NSB Logo Susan Cain Susan Cain

Susan Cain

Speaker

United States

New York Times Bestselling Author, Award-winning Speaker

Susan Cain is the #1 bestselling author of Bittersweet: How Sorrow and Longing Make Us Whole and Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking, which spent eight years on The New York Times best seller list, and has been translated into 40 languages. Susan’s TED talks have been viewed over 40 million times. LinkedIn named her the Top 6th Influencer in the World, just behind Richard Branson and Melinda French Gates. Susan partners with Malcolm Gladwell, Adam Grant and Dan Pink to curate the Next Big Idea Book Club. They donate all their proceeds to children’s literacy programs

Keynote Speeches

Bittersweet: The Secret Keys to Creativity and Connection

With her bestselling phenomenon, Quiet, Susan Cain urged our society to cultivate space for the undervalued, indispensable introverts among us, thereby revealing an un­tapped power hidden in plain sight. Now she explores why we experience sorrow and longing, and how embracing the bittersweetness at the heart of life is the true path to creativity, con­nection, and authenticity. Susan shows how a bittersweet state of mind is the quiet force that helps us transcend our personal and collective pain. If we don’t acknowledge our own heartache, we can end up inflicting it on others. But if we realize that all humans know—or will know—loss and suffering, we can turn toward one another.

At a time of collective loss, profound discord, and personal anxiety, Bittersweet brings us together in deep and unexpected ways. Using her trademark mix of stories, research, memoir, practical tips, and inspiration, Susan will show you the power of a “Bittersweet” work culture, including:

  • How the expression of sorrow, as well as joy, is key to deep creativity and genuine connection.
  • Case studies of organizations, from hospitals to oil rigs, that have transformed their cultures—and smashed productivity records – by creating “bittersweet” cultures.
  • An analysis of everything from Harry Potter novels to fashion photography to reveal what creativity really is—including its surprising relationship to longing, sorrow, and rising above our limitations.
  • How you can use these insights and actionable steps to build true connection and foster a more creative and mutually supportive work environment.
Quiet: How to Harness the Strengths of Introverts to Change how we Work, Lead, and Innovate

Did you know introverted leaders often deliver better results than extroverted leaders do? That the most spectacularly creative people tend to be introverts? That the most innovative thinking happens alone and not in teams? One of the central challenges of any business is to bring out the best in its employees. Yet when it comes to introverts—who make up a third to a half of the workforce—our leadership strategy mainly consists of asking them to act like extroverts. This is a serious waste of talent and energy.

In her enlightening, relatable, and practical talks, Susan Cain shows us that introverts think and work in ways that are crucial to the survival of today’s organizations. How can you structure your organization so that the best ideas—rather than those of the most vocal and assertive people—dominate? How do introverts and extroverts solve problems and evaluate risk differently? What do introverts know about creativity that the rest of us should learn? Drawing on her original research and the latest in neuroscience and psychology, Susan will radically change your view of the best ways to develop leaders, manage teams, make smart hires, and stimulate innovation.

Audience reviews:

  • What an amazing event! Susan, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. We continue to receive so many positive messages from all those that attended in reference to how much they appreciate this intimate moment with you. We will treasure and be positively impacted from this learning for the rest of our lives! - Senior Manager, Diversity & Inclusion, L’Oreal USA
  • Susan was completely awesome today as I knew she would be. Everyone loved the session. - Founder, London Business Forum
  • You are an excellent speaker and your event was a huge success! You make it look so easy. You were our most well attended Bing Signature Speaker to date. - Bing/Microsoft
  • Thank you SO much for a fantastic webinar today. We have received amazing feedback already. You answered all the questions so thoughtfully and all of us found the topic super interesting. I do hope we have the opportunity to work together again in the future. - Head of Talent Development, AXA Investment Managers

Speaker Biography

Susan Cain is the #1 bestselling author of Bittersweet: How Sorrow and Longing Make Us Whole and Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking, which has been translated into 40 languages, spent eight years on The New York Times best seller list, and was named the #1 best book of the year by Fast Company magazine, which also named Cain one of its Most Creative People in Business.

LinkedIn named her the Top 6th Influencer in the World, just behind Richard Branson and Melinda French Gates. Susan partners with Malcolm Gladwell, Adam Grant and Dan Pink to curate the Next Big Idea Book Club. They donate all their proceeds to children’s literacy programs.

Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Economist, The Wall Street Journal, and many other publications. Her TED talks on the power of introverts and the hidden power of sad songs and rainy days have been viewed over 40 million times.

Cain has also spoken at Google, PIXAR, the U.S. Treasury, P&G, Harvard, and West Point. She received Harvard Law School’s Celebration Award for Thought Leadership, the Toastmasters International Golden Gavel Award for Communication and Leadership, and was named one of the world’s top 50 Leadership and Management Experts by Inc. Magazine. She is an honors graduate of Princeton and Harvard Law School. She lives in the Hudson River Valley with her husband, two sons and golden doodle, Sophie.