Darryll Stinson in a brown blazer smiling against a plain dark blue background.

Speakers > Darryll Stinson

Darryll Stinson

Former D1 Athlete & Suicide Survivor

Darryll Stinson helps top performing professionals and teams reduce burnout by developing a sustainable system of self-care..

Defining Moments

Fee range:

$10,000-$20,000

Travels from:

Atlanta, GA

Perfect for:

Kicking and closing keynotes, leadership retreats, team building, mental health themed events

Tone & Approach:

Dynamic storyteller, southern preacher energy, sweeping inspiration paired with actionable takeaways

Meet Darryll

Darryll Stinson is a speaker, best-selling author, and co-founder of Seeding Greatness, a movement dedicated to helping leaders heal humanity and restore the planet through storytelling and transformational services. A former Division I athlete turned two-time TEDx speaker with over 2 million views, Darryll inspires audiences with his powerful message of resilience and purpose.

Growing up in inner-city Jackson, Michigan, Darryll excelled academically but struggled with identity, facing bullying that led him to abandon his true self. By seventh grade, he was entangled in street life, but his athletic talent earned him a Top 100 national ranking in football and basketball and a full-ride scholarship to Central Michigan University.

His career was derailed by a devastating back injury, leading to substance abuse, multiple suicide attempts, and a deep battle with depression. It wasn’t until he sought help at Henry Ford Hospital’s psychiatric unit that he found faith, embraced self-care, and rebuilt his life beyond sports.

Now a TEDx organizer (2022–present) and award-winning communications professional, Darryll has coached hundreds of speakers to share their stories, reach millions, and grow their impact. His expertise has earned him accolades, including Top 100 Athlete (2008) and #9 Suicide Awareness Speaker (2023).

Beyond speaking and coaching, Darryll enjoys rapping, reading, and spending time with his wife Brittany, their four children, and their dog, Magic. He firmly believes that if you’ve found his work, it’s for a reason—your story has power, and your purpose is waiting.

Meagan has worked with

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Forbes Councils logo
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Colorado State University logo featuring a ram's head emblem above the university name in text.
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AT&T logo featuring a globe design.
The word "Inspire" with stylized letters, including a spoon and fork design.
Mississippi State University logo with a large 'M' and 'State' banner.
"Centers for Spiritual Living" text logo in a stylized font.
Florida State University seal with three torches and the year 1851.

Signature Presentation

Sustainable High Performance

How to bring your best when stress is high and morale is hard

Darryll Stinson in a brown suit smiling against a dark blue background with concentric circles, logo of 'Human Connection Speakers Bureau.'

Description:

In today's fast-paced world, the impact of mental health on workforce productivity and performance is something we cannot afford to ignore. The World Health Organization reports that anxiety and depression cost the global workforce a shocking $1 trillion annually in lost productivity. Additionally, more than half of U.S. workers find themselves disengaged at work due to stress. This reality creates emotional stress and strain that affect our mental clarity, emotional peace, work performance, and every area of our lives. In this dynamic, heartfelt keynote experience, Darryll unveils a proven self-C.A.R.E. strategy to address these pressing challenges, equipping attendees with the tools to increase their productivity while deepening their relationship with themselves and the world around them.

Throughout this experience, participants will: 

  • Elevate their awareness by developing the skill of conscious awareness to recognize and reframe subconscious beliefs that impact their behavior.

  • Discover the power of physical movement as a tool to optimize energy levels and mental state. 

  • Enhance their understanding of relationships at all levels—beginning with themselves. They’ll learn how their relationship with themselves impacts their health, wealth, and relationships. 

  • Be inspired to express their emotions and share more of their unique insight and skills with the world.

  • Release mental health stigmas and begin to take new pride in their wellness (vs. feel embarrassed, guilty, ashamed or weak)

  • Have a fun, heartfelt - engaging experience: Drawing from his background in sports, facilitation, storytelling, and transformative learning, this speech is infused with music, peer interaction, and structure designed to enhance participants learning and increase the percentage of people who implement

Additional Presentations from Darryll Stinson

  • Effective communication is a valuable skill that should be continuously developed in various areas such as employee training, sales closing, email writing, social media posting, conducting successful meetings, and building closer relationships. But there's one aspect of communication that is often neglected, and that is the power of vulnerable storytelling. By sharing personal experiences, individuals can build stronger connections with their colleagues and clients, resulting in more leads, more revenue, and more impact. This interactive presentation will dive deep into the dynamics of vulnerability and storytelling so attendees are empowered to transform their life and business.

    Throughout this experience, participants will: 

    • Learn the evolution of communication and why vulnerability is so vital

    • Enhance their skill of telling vulnerable stories in all facets of communication 

    • Learn how to use storytelling to increase sales and expand impact 

    • Connect deeper with themselves and others

  • Whether you’re in a season of growth and expansion, or you’re (re)building at a slower pace, everyone desires to maximize the potential of their team. This engaging experience utilizes storytelling, music, interaction, reflection, discussion, and a giant rope to introduce participants to a three-step ownership process unlike anything you’ve heard before. Throughout this experience, participants will engage in exercises designed to empower them to re-ignite their passion, increase their contribution, and more powerfully own the progress of the organization regardless of their role. Darryll will share key insight helpful to discover how to turn busyness and stress into innovation, opportunities, personal growth and/or organizational expansion.

Testimonials

  • Shannon Stowell, CEO, Adventure Travel Trade Association

    "We serve the adventure travel community from all over the world. There were people from 50 countries at our conference. As you can probably imagine, it's hard to move a crowd that’s so wildly diverse in culture. Darryll did it! He did a phenomenal job. The crowd was moved, and I was moved personally. I cannot say enough good things about his role as a speaker and motivator.”

  • Ashley Dowd, Event Manager, Amazon AWS

    “Darryll exceeded expectations for our virtual event. You could feel his energy and passion through the screen, and you could tell he took the time to think specifically about our executives’ work challenges to give them practical steps they could take to reduce their stress, increase their performance and encourage their expression in the workplace.”

  • Amanda Baghaei, Education Operations Manager, Meeting Professionals International (MPI)

    “Darryll nailed it for our event. His featured session was one of the most attended and praised throughout our conference. He received a 5 of 5-star review from the attendee survey and had nothing but raving reviews. The only complaint we received is that some people wish they had more time with him!”

  • Sara Bellefleur, Vice President Supply Management – Commercial Segment, ASSA ABLOY Opening Solutions America

    “Darryll was one of the best speakers we’ve ever had! I recommended him to our CEO to get him booked at all of our events. He impacted my life personally, and the crowd loved him. He made us laugh. He made us cry. He made us different.”

  • Bernadette Maier, Executive Assistant to President i-Health, DSM Firmenich

    “When we met Daryll, we knew instantly he was our man. He touched everybody with his speech and empowered us all with the exercises he walked us through. If you’re looking for the key person and speaker for your conference, then Darryll is that person for you!

Watch & Learn:

The O’Show

Interior of a conference room with a projector screen displaying "Welcome to Jackson College Multicultural Affairs Uniting for Hope & Healing Mental Health Forum." There are tables, chairs, a microphone, water bottles, and a Starbucks cup on a panel table.
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Book cover titled "Who Am I After Sports?" by Darryll Stinson featuring a pair of hanging athletic shoes.

Who Am I After Sports?: An Athlete's Roadmap to Discover New Purpose and Live Fulfilled

Connect with Darryll:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mentalhealth-keynotespeaker

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stinsonspeaks/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stinsonspeaks/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@darryllstinson8909

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/dstinson97

Send us a message to inquire about or to book Darryll Stinson