Guest speaker Debra Gould has studied with some of the greats in public speaking, including: Patricia Fripp, Marcia Weider, Michael Port, Amy Mead and Lisa Sasevich.
Wanting to bring humor and a relaxed approachable style to her public speaking engagements, Debra Gould has been a student at The Second City and has studied Comedy Improv, Stand Up Comedy and Storytelling with Jacqueline Kabat, Ken Hall and Sage Tyrtle, among others.
Engaging and fast on her feet, Debra Gould especially excels in question and answer situations, breakout sessions, discussion panels and interviews— both online and in person.
Speaking Topics
Speaker Debra Gould draws from personal experience on a variety of topics, including:
Personal Reinvention and Career Change
Personal Reinvention and Career Change
In her presentation, “3 Ways to Reclaim Your Power and Shape your Future,” Debra Gould helps entrepreneurs, coaches, aspiring small business owners and others learn how personal reinvention is possible for each of us, despite perceived roadblocks and past decisions.
Debra Gould is a master of personal reinvention and has many inspiring stories about her journeys. She always includes specific tips in her talks so the audience feels empowered to take action in their own lives.
She has:
- Moved back and forth across the country as a single mom
- Walked away from a successful corporate career to start a consulting business
- Closed a business earning 6 figures to move to a tiny island and become an artist
- Supported her family as an artist, shipping art all over the world and creating events to support other artists
- Started a home staging business that was featured in major media including CNNMoney and The Wall Street Journal
- Turned her knowledge into an online training empire with students in 23 countries
- Grown an online following of 20,000 fans
- Stood on a professional comedy stage in front of 200 people to perform her own Stand Up routine
How To Make More Money with Integrity
How To Make More Money with Integrity
This inspiring and tip-filled talk confirms there’s nothing wrong with earning a great living, even when you’re in the “helping field.”
In her presentation, “Feeling Good About Your Business: How To Make More Money Without Sacrificing Your Integrity,” speaker Debra Gould helps small business owners and life coaches learn how to attract clients, boost sales and grow their business with integrity and without manipulation.
Finding Comedy in Everyday Life
Finding Comedy in Everyday Life
Guest speaker Debra Gould decided to take up Stand Up Comedy to push herself totally out of her comfort zone. The experience of having to write a routine for a public performance helped her discover the comedy in everyday life.
Rave reviews for her first performance at Absolute Comedy in February 2015 included:
“I admire you Debra! Not only for your sense of humor but for daring to do what you want to do. And of course you were great on your first performance!” Sara Naghedi-Ahmadi
“I loved it, Debra! You looked and acted cool and collected…like you’d been doing it for years. And you were so honest and funny! Very relatable. Congratulations! Can’t wait to see what’s next!” Jamie Stanton
“You are one gutsy lady! Laughed along with the crowd–and really enjoyed your presentation! Keep it up–you’re a natural!” Nancy Ship
Running a Home Based Business
Running a Home Based Business
Debra Gould first started working from a home office in 1989. She’s seen and done it all from running a consulting business, an art studio, and a worldwide online training company – all from an extra bedroom or basement. She has also packed up and moved her home based business back and forth across the country.
Talks in this area can cover many aspects from: how to run a home based business with little kids to staying focused and motivated, and the latest in technology.
The Business of Home Staging
The Business of Home Staging
Debra Gould launched the Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program in 2005 and quickly became an industry leader. With a following of 20,000 home stagers and aspiring home stagers, she has championed for change in the industry.
Her blog, Home Staging Business Report was a Stevie Award Finalist for Best Blog of the Year.
Debra can speak on a variety of topics related to the business of home staging and makes a lively addition to any speaker panel.
She has also run hundreds of TeleSeminars for home stagers, include open Q and A sessions.
Marketing Your Small Business
Marketing Your Small Business
Debra wrote a regular small business marketing column for Profit Magazine in the 1980s and early 90s. She is also the author of a chapter in the book Marketing Masters: The Best Ideas, Tips & Strategies from Canada’s Savviest Marketeers, published in 1998. In it she explored various successful promotional strategies for small business owners to foster loyalty and keep customers coming back.
With an MBA in Marketing and the personal experience of growing multiple successful businesses as an entrepreneur since 1989, Debra’s talks and workshops on marketing a small business can take many angles. Suggestions include:
- Finding the right “personality” for your brand
- Choosing the right marketing channels for your target market
- Establishing yourself as an expert in your niche
- Ensuring all elements of your marketing mix fit together
- Building your first website
- Growing a following through social media
- Selling your products online
- Low and no cost marketing tactics to get noticed
- Gaining media attention
Making Money in Real Estate / Women Buying Homes
Making Money in Real Estate / Women Buying Homes
Debra Gould bought her first real estate property in her 20s at a time when few women bought their own homes. Buying, decorating and selling homes in 4 cities eventually lead to a career as a home stager. Later she created a training program for home stagers, with 10,000 students in 23 countries.
More recently, she has ventured into buying investment property.
Suggested speaking topics in this category include:
- Finding the right real estate agent
- Warning signs your real estate agent isn’t working in your best interest
- Information you should never share in a negotiation
- How to pick the right house to buy so you’ll make more when you sell
- How to make the most money when you sell your home
- Relocation tips, especially when you have young kids
- Tips to decorate your home to sell
Debra Gould has appeared multiple times on TV discussing real estate, including sharing the anchor desk on the morning news on GlobalTV and a more in-depth feature on CityTV News at 6.
Debra Gould was a guest on CBC Radio One, answering real estate and decorating questions from callers across Canada. She has also been interviewed on the morning show for CBS News Money 101 in Los Angeles, Live 88.5 Start Up Radio, Radio Colorado Network and took a grilling from Dale Johnson on Lincoln Live – KFOR 1240 AM.
Contact Guest Speaker Debra Gould for Your Next Event
To discuss having Debra Gould speak at your next live event, Webinar or TeleSeminar, contact Debra directly at 416-691-6615 or by email.
