Kang Session

Monday Morning Plenary
27 July, 9:00 AM
Workshop Block 1
Monday 27 July, 10:45 AM

Dr. Shimi Kang

An award-winning medical doctor, researcher, and lecturer on human motivation, Dr. Shimi Kang offers the keys people of all ages need to succeed in the workplace, the classroom, and at home. With more than 15 years of clinical experience and extensive research in the science that lies behind motivation and wellness, Kang shows people how to cultivate the important 21st century skills needed to flourish both professionally and personally. Kang authored the 2015 U.S. News International Book Award winner, The Dolphin Parent: A Guide to Raising Healthy, Happy, and Self-Motivated Kids and The Self-Motivated Kid: How to Raise a Healthy, Happy Child Who Knows What They Want and Goes After It (Without Being Told). The Medical Director of Child and Youth Mental Health for Vancouver and a Clinical Associate Professor at the University of British Columbia, she has received five national awards in the field of addictions and mental health. In 2012, Kang received the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for her years of outstanding community service.

Keynote: The Self-Motivated Leader

We are the most informed generation of parents and educators that have ever walked the planet, yet we are raising children with rising rates of stress, insomnia, anxiety, depression, addiction, obesity, and diabetes. Medical history was made when being from a higher socioeconomic class became a risk factor for adolescent anxiety, depression, and substance use.

In over 15 years of working directly with thousands of children and families, Dr. Kang has witnessed firsthand how today’s modern lifestyle and trends of over-scheduling, over-instructing, and overprotecting are seriously under-preparing our children for real life by impeding their self-motivation, sense of community, and ability to adapt.

In her dynamic presentation “The Self-Motivated Leader”, Dr. Kang uses irrefutable science and unforgettable stories from around the world to walk audiences through her three-part method for raising healthy, happy, self-motivated kids. Whether as a parent, educator, colleague, or manager, Dr. Kang shows how pushing/hovering “tigers” and directionless/permissive “jellyfish” models hinder internal drive and adaptability. She proposes a powerful new interpersonal model: the intelligent, strong, joyful, and highly social “dolphin.” By drawing on the latest neuroscience and behavioral research, Dr. Kang shows how this authoritative style encourages self-motivation and the key 21st century skills of “CQ”: communication, collaboration, creativity, critical thinking, and contribution. Dr. Kang will provide the audience with “prescriptions” to cultivate the essential skills needed for true success in our globally connected, fast paced, and ultra-competitive 21st century world.

Workshop: Guiding Towards Self-Motivation and 21st Century Leadership

In this interactive workshop, Dr Shimi Kang will provide practical communication and lifestyle “prescriptions” proven to enhance self-motivation and cultivate the key 21st century skills. She will utilize real world, everyday scenarios, stories, and problem-solving - providing both the latest scientific research and memorable experiential learning.

Specific content will include:

  • Expansion of the understanding of key concepts of self-motivation, adaptability, and CQ
  • 5 specific evidence based communication tools that lead to self-motivation, adaptability, and CQ
  • 5 specific evidence based lifestyle tools that lead to self-motivation, adaptability, and CQ
  • Time to practice, role-play, and question the theory and utilization of these concepts and tools.