Yes You Can!: Behind the Hype and Hustle of the Motivation Biz

Each year billions of dollars are spent by people who want to be inspired to change their lives. From giants like Tony Robbins and Zig Ziglar, to lesser knowns like Dale Irvin (the Professional Summarizer) and Russ Stolnack (the Executive Imposter) just about every kind of inspirational speaker can be found. But what drives a man or woman to stand up and tell others how to lead their lives? What's it take, after all? And does it really work? So begins Jonathan Black's funny, thoughtful, and unpredictable investigation into the world of professional public speakers. He visits the speaker hall of fame, crashes the National Speakers Conference, signs up for the Landmark forum, interviews countless speakers (including Ronan Tynan and Vince Poscente) and the people who choose to hire them, all the while cataloguing the hustling and the encouragement, the shameless self-promotion and the moving self-effacement. Along the way, Black faces his own fear of public speaking -- and his own skepticism -- when he decides to give motivational speaking a try himself. Yes You Can! is an entertaining and utterly unforgettable look into an American spectacle.