Over 27,000 votes were cast and Allison Massari has been honored as a Top25 Speaker alongside Lisa Ling, Brene Brown, Anderson Cooper, Suzie Orman and more.
Grateful to my Hero, on this Veterans Day
Today I am celebrating Veterans Day and my heart is full. It was a Vietnam veteran named Roger Pepper who saved my life, pulling me from this burning car in 1998. I was trapped inside and he ran into the fiery scene. I remember the very moment we caught eyes when I was inside, so afraid, and in so much pain. Then he kicked the glass out, and pulled me out. The story could have ended there, but for years (until he passed away) he always called to check on me to be sure I was ok. He was so kind to me. He cared. He is a true hero, alongside every veteran.
Three Ideas to Help your Wellbeing
Life often pulls us in so many directions. When you feel mired down from stress or overwhelm, here are three ideas that can help with your sense of wellbeing:
1) We can never underestimate the impact our kindness can have on a stranger. We can have no idea how we may be helping someone who is hurting with the simplest act of a genuine smile and eye contact. When we focus on extending our kindness to others it disrupts any unhealthy loops of negative thinking and gets you into good, yummy, wonderful feelings. No matter how busy we get, we can learn to take three seconds to give someone a warm genuine smile, or use a supportive tone of voice as we speak. With these simple practices, our lives can have more meaning.
2) If you have had a persistent painful issue that for years will not resolve, even with counseling, or support, and books, etc., start your day interrupting those negative feelings or thoughts by jumping and saying "STOP!" Then stand tall, put a huge smile on your face and go to a memory of when you were filled with joy or aliveness, or love. Replace the negative with a positive. Decide how you want to feel and be in charge. The pain may always linger in the background but you can make a choice to not let it run your life.
3) Our brains love silence. In this busy world, days and weeks can fly by without time for reflection. If you can, find some quiet time today and enjoy it. When we get quiet, we get to know ourselves in an important way. We can listen to our thoughts and connect to what we really hope for, decide on next steps, get clarity, and so much more.
May your day be filled with goodness.
Artwork by me: "The Place Where My Soul Rests" © Allison Massari For prints please click here.
For information about my keynote speaking please visit: www.AllisonMassari.com
Cleveland Clinic Video Clip of my Keynote
I have a soft spot for the wonderful people at the Cleveland Clinic. And I am still smiling from the honor of speaking for them at the Patient Experience Summit this year. Today I saw this clip from my keynote that was posted online. Please feel free to watch! Click Here. To learn more about my speaking in healthcare please Click Here.
“Brilliant.” “This was so INCREDIBLE! Thank you!” “Wow no words……” “Fantastic communicator. Personal and compelling.” “Famously told.” “Incredibly moving and powerful session. Such beautiful and thought provoking words.” “Very eye opening! The best patient story of the conference.”
Cleveland Clinic 2016 PE Summit
Techniques You Can Employ When Dealing With Difficult Clients or Coworkers
Often I am asked about how to successfully handle difficult people. Every situation is so unique and may require a radically different approach. As a default, it is always good to start by assuming that you may be wrong about everything you think you know about the person and the situation. This brings a fresh, new perspective - an open mind - and is a powerful place to create true resolution. Feeling truly humble always helps us create the best possible outcome. We cannot control how a person responds, but we can do everything possible to help the person feel we are on their side, that we truly want understanding, that we are fair, that we want the best for everyone involved.
In my opinion, there is an epidemic of isolation. Rather than feeling a part of a team or community, we often feel separate. My goal is to bring a true message of hope, to catalyze our connection to our humanity. I care about people. I want them to feel supported, to be transported to a new way of thinking, to feel powerful in their lives.
When in doubt put yourself in the other person’s shoes, and keep your mind on the peaceful outcome you desire.
To learn more about my keynote speaking please Click Here
Speaker for Norton Healthcare at "Go Confidently"
Speaking for Norton Healthcare was truly special. I had the privilege of delivering the keynote at "Go Confidently" which is a free event generously provided to the community by Norton Healthcare. It was a first-class event and done with so much love! To get a peak click here. And to read the follow up article you can see it by clicking here.
