Productive Flourishing

Turn Ideas Into Action

Bring Charlie Gilkey in for high-impact keynotes, breakouts, and workshops

Charlie Gilkey helps people start finishing what matters most. He’s the author of Start Finishing: How to Go from Idea to Done and The Small Business Lifecycle, the co-host of the Productive Flourishing podcast, and the founder of Productive Flourishing, one of the world’s top websites for planning, prioritization, and productivity for creative people. His work is regularly featured in places like TIME, Inc.com, Forbes, Entrepreneur, Lifehacker, and the Huffington Post. Prior to starting Productive Flourishing, Charlie was an Army Joint Force Military Coordinator and pursuing a PhD in Philosophy.

If your audience is ready to figure out what to do with all the information they’ve been hearing and start taking action, Charlie Gilkey is an ideal choice to speak at your event. Listeners will walk away from his presentations with insight that opens up their next step, takes their business or projects forward, and all in a way that respects where they are on their journey. Listeners don’t just feel better – they’re armed to do better.

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Signature Keynotes

Charlie prefers to tailor the content of his presentations to meet the goals and needs of the organizations hosting him. He is known for his approachable demeanor, engaging and natural storytelling, and his use of interactivity with the audience.

Every presentation includes original content, and he excels at synthesizing the insights previous speakers have shared into his talks. He’s particularly suited for being the last presenter since he can tie many threads into a coherent, grounding, and actionable tapestry.

  • Start Finishing: How to Go From Idea to Done

    Doing your best work requires mindsets and skillsets that just aren’t taught in school and are often learned too late in life. This presentation shares simple strategies and frameworks that get people out of their heads so they start finishing their best work.

  • The Five Keys to Building Successful, High-Performance Teams

    High-performance teams don’t just create themselves – they’re a product of intentionally putting together the pieces that enable teams to perform at that level. This presentation shares the five keys leaders must put in place to achieve high-performance. Hint: hiring great performers is one of the least important pieces of the puzzle.

  • How to Navigate the 5 Stages of Small Business Growth

    Entrepreneurs often think about taking their business to the “next level” without a clear idea of what that means. They struggle because they’re focusing on the wrong thing at the wrong time. This presentation shows entrepreneurs and small business owners how small businesses grow so that they can orient and prioritize their efforts to grow.

Molly Gordon

 "Charlie is one of the best people to work with I’ve ever met. He’s easy going, smart, and delivers more than he promises. As a presenter in the 2010 Self Employment Telesummit he simplified complex business choices without dumbing them down, which is quite a feat. I highly recommend Charlie as a teacher, mentor, and guide."

Molly Gordon

ShaboomInc.com

Past Speaking Engagements

2022 Speaking Engagements

  • January 12, 2022: NPConnect Virtual Executive Director Breakfast
  • January 12, 2022: NYC Planner Addicts: The Momentum Planning Method

2021 Speaking Engagements

  • February 2021: The Big Ready - Productivityist with Mike Vardy
  • August 2021: “Strategic Customer Development for Small Business” for Portland Small Business Development Center

2020 Speaking Engagements

  • January 2020: ProductivityCon
  • February 2020: Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc. Book Talk

2019 Speaking Engagements

  • September 2019: Everything Conference
  • August 2019: “Strategic Customer Development for Small Business” for Portland Small Business Development Center
  • April 2019: Craftcation: Business & Makers Conference
  • April 2019: Journey 2019
  • February 2019: USA Cycling Summit

2018 Speaking Engagements

  • August 2018: “Building Better Boundaries” with Angela Wheeler for CampGLP, hosted by Jonathan Fields
  • July 2018: “Strategic Customer Development for Small Business” for Portland Small Business Development Center
  • February 2018: “Building Better Boundaries” with Angela Wheeler for Think Better, Live Better

2017 Speaking Engagements

  • August 2017:  “Start Finishing: The 10 Keys to Doing Your Best Work” for CampGLP, hosted by Jonathan Fields
  • June 2017: “Strategic Customer Development for Small Business” for Portland Small Business Development Center
  • May 2017: “Systems Thinking for Conscious Business Owners” for The 108, hosted by Jonathan Fields
  • February 2017: “Start Finishing: 3 Key Strategies to Simplify Your Plans, Enjoy the Process, and Do Your Best Work” for Think Better, Live Better
  • January 2017: “Start Finishing This Year” for Wayfinding Academy

2016 Speaking Engagements

  • October 2016: “The Small Business Life Cycle: What to Navigate and Accelerate Your Business’s Growth” for PetCare VISIBILITY, hosted by Joshua Cary
  • August 2016:  “Start Finishing: The 10 Keys to Doing Your Best Work” for CampGLP, hosted by Jonathan Fields
  • August 2016: “Start Finishing: 3 Keys Strategies to Go From Idea to Done” Think Better, Live Better Academy for World Domination Summit
  • July 2016: “Strategic Customer Development for Small Business” for Portland Small Business Development Center
  • May 2016: “Authority Behind the Scenes with Pamela Wilson” for Copyblogger
  • April 2016: “Winning Strategies Aren’t About Ideas – They’re About Execution” for Quiet Power Strategy Summit
  • January 2016: “Start Finishing This Year” for Wayfinding Academy
  • January 2016: “Start Finishing: 3 Key Strategies to Simplify Your Plans, Enjoy the Process, and Do Your Best Work” for Think Better, Live Better

