Andy Bernstein is a speaker on resilience and how individuals, teams, and organizations can use conflict and adversity as “crucibles” for greater well-being and improved performance. Since 2007, he has been one of the highest-rated speakers at Wharton Executive Education and SIFMA’s Securities Industry Institute. The content on this page is intended to help clients who have booked Andy or who are considering booking Andy find everything they need. If you have any questions, please reach out via the Contact page.
Overview Video (2 mins 35 secs)
Sample Video (3 min 32 secs)
About Andy Bernstein (Longer Bio)
Andy Bernstein is the author of The Myth of Stress/Breaking the Stress Cycle and the founder of the Resilience Academy. He teaches people a simple yet powerful 7-step process that changes the way you deal with challenges, with no jargon, stigma, or “touchy-feeliness.”
Since 2007, Andy has taught regularly at Wharton Executive Education, where his programs have been audience favorites for thousands of leaders because they are eye-opening, practical, and just as valuable personally as they are professionally.
Andy’s clients include Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, UBS, Wells Fargo, Raymond James, General Electric, Johnson & Johnson, Google, Coca-Cola, Genentech, Patagonia, and many others.
Andy also works pro bono with non-profit organizations addressing cancer, addiction, discrimination, and social change.
A former writer for the Muppets, Andy brings a combination of humor, intelligence, and relatability to his programs. He speaks from his own life experiences dealing with unexpected change, helping audiences handle even big challenges with a light touch.
Andy graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the Johns Hopkins University and lives in New York City with his wife and young children.
(Download the longer bio as a pdf)
About Andy Bernstein (Shorter Bio/Intro)
Andy prefers a short, less formal introduction when possible instead of a longer bio. If the person teeing him up is willing, this has worked well as a lead-in:
Andy Bernstein is the author of The Myth of Stress and Breaking the Stress Cycle, and the founder of the Resilience Academy. He teaches people a simple 7-step process that changes how you understand resilience, team dynamics, and family well-being, with no jargon, stigma, or “touchy-feeliness.” You’re going to get to try this process today and experience firsthand how it can help you be a better leader, partner, parent, and human being.
Andy’s clients include Google, GE, Johnson & Johnson, Patagonia, Merrill Lynch, Raymond James, and many other organizations. He has taught regularly at Wharton Executive Education since 2007, where his classes are always audience favorites because they’re both eye-opening and actionable.
Andy will share more about his background in his session, but he lives in New York City with his wife and two young kids, and — fun fact — he used to write for the Muppets.
Please help me in welcoming Andy Bernstein.
(Download this shorter intro as a pdf)
The Active Insight® Worksheet
Audience members will almost always need at least one printout per person of Andy’s 7-step Active Insight® worksheet to use during the presentation. You can download it here. Make sure to discuss with Andy how many copies are needed for the session.
Speaking Topics and Overview
All of Andy’s presentations are interactive. Andy coaches participants through his 7-step Active Insight® worksheet so that even in large keynotes and virtual sessions, attendees can experience a personal breakthrough without saying a word. The topics below present this re-thinking approach in different ways.
The presentation format can be keynote, webinar, breakout, workshop, or executive retreat. Time can vary between 45 minutes to 3 hours. The most commonly booked presentation length is a 60-minute keynote.
Breaking the Stress Cycle
Where does stress really come from? In this eye-opening re-examination of the modern stress concept, attendees discover that our understanding of stress is based almost entirely on the work of one man — stress research pioneer Hans Selye — and why he was fundamentally wrong.
We see the disastrous consequences Selye’s mistake has had on global well-being.
Then we learn a new way to stop managing stress and start eliminating it at its source, leading to immediate and surprising improvements in how you think, feel, and lead change.
The Most Important Thing
What matters most for happiness in life? Money? Achievements? Love? We start by examining the world’s longest study of adult well-being, and then we see why the real answer isn’t any of these things.
We also look at the most important thing for high-performing teams (again based on data), and why it’s not talent, will power, and other common assumptions.
And then we discover a tool that helps attendees begin to develop both greater individual well-being and stronger team performance in just seven steps, with no blame, stigma, or “touchy-feeliness.”
Crucibles
How can you build mission-focused leaders able to deal with personal, organizational, and cultural challenges more effectively?
