Game On Nation

Since joining the Game On Nation team full-time on November 1, 2023 as our Chief Operating Officer, Jake Higginbotham has made such a positive impact and has been a serious game-changer for our entire organization.

His mission from the get-go has been to ensure our processes are executed with excellence and efficiency. He’s also led our talent management efforts, focusing on selection, development, and deployment of our facilitators, and ensuring that valuing people first continues to be our competitive advantage. With all this, he has worked tirelessly to implement systems, processes, and procedures that allow us all to do what we do with creativity, consistency, and clarity.

Through Jake’s tireless efforts, so many of us have been able to share the Game On Nation message this past year to corporations, sports teams, and elite military personnel near and far. And now, after working behind the scenes to make sure we’re all prepared to deliver, it’s now Jake’s turn to be out front, share the message, and get his Game On.

With that, I’m thrilled to announce brother Jake will be delivering our “Building Collaborative Teams” session this week with our Director of Programs, Chris Friday, at Scott Air Force Base in Belleville, IL. The full circle moment is that after serving our country in various elite roles for over 28 years, one of Jake's stops on his journey to becoming a Command Chief Master Sergeant was a stint at, wait for it… Scott Air Force Base.

Let’s go!!!

As we wrap up another solid week at Game On Nation headquarters in Bradenton, here’s another “frame the game” brought to you by our amazing summer intern .schmidt13

We’re so thankful for the unique perspective Allie brings to our team, and for these solid insights. Let’s go!!!

As we wrap up another solid week at the Game On Nation headquarters in Bradenton, here's another "frame the game" brought to you by our amazing summer intern Allie Schmidt.

We're so thankful for the unique perspective Allie brings to our team, and for these solid insights. Let's go!!!

As we wrap up a productive week at the Game On Nation headquarters in Bradenton, here’s another “Frame the Game” from our amazing summer intern .schmidt13.

Perspective On.
Insights On
Game On.

Let’s go!!!

As we wrap up a productive week at the Game On Nation headquarters in Bradenton, here's another "Frame the Game" from our amazing summer intern Allie Schmidt.

Perspective On.
Insights On
Game On.

Let's go!!!

Another week in the books and with that, below are some more helpful insights from Allie.

It’s so important for us to hear from different voices and learn from various perspectives. Let’s go!!!

Another week in the books and with that, below are some more helpful insights from Allie.

It's so important for us to hear from different voices and learn from various perspectives. Let's go!!!

🚨Attention🚨: Game On is getting our gear on, and so can you!

This is the first step in our merchandising campaign. We’ll be adding many more products in the near future, but for now, check out the link below to get your Gear On. Let’s go!!!

https://game-on-store-game.myshopify.com/

game on game on

We’re so grateful to have Allie Schmidt join our team this summer and share her voice and perspective to help make us better.

Love this “First Friday” take. Such great reminders for all of us. Let’s go!!! Game On.

We are thrilled to introduce the newest full-time member of our team, Ms. Dodie Goff Dodie Goff.

Dodie brings a wealth of experience as a scheduling and office manager, as well as an HR professional. Her proven track record of attention to detail, adaptability, and responsiveness makes her a perfect fit for the role of Office Manager. With so much happening at Game On, this position is crucial, and we anticipate benefiting greatly from her expertise.

Dodie loves hanging out with family and friends, is an avid fitness enthusiast and Peloton lover, and has impressive culinary skills. Word on the street is that she makes the best Jalapeno Mac-N-Cheese you’ve ever tasted.

Most importantly, Dodie is a kind, caring, and thoughtful human being and very proud Mother and Grandmother. We are so grateful to have her as part of our team.

Welcome to the Game On family Dodie. Let's go!!!

We are thrilled to introduce our incoming summer intern, Ms. Allie Schmidt! Allie, a junior at Wake Forest University, is not only a dedicated student-athlete on the women's soccer team, but also a passionate advocate for team-building and fostering healthy and positive environments. She's a Psychology Major with minors in Entrepreneurship and French and will bring a unique perspective to our team.

We eagerly anticipate learning from Allie's valuable insights and will strive to ensure that her internship experience is as enriching for her as it is for us.

Welcome aboard, Allie! We can't wait to see what you'll bring to the table. Let's go!!!

We are so pleased to make the official announcement of our newest Expert Facilitator, the one and only... Heather Wells (HX WellsSawyer)

With all of her achievements, Heather is most proud of her husband Jason, her three children, and her three grandchildren and cherishes the moments she has with them.

Heather comes to us after an illustrious 31-year career in the Army. She’s a retired Sergeant Major and experienced intelligence professional with a wealth of leadership expertise gained from numerous deployments and roles within the DoD, Interagency, and Special Operations. Her proficiency in fostering trust, assembling cohesive teams, and driving organizational excellence is rooted in her remarkable ability to connect with people.

