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Jon Colby has been named a 2026 Real Leaders® Top Impact Speaker, recognizing his influence as a leadership speaker and improv-based communication expert.
Indianapolis, IN — January 7, 2026 — Indianapolis-based keynote speaker, leadership trainer, and improv comedian Jon Colby has been named one of the 2026 Real Leaders® Top Impact Speakers, a global recognition honoring communicators who are shaping leadership and workplace culture through meaningful, results-driven speaking.
Presented by Real Leaders®, the international authority on impact leadership, the Top Impact Speakers ranking recognizes an elite group of speakers selected for their ability to move audiences from insight to action. Honorees are evaluated on speaking impact, professional demand, audience reach, and leadership influence.
Colby is known for blending improv comedy and leadership development to help leaders communicate more clearly, respond effectively under pressure, and create workplaces where people feel valued and engaged. With more than two decades of improv experience, his work emphasizes listening, adaptability, and human connection—skills increasingly critical in today’s fast-changing work environments.
“This recognition is crazy to me,” said Colby. “My goal has always been to show how we can use improv to help leaders communicate more clearly, lead more humanly, and create environments where people actually feel valued and really want to contribute. Being named a Real Leaders Top Impact Speaker validates that approach and encourages me to keep raising the bar.”
As part of the recognition, Colby will be featured in the 2026 Real Leaders Top Impact Speakers magazine, highlighting speakers who are redefining leadership through storytelling, presence, and practical impact.
The ranking uses the proprietary RealLeaders® STAR Evaluation Scorecard, which measures Speakers of Transformation, Authority, and Reach—evaluating speaking demand, engagement volume, and leadership influence.
Jon Colby is the founder of the Colby Leadership Institute (CLI), where leaders and teams learn improv-inspired communication skills they can immediately apply—without awkward role play or trust falls.
Curious for more details? Check out page three!
WISH-TV: How Improv Builds Leadership and Team Dynamics
Jon Colby appears on WISH-TV's Life.Style.Live! to discuss his 2026 Real Leaders® Top Impact Speaker recognition.
Indianapolis, IN — January 2026 — WISH-TV (News 8) featured Jon Colby in a segment on how improv comedy techniques translate into real leadership and communication skills. The piece coincided with Colby's 2026 Real Leaders® Top Impact Speaker recognition.
In the segment, Colby explained how he moved from performing improv for fun into training Fortune 500 teams, and walked through one of his signature listening exercises — a game built around forcing full attention on a conversation partner, the same skill he ties back to workplace communication. He also spoke to why employees leave jobs, pointing to research that the top driver isn't pay but feeling unheard, and framed the improv principle "yes, and" as a practical tool for making people feel valued.
Podcasts
Jon has been a recurring guest on leadership and communication podcasts since 2021, most recently appearing on Leadership Career Accelerator, Return on Empathy, and The Adventure To Evolve.
Leadership Career Accelerator — "The Fastest Way to Destroy Innovation"
June 22, 2026 · 46 min
Jon breaks down how improv principles — "yes, and," the "magic if," and small shifts in how meetings run — help leaders build trust and get better ideas out of a team instead of shutting them down too fast. Aimed at emerging leaders and new managers navigating meetings, brainstorms, and team communication.
Return on Empathy (ROE) — "Improv and Empathy with Jon Colby"
May 6, 2026 · 38 min
Jon explores the overlap between improv and workplace empathy — deep listening, psychological safety, and building inclusive team culture, with specific techniques for drawing out quieter voices and reframing mistakes as part of the process rather than something to hide.
The Adventure To Evolve — "Yes, And: What Improv Teaches Us About Life and Leadership"
August 27, 2025 · 48 min
A Q&A-format episode where Jon shares his path from teaching into full-time speaking and unpacks how "Yes, And" applies beyond the stage — to parenting, grief, and everyday collaboration. Covers presence, patience, and why feeling valued is the throughline connecting workplaces, teams, and families.
Improv and Magic — "Episode 53: Jon Colby"
October 22, 2024 · 1h 3m
A longer, looser conversation than most of the others — Jon walks through how he got into professional improv and unpacks his "three Cs" approach to teaching it. A fun, slightly offbeat pairing with a magic-themed show, but still substantive: real detail on his methodology, not just a highlight reel.
The Human Resource — "Introducing Jon Colby"
June 3, 2025 · 16 min
A shorter-format conversation on engaging teams through training that doesn't feel like training. Jon discusses keeping leadership development genuinely fun without losing the substance.
Small-Time Leaders — "Look at Possibilities, Not Limitations with Jon Colby"
Episode 78 · ~April 2021 — confirm exact date on the feed before publishing
Jon talks about how a colleague, David Quick, helped him reinvent his approach to virtual speaking during the pandemic — pivoting engagement strategies when in-person events disappeared overnight.