I really enjoyed celebrating my Birthday a couple of weeks ago at the annual Speaking Business Summit, the Professional Speaking Association Convention. I’ve been a member of the PSA for 21 years now and count many fellow members among my closest friends, so it was nice of them to throw a three-day party for me!

One of the main drivers for me to attend conferences is the conversations I have outside the plenary sessions. That’s where I often find the most profound value, which was the case again this year. One thirty-minute catch-up with the superb South African speaker Graeme Codrington gave me reams of gold. That chat alone made the weekend worthwhile from a business perspective.

The person who introduced me to the PSA in 2003 was Peter Roper, with whom I subsequently co-authored ‘…and Death Came Third!‘ and became a good and trusted friend.

It wasn’t just Peter who I grew close to, but his whole family. Not least, his two daughters, Sara Beth and Hazel, who I have known since they were teenagers. I remember SB telling me about her university plans one evening in Birmingham just after she took her A Levels.

SB and Hazel are all grown up with their own families now, and we have grown even closer. They both work with me in my business, supporting me as my EA (SB) and podcast producer (Hazel). All of this is done from their own family business, run together with Peter, their mother Anny and brother Chris.

Why do I share this? As if I couldn’t be any prouder of the Roper (and extended) clan than I already am, both Sara Beth and Peter won prestigious awards at the weekend. Peter won The Founders Award, only the sixth recipient in 25 years of the PSA, while SB won a major international award from the Global Speakers Federation.

This was one of the highlights of a brilliant weekend for me. There’s nothing better than seeing people you love and admire getting recognised for the impact they make on others. Particularly those who are content to stand in the shadows rather than dominate the spotlight.