Be inspired to take action and live your best life.

Powerful connections. Standing ovations. In-person and virtual.

Through emotional storytelling, humor, and original music, Tom motivates audiences to get busy living – to go from surviving to thriving, to live every moment to the fullest, and to accomplish things they never dreamed possible.

When Tom turned thirty years old, life was good. Then a cancer diagnosis changed his life forever.

Tom spent an agonizing year battling the disease as it spread through his body. Facing his own mortality at an early age changed his perspective about time, and since then he hasn’t wasted a minute. He has become an award-winning technology innovator, an accomplished musician and playwright, a successful educator and TEDx speaker, an author, and a marathon and ultramarathon runner.

Now Tom shares the lessons he learned and inspires us all to get busy living our best lives.

Videos

Tom’s Speaker Showcase - “No Time Like Now”

Tom’s TEDx - “Transforming Learning through Stories and Music”

Media - “Atlanta Man Turns Battle With Cancer Into Musical”

Something for Everyone

Tom tailors his keynotes and seminars for each client to accomplish their goals. His universal lessons are valuable for any organization, but his own life experiences make him particularly suited for these audiences and industries.

  • Executive Leadership and Teams

    Tom's decades of experience in leadership positions and his unique perspective through empathy and connection provide leaders with the right approach to build high-performing teams that continuously improve, innovate, and achieve.

  • Healthcare

    Tom's use of his musical, Turning Thirty, written during his experience as a patient, provides healthcare workers with a deeper understanding of the patient experience, enabling better clinical empathy for better outcomes.

  • Technology

    Tom will provide you and your team with the approach he uses to develop innovative, award-winning technology solutions. His accolades include a CIO 100 Award from CIO Magazine and an Atlanta Mobile Award.

  • Music

    Using his experience as an award-winning performer, published songwriter, and playwright, along with his desire to never waste a minute, Tom will motivate your audience to use creative pursuits to have an impact and achieve great things.

  • Education

    As a first-generation American and the first one in his family to graduate college, Tom knows the power of education. His innovative work at Georgia State University has been featured in Politico magazine and earned him the distinction of joining the Global Top 50: Government Innovators. Featured in a popular TEDx talk with over 100,000 views, Tom can help your institution transform learning and lives.

  • Running

    After his experience with cancer, Tom decided to begin running as a way to stay healthy. His approach of consistency and perserverance led to his transformation from cancer patient to marathon and ultramarathon runner. Tom will inspire those seeking to improve their health and running and fitness audiences to continuously improve and achieve.

Keynotes that Inspire

Tom's keynotes bring emotion, connection, music, and humor to any event, both at in-person events and via engaging and interactive virtual events. See his keynotes below to motivate and inspire your audiences to get busy living!

No Time Like Now

Tom shares the emotional and powerful story of his experience with cancer and how it changed his perspective about time. Tom uses stories, humor, and music to inspire your audience to make the most of their time, work, and life.

Transforming Learning Through Stories and Music

Featured in his popular TEDx talk with over 100,000 views, Tom demonstrates how storytelling and music has the unique power to trigger your brain to learn and remember in a powerful way. He helps educators and individuals transform learning and lives.

Time. Talent. Team.

Tom uses his unique perspective to teach audiences how to create outstanding results using these three keys: 

  • Time: Take action - don't wait, start today, and succeed or learn

  • Talent: Develop the skills you desire through consistency and perserverance

  • Team: Create and engage your team using empathy and connection to speed up and increase what you accomplish

You Can Accomplish Anything

Tom tells the story of how his experience with cancer ultimately began his journey with running from cancer patient to marathon and ultramarathon runner. He shares the valuable lessons he learned along the way, and how you can use them to achieve things you never dreamed possible. 

Consulting

Tom Willner partners with you and your teams to drive success through continuous improvement that delivers innovative, award-winning solutions. With a track record of creating impactful results, Tom brings expertise gained from designing solutions recognized by a CIO 100 Award from CIO Magazine and an Atlanta Mobile Award for a mobile app that generated over $10 million in its first two years. His projects at Georgia State University have been highlighted in Politico magazine, earned a Virtual Innovation Award, and secured his distinction as a member of the Global Top 50: Government Innovators.

Through consulting engagements, Tom translates these experiences into actionable strategies tailored to your goals. His approach combines deep technical knowledge, a focus on long-term improvement, and insights from real-world success, empowering teams to overcome challenges, drive revenue, and stay agile in evolving landscapes. Whether improving existing processes or building new solutions, Tom is committed to helping you achieve sustainable growth and measurable outcomes.

Tom’s Book

In addition to writing a musical about his experience with cancer, Tom wrote a book about how this creative pursuit became his muse and catharsis through the experience and ultimately transformed his life. 

Having A Ball At Thirty: How I Got Through Cancer by Writing a Musical

Having A Ball At Thirty is a behind the scenes look at what Tom was going through at the time. Each chapter chronicles what led up to the creation of each song and includes a full-color insert with photos, including original journal entries and performances of the musical.

By sharing his experience, Tom shows how you can navigate life’s darkest moments with resilience, creativity, and strength, leaving readers feeling empowered to face their own challenges. It is available for purchase and provides a powerful takeaway that reinforces Tom’s message: adversity can be a catalyst for personal growth and transformation.  

Testimonials

“Tom’s use of his musical is truly wonderful and unique and brings his experience to life in a way that is both impactful and unforgettable. I, along with the rest of the audience, was spellbound. People were crying and laughing, sometimes both at once.”

- Pamela Peters, Medscape Education

“Tom delivered a truly creative learning experience for my students, and enabled them to internalize the experience in a way that traditional learning could not.”

- Linelle Blais, Emory University

“Tom shared his personal journey, struggle and overcoming for us to realize the value of each minute we have, just as he has. We don’t have to have such a challenging experience to begin to value our life as it is right now.”

— Pam Leinmiller, Vertical Vision

“Tom tells a story to be treasured, reliving his journey with humor, kindness and grace. A sure comfort for patients, loved ones, and healthcare providers alike.”

- Dr. Muta Issa, Atlanta Veterans Affairs Medical Center