Timeline

By Michael Gelb | December 10, 2008

Many people ask about the evolution of my work.

All of my keynotes, seminars and publications are the expression of a passion for helping others discover and fulfill their potential for creativity, consciousness and compassion. I feel blessed by the opportunities to work with people around the world. After 30 years of traveling and teaching I’m thrilled to report that I love what I do more than ever! Every day has been a highlight, and I’m grateful to every one who has engaged my services over the years. My clients are usually visionary, humanistic leaders who are seeking a partner to help them inspire and guide their people to fulfill their creative potential. Here’s a timeline featuring some of the highlights of my education and career thus far:

  • 1966-1973: Read the following books that changed my life and clarified my purpose:
    • Man’s Search for Meaning, Viktor Frankl
    • Man’s Search for Himself, Rollo May
    • Memories, Dreams, Reflections, Carl Jung
    • The Fourth Way, P.D. Ouspensky
    • In Search of the Miraculous, P.D. Ouspensky
    • Witness, J.G. Bennett
    • Toward a Psychology of Being, Abraham Maslow
  • 1973: Graduated from Clark University (Honors) with a double-major in Psychology and Philosophy.
  • 1973/74: Completed 10 month residential course at the International Academy for Continuous Education in Sherborne, England, directed by J.G. Bennett. Taught myself how to juggle.
  • 1974/75: Worked as a counselor/sales representative for Newbury Jr. College in Boston. Performed regularly as a juggler in Harvard Square. Studied Yoga, meditation and completed certification course in Shiatsu.
  • 1975: Enrolled in a three year Certification program at the School of Alexander Studies in London. Met Tony Buzan and began collaboration. Introduced seminar on Juggling as a Metaphor for Learning.
  • 1976: Enrolled in Goddard College Master of Arts Abroad program. Juggled on-stage with Mick Jagger & The Rolling Stones. Performed regularly at the “Beefeater by the Tower” restaurant and at children’s parties.
  • 1977: Began aikido lessons with Minoru Kanetsuka, Sensei. Juggling performances at Bob Dylan concerts in London.
  • 1978: Certified as a teacher of the Alexander Technique. Completed Master of Arts in Psycho-Physical Re-education. Certified as the first “Master Trainer” by the Buzan Foundation.
  • 1979: Worked as assistant teacher at the Constructive Teaching Center in London under the guidance of Walter Carrington. Began leading 5-day senior management program – The Mind & Body Seminar – in collaboration with Tony Buzan. Clients included DEC, IBM and Barclays Bank.
  • 1980: 4 months in South Africa leading seminars for Barlow Rand and IBM. Co-taught seminar for 500 school children in Soweto.
  • 1981: Publication of BodyLearning: An Introduction to the Alexander Technique. Traveled to Japan, Singapore and Australia to lead The Mind & Body Seminar.
  • 1982: Returned to the U.S. Led a series of fourteen 3-day public seminars on High Performance Learning in cities around the U.S., sponsored by Quest. Placed on retainer by Dr. Tom Jenkins for DuPont Learning Resources. Led 5-day residential seminar for officers of the U.S. Army.
  • 1983: Began series of seminars in creative/innovative thinking for newly hired DuPont engineers. Article in The Brain-Mind Bulletin.
  • 1984: 4 months in Sweden leading a series of 3-day High Performance Learning/Leadership seminars for the Salen Group. Series of 2-day seminars on Creativity & Innovation at the New York Yacht Club, sponsored by Inferential Focus.
  • 1985: First program for YPO (Washington, D.C. chapter). Began long-term relationships – consulting, designing/delivering customized seminars – for C&P Telephone, the Dupont Pension Fund and the Amoco Treasury department. Article in The Washington Post.
  • 1986: Publication of first edition of The Mind Map: A Roadmap to Your Mind
  • 1987: Publication of Present Yourself: Captivate Your Audience with Great Presentation Skills. Series of seminars for Northern Virginia Police Academy. Series of seminars for AT&T. Article in The New York Times Magazine.
  • 1988: First seminar for Merck in Salzburg, Austria. Featured presenter at the Gstaad Colloquium along with Tony Buzan and Edward DeBono. Article in Money Management. Keynote: National Society of Sales Training Executives. Article in US AIR Magazine.
  • 1989: 3-day Seminar for Merck scientists in Canada. “Creative Thinking & Problem Solving” Workshop for Junior Achievement Business Academy.
  • 1990: Designed and delivered organizational development program for National Public Radio. Served as Executive Coach to NPR President Delano Lewis.
  • 1991: Presentation on Creative Thinking at the Cosmos Club in Washington, D.C. High Performance Learning Seminar at The Omega Institute.
  • 1992: Awarded first degree black belt in Aikido. Series of 3-day programs on Creativity & Innovation for Hercules Food & Flavor Ingredients Group in Copenhagen, Amsterdam, London and Wilmington, Delaware.
  • 1993: Presenter at YPO University in Yokohama, Japan. Series of 2-day Creativity & Innovation seminars for Weyerhaeuser in Portland, Oregon.
