From the stage, or the page, my goal is to always help people strive to be the best version of themselves to achieve high performance and lasting success.

I have over 30 years of experience creating better leaders, high performing teams, stronger brands and loyal customers, but I wasn’t always a speaker, author and brand strategist. 

I went to Johns Hopkins University to be a doctor, but after one year I switched majors and went into their top-ranked writing seminars program, where I had the good fortune to hone my craft by working with the highly skilled faculty and guest professors like the Pulitzer-Winning Playwright, Edward Albee. It was “Acting and Writing with Albee” in January of 1987 that first got me up onto the stage. And, when my college football career was cut short and I was forced to medically retire my senior year, I gave more time to the theatre and found another path.

I became an actor. For 10 years I went on countless auditions in New York and Los Angeles for everything you could imagine. I booked my share of commercials and voiceovers, did off-broadway plays, some really bad movies, soap opera TV work, and even played a doctor on “Another World.” (My mom was so proud.) I had just enough success to keep me in the business. However, after 10 years of acting (and bartending) and wanting more control of my future, it was time to reinvent myself. 

When I share my story from the stage, people often approach me afterwards and ask me if those years were a waste of time and if I could turn back the clock, would I do anything different. 

The fact is, those transferable skills I developed in those years....

- in audition rooms
- on the stage
- in front of the camera
- and even behind the bar 

...would prove to be invaluable as I made my way into the corporate world; skills I still hold valuable today.

Those skills actually came in very handy when I was introduced to the event production and experiential marketing industry.

I spent over 13 years working with some of the most successful companies and recognizable brands in the world. I held roles in sales, marketing, creative, production, training, coaching and leadership. It was during this time I was able to watch, learn and collaborate with some of the best presenters and business leaders in many different industries. 

What makes an audience engage? What inspires them? How can one be educated and entertained at the same time? How do you create meaningful experiences? How do you create the right culture? I got the chance to take master classes in brand, marketing and motivation every day for 10 years. I developed my own style of highly visual and energetic "infotainment.” I also developed a strong understanding of brand alignment; how each individual either increases or decreases the value of their team or company by their words and actions. 

To this day, I believe if you can help a person align their own purpose to the mission and vision of a team, then the team or company will be more aligned and have a greater chance of lasting success.

After many years of on the job training and research, in 2011 I started, in partnership with my wife, our own brand consultancy, Gordon Creative, with a mission to help people identify, communicate and deliver their unique value to build stronger personal, team and corporate brands. We based our work on the concept of personal branding made popular by Tom Peters in a 1997 Fast Company article called, The Brand Called You. 

It is a concept and a strategy I wanted to make my own and share with the world. I created "Stand for Your Brand," my signature keynote presentation which I’ve been delivering for many years to rave reviews. It became the basis for my first book, published by John Wiley & Sons, “TIP: A Simple Strategy to Inspire High Performance and Lasting Success.” 

I have three accomplished children. Two have jobs of their own in the real world and one is finishing up her studies at Northwestern. Having student-athletes and young talent going through their own journeys of discovery has influenced my work in the most positive of ways. Understanding their unique challenges as they continue to build their own brands has given me unique understanding and empathy for young talent who are just starting their careers, and has helped me build my presentations to connect visually and viscerally to give them takeaway strategies for success. I live by the words of the famous Last Lecture professor and writer, Randy Pausch, who said, “Don’t tell people how to live their lives. Tell stories. They’ll figure it out for themselves.”

I have been called passionate and obsessed about branding and brand alignment. 

There’s a reason for that. 

It’s my purpose.

Something I believe I’ve been called to share with others.

Before I found the concept of personal branding I was reactive, distractive, and even a bit destructive when it came to building my career and my future. 

After applying the same concepts that I share today, I became more proactive and consistent about the person and professional I wanted to be. I changed my life by applying brand building principles to human behaviors. No longer did I hold any boss or company responsible for my success or failure. I was the only one accountable for my own success. 

I realized I needed to be the manager of my own brand, and if I didn’t define my brand for myself, others would to do it for me. Brand behavior and the consistency of words, thoughts and actions it inspired, changed everything for me. I want to share that secret with anyone I can in the hopes of helping them find their true path. I believe in second chances, redemption, reinvention and love. 

Yes, love.  

When you love who you are, what makes you unique, and discover what you truly stand for, it’s much easier to acknowledge your purpose and value in this world.

And when you know your value, every word, action, and decision in work and life becomes easier. Your career becomes meaningful, you surround yourself with the right people, and create the best situations to help you achieve the results, recognition, and reputation you deserve.

This is who I am and why I’m here. My career did not follow a typical journey, but that’s the point. There is never just one path; just a series of crossroads and decisions we make in work and life. As a speaker, writer and business leader, my goal is to help people take accountability for themselves and make the best decisions to fulfill their unique promise of value to their most important colleagues and customers.

If you would like to know more about my unique journey or what it would be like to work with me, please reach out directly at Dave@Gordoncc.com