keynotes & Workshops
Once a music artist, now a groundbreaking scientist: Dr. TASHA Golden helps audiences apply the “science of creativity” to navigate change, spark innovation, and bolster wellbeinG.
Dr. Golden has presented for: SXSW | US Conference of Mayors | Google | Johns Hopkins University | Mayo Clinic | SNF Nostos Conference | National Endowment for the Arts | POLITICO | Grantmakers in Health | CogX Festival | National Academy of Medicine | Many more — spanning corporate, healthcare, government, and nonprofit sectors.
Represented by JLA (UK) and AAE (US).
Whether in-person or virtual, I combine creativity and behavioral science to help leaders question assumptions, reimagine their work, navigate change, and ignite growth.
The opposite of creativity is certainty.
Great leaders know this. They question the stories they know, so they can tell a better one.
My talks are always tailored to clients’ goals and audience. Most run 30–60 minutes and can include Q&A, workshop extensions, or panel format.
Below are a few popular topics. Want to discuss your vision? Get in touch.
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keynote TOPICS
INNOVATION & LEADERSHIP
✔️ The Creative Mindset: Three Pillars for Breakthrough Innovation and Leadership
Discover Deconstruction, Imagination, and Action — three research-backed pillars of creative thinking, featured in Psychology Today, that let leaders question assumptions, drive innovation, and create meaningful change. Whether or not you'd call yourself "creative," this talk gives you the mental model to think bigger.
✔️ Beyond the Status Quo: The Art of "World-Building"
"The world is before you, and you need not take it or leave it as it was when you came in." (James Baldwin) The biggest breakthroughs happen when leaders stop accepting the story of who they are and what they do, and start rewriting it.
“absolutely awe inspiring. I could listen to this all day.”
✔️ Uncertainty as a Catalyst: Navigating Change in Complex Times
Certainty can feel great. But tbh, it’s where creativity goes to die. Learn how to apply creative frameworks to turn uncertainty, setbacks, and challenging emotions into fuel for breakthroughs and positive change.
“she is able to translate research into practices that people can understand—communicating with heart, clarity, and aesthetic beauty...”
WORKPLACE TRANSFORMATION & CULTURE
✔️ The Productivity Story: What a Fortune 10 Study Reveals About Hard Work, Burnout, and What Actually Works
Based on a recent study with a Fortune 10 company and their wellness resources, this talk unpacks the old "hard worker" story that most workplaces still run on. Learn what the science actually says about focus and output, and why you can have the appearance of productivity OR the real thing. You can’t have both.
✔️ Reality-Based Leadership: Why Wellness Programs Aren't Enough
All the wellness perks in the world can't make up for work that feels meaningless or harmful in light of the real world. Trying to address wellness or burnout while ignoring the wider world (grief, upheaval, fear) is like bailing water from a ship full of holes. Dr. Golden makes the case for Reality-Based Leadership: building well-being, retention, and innovation on what's actually true. Doing so is possible; the best leaders learn how.
“I have heard from so many people how amazing and insightful the presentation was. . .thank you for inspiring all of us!”
✔️ Resilience in Action: The Art and Science of Navigating Difficulty
This talk draws on psychological science, the health benefits of creativity, and Dr. Golden's own story of life-changing burnout and depression to explore how we build meaning and true resilience.
HEALTH & WELLBEING REVOLUTION
✔️ The IDEAS Framework: What Really Creates Human Flourishing
Using her IDEAS Framework — Individual & Interpersonal, Data, Education & Awareness, and Sociopolitical Change — Dr. Golden challenges what you think you know about health, and reveals the factors, from individual behaviors to systems, culture, and creativity, that actually drive health and flourishing.
✔️ Arts on Prescription & wellness Innovation: Why Doctors are Prescribing Creativity
This tailorable talk explores how the arts benefit health; how design and aesthetics affect what we think, feel, and know; why doctors are prescribing museums, dance lessons, and live music... AND why all of this is relevant to YOUR goals. (It is!)
“just a quick note of gratitude for leaving a lasting impact... A year and a half later, we are still thinking deeply about all that you shared with us. Thank you for imparting your wisdom and insight with us all!”
I customize all workshops to guide & advise clients. Below are 3 sample topic areas:
WORKSHOPS
The Co-Creation Effect: Designing With (Not For) the People You Serve
Why do some creative initiatives thrive while others fall short — even with similar resources and good intentions? Drawing on my book The Co-Creation Effect, I take you through the concepts that separate genuine collaboration from good intentions that miss the mark.
Together, we explore:
Why co-creation is a resource, not a limitation — how differences in values, aesthetics, and lived experience are not obstacles, but tools for more expansive, effective solutions
The pitfalls of "helicopter" approaches — why designing for people (however well-intentioned) tends to underperform designing with them, and what genuine collaboration looks like instead
The connection between accessibility and innovation — how designing for the margins produces stronger outcomes for everyone
The Trust Factor — why co-led work builds the kind of trust that compounds into deeper engagement and better long-term outcomes
We wrap up with practical frameworks that participants can take directly into their next project: moving from “co-creation sounds nice” to genuine collaboration.
“the presenter was absolutely amazing - so concise, packed a lot of information into an excellent presentation”
From Vision to reality: The AEIOU Framework for Integrating Wellbeing Into Your Work
You don't need a crisis, new funding, or a formal program to start doing work that supports wellbeing. In fact, you may already be doing it.
My AEIOU framework gives arts, culture, and community orgs a practical, five-part path from "we don't have capacity for a wellbeing initiative" to becoming a fully realized part of your community's health infrastructure:
Articulate what you're already doing, in wellbeing terms
Enhance those benefits
Innovate new offerings
Open doors to new partners, funders, participants
Unlock the opportunities that follow
You don't need permission or an invitation to bolster your health impacts. This workshop helps you stop waiting.
“It took several years to find someone like Dr. Golden...”
Arts on prescription: Moving from ideas to action
Drawing on my leading research and guidance in arts on prescription, this interactive workshop guides attendees in exploring this exciting model of care.
Through discussion and targeted activities, attendees begin brainstorming and mapping the arts-health partnerships that will enhance and transform their community’s wellbeing.
The goal? To move you from “That’s a cool idea” to “We can DO this.”
“We…found a perfect partner in Dr. Tasha Golden!”
Let’s work together.
Interested in booking a talk or workshop? Want to know more about tailoring what I do to your event or needs? Fill out some info and we’ll be in touch soon!
Click here for Golden’s signature training in Mental Health and Trauma Informed Practice.