Carl Dixon Profile Picture

Keynote SpeakerCarl Dixon

Inspirational speaker, catastrophic accident survivor who initiates new ways of thinking

Carl Dixon remains one of Canada’s stellar singers and musicians. A recording artist since the 1980’s he fronted and played with some of Canada’s most iconic bands including ‘The Guess Who’, ‘Coney Hatch’ and ‘April Wine’. Carl was critically injured in a car accident in Australia. His world was blindsided... Read more

Biography

Carl Dixon remains one of Canada’s stellar singers and musicians. A recording artist since the 1980’s he fronted and played with some of Canada’s most iconic bands including ‘The Guess Who’, ‘Coney Hatch’ and ‘April Wine’.

Carl was critically injured in a car accident in Australia. His world was blindsided in the span of two seconds in 2008. Torn apart and trapped in the car wreck, with 52 injuries, his chances of survival were rated nil by his rescuers. Somehow he lived but he didn’t just survive – he now thrives.

“A crisis like the one I experienced offers endless opportunities for learning and growth, if you keep your spirit strong. That’s how my S.T.A.R.T. philosophy was born; going through the worst patch and refusing to surrender, but instead digging down deep and paying attention” S.T.A.R.T. is Stop-Think-Accept-Renew-Thank.

Carl shares his insight and analysis of how he let go of the past and built a future as he got on with life. “After a major life event things are not SUPPOSED to be the same. You’re different now and must recognize what has changed and how to adapt.” He likens it to a filter – things fall away that are no longer a good fit. How do you choose what to let go and what to take with you?

The resources for survival and “thrival” are within us and around us. Carl Dixon’s now on a mission to share his lessons learned, of resilience and of rising above, acquired in the face of seeming no-hope. He conitinues to give many musical performances each year.

Carl lives in the woodland wilds of Haliburton, Ontario, Canada.

"You may have achieved in just a few speeches, what we would be proud to achieve in months, or years. So, thank you, for helping to keep my people safe." CRSPSr. Supervisor, Safety & Security. Nutrien, Canada
"Carl also showed how a few seconds of not focusing on the right thing can result in a life changing experience. I highly recommend him." President and CEO, Veridian Corporation
"Carl did a wonderful job of sharing his message and opening our employees minds to a new way of thinking." Trans Canada Pipeline
"One of the hardest things we do as safety professionals, is try to deliver a message that sticks. For us the hallmark of achievement, is when we hear that people have adopted the information we have given them, at home. Even better, shared it with their families. This tells us that they have truly started to develop a safety culture of their very own, one that could likely last generations. Achieving this is understandably quite rare. Carl, after your run of shows here I received feedback from DOZENS of people that they went home and shared your message, story, and learnings, with their families." CRSPSr. Supervisor, Safety & Security. Nutrien, Canada

Popular Talks by Carl Dixon

  • S.T.A.R.T.
    S.T.A.R.T. came to Carl after the tempest of his biggest test had calmed and it describes the course he followed before he had a name for it. Knocked down? Need a plan for getting back up off the floor? The 5 steps of Stop, Think, Accept, Renew, & Thank apply...
  • Resilience
    Carl Dixon says: “Adversity doesn’t build character, it reveals character”. Setbacks are no fun and we usually don’t expect them. Our best-laid plans can collapse and Now What?Resilience. Bouncing back. Getting up off the mat when it looks like you’re down for the count. Carl was at the seeming pinnacle...
  • Teamwork
    Any team begins with an idea. A team needs an idea they want to achieve. What IS the team? What is it for? What does it want to do? What’s the goal? Carl’s experience of decades in music business, bands, and athletics teams, then receiving care from top medical teams,...
  • Perseverance
    How do you create and sustain Perseverance? You set a Powerful Goal that keeps the engine humming no matter what this world throws at you. Carl’s crisis motto “No Fear, No Weakness” kept him on track through the toughest days of his recovery. Perseverance is like the long-haul trucker compared...
  • Motivation
    Motivation comes from our thoughts and our values. Whatever we truly value most highly will be our primary motivator. Carl shows how motivation can be drawn from our cherished connections and brought to bear on challenges before us. We can change indifference to commitment by finding our meaningful reason to...