Biography
Thomas Blackwell has been speaking and inspiring live audiences for over 10 years. He is a graduate of the highly acclaimed Bill Gove Speech Workshop. He has an ability to connect with the crowd in a monumental fashion. He knows how to open the audience’s mind through laughter and having fun in order to open their heart so they can make life changing decisions. He has been married over 10 years to his high school dream queen, and is the proud father of 4 beautiful girls.
In Athletics: Thomas was ranked in the top 5 in the Southwest region as a Jr. Tennis player, placed 2nd and 3rd in the state of Arizona, and earned a Division I scholarship for tennis to Northern Arizona University. He also won 1st in the state of Arizona in Olympic weight lifting in 1995. While at NAU, in addition to tennis, Thomas competed on the weight lifting team and club soccer team. Thomas has coached several youth and adults in tennis and weight training. He has helped 5 athletes receive scholarships to major colleges.
In Business: As a young 21 year old small sort supervisor for UPS, he was required to motivate his 45 person team on a daily basis to process as many packages in a 6 hour period as possible. It must have worked, because soon his team was outpacing company records with 100% accuracy. Thomas quickly caught the attention of the executives of UPS, and was given 2 significant raises in less than six months. The UPS executives studied Thomas’s team to see where the source of the success was stemming from. They observed as he would give a 5 minute motivational speech before every package sort. One of the General Managers of the Phoenix Hub listened in on one occasion and decided to have Thomas give a motivational pep talk to the rest of the sort supervisors and managers. This became an on going routine and soon the whole team of management was breaking previous records.
After leaving UPS Thomas and his wife had the opportunity to manage a pizza buffet franchise. There they increased the sales and customer base to record highs. The record highs were not a coincidence as Thomas lead and motivated his employees to change their language and to be the best they could be. Many customers would return not necessarily because of the quality of food, but for the experience. He is noted for saying, “Give people an incredible consistent experience to look forward to, and they will line up time and time again to be a part of it.”
Struggles came when leaving the restaurant industry to start an insurance agency left Thomas and his pregnant wife without income for several months. He explains how the challenges of standing in free medical aid lines in the cold with his sick wife shaped his life forever. “People thought I was the doctor, but the fact was I was in the same poor financial situation they were.” “I decided to never let that happen again.” Shortly after that decision Thomas created an Insurance agency with over 100 agents and 3 offices in 2 different states. “I teach my audiences how to make similar decisions.” He has told his stories to thousands across the USA, Canada, South America, Mexico, and Europe. On one occasion, he was selected to take a four day five city tour on a private jet to inspire and train thousands of sales agents.
Now a Speaker, Author, and Creator his passion is to help the world change their language so they can change their lives. His books are: 57 Things to Say to Create the Best Day Ever, 57 Things to Say instead of Vulgarity to Create Happiness, and 57 Things to Say on an Elevator to Break the Silence.