson who is an executive coach and poet, each episode will feature a guest poet.  The guest will share a piece of their work as well as a poem that has inspired and influenced them.

Together we will explore their approach to verse and spoken word and talk about the value that they as artists bring to their audiences particularly to businesses.  

As The Conference Bard I firmly believe business events would benefit from featuring more poetry and fewer powerpoint presentations.  My hope is that hearing directly from some outstanding poets will convince you of this as well

(you can find out more about Kate at her website https://nextstephr.co.uk)


For more info on my work as a conference emcee, spoken word artist, panel moderator and event designer check out my site at https://conferencebard.ca/

One of Canada's most respected experts in the field of Diversity and author of The Human Equity Advantage, Peter Trevor Wilson joins us to discuss his upcoming article in Profiles in Diversity Journal.

Our conversation begins with his encounter with Desmond Tutu over 20 years ago and how the Archbishop inspired a journey for Peter that continues to this day.  We quickly move on to discuss Peter's work over the years and how for him diversity has always been about the unleashing of the potential in all of us, at work and in life.  

Given the influence Tutu has had on Peter he shares his perspective on our current moment informed by the idea of Ubuntu.  This idea which Tutu applied in the Truth and Reconciliation process in South Africa is taking on new relevance now in North America as on the one hand there is increased recognition of the inequities and injustices in our society while at the same time divisions seem to be deepening and becoming more volatile.

Peter touches on his admiration for Obama ("the best President ever"),  the pointlessness of guilt ("you can't change anything by feeling guilty"),  the fundament truth that to be human is to screw up and the need to practice diversity built on recognizing every individual's uniqueness as well as our shared humanity.


For more info on my work as a conference emcee, spoken word artist, panel moderator and event designer check out my site at https://conferencebard.ca/