To learn more about my speaking in healthcare please click here.
You Are a Healer
Many people are silently hurting, keeping up appearances. When you see a stranger today, you can go to your heart, and quietly wish them happiness. When we walk in the world with the intention of loving kindness for one another, we each become beacons of healing in this world. Your awareness and caring affects your environment and the people you encounter. And the added benefit you have likely noticed, is that your loving kindness for others, simultaneously washes over your own self.
Thank you for your love.
Artwork by me: "The Peacemaker" Series #5 © Allison Massari
For information about my keynote speaking please Click Here.
Cleveland Clinic Keynote Speaker 2016
This was an unforgettable day for me. Thank you dearly to the Cleveland Clinic for the huge honor of delivering the keynote for your "Patient Experience Summit". From the first call with Dr. Adrienne Boissy to the humble exceptional people in the audience that I had the incredible pleasure of meeting afterwards, I am still smiling. Click Here to see a short clip they posted online. To learn more about my speaking in healthcare please Click Here. This image is one of my favorite tweets that was posted! Thank you...
The Ultimate of What Love Looks Like in Healthcare
Wow. This image says it all. In China, several doctors bow to an 11-year-old young boy diagnosed with terminal brain cancer who managed to save the lives of several others by donating his organs shortly after he passed away. This is the ultimate of what love can look like in healthcare. There are countless people in healthcare who daily and tirelessly give with devotion, compassion and kindness. May we honor them all. And may we honor this beloved mother and child.
Love_In_Healthcare_Allison_Massari
Bring Allison Massari to deliver the keynote at your next Healthcare Conference. Learn more here.
Allison Massari Named 2016 Top25 Speaker
We have exciting news!
25,000 votes were cast and Allison Massari has been named one of the Top 2016 Speakers.
Click here to see the full list.
“The Comeback Artist” Allison Massari in February 2016 Bay Magazine
Read the 2016 Bay Magazine Article – “The Comeback Artist”
Click here Pages 102-105
Well, instead of a lovely box of chocolate and flowers this year, my Valentines Day gift came from my hometown. #SweetestGiftEver I am so touched by this beautiful article that came out today in Bay Magazine (Tampa, FL) about my life and my work. Thank you to Katherine Snow Smith for so exquisitely writing this, for sharing my work with others, and for such an incredible gift for my heart, on Valentine's Day.
Philips Oral Healthcare sponsors Allison Massari's Keynote Speech
A huge thank you to Philips Oral Healthcare for sponsoring my speech for PennWell's Conference, "RDH Under One Roof!" It was a very special day with a room filled with compassionate, devoted people and I was honored.
To learn more about my speaking in healthcare please Click Here.
Patient Safety Keynote Speaker, Allison Massari in Northern California
This year I had the privilege of being hired by the HEALTHCARE FOUNDATION OF NORTHERN & CENTRAL CALIFORNIA to deliver a series of speeches for Patient Safety events in California. My keynote was called "Transforming Patient Lives: The Art of Person-Centered Care." I just completed the last one yesterday and I am still smiling! I have adored this client team and all of the wonderful people I met from the audiences each time. I'm sending a huge thank you for the lovely testimonial that came in from the CEO:
"98% of evaluations on content, presentation, and satisfaction scored her at a 5 (highest rating)." "Allison Massari is an outstanding presenter and keynoter who will inspire any audience with her passion, compassion, and message of hope and renewal. We have used her in several programs and consistently the audience loves her. At one recent program 98% of evaluations on content, presentation, and satisfaction scored her at a 5 (highest rating). This is not unusual. Allison is often listed on evaluations as the best thing about the conference. We will continue to feature Allison in our programs whenever we have the opportunity; she is wonderful!" Art Sponseller President/CEO Hospital Council of Northern & Central California
To learn more about my speaking in healthcare please Click Here.
