John Kippen: Inspirational Speaker

Magician, mentalist, and inspirational keynote speaker John Kippen blends illusion and storytelling to teach resilience, leadership, and human connection after overcoming facial paralysis.

Quick Facts:

  • Highlights:
    • Inspirational magician and mentalist with a powerful resilience story
    • Overcame partial facial paralysis after brain tumor surgery
    • Successful CEO of a bi coastal IT support company
    • Corporate keynote speaker on leadership, problem solving, and team building
  • Formats: Magician, Mentalist, and Inspirational Keynote Speaker
  • Audiences: Corporate teams, leadership conferences, educators, school staff, parents, and organizations seeking messages of resilience, connection, and purposeful leadership.
  • Outcomes:
    1. Renewed confidence and resilience in the face of adversity
    2. Practical team building and leadership insights
    3. Stronger communication and deeper human connection
Reading time: 3 min
Reviews: (0 reviews)
  • Travels from: Los Angeles, CA
  • **Fee range: $5,001 - $10,000

Talent Services

Keynote Topics:

As you watch him perform, you focus on his skills as a performer and his deformity disappears. John’s ultimate illusion.  

John’s speaking engagements are both funny and authentic and audiences walk away being amazed and inspired to find joy in their own lives.  

Using his talents as a magician and master storyteller, he inspires audiences to discover what makes them happy and encourages them to become out-of-the-box thinkers.

People leave his talks with a sense of “Awe and Wonder” while realizing that we all have our own challenges and no one is alone.  We all have unique skills and life experiences who make us who we are. John shows us how to use those skills to be a part of a team.

Talent Short Bio

John Kippen is a magician, mentalist, corporate speaker, and entrepreneur who transforms personal adversity into unforgettable performance experiences. After undergoing successful brain tumor removal surgery in 2002, John was left with partial facial paralysis. Rather than allowing that challenge to define him, he used the art of magic to rebuild his confidence and rediscover his voice.

On stage, audiences quickly move beyond his physical condition and become captivated by his skill, humor, and authenticity. As he performs, the focus shifts from what is different about him to what is extraordinary about him. That transformation becomes part of the lesson. His ultimate illusion is not just sleight of hand. It is perspective.

In corporate settings, John combines magic with practical leadership insights drawn from building and leading a bi coastal IT support company. He shares lessons on resilience, problem solving, team building, and relationship driven leadership. His presentations are interactive, inspiring, and grounded in real world business experience.

John Kippen is a Magician , Mentalist , Corporate Speaker and a master storyteller. He not only entertains, but inspires audiences. John suffered partial facial paralysis after a successful brain tumor removal surgery in 2002.

He demonstrates how performing Magic allowed him to regain his self confidence after his surgery. As you watch him perform, you focus on his skills as a performer and his deformity disappears. John’s ultimate illusion. John’s show is both funny and authentic and audiences walk away being amazed and inspired to find joy in their own lives.

John Kippen is a successful business man and has a bi-coastal I.T. support company. In his Corporate speaking act, he shares his insights on how he has been able to build a company from the ground up and lead others by example. He uses his skills as a magician to entertain while he teaches important fundamentals in team building and improving business relationships.

John Kippen loves working with educators. Our teachers and school staff need to be inspired and reminded about the nobility of their profession. During my educational conference keynotes, I share how a few special educators made a difference in my life and taught me how to be a creative problem solver.

We all need educators that take a special interest in students and guide them through the challenges of school. Educators and staff leave my talks with a renewed sense of purpose and with some new tools that will help them connect with students who are silently crying out for someone to care.

Finally, if you are planning a parent education night, I’d love to be of service! Parents often are tired and frustrated because they have trouble “connecting to their teen.” With insights from my relationship with my own parents, I suggest ways parents can bridge that gap and learn how to communicate better and improve their family dynamic.

John recently spoke at a TEDx conference at UCSD in front of over 600 attendees about how we all should treat people who are different with the respect and compassion they deserve. He inspired the mostly college aged audience to a standing ovation.

John Kippen has studied performance , improvisation and Magic with some of the greats such as Doug Henning, Bob Fitch and Johnny Thompson. He is a regular performer at Hollywood’s Magic Castle and has performed for celebrities including Jamie Lee Curtis, Christopher Guest, Orson Bean, Steve Martin, Kelsey Grammar to name a few.

Prior to his speaking engagements, John researches the company and tailors his talk so it is relevant to the intended audience.

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