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Eric Maddox          

Security Consultant, Military Veteran & Author of "Mission Black List #1: Capturing Saddam"

Eric Maddox is an author, motivational speaker, and consultant who teaches audiences worldwide in the art of Empathy Based Listening. He is the author of the book "Mission: Black List No.1," which details his lead in the search and capture of Saddam Hussein.

After graduating from the University of Oklahoma in 1994, Maddox enlisted in the U.S. Army where he was a paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne Division, a jumpmaster, and graduate of Ranger School. He then reenlisted in 1997 as a Chinese Mandarin linguist and interrogator. In 2003, he was sent to Tikrit, Iraq where he joined a Delta Force team who was searching for high value targets on the infamous Deck of Cards. After five months and over 300 interrogations, Maddox was able to track down and eventually give the team the exact location of the spider hole in which Saddam hid. For this, he was awarded the Legion of Merit, the National Intelligence Medal of Achievement, the Defense Intelligence Agency Director’s Award, and the Bronze Star.

Following the capture of Saddam, Maddox was hired as the first ever civilian interrogator by the Defense Intelligence Agency where he went on to conduct over 2,700 interrogations of prisoners from 25 different countries.

Having served in the U.S. Army and Defense Intelligence Agency for 20 years, Maddox now devotes his work full time to teaching what he learned during that time to audiences worldwide—the art of Empathy Based Listening.

Speech Topics


Winning Through Empathy Based Listening

Other Keynote Topics

  • Empathy based listening
  • Innovation
  • Leadership and influence
  • Perseverance
  • Culture change
  • Teamwork
  • Better decision making
  • Becoming a change agent
  • Adapting to a changing industry

"What’s Your Ace of Spades?”

Eric Maddox is more than a storyteller — as a keynote speaker, he becomes a mentor and guide, drawing insightful lessons from his war time stories that can be applied to different situations. In his experiences, empathy-based listening has drawn people closer to their goals, no matter what they may be. He believes that this active form of listening gains the trust of the people you interact with every day. It is, in his words, the number one tool for expanding your influence in all areas of life. As one of the most sought-after event speakers, Eric Maddox shares how you can use this powerful technique to turn customers to advocates, bosses to leaders, and followers to active contributors in a team. Each moment of Eric’s story draws parallels to the way business intelligence is gathered and the necessity of innovation in an ever-changing landscape. The methods and techniques are as relevant in the boardroom as they are on the battlefield. They are proven methods of success up and down the command structure. Eric Maddox and his story will inspire your organization to take action and risks for growth and unprecedented success.

Unforgettable Events That Inspire Change

An Eric Maddox keynote is an entertainment event people will remember for years…and you’ll be remembered as a hero for booking him!

Eric Maddox is a life changing presentation. Audience members will leave with a deep process for how to use empathy based listening to change their lives. No other military speaker delivers empathy based listening as a life-changing tool that people can implement and see immediate results.

Battle Tested Tools

Eric Maddox delivers not only a compelling and entertaining story about communication, but a battle tested tool that audience members can use every day to get better outcomes in their own negotiations. That tool is empathy based listening, and it’s the number one way to gain trust and maximize influence.

With trust, clients and customers turn into champions and advocates. With influence, leaders are more effective. As Eric teaches through example, there is no greater tool than empathy based listening to improve every area of life—professional and personal. No other military speaker delivers empathy based listening as a life-changing tool that audience members can implement and see immediate results.

Riveting Stories

Wow and captivate your audience with one of the most daring war stories from one of the best storytellers in America.

As a keynote speaker, Eric holds audiences spellbound as he shares the story only he can—a firsthand account of the intelligence-gathering that led to Saddam Hussein’s capture. He takes the audience from tension to release as he weaves the narrative of how every perceived failure leads forward. His lessons are from a one-of-a kind experience and they work in any industry.

News


Meet Eric Maddox, the former military interrogator who collected the ...
Meet Eric Maddox, the former military interrogator who collected the intelligence that led to the capture of Saddam Hussein.

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