Highlights from the 2024 Book Launch and Tour
Thank you for your support!
red helicopter lifted off on April 9, 2024 and landed among all industries and people. Check out the video and quick snapshots from the tour. To really experience what happened, please click on the links below!
March 28 Pre-Launch
Howard University | Washington, D.C.
Pre-launch book event during Howard University Entrepreneurship Week. Tina Byles Williams, founder and CEO of Xponance, joined James in conversation and all student attendees received a copy of the book thanks to the PNC National Center for Entrepreneurship.
April 9 Launch Day
Belmont Books | Belmont, MA
LIFT OFF! Belmont Books in partnership with GBH Forum Network hosted James and conversation partner Cliff Hakim.
April 10
Politics & Prose | Washington, D.C.
Debbi Jarvis and James discussed the book, joined by many familiar faces, including James' former Howard University students.
APRIL 12
Korean American Family Service Center | New York, NY
Korean American Family Service Center's (KAFSC) 35th Anniversary Benefit Gala. red helicopter was a proud gold sponsor.
April 16
Belmont University | Nashville, TN
Keynote & book signing at Belmont University's Next Level Conference.
April 18
LinkedIn Live with Ashoka
Njideka Harry of Ashoka and James discussed agency, kindness + math, and building better systems for all.
April 22
JPMorgan Chase | New York, NY
An evening of jeong (goodwill) with JPMorgan Chase. Vivian Young, Head of API Affairs, joined James in a fireside chat.
APRIL 23
Wellesley Books | Wellesley, MA
Two teachers, James and Stephen Hinds, discussed lessons from the book, including kindness and leadership. