Speaker Focus – Mark Julian Edwards

Mark Julian Edwards is a globally recognised strengths-based leadership expert, two-time acclaimed author, and dynamic TEDx speaker, widely known as The Strengths Explorer.

For 25 years Mark Julian Edwards worked as a top performing consultant across multiple sectors with Global Fortune 250 organisations and he has kindly agreed to be part of our Speaker Focus series and taken some time out to answer some of our questions

Hello Mark, I hope you are well. This may sound like a simple question but what is a “Strengths Expert”?

Put simply I help C-suite leaders, their teams and often their entire companies move to a strengths-based culture. This is where people are doing work which is most aligned to their strengths. We all recognise that feeling where we’re doing work we don’t enjoy, and consequently where we’re struggling for motivation don’t we? When we are playing to our strengths, we are firstly doing work which we excel in and secondly, doing work which truly energises us.

Myself and my team always begin working with the senior leaders, since they are the ones who need to “walk the talk”. We then offer programmes where teach certain behaviours (or habits), and then look to build them into the business’s BAU activities.

How important is Strength based leadership in an era when there is so many different generations in one workplace?

Extremely important! Younger workforces are typically looking for the following:

• Personalisation- They want leaders who recognize their unique talents and help them grow in ways that align with their strengths. Strengths-based leadership meets this demand by focusing on what individuals do best rather than trying to fix weaknesses.
• Meaningful work – Gen Z employees are especially motivated by purpose-driven work. Strengths-based leadership helps employees see how their natural talents contribute to a bigger mission, increasing job satisfaction and retention.
• Collaboration – A strengths-based approach fosters collaboration by helping teams understand how their diverse strengths complement each other. This is particularly valuable as cross-functional and remote teams become more common.
• Work-life integration –With growing concerns about burnout and mental well-being, a strengths-based approach helps employees work in ways that energise them rather than drain them. Leaders who support employees in leveraging their strengths also promote a healthier, more sustainable work environment.

It appears from the enquiries we receive that clients are worried about retaining talent? Can strength-based leadership help with this?

Absoutley. It’s about making people feel seen and valued. People don’t leave jobs; they leave managers who don’t recognise their worth. When leaders focus on strengths rather than weaknesses, employees feel appreciated for what they bring to the table, increasing job satisfaction and loyalty.

Since managers account for 70% of the reasons why people are engaged or disengaged, strength-sbased development needs to start with them. Gallup’s research shows that employees who use their strengths daily are 6 times more engaged and 3 times more likely to report having an excellent quality of life. Engaged employees are far less likely to look for new opportunities elsewhere.
Employees who work in their strength zones feel more energized and less stressed. Strengths-based leadership helps leaders assign work that motivates rather than drains employees, leading to better well-being and lower turnover.

You also speak on Storytelling – what is the importance of Storytelling in your opinion for an organisation?

We are now living in a world where there are so many competing demands on our attention, the question becomes, how do we cut through the noise? The ability to galvanise a colleague, team or entire organisation has never been more important and vivid storytelling is one of the most effective ways to do this. The adage is true. People will forget what you did but people will never forget how you made them fell. If we can inject emotion, passion and even a little humour int our communication, it has a much better chance of landing.

There is quite a number of speakers that have done TED talks or TEDx talks and I am curious to know in your opinion, have you found any benefits from doing it? It seems like a good thing to have on your CV but has it helped to attract work?

The concept of a TED/ TEDx talk, is that it should be “an idea worth spreading”. And so, the question becomes “what is the one powerful idea you have which would make a difference when shared with others”? With My TEDx [Lessons in Leadership: See Yourself Through The Lens of Others], I wanted to share in a unique way how we as leaders can become more when we step into how others may see us.

The benefits for me have included: clarifying my leadership / speaking offering, enhancing my brand and using my talk as learning content with my programmes. It’s difficult to say if the TEDX has directly led to me winning more work, since it is just one of many items I refer to when pitching for new business. Moreover, I wanted to do the talk for myself; to look back with pride on an important and creative project I had created.

What led you to into the path of speaking in the first instance?

It was first the realisation that I just loved doing it. It plays to many of my strengths around communication and persuasion, and consequently I feel so alive when speaking with an audience. It has been a step-by-step process. I have trained hundreds of people in how to speak with power and then began to speak at national then global Leadership events.

I had a magical experience when living in Mallorca, where I had the opportunity to be the European Travel show presenter for a major US Syndicated travel show. This was so much fun and only grew my appetite for presenting. Whereas some people dread the very idea of public speaking, for me, it’s one of those times where I feel fully energised!

Lastly, if there is an aspiring speaker reading this – what the best piece of advice you have been given about developing a speaker career?

Speak as often as possible to hone your craft. Speak for free at first and speak at events where you have a connection. For example, if you work in HR, perhaps target HR events. Be bold; ask the event organisers if they’d consider you for their next event. I would also suggest, to think about what makes you or your message different or unique. As an example, I can draw upon my photographic career and my travel writing as “extras” which may help to bring some sparkle to an event.

For more information on Mark please visit his webpage or contact us on enquiries@scampspeakers.co.uk