Kevin Asbjornson: The Artistry of Leadership—Creating Meaningful Connections

I began public speaking early in life, having been selected by others to assume leadership positions such as high school class president and regional youth group president.  These leadership roles provided me with the opportunity to fortify my self-confidence, develop meaningful communication skills, and begin having effective interaction with my audiences.

Simultaneously, I was often on the performance stage as a young pianist, which required me to interact with different audiences at every recital and concert.

In my education, I studied a dual career in performing arts and international business, with a specialization in global leadership development. This enabled me to develop the skillsets of both an artist and a scientist.

Upon graduating with a Bachelor of Arts-International Studies and a Master of International Management with the Thunderbird School of Global Management, I began my career in international marketing and brand management. This initial career path required me to interact frequently with senior leadership and customers in the U.S. and in foreign countries, making presentations and explaining the rationale and market research of potential new products and services with my employers—which included American Express and Hewlett Packard.

While on an early career assignment in Amsterdam, Holland, a mentor and senior leader informed me that he had noticed my skills with respect to connecting with international audiences and effective communications; he asked me if I might consider a career transition into global leadership and talent development.  Upon personal reflection, I decided long-term that I would rather develop people than products and services, and I began my transition into the international field of talent and leadership development.

I recognized that there were two approaches to leadership and speaking: speaking to my audience and speaking with and encouraging my audience—which led to my decision to become a keynote inspirational speaker. I made a personal commitment to focus on acknowledging and encouraging the potential within my audiences, rather than focusing on the expertise of myself as a speaker.

This was an important discovery and commitment I made because I realized that leaders inspire people and people motivate themselves—and as a keynote inspirational speaker, my intention was to connect with my audience from the inside and tap into their potential as an individual human being. This would allow me to encourage them rather than talk to them and tell them what they should do.

Another realization of mine was that leadership is about developing our character—and we do not develop our character through PowerPoint presentations; we develop our character through interactions with people. And so, I kept my PowerPoint in the background and not the foreground of my presentations, and I involved my audiences in discussions and asked them questions during my presentations. The purpose there was to provoke their thought and evoke their emotion; this became my greatest influence as an international entrepreneur and keynote inspirational speaker.

This is the difference between practicing authentic leadership and merely speaking, and less than authentic leadership and speaking. —it’s more about the leadership and less about the speaking.  I encourage emerging speakers and leaders to be genuine and vulnerable—and to truly focus on their audience, not their PowerPoint. The world is filled with too many speakers and leaders who the audience experiences as “talking heads.”  The audiences of the world prefer leaders and speakers who are encouraging and inspiring hearts and souls.

I decided mid-career to design an interactive keynote speaking presentation which combined the art and science of leadership: The Artistry of Leadership-Creating Meaningful Connections™, a format which placed the audience in concentric circles around myself and a Yamaha Grand Piano. This innovative engagement enabled me to demonstrate the parallels between an effective performing artist and an effective leader. As a composer of original, contemporary piano solos, I performed my original music and used the medium of music as my storytelling conduit—and asked my audience to inform me what they heard, felt, and visualized at the conclusion of each piano solo. The insights they gained through this technique were invaluable in helping them to see outside of their normal management operational mode and truly gain insight into the essence of who they were, as leaders.

Each audience member found a copy of my Eight Keys to Inspired Leadership™ and Learning Journal  on their chair which I integrated into my interactive presentation, which encouraged the practice of reflection during the presentation. 

During my engagement with the Colorado Boys Ranch as Performing Artist in Residence, I spent one week working with abused children, introducing the language of music as a means to rebuild self-esteem and self-confidence, and move beyond their experience with abuse.  Although these children had no formal music or piano education, I invited each child, one at the time, to sit next to me on the piano bench, with their peers seated in a half-circle behind us. I encouraged the children to experience the piano through their emotions and hearts– through demonstrating how animal sounds could be re-created on the piano. 

I also encouraged them to play the piano through their heart and experience the sensation of touch as they played on the keys, and to the surprise of the psychologists on staff (and even myself)—these children created an improvisation solo for their peers to experience, as the audience. This demonstrated to me the healing power of music which is the international language of the heart and soul.

This trajectory evolved to me being recognized as an international pioneer and thought leader of “Performing Arts-Based Learning” and being a recipient of an International Gold Telly Award for our production of the high-definition short-film, “The Artistry of Leadership-Creating Meaningful Connections™. I served as Performing Artist in Residence and Leadership Advisor with the Center for Creative Leadership, where I specialized in leadership development. In recent years, I also developed the Institute of Inspired Leadership which is a global organization committed to the development and advancement of Inspired Leadership as a distinct mindset, practice, and discipline within the field of leadership development.

My primary purpose and mission in life—both as a keynote inspirational speaker and international leadership practitioner—is to encourage my audience to discover and define their personal centeredness (purpose) and to maintain their well-being (spiritual, emotional, mental, & physical), in order to achieve their highest aspirations.

Check the live edition: The Most Encouraging Public Speakers to Follow in 2026