Ross Reekie
Ross is a renowned speaker and expert on the topic of meaningful work. With years of experience in the field, Ross has developed a simple model for understanding how meaningful work is created and measured, based on the thousands of years of philosophy and academic literature on the subject.
In Ross’s talks, audiences can expect real-life case studies of people who have made work meaningful and awesome, as well as practical toolkits for leaders looking to create meaningful work environments. Ross’s engaging and playful approach involves “live experiments,” lego building, chocolates, live polls, moving people around, getting people on their feet, and building things to create a fun and inclusive environment.
With a passion for connecting with audiences, Ross disarms and engages them with humour, energy, and warmth from the start. By using the “Bubbles of Meaning Framework” and personal research, Ross provides insights grounded in academic science while bringing the concepts to life with stories of real people.
Ross is always learning from audiences and adapting talks to address their real-life challenges. Known for being a “RockStar” on stage, Ross’s energy, passion, and ability to read people have had a positive impact on countless audiences.
Nina the Makeup Artist and more
How well does your job fit you? We give high importance in meaningful work research to the concept of authenticity. There are literally thousands of
‘Let’s make work awesome! How to lead and work with meaning.’
When work is meaningful everybody benefits. So why don’t we just make it happen? This keynote equips your leaders and teams with science-based knowledge, practical tools, confidence, and inspiration to make work more meaningful in your organization.
The science is clear. When work is meaningful we wake happier to go to work, we have more energy, we’re more creative, more productive, we have more impact on our communities, and it just feels, awesome! With so many benefits for individual workers, teams, organizations, and society why don’t we just make it happen? Well, the science and practice have all been messy, complicated, and lacking a simple, overarching framework, until now!
This keynote is for Leaders and Teams who want to know exactly how to make work feel more awesome. I will offer your team my easy-to-understand bubbles of meaning framework, show them how meaningful work vs meaningless work FEELS, help them to understand why it’s important using science, and inspire with real-life stories. We’ll do live science experiments together, reframe the way we think about work, and co-create an action plan for making work more awesome. This is all delivered in a fun, highly-interactive, and encouraging style.
This keynote equips your leaders and teams with science-based knowledge, practical tools, confidence, and inspiration to make work more meaningful in your organization.
The science is clear. When work is meaningful we wake happier to go to work, we have more energy, we’re more creative, more productive, we have more impact on our communities, and it just feels, awesome! With so many benefits for individual workers, teams, organizations, and society why don’t we just make it happen? Well, the science and practice have all been messy, complicated, and lacking a simple, overarching framework, until now!
This keynote is for Leaders and Teams who want to know exactly how to make work feel more awesome. We will offer an easy-to-understand overview, grounded in real-life stories, of the latest science, philosophy, and practical tools to help you make work more meaningful. This is all delivered in a fun, encouraging, interactive, and encouraging way.
- What exactly meaningful work is and why it is important
- What it looks and FEELS like when we have it/don’t
have it - The 7 key elements that make work meaningful
- How you have accidentally been destroying meaning
for your team - The link between meaningful work and workplace
well-being
- Leaders and their teams who want to start a new
conversation about work together - Leaders who want to change the way their team
experiences work - Team members who want to take charge of their
own work relationship
- A powerful and simple framework for understanding
meaningful work - A toolkit for starting conversations with your teams
about making work meaningful - Inspiration from real-life stories and your own
personal revelations - Confidence to make work more meaningful for you
and your team - A new connection to what work means to you and
your team
Let’s enjoy our work. What we can all do to make work more fun.
When you’ve lost the fun at work, results suffer. This talk will show your team how to find the “leichtigkeit”, reclaim a sense of playfulness, and reframe their purpose.
This talk is for Teams and Leaders who want to radically change their way of thinking about work. We’ve all experienced that feeling of been stuck in our work. We turn up, do our job, try to hit our goals and find ourselves existing from quarterly report to quarterly report. Somewhere along the way work stopped being fun.
What if work could be different? What if we could reconnect with our passions? What if we could be more playful and reframe our challenges? What if we could create new connections with our colleagues? What if we could find new purpose in our work that reignites a flame within us? What if it could be fun again?
After recovering from burnout caused by work stress I asked myself all of those questions and I decided to do something radical about it. I went in search of a new way of working by doing the most fun jobs I could think of. This exploration became the ‘fun jobs project’. >From Opera Extra to Ski Instructor I tried many roles…and found myself.
This talk shares the triumphs and the challenges of finding fun and a new meaning in work. It is backed by scientific frameworks and I bring it to life with the inspiring stories of the people I met along the way. There is no hiding place in this talk. Your team will confront the way they approach work, bring out reflective insights, and equip them with the inspiration, new motivation, and tools to change their relationship with work.
- How to go from stuck to unstuck at work
- How to change the way you think and feel about
your work - How to find and connect with your passions at work
- How to be yourself at work
- A new way of framing the role of your work in your life
Leaders and their teams who want to radically
change their work relationshipTeam that feel stuck in a rut and want to reconnect
with their passions to reframe their purposeTeams that want to have a giant mirror held up to
their work mindsetAnyone who harbours a thought: what if work
could be more fun?
- A powerful human story(ies) for change
- Insights and learnings about your relationship
with work - Inspiration, tools, and confidence to reframe your
work mindset - A huge opportunity to open up the conversation with
your team and colleagues about making work fun again
Fun Jobs Project
Nina the Makeup Artist and more
How well does your job fit you? We give high importance in meaningful work research to the concept of authenticity. There are literally thousands of
Ben the Performer
How would you describe your relationship with work? Do you feel like one of those couples in new infatuations where it’s all love heart emojis,
Otto’s First Job
Why do you work? That’s a question I often use to open my workshop and keynotes. It’s a question we so rarely stop to deeply
Instagram Feed
How to let go of fear
Fear is our biggest human and organizational inhibitor. It keeps us safe from dangers, but it also keeps us in our comfort zones, from making changes, and from reaching our potential. This talk is for leaders, teams, and organizations that want to know how to let go of fear and take a giant leap together.
Every meaningful thing that we’ve ever done and will ever do in our lives involves overcoming fear. Whether it’s approaching our dream love partner or tackling a big audacious work goal, our human fear instinct is there to get in the way. 100% of change projects, daring to be innovative, or simply speaking up and putting our ideas forward all involve facing and overcoming the hurdle of fear.
This talk is for leaders, teams, and organisations who want to learn how to overcome fear together and take a giant leap toward their potential.
- The science of how fear holds us back
- Insights from the great philosophers in taking leaps of faith
- A science/philosophy-based approach to jumping off the metaphorical cliff edge
- What happens to our brains when we’re faced with fear and how to overcome it
- Inspiration from real-life stories to take your own leap of faith
- Confidence that you’ll be able to cope with any of the obstacles that come up
- A practical tool-kit for working through fears
- A light sense of relief that some of your fears about change have been taken off your shoulders already
Ross Reekie
Hi, I’m Ross. I help Organisations, Leaders, and Individuals like you find meaning in work. I’m a Keynote Speaker, Researcher, and Consultant in meaningful work.
I am passionately curious about people and their stories. In my consulting work and research I’ve interviewed thousands of people from Interns to CEO’s about how they find meaning and make work, work for them. I find my own meaning and purpose by sharing those stories and insights to inspire and enable others.
I believe that a curious and playful outlook is the best way to explore meaning at work and I bring that to everything that I do. I love to find fun ways to bring stories, concepts, and insights to life. Audiences regularly describe me as warm, funny (haha funny), insightful, refreshing, and kind.
I’m a regular subject matter expert and commentator in the media including FM4, the ABC, Sydney Morning Herald, Business Insider, and many more. My keynote speaking, workshop, events have included two TEDx talks (Glasgow and Mebourne), many blue-chip international companies such as Mirvac, Lloyds, Watpac, and government organisations such as the European Data Protection Board, the Australian government, and Sydney
Water.
I am also the Founder of Rise, Australia’s first consultancy focused exclusively on creating meaningful work.
What others say
Meaningful Work
“It’s just so much easier and WAY MORE FUN to lead a bunch of people who are excited about a big audacious purpose” Evan, Young Fintech Entrepreneur of the year
When work is awesome it feels great and everybody benefits. We have more energy, we feel more alive, we’re more creative, we’re way more productive, and we have more impact on our community. There are so many benefits, so why don’t we just make it happen? The science of meaningful work has always been complicated…until now!
Research projects
Insights and tips from Ross’ explorations into how we find meaning and happiness at work
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Upcoming Events
FM4 Radio Series
I recently recorded and produced a 5-part mini-series asking the big questions affecting the future of work. It was based on the insights of my global research project about how Corona changed our relationships with work. Listen below, as I explore how we can all make the future of work a little bit more awesome.
Episode 5
How can I find a job that I love
Episode 4
How can I make a difference to the world with my work
Podcast Series
Be inspired by these extraordinary stories of ordinary people who found meaning and happiness in their work
Schedule time with us
TEDx talks
Taking Events
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