Maxwell Ivey
Maxwell Ivey has become known the world over as The Blind Blogger.
He grew up in a family of Carnival owners near Houston Texas always wanting to be part of the business and own a show of his own. He also knew from an early age that he would eventually lose most if not all of his vision to retinitis Pigmentosa, or RP. In spite of this, he did well in school and graduated from a traditional high school and college. He also achieved the rank of Eagle Scout making him one of the few blind eagles. He was lucky enough to work in the carnival alongside his dad and brothers for over 15 years before his dad passed away due to lung cancer. He and his brothers weren't prepared to run the business, and within a few years their small carnival had closed and he found himself looking for a new outlet.
On September 27th, 2007 he started the Midway marketplace to help other carnival owners buy, sell, and trade used carnival rides and amusement park equipment. He did this in spite of not having any money, skills, talent, or experience. And he did it prior to Word Press, Wifi, or Social media. He had to learn to do so many new things including how to hand-code Html, recruit clients, set fees, write copy, manage media, start a blog, build an email list, manage social media, record videos, and more.People noticed his willingness to take on difficult challenges or opportunities with joy and encouraged him to share more of what it's like to be a blind entrepreneur.
He eventually started a second website as The Blind Blogger a nickname people had been using for him on social media for a couple of years. From there he wrote his first book on a dare. It was called Leading You Out of the Darkness Into the Light. And was released in January of 2014. Since then he has published three more self-help books and is working on what would be his fifth title.
His books share his experiences from a brutally honest point of view. Because he believes the best way he can challenge others is to let people see him at his worst and learn from how he deals with setbacks.
He started doing podcast and radio interviews in February of 2013 and has done over 350 shows. Starting when he was solely promoting equipment sales on the Midway marketplace and continuing after becoming the Blind Blogger. From there he started helping others get booked on podcasts so they could share their stories and build their own brands. He now offers courses and one on one training to prepare people to be the next online media rockstar.
He has traveled the country solo by plane, train, bus, taxi, and uber. Often with a limited budget but with a full heart and an adventurous spirit. vHe has spoken at local advocacy groups for the visually impaired as well as national conferences on blogging and podcasting. And he recently addressed the national meeting of Nepris a prestigious online learning platform. He has experience speaking both in person and virtually. But enjoys the instant feedback of live audiences. He has sung in public and includes music in his podcast interviews and public speaking events.
He has also launched the What's Your Excuse? Show where he interviews people who have overcome adversity or thrived in difficult life circumstances. His goal is for the audience to ask themselves if Max and his guest can do it then what's my excuse.
Most recently he launched the WYE network to help other people with disabilities launch new podcasts or grow the audience of existing shows.
He is always up for a new challenge or opportunity. He continues to accomplish big goals and inspires others by keeping to his three core principles.
- Decide to find solutions instead of making excuses. Even if you don't like the solution.
- Be willing to ask for help and accept help when offered. Even when you don't want to believe you need the help.
- Be determined to find the positive in all aspects of your life. Knowing that some days you will have to look for it harder than others.
He wants you to know that he believes it's easier for him to answer an awkward question than to have you guess. So, if there is anything at all you want to know about him; then please please just ask.
Maxwell Ivey has become known the world over as The Blind Blogger.
He grew up in a family of Carnival owners near Houston Texas always wanting to be part of the business and own a show of his own. He also knew from an early age that he would eventually lose most if not all of his vision to retinitis Pigmentosa, or RP. In spite of this, he did well in school and graduated from a traditional high school and college. He also achieved the rank of Eagle Scout making him one of the few blind eagles. He was lucky enough to work in the carnival alongside his dad and brothers for over 15 years before his dad passed away due to lung cancer. He and his brothers weren't prepared to run the business, and within a few years their small carnival had closed and he found himself looking for a new outlet.
On September 27th, 2007 he started the Midway marketplace to help other carnival owners buy, sell, and trade used carnival rides and amusement park equipment. He did this in spite of not having any money, skills, talent, or experience. And he did it prior to Word Press, Wifi, or Social media. He had to learn to do so many new things including how to hand-code Html, recruit clients, set fees, write copy, manage media, start a blog, build an email list, manage social media, record videos, and more.People noticed his willingness to take on difficult challenges or opportunities with joy and encouraged him to share more of what it's like to be a blind entrepreneur.
He eventually started a second website as The Blind Blogger a nickname people had been using for him on social media for a couple of years. From there he wrote his first book on a dare. It was called Leading You Out of the Darkness Into the Light. And was released in January of 2014. Since then he has published three more self-help books and is working on what would be his fifth title.
His books share his experiences from a brutally honest point of view. Because he believes the best way he can challenge others is to let people see him at his worst and learn from how he deals with setbacks.
He started doing podcast and radio interviews in February of 2013 and has done over 350 shows. Starting when he was solely promoting equipment sales on the Midway marketplace and continuing after becoming the Blind Blogger. From there he started helping others get booked on podcasts so they could share their stories and build their own brands. He now offers courses and one on one training to prepare people to be the next online media rockstar.
He has traveled the country solo by plane, train, bus, taxi, and uber. Often with a limited budget but with a full heart and an adventurous spirit. vHe has spoken at local advocacy groups for the visually impaired as well as national conferences on blogging and podcasting. And he recently addressed the national meeting of Nepris a prestigious online learning platform. He has experience speaking both in person and virtually. But enjoys the instant feedback of live audiences. He has sung in public and includes music in his podcast interviews and public speaking events.
He has also launched the What's Your Excuse? Show where he interviews people who have overcome adversity or thrived in difficult life circumstances. His goal is for the audience to ask themselves if Max and his guest can do it then what's my excuse.
Most recently he launched the WYE network to help other people with disabilities launch new podcasts or grow the audience of existing shows.
He is always up for a new challenge or opportunity. He continues to accomplish big goals and inspires others by keeping to his three core principles.
- Decide to find solutions instead of making excuses. Even if you don't like the solution.
- Be willing to ask for help and accept help when offered. Even when you don't want to believe you need the help.
- Be determined to find the positive in all aspects of your life. Knowing that some days you will have to look for it harder than others.
He wants you to know that he believes it's easier for him to answer an awkward question than to have you guess. So, if there is anything at all you want to know about him; then please please just ask.
Life is like a river overcoming adversity by continuing to move forward
Challenging the audience to overcome their fears, obstacles, and excuses by sharing my own personal stories in an honest warm way that will have them asking if Max can do this, then what's my excuse.
I will share the methods I have used to go from failed carnival owner to successful author, speaker, publicist, podcast host, and founder of the WYE Network.
The methods I mentioned include:
- Deciding to find solutions...
Using Story Telling to Create Powerful Elevator Pitchesw
Target Audience
- business people wanting to be more effective networkers so they can make more connections and sales.
Key Takeaways
- Will help people overcome the fear of creating their elevator pitch by changing the way they think about it.
- Storytelling is much less scary than pitch creation.
- Will explain the importance of honest storytelling to...
Using Interdependence to Accomplish Your Goals More Quickly with Less Strain and more Joy
Target Audience:
- business people seeking more success
- aspiring entrepreneurs trying to overcome the roadblocks to starting their business.
First, explain what interdependence is and why it is so important. Explain how I came by this philosophy due to my impending vision loss as a young man I share stories of how I was able to accomplish many difficult goals by...
