Blog
The Blog
Articles from Dr Alison Edgar MBE on motivation, behaviour, ownership and high performance at work, plus practical advice on booking the right speaker.
Do Organisers Book More Male or Female Speakers?
Male speakers took 59% of recent UK speaker bookings against 41% for women, and the topic split runs against expectation. From 250 UK speaker bookers.
The Gender Pay Gap in Professional Speaking
Male speakers average £6,029 a booking and women £5,248. The gap tracks national levels but hits 27% where speakers are booked on profile. From 250 UK bookers.
How Much Does a Motivational Speaker Cost in the UK?
UK speaker fees average £5,000 to £6,000 per engagement, from 250 bookers surveyed in 2025. What sits behind that range, and what moves a quote up or down.
Which Speaking Topics Command the Highest Fees?
Change tops UK speaker fees at £6,030 a booking, ahead of personal growth at £5,859 and leadership at £5,755. Sports success pays least, from 250 bookers.
How do you choose the right speaker for your company’s needs?
Sports speaker, side hustle speaker or business speaker? What each brings, what to weigh, and when each works, so you book for outcomes rather than for a name.
The Secret to Employee Happiness at Work
Only 23% of workers say they are thriving at work, according to Indeed's Work Wellbeing Report. What actually drives employee happiness, and what does not.
10 Questions to Ask Before Booking a Corporate Speaker
Ten questions to ask a corporate speaker before booking: outcomes, audience fit, how far they tailor, how interactive the session is, and industry experience.
The Iceberg Effect: Why Behaviour at Work Isn’t Always What It Seems
When communication breaks down at work it is rarely the words. The Iceberg Effect explains what sits beneath behaviour, and how to read it before you react.
Top 5 Qualities of a Great Motivational Speaker
The five qualities separating a great motivational speaker from a forgettable one: authenticity, audience focus, high energy, real care, and tangible takeaways.
Happiness and Fulfilment at Work: Why Intrapreneurship is the Key
Intrapreneurship, thinking and acting like an owner, is what turns work from something you have to do into something you want to do. How to find more fulfilment.
How to Get Your Team to Think Like Leaders
Teams think like leaders when they are allowed to decide. Four shifts that work: let them make calls, stop micromanaging, welcome ideas, show the bigger picture.
Why More Businesses Are Hiring Female Speakers for Leadership Development
Command and control leadership is over. Why businesses book female speakers for leadership development: a fresh perspective, inclusion, and real lived stories.
Why a Motivational Speaker Might Be Exactly What Your Next Event Needs
Why hire a motivational speaker: what motivation actually changes in a room, what makes Dr Alison Edgar MBE's keynotes different, and the topics she covers.
How to Motivate Employees in the Workplace
Six practical ways to motivate employees: share the bigger picture, give ownership, celebrate wins, invest in development, connect the team, and act on feedback.
The Motivational Speaking Ice Skating analogy
Learning anything new means falling over first. Alison Edgar's ice skating analogy on why getting knocked down is part of the process, not a signal to stop.
Understanding Alison Edgar's Big Balls®
Alison Edgar's Big Balls® sorts your to-do list into basketballs, tennis balls and ping pong balls, so you know what to do first when everything feels urgent.
Insights from Motivational Speaker Demand Study
We asked 1,236 companies what they needed a speaker for. Four challenges came up repeatedly: communication at 67%, change at 44%, then productivity and sales.
The Power of A Motivational Speaker
What a motivational speaker really does, why it matters when attention is scarce, and how Dr Alison Edgar MBE approaches a keynote differently from the rest.
How Motivational Speakers Can Energise Your Corporate Conference
A motivational speaker sets the tone of a conference, connects with the room, and leaves people with something to act on rather than a lift that fades by Monday.
What Does a Motivational Speaker Do? Let's Explore with Alison Edgar MBE
A motivational speaker does not deliver a generic pep talk. What the job involves: learning your business, tailoring the talk, and reinforcing your own message.
When Should the Keynote Speaker Speak?
Opener, closer or mid-day? Where to slot your keynote speaker, and what each position does to the energy and the flow of a conference or corporate event.
5 Things to Consider Before Booking a Keynote Speaker
Five things to weigh before booking a keynote speaker: relevance to your audience, credibility, presentation style, how far they tailor, and post-event follow-up.
The 5 Best Pieces of Advice For Booking Motivational Speakers
Five pieces of advice for booking a motivational speaker: read your audience's behaviour types, be upfront about budget and brief, and agree what success means.
The Future of Speaking: Embracing Relatable Speakers
Olympic medals and mountain summits impress, but they can leave an audience feeling the achievement is not for them. Why relatable speakers land harder.
Navigating Change: A Blueprint for Organisational Culture Transformation
Culture change is a strategic decision, not a buzzword. Why it matters for adaptability, talent and innovation, and how to start it with leadership as the anchor.
How Motivational Speakers Can Revolutionise Your Team Event
A motivational speaker turns a team event from a break in the routine into something that builds cohesion and lifts morale long after everyone goes back to work.
The Impact of Motivational Speakers: A Fresh Perspective for Corporate Growth
What a motivational speaker actually changes: perspective, team unity, morale and productivity, plus the practical tools people take back to their own desks.
The Power of a Relatable Keynote Speaker: Why Choosing a Speaker Your Team Can Connect With Matters
A keynote lands when the audience can see themselves in the speaker. Why relatability beats an unattainable story for engagement and for real behaviour change.
Why you Feel so Unmotivated This Winter
Motivation, self-esteem and enjoyment often dip in winter, and you are not alone. What seasonal affective disorder does to your drive, and how to work with it.
What do Lewis Capaldi and Michelle Obama Have in Common?
Michelle Obama and Lewis Capaldi have both described it, and around 80% of people feel it. What imposter syndrome is, and how to stop it making your decisions.
The Ultimate Guide to Choosing the Right Side Hustle
Delivery driving, blogging, influencing, proofreading, tutoring or selling photography: what each side hustle pays, what it costs you, and how to pick one.
How to Choose the Right Speaker For Your Event
How to choose a speaker for your event: define your takeaways first, set the budget, read testimonials, check delivery style, and look at how organised they are.
What is the Difference Between a Motivational Speaker and a Keynote?
A keynote delivers the heart of your event's message; a motivational speaker lifts the energy of the room. Both motivate, and which you need depends on the slot.
What Makes a Good Team Event or Conference?
What makes a team event work: a solid plan, clear goals, a speaker with real impact, and energy that holds all day. It is not the swag or the networking breaks.
What are the Benefits of Hosting a Team Event or Conference?
Team events build relationships, reinforce a message and strengthen skills. With up to 94% of communication non-verbal, in-person time does what email cannot.
How to Handle Change Like a Boss
Change feels daunting because we are wired to resist it. How to handle change at work and in life, without letting the fear of it make the decision for you.
How to Conquer Imposter Syndrome
Around 70% of people experience imposter syndrome. What it is, and three practical ways to conquer it: face the facts, celebrate wins, and list your achievements.
How to Stay on Top of Your Game
Staying on top of your game starts with getting there. Dr Alison Edgar MBE on why you start now, and on what keeps performance up once the momentum is built.
Why Hitting Your Goals Doesn’t Always Feel Positive
Hitting a goal can feel flat rather than triumphant. Why that happens, what ambition has to do with it, and how to stop the anticlimax stealing the win from you.
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs: Explained in Simple Terms
Maslow's hierarchy of needs explained simply: the five levels from physiological needs to self-actualisation, and how the pandemic pushed people back down them.