2015 Speaking Engagements

  • October 2015: “Start Finishing: 3 Key Strategies to Simplify Your Plans, Enjoy the Process, and Do Your Best Work” for SimpleRev
  • August 2015: “Work Smarter, Not Harder – Using Systems Thinking to Get Better Results in Your Business” for Portland Small Business Development Center
  • August 2015:  “Start Finishing: The 10 Keys to Doing Your Best Work” for CampGLP, hosted by Jonathan Fields
  • June 2015: “Strategic Customer Development” for Portland Small Business Development Center
  • May 2015: “Navigating the Stages of Business Growth” for Small Business Website Masterclass with Pia Larson
  • February 2015: “How to Prioritize and Sequence Your Strategic Goals” for Protect and Profit from Your Intellectual Property with Rachel Rodgers – CreativeLive

2014 Speaking Engagements

  • October 2014: “Implementation So You Can Make Money” for IPA Series
  • October 2014: “Work Smarter, Not Harder – Using Systems Thinking to Get Better Results in Your Business” for Portland Small Business Development Center
  • September 2014: “Strategic Customer Development” for Portland Small Business Development Center
  • June 2014: “The 8Ps for Moving from a Helping Hunch to a Sellable Service Offering” for The Good Life Project Academy
  • June 2014: “Work Smarter, Not Harder – Using Systems Thinking to Get Better Results in Your Business” for Portland Small Business Development Center
  • March 2014: “Strategic Customer Development” for Small Business Development Center

2013 Speaking Engagements

  • November 2013: “Rock the Halls: Holiday Time Management and Productivity Tips for Online Entrepreneurs” for CopyBlogger
  • October 2013: “Communication Matchmaking: Managing Communication Styles, Preferences, and Technology” for Citrix
  • October 2013: “The World Is Your Marketplace” for Small Business Development Center
  • July 2103: “Marketing the Right Things At The Right Time: How You Market Depends on Where You Are” for DexOne
  • May 2013: “5 Overlooked Principles of Execution” – SOBCon
  • May 2013: “Good Communication Saves More Time Than It Takes” for Toastmasters International
  • April 2013: “Money Talks: The Real Business Benefits of Effective Communication” for Citrix
  • 2013: “Strategy Execution for Entrepreneurial Success” – GLP Immersion

2012 Speaking Engagements

  • July 2012: Panelist at the Portland DexOne Local Leadership Event
  • May 2012: “Effective Decision-Making Made Easy” for SOBCon

2011 Speaking Engagements

  • October 2011: “It’s Not About What You Value, It’s About What They Value" for Molly Gordon Self-Employment Telesummit
  • September 2011: “How to Find – And Focus On – What Actually Matters In Your Business” for Casey Truffo’s Practice Building Conference
  • June 2011: “How to Embrace the No Man’s Land of Authorship” for Book Breakthrough NYC
  • June 2011: Navigating the Small Business Life Cycle – Profit Catalyst
  • May 2011: “How to Grow Your Business, One Stage and Season At A Time” for the Young Women Social Entrepreneur group in Portland, Oregon

2010 Speaking Engagements

  • October 2010: “Go Big or Go Home .. or Go Deep,” for Andrea Lee’s Wealthy Thought Leader Event
  • October 2010: “Content Creation and Management Strategies” for the Hillsboro Chamber of Commerce’s “Social Media for Sales Success” workshop

2009 Speaking Engagements

  • Jan 2009: “Project Management Within Academia,” for the University of Nebraska Draught Mitigation Team

Click here to check out video samples of highlights and full presentations.

Want Charlie to speak at your event?

If you’d like Charlie to speak or present for your event, click the button below to fill out a form and we’ll get in touch with you shortly. We can also send a speaking/media kit to you, upon request.

 

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liz-strauss

“When Charlie Gilkey is at the microphone, you can count on information and interaction that engage, energize, and motivate while making the path forward look natural and easy. Whether it’s a private meeting, panel of experts, or a presentation, don’t miss a chance to hear Charlie sharing his expertise on business online and off.”

Liz Strauss

International Business Strategist and CEO of SOBCon
randyshafer

“Charlie’s keynote address and facilitation on creating high-performance teams felt like a tipping point for our organization. While I originally proposed my thoughts on how he could address our keynote topic, he created the space for me to talk about what it is we do and what I was trying to accomplish. Listening with curiosity, he was willing to share what he understood about our organization and what he felt was actually needed to achieve that.
 

Charlie made a strong case for a revised topic direction, and tailored his keynote and approach to create a feeling of openness and participation that we had not understood a need for, nor generated, in previous summits. His willingness to jump into uncomfortable unknowns with positivity and curiosity encouraged everyone at the event to ride with him and feel empowered to speak up, collaborate, and own the ways they could improve our team. Charlie pushed us beyond talking about becoming a better team — we became a better team, in real time, because of his catalytic presence.”

Randy Schafer

Technical Director, USA Cycling