The Huddle and The Hustle: Leading Teams Through Change, Adversity and Opportunity

Join Justin Forsett, former NFL Pro Bowl athlete turned entrepreneur, as he shares his dual journey of excelling in the high-stakes world of professional football and pioneering his wellness brand, Hustle Clean. This keynote offers invaluable insights into leadership, resilience and seizing opportunities. Elevate how you lead through his key takeaways:

• From Backfield to Boardroom: Discover how NFL experiences shaped Justin’s business strategies and leadership style
• Resilience Under Pressure: Learn how enduring challenges equipped Justin to handle business adversities
• Visionary Leadership: Explore Justin’s transformation from a player to a CEO, emphasizing vision and perseverance
• Community Impact: See how Justin leverages his brand to positively impact communities, merging success with service
• Embracing Change: Gain insights on navigating transitions from sports to business with flexibility and foresight
• Ethical Leadership: Understand the significance of ethical practices learned in sports applied in business
• Viewing Failure as Growth: Embrace setbacks as essential steps towards greater achievements

 

Justin’s personal journey is one of the best stories in the NFL.

Former NFL running back Justin Forsett was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in 2008 and played for seven teams in nine years, including the 2014 Pro Bowl with the Baltimore Ravens.

Known for his speed and agility on the field, he is now a respected leader and businessman off the field. And as an award-winning speaker, he shares his stories of sacrifice, setbacks and success.

A Florida native, Justin was determined to play in the NFL. Despite his 5'8" stature, he broke several high school records and earned a college scholarship to Cal where, as a senior, he was named to the First-team All-Pac-10 Conference.

Justin retired from the NFL in 2017 and moved from the backfield to the boardroom. The company he co-founded with college teammates even appeared on ABC's Shark Tank. Although they didn’t get a deal, they used the feedback to rename, rebrand and relaunch their company.

Now known as Hustle Clean, and with Justin as CEO, this multi-million-dollar wellness company sells all-natural body wipes and personal care products online and at major retailers.

The Case for Neuroinclusion: Creating Spaces for Every Mind to Shine

By embracing neurodiversity, we can unlock innovative solutions that enhance collaboration, creativity and connection at future meetings and events.

This keynote session will cover the fundamentals of neuroinclusion and how you can elevate existing methods while encouraging new practical approaches to inclusion. We’ll provide compelling arguments and actionable insights for building inclusive environments that not only support neurodivergent individuals but also yield long-term benefits for the organizations we serve.

Join us as we champion a future where every mind is valued and events serve as platform to empower all people, foster belonging and create moments of genuine delight. 

Keynote Q&A: The Case for Neuroinclusion

2:45 -3:45 p.m.

Inspired by Megan Henshall and Rachel Lowenstein’s keynote? This is your opportunity to connect with them in an intimate and safe space to ask follow-up questions and brainstorm solutions.

This informal Q&A allows you to engage with industry peers who share a passion for neuroinclusion and creating spaces for every mind to shine. We welcome all to participate, as we recognize that neurodiversity is a vital form of human diversity that enriches our collective experience.

Megan (she/her) serves as the strategic lead for the global events team at Google. She partners across the enterprise to understand how experience drives business, builds communities and promotes cultural continuity, informing vision for a global team of amazing event professionals. Megan also co-leads an interdisciplinary coalition called the Google Experience Institute (Xi), focused on the futures of human-centered, multi-modal experience design and is the executive director of The Neu Project, a non-profit focused on demystifying neurodiversity and enabling neuroinclusive design practices across events, experience design and workplace.

Rachel has 10 years of experience as a media executive and creative leader, helping some of the biggest brands in the world grow through cultural intelligence and social impact. She has worked with brands like Nike, CHANEL, Booking.com, Unilever, General Mills, Getty Images, UN Women, Meta, Nestle, Marriott and more as a trusted advisor, strategist and creative. 
 

Rachel’s insights have been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Ad Age, Adweek, The New York Times and more. She has received honors like Ad Age’s 40 Under 40 and Advertising Week’s Future is Female award. Rachel is a sought-after public speaker on complex cultural issues, having been invited to speak on prestigious stages at the United Nations, Cannes Lions, CES, SXSW, Yale University and more.
 

As an autistic woman, Rachel is also a content creator who helps neurodivergent people live authentically with a community of over 110,000 followers. Her mission to break stereotypes about autistic people has made her a forthright expert on neuroinclusion where her community and Fortune 500 companies alike seek her unique expertise as an autistic visionary. She co-founded Divergent Convergent, which is working with organizations like Google and The Neu Project to make professional spaces more accessible to neurodivergent talent.

Finding Purpose Through Service to Leave Your Imprint on This World 

What happens after you hit rock bottom? Sometimes you find a calling that changes your life forever. You just might become a hope dealer that empowers sustainable change for others. 

The Pygmies, a marginalized and forgotten people, became the catalyst for Justin’s journey of purposeful service. Through his experiences with these incredible individuals, he witnessed firsthand the immense impact we can have when we dedicate ourselves to a cause greater than ourselves. 

Together in Denver, we will explore the power of service, the profound difference we can make in the lives of others and the ripple effect that extends far beyond what we can imagine – including the transformation that occurs within ourselves when we choose to serve selflessly.

Above all, this talk is about hope. How to become a hope-dealer from one of the world’s greatest hope dealers turned change makers. It is a reminder that we each possess the power to create a better world, one act of kindness at a time. By leaving our imprint on this world through purposeful service, we can inspire others to do the same, sparking a chain reaction of love and compassion that reverberates far and wide.

After battling depression, suicide and drug addiction, Justin experienced a life-changing journey living with the Mbuti Pygmy people of the Congo Basin Rainforest. When he returned he founded Fight For the Forgotten, to knockout the world water crisis, which today has expanded its impact to serve the Batwa Pygmies of Uganda. Justin has a deep-seated belief & ability to empower people to stoke the fire that is within us all.

Justin "The Big Pygmy" Wren is a 10-time State Champion, 5-time All American and 2-time National Champion Wrestler, UFC veteran and has been inducted into the Black Belt Magazine Hall of Fame. His MMA record is 15-2.

As a humanitarian, he's the Founder and CEO of the non-profit Fight for the Forgotten, also authoring a bestselling book with the same name through Simon & Schuster publishing. 

Justin's transformative storytelling Ignites a fire In the human soul that inspires and empowers us to take action that leads to deeper purpose, high performance and long-lasting change and impact.

Justin has inspired millions through his appearances on the Joe Rogan Experience (9x), Mike Tyson's HotBoxin', the Ed Mylett Show, ESPN, Sports Illustrated, NBC, CBS, ABC, FOX and TEDx Talks, along with his book, Fight for the Forgotten. Today he is the host of his own inspirational podcast, Overcome with Justin Wren and a globally recognized keynote speaker.