In this episode of No More Bad Events, Scott Bloom talks to Janice Cardinale, an advocate for mental health in the events industry, and founder of Event Minds Matter. The conversation centers around the ongoing mental health crisis affecting event professionals highlighting issues like burnout, toxic leadership, and lack of emotional support. Janice shares her journey of building community and advocacy, emphasizing the need for empathy, emotional intelligence, and psychological safety as pillars for positive change in the industry. She explains how leadership styles, especially those perpetuated by older generations, can contribute to toxic environments and outlines her mission to develop curriculum and resources that prioritize people over profit. Together, Janet and Scott discuss generational clashes within the industry, the importance of genuine communication, and the inadequacy of wellness trends as a sole solution for deeper mental health concerns. Janice argues for tangible education initiatives. She also advocates for authentic human connection, transparency, and a shift towards prioritizing people, noting hope in the next generation’s values and digital fluency. She also touches on her own experience with depression, her approach to stress relief, and the importance of role models in driving positive change. The episode wraps up with practical reflections and a call for leadership renewal in the events industry. It's an important episode that touches all of us and calls for us all to put people first and to lead with care.
GUEST BIO:
Janice Cardinale is a Forbes Woman, Smart Meetings Entrepreneur & Hall of Fame inductee, and BizBash 15 over 50 honoree. Recognized as a top voice in events, she's on a mission to design and implement psychological safety and emotional intelligence as a curriculum in 2026, embedding mental health as a priority in event culture for the future of humanity.
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ABOUT NO MORE BAD EVENTS:
Brought to you by eSpeakers and hosted by professional emcee, host, and keynote speaker Scott Bloom, No More Bad Events is where you’ll hear from some of the top names in the event and speaking industry about what goes on behind the scenes at the world’s most perfectly executed conferences, meetings, and more. Get ready to learn the secrets and strategies to help anyone in the event industry reach their goal of putting on nothing less than world-class events.
Learn more at nomorebadevents.com.
ABOUT THE HOST:
A veteran comedian and television personality who has built a reputation as the go-to choice for business humor, Scott has hosted hundreds of events over two decades for big and small organizations alike. Scott has also hosted his own weekly VH1 series and recently co-hosted a national simulcast of the Grammy Awards from the Palace Theater.
As the son of a successful salesman, he was exposed to the principles of building a business at an early age. As a comedian, Scott cut his teeth at renowned improv and comedy clubs. As a self-taught student of psychology, he’s explored what makes people tick and has written a book (albeit a farce) on how to get through life. He’s uniquely positioned to deliver significant notes on connecting people and making business seriously funny. And who doesn’t like to laugh?
Learn more about Scott: scottbloomconnects.com
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Thousands of successful speakers, trainers, and coaches use eSpeakers to build their businesses and manage their calendars. Thousands of event organizers use our directories every day to find and hire speakers. Our tools are built for speakers, by speakers, to do things that only purpose-built systems can.
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SHOW CREDITS:
Scott Bloom: Host | scottbloomconnects.com
Joe Heaps: eSpeakers | jheaps@eSpeakers.com