A New Kind of Patient-Centered Care
A magical visit to the doctor: I have a really wonderful relationship with one of my doctors. He's helped me for several years with my burn scars. Today we did an experiment on one of the scars on my right leg. We knew it would be painful but worth trying for sure. Well, he did something different today. When he walked in he looked at me with a big sweet smile and started gently dancing while singing a Stevie Wonder song, "My Cherie Amour". And his voice was so kind and gentle and it became hypnotic. And we both started giggling and I was humming with him and smiling and he started the laser treatment and I was completely distracted by the joy of it all and the calm that came over me. And then his song turned into something more jazz-like - a mix between Chet Baker and Louis Armstrong - and he made up a sweet song about me, singing my name - and there I was completely blissed out - and the pain was suddenly nothing at all. He never missed a beat and kept smiling the whole time so generously. And then it was over and I said, "Wow! That was really amazing." And he said with a big smile and a twinkle in his eyes, "I think I discovered something today." And I said, "Oh yes, indeed you have.” - This completely made my whole day. I have a feeling that the future of his business will be now adding a lot of this dancing and singing for his patients. That was truly patient-centered care. And pure kindness... And just pure fun... Isn't it amazing how the simplest things can sometimes create such pure joy.
To learn about my speaking in Healthcare please Click Here
7 Keynotes in 4 days for SSM Health Care
I just delivered seven keynotes in four days for SSM Health Care in St. Louis, MO! And, Wow... This was a first for me. What an honor too! It was a series of events that they put on in devotion to their entire staff. We had 600-800 people at each event. During each program I did a Q&A session via text with them to engage and connect with them, which I always love to do. They brought me in like I was family and it was truly special. On the last day, several of the team members came up on stage with me to get a selfie with me, and you can see our joy! Thank you SSM.
To learn more about my speaking in healthcare please Click Here.
“It was evident that you had familiarized yourself with our culture and history, and you were able to reach our employees at a profound and enduring level.” "You had a transformative effect on those who attended your “Mission Days” presentations for employees of SSM Health in St. Louis, MO. It was evident that you had familiarized yourself with our culture and history, and you were able to reach our employees at a profound and enduring level. Most of all, you reminded us to really see the person before us, whether a patient or a co-worker. Your healing presence among us for four days inspired a renewed, collective commitment to our ministry of caring for the sick and promoting health in the communities we serve. All of us at SSM Health are most, most grateful to you.”
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Don Eggleston System Vice President, Mission Integration SSM Health
Beryl Institute Keynote Speaker - Allison Massari
Oh how I loved speaking for the Beryl Institute in Dallas, TX today. What an outstanding event! It was a convergence of spectacular people in healthcare all devoted to the patient experience.
As I shared my own story of recovering from severe burns I spoke about the power of compassion as a healing tool and how the devotion of my healthcare team supported my journey in such a profound way.
To learn about my speaking in healthcare please Click Here. Take a peak below from the Meet and Greet afterwards.
Finding Your “Yes”
We all grow up with ideas about what life is "supposed" to look like. So much so, that when we struggle, or when things don’t happen as planned, or when the unexpected or imperfect happens and life is not up to par with our ideas, we feel that we have perhaps somehow failed…
Being human is not easy. There is always a challenge. There will always be something: relationship conflicts, that difficult person in the family, feeling betrayed by someone at work, fear around finances, pressures on the job and so on.
Life has immense beauty and extraordinary magic. And also....Life IS difficult.
It is RARE when everything goes perfectly. It is rare when we feel perfectly confident, perfectly beautiful, perfectly brilliant, perfectly rested - with the perfect savings account, the perfect abs, the perfect sugar intake... Of course, we always want to improve and we feel good when we are working towards our goals, but my point is - Life is imperfect!
What if every challenge or agitation is helping us to learn higher levels of compassion, forgiveness, patience, kindness, love and wisdom? What if we could truly celebrate that life is a school - for learning?