Crucibles are high-temperature vessels used to melt metals, but in this session we use the term figuratively to represent adverse experiences that have the capacity to transform us.
We see why crucibles matter, how they work, and the internal dynamics that gives them their power to make or break us as leaders and as human beings.
Then we leverage a tool that harnesses the power of crucibles to transform challenges without saying a word, building the empathetic, clear-minded leaders your organization needs.
The Why and How of Great Teams
In this special session for teams, we discover what matters most for team performance based on data, and why it’s not talent, motivation, communication, and other common assumptions.
We look at the two most validated traits of effective leadership around the world, and we see why “crucible” experiences can produce better leaders and stronger teams.
In the interactive portion of the session, we use a 7-step re-framing tool to change how people think about a common conflict, and can do a 10-minute exercise in small groups of 2 or 3 to give people a firsthand experience of some of the skills that great teams need to master.
If you are serious about improving team performance, this session gives participants a framework and practical tools to get there. It is not a one-off. It’s the beginning of an ongoing commitment to use the team itself as a springboard for growth and performance.
Note: Pre-work for this workshop can include an online survey to quantify team dynamics and make the session more tailored, and post-work can include an online interactive course that helps team members deepen and practice the skills that matter most for team performance.
The Indispensable Advisor
Wealth management is changing. Financial advisors used to be people who were good with money. Now they also need to be good with people.
In this session, we see why changes in client demographics and values, market volatility, and increased disruption are creating a demand for a new breed of advisors who prioritize empathy, client well-being, team dynamics, and non-financial value.
Then we learn how to build this capacity across a team to increase the advisor’s value, referrability, team performance, and personal sense of well-being.
Keywords (for Bureaus/Exec Ed partners)
Resilience; resiliency; well-being; stress; mindset; leadership; organizational change; team dynamics; rethinking; polarization; depolarization; conflict resolution; social change; happiness; crucibles; disruption; the Great Resignation; languishing; diversity; DEI; discrimination; perspective; leadership development; humility; empathy; culture; hospitality; team performance
Headshots
Click the images below for high-resolution downloads.
Testimonials
“The three sessions we programmed were extraordinarily successful. Andy was able to quickly and easily engage leaders, which can be very difficult given our skeptical culture. A Tier 1 leader who is VERY tough with huge time demands stayed for the entire session and made a point to let Andy know that he did a great job. The evaluations are overwhelmingly positive and demonstrate that people were able to learn how to utilize the process and make positive shifts in their thinking/ experience in just a couple of hours. Andy is clearly a rock star instructor who cares deeply about giving people practical tools to improve the quality of their lives” – Wells Fargo
“Enormously positive, useful, tangible ways of thinking differently, and real ways of solving differences. I feel much more wise at work already. Wishing I had done this when I began my career” – Citi
“A clear, concise way to deal with challenges, with practical applications and immediate results” – Coca-Cola
“Eye-opening on changing your perspective when dealing with tough issues and solving them.” – Merrill Lynch
“The most beneficial hour of training I’ve had in a very long time. A great tool. I wish I’d learned this 30 years ago.” – Morgan Stanley
“Groundbreaking. This was the first time I’ve been given a logical, step-by-step process to get from the beginning point to the end point of changed awareness without being intimidating or too New Agey.” – 21st Century Fox
“Eye-opening. It’s quite different from other training programs because this is more than just accepting that I can’t change my surroundings. Instead it changes my perspective. Very positive.” – Genentech
“This was by far the most useful, provocative, and fascinating seminar I have ever participated in. It’s not nonsense, it’s not a Band-Aid, it’s just smart, tangible, and something that can be implemented across the board. – Ogilvy
“Year after year, Andy Bernstein’s sessions are among the top requested and top scoring sessions at the Securities Industry Institute. Andy’s approach and tools to managing challenging situations are relevant both personally and professionally and attendees leave with actionable takeaways and a changed mindset. It is always a pleasure to read the attendee evaluations from his sessions and see what an impact he had on them in 90 minutes, and Andy is always listed as one of the favorite faculty members of the program.” – Securities Industry Institute
“Andrew Bernstein was a fantastic addition to our Learning Year Calendar. His presentation was captivating, eye-opening, and thought-provoking. I highly recommend his presentation for business leaders, to family members, or anyone looking to live a happier, healthier life!” – YPO Chapter Learning Officer
References
Andy has been teaching his content since 2004 to a wide-range of corporate and non-profit audiences, from small executive retreats to 1,000 person keynotes. We can provide additional references upon request if a specific industry or demographic is desired, but the references below offer a range of audience sizes and formats.
