MEET DAVE RAYMOND
Today, Dave is an accomplished entrepreneur and a dynamic speaker, having touched audiences at some of the world’s top companies, universities, and teams. You might be surprised to learn where that journey started.
Before he was The Hero of Happiness, Dave was grappling with the brutality of life. He was grieving and slipping into hopelessness. He was learning how to go to work every day while the world seemed to fall apart around him, and trying to deliver joy to others from a place of grief.
You might easily think…
…that performing as a sports mascot in a googly-eyed fuzzy costume would have to be the worst job in the world for a person who’s suffering in their personal life–that it must feel awful to have to try to make other people laugh and help bring them joy that you aren’t feeling yourself.
You might think that. And yet, that Phanatic was figuratively tapping Dave on the shoulder hoping he could see the life changing revelation right under that beautiful green fur.
Dave now reveals that revelation and delivers that power to audiences every day. Hoping they will see that happiness, fun, and joy are accessible to anyone, at any time.
And during the most difficult times that life has to offer, making people laugh, feel heard, and feel seen does not intensify life’s hardships–it unlocks for us the tools to combat them.
That is where Dave’s Power of Fun process becomes a superpower. One that makes you and everyone around you feel better.
why dave?
Dave is an expert in the psychology of fun and the practice of bringing joy.
Others have spent careers studying this but Dave actually lived it! If Happiness had an engineer, their resume would look a lot like Dave’s. With unparalleled energy and contagious enthusiasm, he is passionately committed to making the world a better place.
dave in the news
I can’t thank you enough!!! What an awesome session and follow-up chat. This is my 22nd Conference with CMAA and you rank up there with Louis Zamperini, Amy Purdy and Nichole Malachowski as my favorite speakers. Thank you for everything!
Since the inception of ThurMo, we’ve brought in many top speakers. When people ask me who our best speaker was, without hesitation I say: Dave Raymond. The Power of Fun! speech is simply awesome! It electrified the room and captivated an audience that’s been spoiled by hearing all of the best speakers in our region.
Thanks again for making our all-employee meeting the best one we can remember. There have been so many positive comments about your keynote floating around our offices today. Even our invited community partners were raving about it. Terrific job!
Thank you for the outstanding job you did at the event! I’ve heard so much praise about both the keynote speech and workshop! One of our sponsors actually got emotional while telling us how your speech hit home professionally and personally. How dead-on your message was—it hit deep and was fun at the same time!
This was the absolute best message given at any meeting I have ever been to as a teacher, administrator or football coach (27 years). Great job Dave!
“You were absolutely wonderful to work with every step of the way. I had one gentleman who was in tears about how your message touched his heart after he battled cancer for the past year and another gentleman whom remarked, “I want my teenager to read his book – this is the message that more people need in such a stressful world”.
“Thank you for sharing your passion, your energy, and your commitment to the power of distracting fun and to the idea that humans can intentionally make a difference in how happy they are. You are an inspiration.”
