About

Speaker.

Garr is often a featured Keynoter at tech, business, design, and education conferences worldwide. His audience-focused topics include: 21st-Century Presentation, Presentation Design, Storytelling, Digital Storytelling, Simplicity, Resilience, and topics related to the practical lessons for design and living from the Zen arts. For inquiries about Garr’s speaking engagements—or to book him for a keynote address—please contact Garr through his agent here.

Seminar Instructor.

Garr facilitates his popular, interactive Presentation Zen seminars within organizations worldwide. When time permits, he holds public seminars as well in Japan, New Zealand, Australia, UK, France, USA, etc. Garr’s philosophy is that education should be informative, inspiring, and fun. Presentation & design tools matter, but are largely ephemeral. An understanding of the principles and techniques found in the broad field of visual communication are the thing of real and lasting value.

Author.

Garr’s first big hit was the award-winning international bestseller Presentation Zen: Simple Ideas on Presentation Design and Delivery. Now in its 3rd Edition*, the book is available in 17 languages worldwide. His other bestsellers include: Presentation Zen Design, The Naked Presenter, and Simple Presentation (Japanese), and The Art of Storytelling (Japanese). He’s currently working on his sixth book on video & digital storytelling. Books on Amazon.com. Garr’s Books on Peachpit Press.

Educator.

Garr is Professor of Management & Communication Design at Kansai Gaidai University in Osaka (video interview at KGU). He’s a frequent guest lecturer at universities such as Kyoto University, Keio University, Hokkaido University as well as overseas at such institutions as Oxford University, Stanford University, and many other universities worldwide. He focuses most of his research on the principles and techniques of storytelling in the context of leadership and social change. Appointed by Ambassador Kennedy, Garr served a five-year term with the Japan-United States Educational Commission (Fulbright).

Blogger/Writer.

Garr began sharing presentation tips on garrreynolds.com in 2004, and began to give away what he’d learned about presentations over the years on his Presentation Zen Website in 2005. Pulling tips from presenters such as Steve Jobs and Seth Godin, etc., and synthesizing them with visual lessons from the Zen arts, Presentation Zen became a huge hit and its articles have been read by millions.

Musician.

A lover of jazz since he was a kid listening to his dad’s old LPs, Garr started out on trombone in school and began playing drums for jazz groups in night clubs and bars on the Oregon Coast by age 17. “Both jazz and Zen have had a major, harmonious influence in my life,” Garr says. He still performs in live houses in Japan, although since the pandemic, he plays all the instruments himself at home.

TEDster.

Garr began writing about TED presentations immediately after TED Talks went online in 2006, and his ideas began popping up on the TED Website soon after. He attended his first TED Conference in 2009 and is active in the TEDx movement in Japan where he’s coached several TED and TEDx presenters. He’s made talks himself at five TEDx events in Japan so far (sample TEDxTalk videos).

Runner.

Having grown up on the Oregon Coast, Garr loves being outside as much as possible and exploring nature. A footballer and runner in high school and college, today he enjoys trail running, mountain biking, weight training, swimming, and tennis. He’s run several marathons including a personal best of 3:19.

Family guy.

Garr lives in the quiet countryside of historic Nara Prefecture with his wife and children and various animals.