Dave Van Bennekum
As a speaker, entrepreneur, veteran, and the author of Searching for True Community, the first self-help book on national security, I am championing positive leadership and bold approaches that challenge the status quo, showcasing the transformative power of brilliant crazy ideas to achieve a breakthrough and effect change.
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Ready to schedule a speaking engagement? Reach out to me to discuss your event and explore how my unique story can contribute to your mission while elevating your next gathering or conference.
About Me
I believe one person can drive real change, build something bold, and push new thinking forward. And that person is in your organization today. But to tap into that renegade, you often must do the illogical to make room for the unusual.
I built a career daring to be different, willing to take a chance and embrace new adventures. And that independence challenged the status quo. So, when old ways of thinking no longer worked, I did what no one would expect, I wrote the first self-help book on national security.
Trading in my uniform for a pair of faded jeans, I empower organizations to embrace their own brilliant crazy ideas by sharing my unique story as a refreshing alternative to the norm that sparks a broader conversation on leadership and organizational empowerment and embracing change.
I bring over 30-years’ experience leading large organizational change, aggressive growth strategies, and entrepreneurial startups as a Marine Corps Officer and Professional Services Executive. I'm a veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan, hold a law degree, a Master of Laws in National Security Law from Georgetown University Law Center and am a member of the Virginia Bar.
I'm a national security expert. A transformation expert. And a renegade.
My journey will intrigue your audience, spark their interest and leave them energized for more. So, whether you’re looking for a unique speaker, seeking to embrace independent thinking in your organization, wanting to improve outreach with stakeholders, or just finding the courage to try, I can help.
Be your own best advocate
In this captivating talk, I shatter common assumptions about the difficulty in connecting broad audiences to a complex topic, empowering you to be your own best advocate by telling my story of challenging the status quo.
True Expertise Creates
Meaningful Connection
The journey from technical chops to meaningful connection is an arduous one. The rugged terrain incentivizes us to seek shelter, crushing the self-confidence we need for selfless conversations. But with the courage to embrace brilliant crazy ideas we make room for authenticity and creativity that leads to transformation, growth, and new possibilities
Surpass your organizational goals
With 30-years' experience leading large transformation initiatives, growth strategies and entrepreneurial startups, I bring real world experience to your organization. My journey as America's most unlikely self-help author will spark a broader conversation on leadership, risk taking and challenging conventional thinking to surpass your organizational goals.
If the idea of combining national security with self-help sounds odd, you're not alone. But when my wife told me national security is boring and unrelatable, I told her; "Challenge accepted! I'm going to prove you wrong." And that started an over 3-year journey to become a self-help author.
'Searching for True Community" does what self-help does best, makes a complex topic accessible to broad audiences, goes where those audiences are, and connects them to the experts who touch our lives.
Whether its healthcare or home repair, we turn to self-help every day for independence and understanding, to take ownership of our future and empower us to find our voice. When it comes to change, it's a proven model that works. It promotes the transformative power of conversation that often leads to a breakthrough.
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​This is advanced thinking written to connect with you. It recognizes you are your own best advocate. You get better results when you are more self-sufficient, self-confident, and feel empowered to ask better questions about the causes you care about most.​
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It's often the odd ball combinations that bring the big breakthroughs, and in writing the first self-help book on national security, I hope to do just that.