  • 1994: Publication of Lessons From the Art of Juggling. Appearance on Good Morning America. Awarded second degree black belt. Release of Nightingale-Conant Mind-Mapping audio program. YPO University, Washington, D.C. YPO University, Florence. Article in Washington Post: Business Section.
  • 1995: Co-director of the Lichtenstein Global Trust Academy – a series of seven 3-week intensive leadership development programs. YPO University in Madrid.
  • 1996: Publication of Thinking for a Change: Discovering the Power to Create, Communicate and Lead. YPO University in New York City. Engaged by Lehrer McGovern Bovis to design/deliver Leadership Development program and coach teams to prepare for major sales presentations. Executive Coach to LMB C.O.O. Jim D’Agostino. Seminar at Covey Leadership Center. Article in Executive Excellence.
  • 1997: Publication of Samurai Chess: Mastering Strategic Thinking Through the Martial Art of the Mind, with Grand Master Raymond Keene. Third degree black belt. YPO University in Buenos Aires.
  • 1998: Publication of How to Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci: Seven Steps to Genius Every Day. How to Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci reaches #1 on Amazon and appears on Washington Post Best Seller and New York Times Business Best Seller lists. Series of 2-day seminars for George Mason University Executive MBA program.
  • 1999: Publication of The How to Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci Workbook. Engaged to lead a series creativity and innovation programs by Microsoft. Honored as “Brain of the Year” by The Brain Trust in London. Wine in the Workplace article published in The Wine Spectator. Keynote speech in Milan for the dedication of Leonardo’s Horse. Keynote and seminar for Training Directors Forum. Article in Training Magazine. Article in Bottom Line.
  • 2000: Main Platform speaker at “The Million Dollar Round Table” in Toronto. 5-day seminar in London for Senior European Strategy Team of KPMG. Presentation at the Chopra Center in La Jolla, California. 4-day Seminar for Nike Senior Apparel Team in London.
  • 2001: Keynote presentation at YPO University in Venice. First of three 5-day seminars for Merck Central America leadership team in Costa Rica. Keynote Public Library Association National Conference.
  • 2002: Publication of Discover Your Genius: How to Think Like History’s Ten Most Revolutionary Minds. Awarded a Batten Fellowship at the University of Virgina. Presentation on Thinking Like Leonardo at the New York Arts Club.
  • 2003: Publication of More Balls Than Hands: Juggling Your Way to Success by Learning to Love Your Mistakes. Fourth degree black belt.
  • 2004: Publication of DaVinci Decoded: Discovering the Spiritual Secrets of Leonardo’s Seven Principles. Keynote and Seminar for Turkish Management Association in Istanbul.
  • 2005: Completion of 28-day organizational development initiative for Merck Clinical Research. Release of Work Like DaVinci audio program. Keynote for General Electric Latin American Innovation Conference in Mexico City. Feature article Why Create? for the premier edition of Create Magazine.
  • 2006: Engaged to present for the Institute for Management Studies. Presenter at the YPO University at Sea: Athens to Rome. Release of Sounds True Audio program The Spirit of Leonardo. Featured presenter: The International Conference on Science and Consciousness.
  • 2007: Keynote and seminar at the HERO MindMine Conference in Delhi, India. Publication of Innovate Like Edison and review in USA TODAY. Certification as Instructor of Chi Kung by Robert Tangora. Keynote TAUG Conference in Albuquerque. Leonardo and Edison Seminars for Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland.
  • 2008: Keynote presentation at CEO Florence University. Keynotes for Mass Mutual in Rome and Unilever in Venice. Seminar in Serbia for Eurobank. Keynote for National Principals Leadership Institute in NYC. Keynote for Catalyzing Conscious Capitalism event in Austin, Texas. First Creativity and Innovation Leadership Academy Coach Certification Program held in Santa Fe. Co-taught Executive Education Seminar for Darden Graduate School of Business with Prof. Jim Clawson. Seminar for Vistage Master Chairs.
  • 2009: Highlights of 2009 included: Three intensive programs on creativity and innovation leadership for Merck in Rahway, N.J.
    • February 8-9: YPO Forum retreat in Las Vegas.
    • March 10: Keynote at the Georgia Institute of Technology.
    • March 22-25: Executive Education Program at University of Virginia’s Darden Business School co-facilitated with Professor Jim Clawson.
    • March 27-31: Presentation at the International Conference on Science and Consciousness.
    • April 20: Product Innovation & Inspirational Design Program for Mattel.
    • April 24: Leadership Development Program for Microsoft.
    • September 10 & Oct 27: Institute for Management Studies programs in Southern San Francisco and Houston.
    • October 20-23: Facilitation of Conscious Capitalism Summit, Austin, Texas
    • I will also be finishing my new book on wine drinking for inspired thinking, a new version of the Juggling book and a very exciting new book on Brainwave Optimization to be co-authored with Brainsync founder and Theater of the Mind host Kelly Howell. And, I’ve also agreed to write a series of articles for Experience Life Magazine, (see Articles page). News and updates on all these projects will be featured in my Notebook.