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About
Karl Mecklenburg rose from a college walk-on and twelfth round draft choice to an NFL career that included three Super Bowl and six Pro Bowl appearances. Karl has been a semifinalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame each of the last 8 years. The former Bronco’s captain spent his entire twelve-year career in Denver and makes Colorado his home now. Mecklenburg was arguably the most versatile player in the NFL playing all seven defensive front positions often in the course of a single game. Karl was selected as the AFC Linebacker of the Year, AFC player of the Year, and since retiring from the NFL has been enshrined in the Denver Broncos Ring of Fame and the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame.
As a member of the National Speakers Association and a CSP, Karl is an author and motivational speaker inspiring long term positive change in teams and individuals. He approaches his speaking career with the same intellegence, passion, and work ethic that puctuated his great football career. Ask about discounts for local, school, and church events. His latest book, Heart of a Student Athlete; All Pro Advice for Competitors and Their Families, offers advice to young athletes and their loved ones about what it really takes to be successful in sports and life.
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Video Clips
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Topics
MOTIVATION: KEY LESSONS FROM THE LINEBACKER
These lessons were learned in the crucible of NFL competition and apply to any team looking to accomplish their mission. Teamwork – with leadership being the ultimate expression of teamwork; Courage – the courage to try new things and the courage to be decisive; Dedication – hard work, constant learning, and refusing to quit; Desire the dream, the passion, the mission; Honesty & Forgiveness – with yourself in self-evaluation and with others; and Goalsetting – the reasonable short term specific steps to success. Universal and unchanging, these key lessons will inspire and motivate your team to accomplish their goals.
TEAMWORK AND LEADERSHIP: MAKE EVERY DAY GAME DAY; THE C’S OF LEADERSHIP
We can all recognize teamwork or the lack of teamwork in a sports competition. How do less talented teams beat a roster full of superstars? Teams with leaders throughout the organization win. Karl teaches leaders to utilize the C’s of leadership. Clarity and Consistency of the following three team focuses: Cornerstones – the team’s purpose, Commitment – to the team’s mission, and Connection – with the individuals on the team. Great teams use the strengths of the individual to help the team win, and the strengths of the team to cover for the weaknesses of the individual. Story based and full of humor, Karl’s presentation brings a team together in times of change, and fights complacency in times of success.
PEAK PERFORMANCE: SUCCESS IS OVERCOMING OBSTACLES ON THE WAY TO YOUR DREAMS
Mecklenburg’s life is a testimony to this truth. Karl’s journey through junior varsity football, losing a partial scholarship at his first college, walking on at the University of Minnesota, and coming to the Broncos as the 310th pick of the draft were all obstacles. He achieved his dream by becoming the most versatile player in the NFL and a team captain. Karl’s twelve-year NFL career included six Pro Bowl and three Super Bowl appearances. Story-based and full of humor this motivational presentation will inspire and motivate your team to peak performance.
SAFETY: IGNITING YOUR PASSION FOR SAFETY
Playing linebacker in the NFL is not a safe job, but it is a job that requires passion and commitment to preparation. Karl’s presentation drives home the value of daily preparation that breeds decisiveness in the split-second safety decisions that your people need to make. Safety is a team mindset, a team passion, in much the same way that winning is. NFL players are constantly coached and corrected. When mistakes are made, they need to be amended quickly or the team will lose. If sloppy safety behavior is left uncorrected on your field, injury, death and/or litigation can be the result. Appropriate leadership and oversight are required for teams to make and maintain changes in safety procedures. Karl’s presentation covers the value of coaching and oversight in becoming the best and safest your team can be. Story-based and humorous, Karl’s speech will help your team take a big step forward and reinforce your commitment to safety.
TED STYLE TALK: HONESTY; THE CLEAR PATH TO SUCCESS
A culture of honesty allows your team to adjust to change, to retain customers and employees, and to deal with failures and successes. Karl’s 10-minute story-based TED talk is entertaining and thought-provoking.
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Testimonials
5 people have recommended this speaker
“Karl’s inspirational messages around teamwork, leadership, dedication, hard work, honesty, and forgiveness apply to all of us whether in the NFL, corporate life, or in our case on the farm. His energy and public speaking prowess allowed him to connect and engage our members as only the best speakers can. His preparation, focus, and ability to capture our audience’s attention for the entirety of his onehour session was second-to-none. Furthermore, his commitment to bringing value to our association shined as he voluntarily took extra time to visit with our members to get to know them, participate in a fundraising auction, take photographs with attendees, and more. He made every single member in our association that he spoke to feel as if they were truly connecting.”
“Karl’s presentation was perfect for this event. He did a wonderful job of tying in our theme, “Think Big Summit”, and our goals for the event, with his special brand of storytelling and humor. Mecklenburg came early to listen to our industry speakers, and referred to their presentations in his talk. He spent time with attendees both before and after his speech signing autographs and posing for photos. Feedback from our team included: “Great speaker for our event. Karl tied it all together.” “Karl’s enthusiasm was evident from the start of his talk to the very end.” “Fun, entertaining and inspirational, both professionally and personally.” Karl’s down to earth demeanor and professionalism made him easy to work with. Mecklenburg will be at the top of our list for future CPS events.”
“At our customer events, Karl’s average rating by attendees was excellent – the final and most important indicator for us of his performance. In summary, you will find Karl Mecklenburg a pleasure to work with, as engaged in planning your event and achieving your goals as you are, and an audience-pleasing presenter. ”
“Great Plains Manufacturing, a Division of Kubota, USA, is a company consisting of 1500 employees based in central Kansas. Every two years, we have a National Dealer meeting to introduce new products, and concepts in the Agriculture field to our dealer network in the continental US, and beyond. This year, we asked Karl to be our keynote speaker for the event, and we couldn’t have been more pleased with our choice. Karl’s 6 keys to success resonated with our guests, as well as our employees. His message applies to many aspects of business, as well as life in general. We had two sessions during the week, and everyday Karl was engaged in the meetings whether it be signing autographs, taking “selfies” with our guests, and even taking part in our field demonstration day, which on this day, was particularly hot and uncomfortable. Feedback from his presentations that week were very positive, with many guests commenting as such in our feedback questionnaire. We would highly recommend his services to any group, as he is very entertaining, and truly inspiring!”
“Your message and delivery were “spot- on” for our audience of managers and key employees of local retail farm supply cooperatives. It’s not every day we have the opportunity to interact with a former professional athletic. It’s amazing how the lessons you learned through athletics and conveyed in your address applies to all of us in our business as well as personal dealings.”
“Karl’s inspirational messages around teamwork, leadership, dedication, hard work, honesty, and forgiveness apply to all of us whether in the NFL, corporate life, or in our case on the farm. His energy and public speaking prowess allowed him to connect and engage our members as only the best speakers can. His preparation, focus, and ability to capture our audience’s attention for the entirety of his onehour session was second-to-none. Furthermore, his commitment to bringing value to our association shined as he voluntarily took extra time to visit with our members to get to know them, participate in a fundraising auction, take photographs with attendees, and more. He made every single member in our association that he spoke to feel as if they were truly connecting.”