All Topics in Washington D.C.

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  Proven ways to overcome change resistance under the most challenging of circumstances

  Robert Smith, PhD, Author, Selling Change, The Change Shop, LLC

  TOPIC CATEGORY: Business

  Change Management discussion will cover case studies and success stories for proven techniques to achieve organizational transformation and revitalization; case studies of leaders and organizations who have overcome years of entrenched organizational cultures and mindsets to generate profitability and reignite engaged teams; leadership styles that engender change commitment and transformation success. MORE >

  Ways to engage and motivate people to make a difference in bottom-line business results; the case for engaged talent in sales and customer service; the role of human resources in achieving business goals

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  Parenting in the Real World: Ditch Perfection, Embrace Connection

  Shruti Trivedi, Founder and CEO, TulsiHeals Life Coaching

  TOPIC CATEGORY: Self Improvement

  Parenting today is loaded with expectations, comparison, and conflicting advice - leaving many parents feeling inadequate or overwhelmed. In this deeply relatable talk, Shruti opens up about her experiences raising three children while juggling career transitions, identity shifts, and mom guilt. She explores how redefining what it means to be a “good parent” can lead to deeper connection and healthier relationships - with our children and ourselves. MORE >

  Through stories and reflection, Shruti invites parents to let go of the pressure to be perfect and instead focus on being present, emotionally attuned, and self-compassionate. This session is both validating and refreshing for parents at any stage.

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  3 Big Secrets About Stress That Are Keeping Your Health Hostage

  Dr. Anne Berkeley, Naturopathic Physician, Dr. Anne Berkeley PLLC

  TOPIC CATEGORY: Health & Fitness

  Never before have we experienced stress as we do today. With advances in technology and the increasing pace of modern life, stress levels are high. Our bodies are trying to help us out, but we are not meant to be under stress all the time. Although we cannot escape it completely, there are proactive steps that we can take to change the way our bodies respond. We’ll talk about how stress impacts many different aspects of our health and what the best strategies are to quickly help our bodies recover. You will learn simple techniques to help increase resilience, improve performance and manage stressful situations. Join us to talk with Dr. Anne Berkeley about an individualized and holistic approach for managing stress and what this could look like for you. MORE >

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  Creating Success that Sticks: Aligning Your Core Values with Your Career

  Catherine A. Wood, Founder & Head Coach, Unbounded Potential

  TOPIC CATEGORY: Business

  If you became famous tomorrow and your own definition of success became a maxim, what lesson would you impart? What wisdom would you share? For many, success is a fleeting sensation—the achievement of one goal and immediately on to the next. The joy and satisfaction flash in front of our eyes in the instant of success and then it eludes us once again. MORE >

  What could be possible for you in redefining your relationship to success from the inside out, and making that elusive success stick while producing even greater results? You will walk away with a model for aligning your core values with your goals as an access point to creating success that sticks from the inside out.

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  Marketing your Self

  Marvin Meinders, Owner, Meinders Consultant, LLC

  TOPIC CATEGORY: Self Improvement

  Now that you have finished your education and ready to find that perfect job you have been working for, now is the time to find the job. You can be the perfect candidate for the job, but if you do not market yourself well, all your training may have been in vain. Most people do not think much about marketing themselves until it is time to look for a job, but if you wait until then, you start out at a disadvantage in the job market. MORE >

  Marketing and networking are keys to finding good jobs today. You may think that automated job searches and automated applications are the way to employment in today’s market. But with these tactics alone you will miss about 80% of available job opportunities. Did you know that according to Steven Rothberg, founder of job search website CollegeRecruiter.com, approximately 80 percent of the jobs are never advertised? We will discuss how the use of networking and social media can improve your marketability.

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  National Security Topics: From Military Planning to Negotiating with Foreign Governments and War Criminals to Complex Military Operations

  Daniel Gerstein, CEO and Author, SciTech Strategic Solutions

  TOPIC CATEGORY: Miscellaneous

  Dr. Gerstein is a national security professional who has had a unique insider perspective on the United States' national security strategy and policy having been a close advisor to many of the key decisionmakers over several decades. By the end of his time in government, he had become a senior principal responsible for developing and executing the policies of the U.S. government. His service included advising foreign governments on a range of sensitive issues. He continues to speak and write extensively on these issues. MORE >

  He has worked on a range of issues from assessment of threats and risks, development of strategies and policies, and has deployed on a variety of operations. In the U.S. Army, he served on four continents while participating in combat, peacekeeping, humanitarian assistance, counterterrorism and homeland security. During his time in uniform, he served in sensitive positions as an aide-de-camp for the four-star Vice Chief of Staff, Army (General Gordon Sullivan); speechwriter for the three-star Director of Strategy and Policy (J-5), The Joint Staff (General Wesley K. Clark); Director for Army Transformation for the Chief of Staff, Army (General Eric Shinseki); executive officer for the Under Secretary of the Army (Raymond DuBois and Pete Geren). He also worked on several national security documents such as the National Security Strategy, the National Military Strategy and the Chairman’s Program Assessment (CPA). He also led teams that conducted analysis, modeling and simulations of various threats and risks.

