OLYMPIC SPEAKERS: KEYNOTE MOTIVATIONAL SPEAKER

Now what? A Story of Olympic Success, Failure, and Moving Forward.

Setting a goal, reaching your big moment but then falling short, finally achieving your Olympic Gold Medal moment, a catastrophic failure of career-ending proportions. These situations seem to span the spectrum of possible outcomes and yet each time, you are left with the same question…

In my keynote, "Now What?" I take you inside my journey to the Olympic games —where triumph and failure collided—and share how resilience, adaptability, and mental strength shaped my path. I didn’t just win a gold medal. This isn’t your typical Olympic Athlete story. I nearly lost my life at the Olympics too. From choking in my first final, to bringing home gold, to fighting for my life, I learned that having a true champion's mentality isn’t just about reaching the summit—it’s about how you rise again, and keep going, no matter the outcome.

Success is personal. Everyone’s “Gold Medal” looks different but we all face moments when we must ask ourselves: Where do I go from here?

In this keynote, I’ll share 4 powerful strategies that helped me go from a kid with a dream, to picking myself up after a failure, to winning gold, to reinventing myself after a catastrophic loss. You’ll learn how to navigate the highs and lows, to increase adaptability, and how to keep moving forward after your biggest moments, whether they’re victories or losses. Audiences leave more motivated than ever to go after their own goals.

No matter where you are on your path, the only question that really matters is: Now What?

How you move forward is always up to you.

You have a goal. Now what? In my keynote, I share the critical steps that propelled me to Olympic Gold—steps that are as much about resilience and adaptability as they are about ambition. Success isn’t just about setting big, bold goals—it’s about making every decision, every action, count toward your vision, even when the path isn’t clear. Along my journey to becoming an Olympic Gold medalist, and then reinventing myself after my career ended in the blink of an eye, I learned that success is built one small choice at a time.
I’ll also dive into the strategy of periodization—the Olympic athlete’s method of peaking at the right moment. When you have to be absolutely perfect on one specific day every 4 years you learn how to truly commit to a goal. I show how you can apply that same approach to your own life, so you can be ready to rise when it matters most.
You came up short. Now what? Failure comes in different forms, sometimes you don’t reach your goal and you need to continue working. Sometimes a failure causes you to have to completely change what you are going to work toward. I share actionable strategies on how to do both.

We all want to perform at our best in those big moments, but what happens after the moment? Throughout my career, I discovered that true peak performance isn’t just about getting it right when everything is on the line—it’s about how you bounce back, adapt, and move toward your next big moment after a win or a loss.
Reflecting on my first Olympic experience, I pinpointed the mistakes that held me back. That introspection became the foundation for creating strategies that would help me perform at my best when it mattered most. In my keynote, I’ll share those hard-earned lessons with you—offering actionable strategies to help you show up ready for your own “Gold Medal Moment,” and close the loop by sharing the next steps to take, to move forward like a champion, whether you win or lose.
You have reached your goal. Now what? How do you do it again and remain at the top? As the first American to win a Gold Medal in my sport, I had the weight of the world on my shoulders to remain at the top. Reflecting on my success at both the world and Olympic level, I have learned the importance of both celebrating your wins, but also moving forward each time with just as much intensity, drive, and hunger as if you never won. I share my true experience that leaves the audience motivated to move forward and equipped with new tools to help sustain success.

Olympic Speaker: Strategies From an Olympic Gold Medalist

Everyone has their own unique version of a gold medal, and success means something different to every team, but we can all use the same strategies to reach our gold medal moments, and seize them.

To help you meet your goals, Connor shares the same strategies used to win Olympic Gold medals. These are strategies you and your team can immediately implement to give yourself the best chance of navigating the ups and downs life can throw at you as you work towards reaching your own Gold Medal Moment.

What you choose to set as your goal is up to you, but after hearing Connor, you will be more equipped than ever to achieve it. Read about Connor’s different Keynote offerings here:

Now What?: Handling challenges life throws at you, and moving forward like a champion each time.

In his keynote “Now What?” Connor Fields touches on challenges that can cause self doubt in life and work, equipping you with the tools to overcome them. This incredible keynote presentation delves into the crucial power of resilience, overcoming failures, unwavering determination, and perspective, empowering you to face challenges head-on. With compelling stories and hard earned insights, Connor empowers attendees to be ready to answer the question “Now What?” every time.

KEY LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

Clear Goal Setting strategies: Once you know what you want to achieve, how do you get there? Connor outlines step by step process to increase the likelihood of reaching your goals.
Lean Into Resilience: After a failure, what do you do to get better? Connor shares his learnings, from failing at the highest level, of how to correct the mistake and get it right the next time around.
Sustain Success: Now that you have won, how do you stay at the top? Be ready to sustain success with insights from someone who stayed in the top 5 World Ranking for over a decade.
Keep Failure in Perspective: No one wants to fail, but if you are here, you have a chance to fix it. Nearly losing your life changes the way you look at failure. Be able to keep failure in perspective and stay optimistic about the future.

