Jason Reid | Leadership Keynote Speaker on Trust & Performance
The moments leaders avoid are often the ones that build the most trust
Jason Reid is a leadership keynote speaker on trust, communication, and performance. His signature concept, Awkward Leadership™, reveals the hidden patterns that keep teams from addressing the issues that matter most.
How Leadership Avoidance Changes a Team
Most leadership problems do not begin with a dramatic failure. They begin with something smaller: a difficult conversation that gets delayed, tension that goes unnamed, an idea dismissed too quickly, or an assumption no one stops to question.
Those moments quietly teach people whether it is worth speaking honestly, challenging an idea, admitting uncertainty, or raising a concern. Over time, avoidance changes how a team communicates, collaborates, and performs.
Awkward Leadership™ brings those patterns into view and explains why seemingly small moments can have an outsized effect on trust.
Read more about Jason’s Awkward Leadership™ framework here.
Jason Reid is a leadership keynote speaker serving organizations across Canada and the United States.
See Jason on stage:
Trusted by leading organizations and agencies in Canada, The United States and beyond.
The Awkward Leadership Moment That Doubled Productivity
Jason took over a busy newsroom where productivity and motivation had been declining for months. Then he made a leadership decision most managers avoid: he talked opently about his health challenges. What happened next was significant. His team began to open up about their own issues and together they removed the barriers holding them back. Within one year, productivity doubled. It wasn’t pressure that changed the team. It was trust.
“Resonated on a deep level. Jason made me really reflect on my leadership style.”
Laura Crawford, Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment
“The event we did with Jason was such a success, our entire company is now putting more emphasis on how to address these types of people issues in the workplace. It’s being tied into our values and goals moving forward.”
Rebecca Mole, Tek Resources
“I could listen to Jason for hours. His stories are human, engaging, and deeply relatable.”
Charmainne King, Kellanova
What Audiences Learn
After Jason’s keynotes, audiences walk away with practical ideas they can use immediately:
- How the Hiding Instinct keeps leaders from raising issues early
- How the Avoidance Pattern allows tension and performance issues to grow
- How the Dismissal Reflex shuts down ideas, concerns, and honest feedback
- How the Assumption Trap leads leaders to act on conclusions they have not tested
Together, these patterns give leaders a clearer way to understand what happens when the room gets uncomfortable and what to do next.
Looking for Jason’s programs on invisible disability and neurodiversity in the workplace? Go here.
Why Organizations Book Jason
- A clear, memorable leadership idea: the moments leaders avoid are often the ones that matter most
- Real leadership stories grounded in the pressure and complexity of a national newsroom
- A keynote that balances humour, insight, and practical relevance without feeling like training
- Content that works across industries, roles, and levels of leadership experience
- A collaborative, low-maintenance approach for planners and event teams
- Confident virtual and in-person delivery backed by years of broadcast experience
Bring Jason to Your Next Event
For a keynote on trust, communication, and the leadership moments that shape performance.