We are so grateful to have her as part of the team! Please join us in welcoming Heather Wells to the Game On family. Let's go!!!

Let’s go!!!!

Less than two weeks away! The Women's Leadership Summit is excited to feature Erin Watson from Game On Nation, who will deliver an interactive leadership session, connecting to self, others, and your purpose. 🌟 Join us on March 7 to grow, to be inspired, and to feel reenergized. Purchase your tickets at myrasm.com/womens-summit.

Our Founder & President Steve Shenbaum recently had the opportunity to help prepare an athlete for their Hall-of-Fame induction speech.

As the date of the awards banquet got closer, Steve introduced an exercise aimed at boosting their confidence and ensuring they felt at ease while delivering their message.

We hope the following 3-step exercise can serve as a valuable guide for any upcoming presentation, message, or speech that awaits you. In other words, start your engines…

Exercise #1. Read the speech alone and out loud. Are there words, sentences, and/or phrases you would never say - or that sound like a written speech instead of a conversation? If so… replace them with bullet points or write it out the way you would say it if you were talking to a good, loyal, trusted friend.

Exercise #2. After you’ve done exercise #1, read the speech again and look for moments where there are dates, facts, and thank yous that read like a grocery list. Try to replace all that “extra” with a clear and concise memory, moment, story about how the people you want to honor have impacted you. Think about simple, kind, impactful moments that amplify and bring to life the actions of those people you want to thank in the speech.

Exercise #3. After you’ve done exercise #1 and #2, find some space in the speech to authentically add a touch of joy, light, and fun. I know it’s there and because you have built such a solid structure for your speech, and now that the timeline, arch, and heart of the message is set, this is the time to add that final touch of simple levity. Don’t overcomplicate it. Think of it as a dash of fun flavor to accent the entire dish.

As leaders, teachers, coaches, and presenters, most of us will probably never deliver a Hall of Fame speech. However, we still have our various audiences, we have speeches on the daily, and we present in a variety of settings. Those presentations may not take place behind a fancy podium, on a grand stage, with cameras rolling, in front of those bright lights, but we all have important audiences to serve, where the words, message, and overall story absolutely matters.

So, let’s do our best to find the right process, and as that business meeting, class, pre-game huddle, presentation gets closer, we can all approach that date like a hall-of-famer, feeling confident and comfortable, moving from script to story, and getting that… Speech On. Let's go!!!

Check out our President and Founder Steve Shenbaum as he shares the Game On origin story and exchanges some "Coins" with Mark Gordon from the Business Observer on the podcast "From The Corner Office".

Here's to all of us doing our best to make authentic connections and to positively impacting our community. Let's go!!!

Accountability and being an authentic leader with Game On Nation’s Steve Shenbaum | The Business Observer’s From the Corner Office Podcast This week, we are speaking with Steve Shenbaum, founder and president of Game On Nation. Game On Nation, based in Bradenton, works with professional athletes, high-level business and nonprofit executives, government officials and military leaders on presentations and public speaking, teambuilding an...

Game On Nation’s Jake Higginbotham just completed the 61st annual JFK 50 Mile ultramarathon. Including this 2023 finish, he has completed this event seven other times (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2015, 2016, 2018)!

We're so proud of our teammate and in awe of his discipline, determination, work ethic, and that his mustache game is on!

We all know the benefits of exercise… it keeps our hearts, minds, and bodies strong and healthy. But why these rigorous, and some would even say extreme events? Well, we asked him this, and his answer is below...

"... It's the sense of adventure, self-reflection, and connection. From race selection and signup, to the start and through the last mile, the journey is a mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual one. I relish the adventure and the shared experience with the other athletes. I do it because I can do hard things. Not finishing an event doesn’t mean failure, it means learning from what went wrong and going again. It’s about real connection with new and inspiring people and finding joy, growth, and accomplishment by being uncomfortable and working hard.”

Your Game On family is proud of you! Thank YOU for being such an inspiration.

Game On. Mustache On. Run On.

Over the next few weeks, we’ll be sharing some insights into the four core dynamics that fuel our curriculum, which is also the driving force behind one of our most requested programs, “Engaging with Purpose”.

We approach this training with the belief that everyone is a presenter in some form or fashion. With that in mind, as presenters, how can we deliver a message that is both meaningful and memorable?

Our answer is... our M.I.L.E. philosophy, and it starts with Mystery.

Mystery, by definition, is something unknown. When you embrace Mystery, you’re cultivating curiosity and creating a sense of “what’s next?”, while inviting the audience to take a step forward with you in good faith.

With that said, we’ve also learned over time, for the element of Mystery to have the most optimal impact, don’t overdo it. Audiences don’t want to feel manipulated or played. Too much Mystery and we move into ambiguity, which can lead to confusion, frustration, and disengagement, which is not good for a Meaningful + Memorable equation.

