Diane Windingland 
Small Talk Big Results
Saint Paul, MN, UNITED STATES
Diane captures you with storytelling and engages your mind with practical and fun application!
Media
Publications:
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Biography
Author of Small Talk, BIG Results: Chit Chat Your Way to Success! and Perfect Phrases for Icebreakers, Diane speaks for organizations that want to help their people have better, more profitable conversations. An engineer by training, Diane has owned several small businesses and has trained business owners on how to become better networkers, better conversationalists and better presenters.
Diane also runs Virtual Speech Coach, helping emerging business leaders develop memorable content and dynamic delivery to more effectively present their messages. In addition to speaking engagements and private clients, Diane teaches a weekly speech class for home-educated teens.
Diane is passionate about helping people communicate effectively in ways that build bridges that connect rather than walls that separate. Organizations hire me to help their people have better, more profitable conversations. Diane helps people turn ordinary conversations and presentations into extraordinary relationships.
Industry Expertise (3)
Civil Engineering
Education/Learning
Writing and Editing
Areas of Expertise (5)
Leadership
Networking
Business Storytelling
Difficult People
Icebreakers
Accomplishments (3)
Champion Evaluator (professional)
Placed first in the Toastmaster District 6 Evaluation Competition. In this competition, contestants are judged on the content, delivery and helpfulness of their feed back of a target speaker's speech.
Distinguished Toastmaster (professional)
Distinguished Toastmaster (DTM) is Toastmasters highest educational award for Speaking and Leadership Excellence
2nd Degree Black Belt (personal)
Education (1)
San Diego State University: Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering, Civil Engineering 1984
Affiliations (4)
- National Association of Professional Women
- Toastmasters International
- National Speakers Association
- Professional Sales Association of Minnesota
Links (2)
Testimonials (5)
Angela Eifert, Program Planner | Annual Communication and Leadership Event
“Diane was hired by Torch Community Career & Leadership Committee to perform the program for our annual C&L event. All the way through the process of initial engagement, to the end result, Diane far exceeded our expectations. Her easy-going and flexible working style made our planning process simple and uncomplicated. She went above and beyond in researching our organization and tailoring her interactive program to fit our audience perfectly. We had fun and were able to incorporate a lot of quality networking in her interactive program! I highly recommend her as a speaker for any business function or training class.”
Mary Fischer, CAP-OM, Chapter President | IAAP City of Lakes Chapter
"Diane presented the 4 E's of Leadership to our group of seasoned leaders, many of whom had 'heard it before'. We had all been through talks about how to manage people, how to get them to do what we want them to, and goal setting. Talk about a challenge! But Diane went beyond the same-old-same-old and spoke to the values behind leading people – the qualities that move your people to the loyalty and action that really good leaders inspire.”
LeAnn Gferer, Program Planner | Jr. League of Minneapolis
“As Director of a mentorship program within a non-profit organization, I brought in Diane, Owner of Small Talk Big Results, as a guest Speaker. Diane is not only very conscientious and creative but thoroughly researches her topics. Diane is very personable, committed and is an excellent communicator. I highly recommend Diane and Small Talk Big Results. "
Sonja Simpson, Director of Career Services, Globe University | Globe University
“Diane recently presented, "The 4 E's of Effective Leadership" at Globe University's well received lunch and learn's in the IDS tower and is a must have for presentations about networking and leadership. Her passion is evident as she captures you with storytelling, visual demonstration and applied learning as a means to keep her audience engaged and thinking. Diane has an ability to utilize her improv skills to keep you laughing and engaged. If I ever have a questions about how to make my approach to networking more efficient and effective, she will reach into her extensive tools basket to offer suggestions and resources. Diane Windingland is a presenter that you shouldn't miss and a wealth of resources!”
Gregg Peppin, Political Strategist | Campaign School
“My clients are tough. Elected officials, political candidates, political activists and campaign volunteers. Diane did her homework ahead of time. She knew more about some of the attendees than I did! She was personable, thought provoking, friendly and professional. Her presentation was lively and kept people engaged. She had real life examples that fit perfectly with the audience. Diane shared with me her ideas ahead of time and was extremely receptive to my suggestions to make her excellent workshop even better. Attendees were truly impressed. Will I hire Diane again? That's a no-brainer. ABSOLUTELY!”
Event Appearances (3)
Discover the Power of Business Storytelling
Lunch Presentation Best Buy Corporate Headquarters, Richfield Minnesota
2012-03-08
The 4 E's of Effective Leadership
IAAP City of Lakes Chapter Meeting Minneapolis, MN
2012-03-01
Storytelling for Business Workshop
Storytelling for Business Workshop St. Paul, MN
2012-02-25
Sample Talks (1)
The 4 E's of an Excellent Leader
Leaders do not command excellence. They build excellence. In this presentation, The 4 Es of an Excellent Leader, integrity is the base upon which excellence is built and communicated through 4 approaches: Expectations--Get results with positive expectations. Encouragement--Build your business/organization by building up people. Empathy--Conquer apathy with empathy. Empowerment--Release the power within people.
Style
Availability
- Keynote
- Moderator
- Panelist
- Workshop Leader
- Host/MC
- Author Appearance
- Corporate Training
Social