Gold Medal Moments: Reach Your Big Moments, and Be Ready When You Do. Olympic Secrets to Peak Performance

In “Gold Medal Moments” Connor Fields shares what he learned throughout his 3 Olympic cycles and how those lessons can be applied every day. From choking at his first games, winning sports greatest prize at his second, and nearly losing his life at his third he experienced the entire range of outcomes. Each time learning different lessons about preparation, how to succeed despite setbacks, and failing with grace. Through captivating stories and actionable takeaways, attendees will acquire powerful tools and frameworks designed to drive success. Whether you’re eager to enhance your performance in the business world or seeking a spark of motivation, this keynote is essential for anyone ready to think and perform like an Olympic Champion in their professional pursuits. Get to your Gold Medal moment, and seize it!

KEY LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

Intentional Preparation: Learn how to maximize your preparation to be ready for the big moment when it arrives. Lean into a high-performance mindset that embraces discipline, focus, and resilience.
Implement Proven Olympic Strategies: Discover the secret frameworks and techniques used by Olympic athletes that can be applied to enhance performance. When you have 1 day every 4 years that counts, you better get it right. Learn how to “peak” the same way Olympians do.
Handle the Moment: Discover is the secret to staying calm in big moments and maximize your chances of success.

Above all, more than anything, success is made up of these 3 ingredients, that Connor goes into

Setting Goals

In this keynote as an Olympic motivational speaker, Connor explain’s the steps that propelled him to become an Olympic gold medalist. What started as a crazy goal written on the wall at his parents house at 15, turned into a mission. However, the bigger the goal, the bigger the obstacles you will face.

Connor underlines the crucial need for setting precise, ambitious goals and the power of making every decision count toward overcoming what may seem like insurmountable obstacles. Through raw and honest stories, Connor opens up about his own struggles, the times he wanted to give up, and shares how he was able to move forward each time with lessons that can be immediately applied to whatever goal the listener sets.

Every choice, no matter how small, can impact our path to success, Connor shares his approach to goal setting and decision making.

Learn From Your Mistakes

What happens when you do everything right, prepare as much as possible, but it doesn't work out? How do you believe you can get it right next time? How do you have the courage to try again? First thing to do is look in the mirror and figure out why you did not succeed. That is hard to do, and it can hurt, but it is necessary if you want to be the best you can be.

This introspection was crucial and helped Connor establish best practices to prime for peak performance the next chance he got. Connor shares these lessons to prepare you for your Gold Medal Moment when it arrives.

Manage The Pressure

The whole country is counting on you…hundreds of millions of people are watching…your entire career comes down to this moment…will you become one of the Olympic champions? The intensity of an Olympic final is unmatched, yet the essence of pressure remains constant across all scenarios - it doesn't matter if you're on the Olympic starting line or preparing for a presentation at your next conference. If it is important to you, you will feel the pressure.

Connor has developed proven strategies to manage the pressure of needing to succeed in that make-or-break moment, strategies born from moments when the stakes couldn't be higher. Connor explains how they can be adapted to navigate the pressures in your own life, in both work and personal life. He can help you turn seemingly daunting challenges into opportunities for growth and achievement.

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WHY SHOULD YOU BOOK CONNOR AS YOUR KEYNOTE SPEAKER?

Everyone knows the classic athlete story; dream big, work hard, fail a couple times, then achieve your goal and go home happy. Connor’s story doesn’t end with a shiny gold medal being placed around his neck. Through raw and honest storytelling, Connor shares how his near-death experience reshaped his perspective on what it means to “lose”. Whether the focus of your event is personal growth, navigating high pressure environments, resilience, leadership development, or innovation, booking Connor as your keynote speaker promises a captivated audience who leaves inspired to live life fully, motivated to work toward big goals, and confident in their ability to adapt to an ever-changing and unexpected world.

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REDEFINING SUCCESS: IT ISN’T ALL ABOUT WINNING

A Mental Health Journey

In this keynote presentation, I unveil the raw truth behind many athlete's journeys to the Olympics—a path often accompanied by mental health challenges. I share my personal battle with failure, embarrassment, depression, and a crisis of confidence that nearly made me give up. Despite facing these daunting obstacles, I discovered the resilience to keep at it, and ultimately triumph at the 2016 Olympics.

The pursuit of my next gold medal in 2021 brought a life-altering challenge: a traumatic brain injury that nearly claimed my life and forced me into retirement. This experience forced me to confront life's fragility and embark on a journey of profound transformation. Who am I? What am I going to do next? It was a wake-up call to reevaluate what truly matters, leading to a newfound focus on my mental health. My story is a reminder of the resilience we all have within us and a reminder that success isn’t just about medals, it is about perspective and being thankful for what you do have, rather than getting stuck focusing on what you don’t.

I always stress the importance of keeping things in perspective and focusing on the positives, no matter the challenges. I encourage finding gratitude in what we've achieved and the lessons learned, instead of getting caught up in setbacks or negative moments. This mindset has been a cornerstone in my journey, helping me navigate the ups and downs with a sense of appreciation and resilience.
In my 12-year journey as an Olympic athlete, I've experienced highs of remarkable achievements and lows of unseen struggles, including depression, injuries, and mental health challenges. My story isn't just about the gold medals but about overcoming adversity and emerging stronger. This keynote presentation is designed to inspire and motivate you to become the best version of yourself, showcasing the resilience and determination it takes to navigate life's challenges.
I emphasize the critical need to prioritize mental health and to challenge the stigma that often surrounds it. Throughout my journey, I've faced my own battles with mental health, and I'm open about the struggles I've encountered. My message to others is clear: it's okay to seek help and support. By sharing my experience, I hope to inspire a conversation that encourages everyone to take their mental health seriously and to never feel alone in their struggles.