  He has extensive experience in international negotiations and arms control having served on the Holbrooke Delegation that negotiated the peace settlement in Bosnia; developed and analyzed negotiating positions for the Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE) talks; developed a counternarcotics initiative to improve cross border communications between Andean Ridge nations and negotiated the destruction of SS-24 intercontinental ballistic rocket motors in Ukraine. Additionally, Dr. Gerstein led the Army’s most comprehensive restructuring since World War II and guided an effort to develop a comprehensive biosurveillance system for the Department of Defense.

  He has served in and worked with organizations across the U.S. government. He served in the Department of Defense and retired as a Colonel and served later in the Department of Homeland Security as Under Secretary (Acting) and Deputy Under Secretary in the Science and Technology Directorate. In these assignments, Gerstein worked closely with the Intelligence Community, and the Department of Energy (nuclear weapons issues), Commerce (export control and technology management), Health and Human Services (medical countermeasures, countering biological warfare and bioterrorism) and Department of Agriculture (agricultural biodefense).

  Gerstein has authored several books on national security, strategy, policy and decision making including War Without Humanity: Conflict in the Post-Human Era (Casemate, 2026); Tech Wars: Transforming U.S. Technology Development (Praeger. September 2022. (Paperback version released in 2024)); National Security and Arms Control in the Age of Biotechnology: The Biological Weapons Convention (Rowman and Littlefield, 2013); Bioterror in the 21st Century, (Naval Institute Press, 2009); Assignment: Pentagon: How to Excel in a Bureaucracy (5th Edition) (University of Nebraska Press, 2020); The Story of Technology: How We Got Here and What the Future Holds (Prometheus Books, 2019); Leading at the Speed of Light: New Strategies for U.S. Security in the Information Age, (Potomac Books, 2006); Securing America's Future: National Strategy in the Information Age, (Praeger Security International, 2005).

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  Accelerating Your Career on Life’s Expressway

  Marvin Meinders, Owner, Meinders Consultant, LLC

  TOPIC CATEGORY: Self Improvement

  Are you or your child just starting out on their career or are you caught in a bad situation in your career, it is important that you have an overall strategic plan to help you navigate your career hurdles. A successful career includes more than just your job performance. To be really successful in your career, you must first have a plan of what you want to achieve and how to achieve them over your 40-year career. MORE >

  To help you develop a strategic plan, we will identify and discuss key elements such as your career, personal, and professional goals. To accomplish your goal you will also need to identifying the special gifts and talents you possess to achieve these goals. Identifying these key elements and putting them into a timeline is essential to get your career off to a fast and successful life and career.

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  The Art of Overcoming the Confidence Gap

  Catherine A. Wood, Founder & Head Coach, Unbounded Potential

  TOPIC CATEGORY: Business

  A magical concept for some, highly desired by most in business and in life. What is the secret to confidence? In this interactive session, you will uncover the secret to confidence and walk away with 5 ways to get yours back. MORE >

  We will explore and discuss what creates confidence and what gets in the way of yours. We will look at what you can take on and who you can be to bust up the myth that you're not confident. You'll walk away from the workshop with the inspiration and time tested tools to confidence creation.

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  Emotional Intelligence (EQ) at Work

  Dawn Shuler, CEO and Founder, The Shuler Group, LLC

  TOPIC CATEGORY: Business

  Emotional Intelligence (EQ) is one of the strongest predictors of success in the workplace—often more important than technical skill. When people develop EQ, they communicate more effectively, reduce conflict, and create stronger connections with colleagues and clients. MORE >

  In this interactive session, participants will:
  • Learn the four core components of Emotional Intelligence.
  • Gain practical tools for self-awareness, self-management, and empathy.
  • Discover strategies for building trust and collaboration across teams.

  This session is designed for anyone who wants to work more effectively with others and build a stronger, more resilient workplace culture.

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  From Manager to Changemaker: Leading Change When You’re Not in Charge

  Adriano Pianesi, MBA, ACC, Founder and CEO, ParticipAction Consulting, Inc.

  TOPIC CATEGORY: Business

  Most managers are asked to deliver transformation—but without the authority, clarity, or control to make it happen. From Manager to Changemaker is a practical leadership experience designed to help them do exactly that. MORE >

  Developed and led by Adriano Pianesi, this program equips mid-level and emerging leaders with the mindset and tools to create impact from wherever they stand. Drawing on principles of adaptive leadership, Liberating Structures, and systems thinking, participants learn how to mobilize people, build trust, and move real work forward—without waiting for top-down approval.

  The program reframes leadership as an act of exploration rather than command. Through interactive workshops, peer coaching, and field-based experiments, managers learn how to:

  - Diagnose what’s really blocking progress in their teams or organizations.
  - Build influence across silos and engage stakeholders with different priorities.
  - Design small, low-risk experiments that demonstrate results and build credibility.
  - Shift from managing tasks to mobilizing energy—turning frustration into forward motion.

  Each participant leaves with a personalized 30-day action plan, ready to test in their own workplace, and a community of peers committed to supporting one another’s experiments.

  Whether you lead a team of five or influence a network of hundreds, From Manager to Changemaker offers a proven path to lead with courage, clarity, and creativity—even when you’re not in charge.

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