Human beings are amazing because we are so incredibly resilient. We can learn to forgive even when we have been betrayed, we can be kind even when we feel rejected, we can become stronger even after we feel we have lost everything. We learn to problem solve in dire circumstances, navigate difficult people, and master our anger and jealousy. Miraculously (and most importantly, and thankfully,) we can all find a way to love ourselves in spite of our imperfections.
As soon as we stop having resistance with this reality, and can see life as a dynamic and glorious process of growth, and embrace the incredible power of our human adventure - our whole world looks different. Everything becomes a touch easier with that simple shift of perspective. Peace comes by leaning in to our own journey and honoring each another as we travel together through life.
Finding Your "Yes"
"When change enters your life, be vigilant in every breathing moment to seek and find the good that is going to come from it. Search with ferocity. Have an unbending belief. The day will come when your heart smiles and rests. If nothing else, your pain will sculpt your spirit and: bring you to the ultimate destination - your self-mastery." -Allison Massari
In Case You Missed It: Recently I received very exciting news... It's was years in the making and at last the award-winning documentary film "Resolve" is out. (You will see me featured in it along with nine others as we share solutions for successfully overcoming adversity and post-traumatic stress - PTSD.) If you or a loved one is experiencing PTSD "this can be from the stress of war, shootings, catastrophic burns, loss of a child, paralyzing accidents, athletic injuries, emotional trauma or financial ruin" I am honored to share this film. It is produced and directed by Greg Strom and so g enerously offered by him for free at this link: Click here
This feature length film was hosted by the Head of Special Forces for the US Military in Afghanistan. You will also hear from Oz Sanchez (Gold medalist in the Beijing Paralympics), Lucia Rijker (World Champion kick boxer), and Shannon Hartnett (World Champion Athlete) along with other very special people. This film was edited exquisitely by Neil Sandilands. Thank you Greg Strom for creating something that can help so many people. You are amazing.
Very exciting news! The documentary film is out. And available free for you.
Today I received very exciting news... It's been years in the making and at last the award-winning documentary film "Resolve" is out. (You will see me featured in it along with nine others as we share solutions for successfully overcoming adversity and post-traumatic stress - PTSD.) If you or a loved one is experiencing PTSD "this can be from the stress of war, shootings, catastrophic burns, loss of a child, paralyzing accidents, athletic injuries, emotional trauma or financial ruin" I am honored to share this film. It is produced and directed by Greg Strom and so generously offered by him for free at this link: Click here - Please share. This feature length film was hosted by the Head of Special Forces for the US Military in Afghanistan. You will also hear from Oz Sanchez (Gold medalist in the Beijing Paralympics), Lucia Rijker (World Champion kick boxer), and Shannon Hartnett (World Champion Athlete) along with other very special people. This film was edited exquisitely by Neil Sandilands. Thank you Greg Strom for creating something that can help so many people. You are amazing.
Captured My Heart
This young boy from Argentina captured my heart! He is the embodiment of gratitude and appreciation in the most beautiful sweet way.
Siemens Healthcare Keynote Speaker, Allison Massari
This year I was hired by Siemens Healthcare to deliver my keynote in eight states to technologists. This was a huge honor and an exceptional experience. I met the most wonderful people. I love speaking at customer events like this!
Take a look at a clip from my programs here:
Healthcare Reform and Patient Centered Care - Customized for Technologists| 6 minutes
"Compassionate care is not just about being kind. Being an expert at your job is compassionate care. Being fully present with your tasks and triple checking your work is compassionate care. Being skilled at putting an IV in is compassionate care. Being up to date on the most effective delivery of treatments that minimize pain and discomfort is compassionate care."
—Allison Massari
To learn more about my speaking in healthcare please Click Here.
"I seldom am impressed by professional speakers enough to attend their sessions 8 times in 3 months. However that is exactly what I did with Allison." “Her words were simple yet penetrating as if I had never heard her before. She makes you realize how powerful and long lasting a simple kind word, a warm smile, or a caring gesture can be. I have seen her bring her audience to a wholehearted laughter and even tears and that is not an easy feat for any speaker. I never got tired of listening to her.”
Farogh Nazari Senior Manager of Global Continuing Education Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics
