Bestselling Author & Master Storyteller
Cal Fussman
Speaking Fee: 4785
Travels From: Available Upon Request
Cal Fussman At A Glance:
Cal Fussman is a New York Times bestselling author, longtime Esquire writer, corporate consultant and host of the Big Questions podcast. He inspires organizations to take a new look at their business through storytelling and connection.
For over four decades, Cal Fussman has interviewed hundreds of the world’s most influential individuals: Muhammad Ali, Jack Welch, Mikhail Gorbachev, Serena Williams, Jeff Bezos, Jimmy Carter, Kobe Bryant, Richard Branson, and the list goes on.
Now, as a New York Times bestselling author, keynote speaker, world-renowned interviewer, and host of the Big Questions podcast, Fussman travels the world teaching the world’s largest companies, universities, and associations about leadership, storytelling, innovation, teamwork, and more. When Cal speaks, you’re listening to everyone he’s ever interviewed. Lessons and stories from hundreds of world icons, all coming through one man.
Over the past several years, Cal has delivered keynotes for industry-leading organizations including General Motors, Facebook, Pixar, Twitter, The Vanguard Group, Apple Music, Snapchat, Samsung, Turner Broadcasting, Vans, Lululemon, YPO, and Entrepreneur’s Organization; universities like UCLA and Georgetown; and at conferences as far as South Africa and Kenya. After Cal spoke at Facebook, Chris Sanders in Global Marketing Solutions said: “We literally have people using the term, ‘Cal Question.’ He has become a part of our culture.”
Born in Brooklyn, Fussman spent ten straight years traveling the world, swimming over 18-foot tiger sharks, rolling around with mountain gorillas in Rwanda, and searching for gold in the Amazon. He boxed against then-undefeated world champion Julio Cesar Chavez, won a James Beard award and served as sommelier atop of the World Trade Center.
He now lives with his wife—whom he met while on his quest to discover the world’s most beautiful beach—and his three children in Los Angeles, where he spends every morning eating breakfast with Larry King.
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What's Your Story?
In this age of information overload, only your story can cut through the noise and grasp attention. Cal teaches techniques that can help both individuals and companies tell their stories in a way that stands out — and he does so through unforgettable stories of his interviews with the icons who’ve shaped history over the last half-century. -
Lessons from Icons
Cal turns his experiences with the icons into takeaways that every person can use in their work. Audiences will walk away understanding how Richard Branson leads, how Kobe Bryant overcomes fear, how George Clooney taps into creativity and how Larry King builds connection. Cal will customize lessons to the theme of your event so that each person in the audience is empowered with tools that can be used in their own work and life. -
Change your Questions, Change your Life
From Muhammad Ali and Richard Branson to Mary Barra and Mikhail Gorbachev, Cal has interviewed hundreds of the world icons over the past three decades. Each conversation shows that if you change your questions, you can change your life. The questions you ask can transform how you communicate and connect with your clients, coworkers, employees, and even your spouse, friends and children. Cal will share unforgettable stories and powerful takeaways about how the specific questions you ask can break down barriers, foster understanding and build deeper relationships with everyone you meet.
Cal was amazing! His stories helped our team think about how we talk to our clients in an entirely new way.— Dan Riess, EVP Content Partnerships, Turner Broadcasting
Cal taught us to connect layers beyond a casual encounter through conversation. He's the best of the best at interviewing and storytelling.— Julie Pilat, Head of Music, Beats Music
The Ancient Greeks may have had Homer, but they’d be jealous to know that we have Cal Fussman. He is the perfect speaker for this generation.— George Peacock, President, Georgetown Alumni Association
If You Want a Better Answer, Ask a Better Question
As a New York Times bestselling author and the literary genius behind Esquire magazine’s “What I’ve Learned” column, Cal Fussman has learned a thing or two about the power of asking good questions. Good ... Read moreby Entrepreneur
This Is What it's Like to Interview the Legend that Was Muhammad Ali
Cal Fussman, Esquire’s writer-at-large, has interviewed some of the most influential figures of our time: Mikhail Gorbachev, Joe Biden, Barbara Walters, Joe Frazier, and even Donald Trump. But one of his most ... Read moreby Esquire
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