Adventurer, author, drummer, storyteller ... Steve Donahue is a one person 'tour de force.' His presentations combine fast paced humor with hard won wisdom from a lifetime of following the road less traveled.

He has crossed the Sahara Desert, written an international bestseller, performed stand-up comedy and even taught disco dancing.  All this and more is grist for the mill of his unparalleled storytelling and narratives on the journey of life.  Voted “most non-conformist” by his high school graduating class Steve continues to challenge audiences to rethink who they are, why they are here and how they can find and follow their own inner compass.

Steve’s best selling book, Shifting Sands: A Guidebook for Crossing the Deserts of Change, (Berrett-Koehler 2004) is based on his harrowing journey across the Sahara. Soulful yet practical, it presents the desert as a metaphorical place of change, often debunking the popular mountain-climbing metaphor that focuses on goal setting and achievement over the journey itself.

Steve Donahue has been a successful entrepreneur for over thirty years and a professional speaker since 1988.

The Sahara is the world's largest and deadliest desert. Daytime temperatures soar to 140 degrees, while darkness brings bone chilling cold. Blinding sandstorms rage relentlessly as scorpions and cobras await unsuspecting travelers. Yet, in the most dangerous, desolate place on earth you discover stunning beauty and inescapable truth. Steve Donahue draws powerful parallels between his desert adventure and the journeys of corporate and personal life. He captivates audiences with his gripping tale that inspires, entertains and imparts ancient desert wisdom. Let Steve guide you across your desert with one of these powerfully transforming presentations:

A JOURNEY ON SHIFTING SANDS
Much of life is like a desert; we get lost, we get stuck, we chase mirages and the journey seems endless. But we live in a mountain climbing society that is focused on the destination, getting to the summit. Steve reveals the ‘Rules of Desert Travel’ and shows how mountain climbing techniques don’t work in our deserts of change. This refreshing presentation debunks popular success strategies and shows how we can find purpose in our journeys, meaning in our deserts and renewal by stopping at our oases.

THE OASIS EFFECT: The More You Stop the Farther You Go
It's impossible to cross the Sahara without stopping at the oases. Desert travelers need to refuel, reflect on where they are headed and connect with others who are on the same journey they are on. This upbeat, entertaining presentation will show you why it is crucial for individuals and organizations to stop more often at the oasis and how to find them in the desert of our over-committed lives.

BUILDING TEAMS ON SHIFTING SANDS
This program deals with team morale and team effectiveness in a time of blistering change, free agent knowledge workers and competing generational values. Drawing lessons from the convoy he traveled with; their environmental challenges and interpersonal conflicts, Steve describes simple but powerful techniques that help teams travel in the same direction amidst a sandstorm of global transition.

FOLLOW A COMPASS, NOT A MAP: Leadership in a world of shifting values
A map is useless when you are lost. It also restricts your journey and can prevent you from finding a better way to travel. This powerful presentation shows how discovering and following your inner compass can help you lead yourself, your team or your organization across the drifting sands of change. Leaders learn how to inspire and guide others even when the destination is unclear and the route is uncertain.