We encourage you to see yourself as a presenter, in some form or fashion. With that mindset, trust that adding an element of healthy and purposeful mystery will be a game-changer to get you and your audience authentically engaged.

Keep an eye out for more info on the M.I.L.E. concept over the next few weeks, and in the meantime, have fun with the intrigue, enjoy the “to be continued”, and wait for it… embrace the Mystery.

Let’s Move People. Let's Go!!

Our President/Founder Steve Shenbaum has been sharing the Game On Nation message recently as a guest on select podcasts. For an upcoming interview, the hosts asked him to come up with a suggested episode title and 10 questions to highlight his thoughts as it relates to public speaking, presentation, and overall communication.

Before you read his answers below, what would be your episode title and some questions as it relates to your area of passion/focus?

Okay, here’s what Steve sent back to the podcast hosts. Let’s go!!!

Suggested episode title: “HOW TO ENGAGE AN AUDIENCE WITHOUT FREAKING PEOPLE OUT”

Sample questions…
1. How do you define a successful presentation?
2. How can we all use interactivity and engagement in a safe and purposeful manner?
3. How can we all use game-based concepts to enhance learning and development?
4. How can keynote speakers deliver an entertaining message while focusing on substance over sparkle?
5. What’s the best advice you can give a leader as they prepare to deliver an important presentation?
6. What are some basic techniques we can all easily implement to help create an impactful presentation?
7. Why is Hide & Seek such a popular game to play as a kid and what can we learn from those dynamics?
8. When delivering to a large audience, how can presenters best bridge the gap between stage and audience?
9. How can leaders, coaches, teachers, presenters, share a message that audiences can both care about and remember?
10. What is some practical advice you can give a public speaker/presenter to help them stay calm and emotionally controlled during their presentation?

Let's Move People!

In honor of all the men and women who served or continue to serve this country, "Happy Veterans Day!"

Your dedication and sacrifice ensure the preservation of our freedoms, and we are so grateful for your service. THANK YOU!

We just scored a first-round draft pick!

The team at Game On Nation is so excited to announce Jake Higginbotham as the newest addition to our business family... as Chief Operating Officer.

Jake joined us as an intern over the past several months, courtesy of the United States Air Force and the remarkable DoD-SkillBridge program. This initiative offers service members the opportunity to gain valuable civilian work experience through industry-specific training as they approach the conclusion of their military service. Game On benefited immensely from this program and Jake quickly became invaluable to our entire team.

As a twenty-eight year U.S. military veteran, Jake’s dedication, commitment, and vast experience have proven to be a tremendous asset to our organization, and we’re so excited to have him on board. He has significant expertise in leadership, teamwork, communication, operations, and systems, all honed working at the highest levels of joint, intelligence, and special operations, as well as numerous overseas deployments.

We're so thankful for Jake's trust in choosing to be a part of our organization, and more importantly, for grateful for his service to our Nation.

Here’s to a long and successful journey together.

Let’s go!!! Game On.

Colleagues, family, friends...We're stepping up our content game and we'd love for you to join us on this exciting journey. If you'd like to receive Steve's weekly blog and our encouraging content and practical resources to improve teamwork, communication, and overall presentation skills, you can subscribe by clicking the image below.

Our goal right now is to do our best to share and add value, and then add value, and after that, add some more value.

Here's to leading, learning, and laughing well, together. Let's go!!!

Subscribe Join the Game On Nation conversation and get all the latest tips, advice, and stories to inspire your teamwork and communication success... We've got your back!

🎉

Join us in celebrating Game On Nation President and Founder, Steve Shenbaum 🎂

Happy Birthday, Steve!

Birthday On!
Celebration On!
Game On.

😃
Here’s a for you…Lakewood Ranch Business Alliance and Game On helping local leaders develop and hone their talents!

And we’re doing it again this year! This year’s Leadership Academy will be the 9th class! That’s phenomenal 👏🏼👏🏼.

If you want to learn more about how to be a part of the Leadership Academy, join us virtually on July 7th for a free hour long preview with Game On President and Founder, Steve Shenbaum

Then, starting August 11th, we’ll kick off the 9th class of the Leadership Academy in partnership with Lakewood Ranch Business Alliance.

We’ll see you there! Let’s Go! Game On (link in bio 👆🏼).

Join Game On Nation President and Founder, Steve Shenbaum on 7/7 from 12-1pm EST, for a preview of this year's LWRBA Leadership Academy. Get a lunch and learn boost on the Friday after 4th of July and join us here: https://www.gameonnation.com/lwrba

Then, starting August 11th, we'll kick off the 9th class of the Leadership Academy in partnership with the Lakewood Ranch Business Alliance, sponsored and hosted by Nathan Benderson Park. There is so much momentum and growth in our Sarasota and Bradenton communities right now.

Come join our LWRBA and Game On Nation teams and take your place as a local leader. See you for the preview on 7/7!

LWRBA Leadership Academy Preview Be the leader that your team needs today!