SII (Securities Industry Institute)
SII is a 3-year financial services executive leadership program held on campus at Wharton every spring. Andy has participated as faculty every year since 2007, teaching multiple programs (Resilience, The Most Important Thing, and Crucibles). Kristin Sheehan runs SII and can share honest feedback on Andy’s programs for senior leaders.
Kristin Sheehan
Managing Director
Securities Industry Institute (SII)
(212) 313-1202
[email protected]
Raymond James Financial Inc.
Raymond James is an American independent financial services company serving thousands of financial advisors and hundreds of thousands of families. Andy has spoken at their national and regional conferences and at local client events for many years, both in-person and virtually, and in various formats (keynote, breakout, and workshop). Kimberly can speak to Andy’s national presentations to advisors.
Kimberly Villalba
Senior Manager, Learning and Engagement
[email protected]
727-567-2558
YPO (Young Presidents Organization)
YPO is a leadership community of qualified CEOs, organized by chapters around the world. Andy has spoken to the YPO Wisconsin Chapter (virtually) and the YPO Maumee Valley chapter (in person in December 2021). The contacts for each are below.
Therese Suslick
Chapter Manager
YPO Wisconsin
[email protected]
414-588-5566
Lisa Rosen
Chapter Manager
YPO Maumee Valley
[email protected]
419-345-7365
Book and Website Bonuses (Optional)
Andy can deliver additional value to audiences with two bonuses that clients should take into account when comparing speaker value:
1. All audience members can receive discounted Resilience Academy memberships.
2. Audience members may receive discounted copies of Breaking the Stress Cycle (Atria, 2021, originally published as The Myth of Stress). Books are drop-shipped directly from the publisher to the venue. $19 per book, discounted to $15 each with free shipping. Andy will sign books if desired.
Book purchasing, book signing, and online memberships can be negotiated with each engagement.
Audience Demographics
Any audience interested in well-being, leadership, organizational and social change, team dynamics, and personal development will find the session valuable. Skeptical audiences that appreciate data-backed and actionable presentations with immediate real-world application are especially good fits. Audiences who believe that others need to change, not them, are not a good fit.
Tech Requirements
Andy does not send his presentation in advance for loading. He travels with a MacBook Pro running Keynote, multiple HDMI adapters, and a remote clicker. He just needs a screen and HDMI cable to plug into, and a power strip or outlet.
Andy prefers a lav mic, but can use a handheld or podium mic if required.
Since the presentation relies heavily on visuals in the deck, it’s strongly encouraged that the screen is large and easily viewable for all audience members.
Room Setup
For most engagements, Andy will lead participants through the Active Insight® worksheet on paper. The most comfortable way for audience members to do this is seated at crescent rounds with space to write. Classroom-style is also fine. If the room must be set up theater-style, we encourage you to have something for people to put on their laps to write on, such as folders or pads.
Please make sure you print the Active Insight® worksheets (see above) and provide pens, or you are certain that this won’t be needed for your engagement.
Promo Materials (Optional)
If you would like a short intro video or one-page pdf to promote Andy’s event to your audience, let us know.
Fees and Travel Requirements
Please contact your speaker’s bureau representative for 2023 in-person and virtual fees. Nonprofit and multiple-booking discounts may be available.
Andy travels from NYC, coach in the U.S., business internationally. Delta and Marriott are preferred.
Andy is happy to do a book signing and socialize as part of an engagement if desired.
Want to drive change at scale?
Before Covid, Andy gave as many as 90 in-person presentations a year. During peak-Covid, confined to his NYC apartment, he learned how to deliver his content effectively to a small green dot on his laptop. Virtual is not the same, but it has some real advantages in reach and convenience. In 2023, Andy will speak in-person to a select group of clients, and will continue to deliver his presentations virtually. But he is also sharing a new Resilience Academy platform, and he strongly encourages organizations to explore the Resilience Academy as a more scalable and cost-effective way to help people thrive.
Questions? Contact us
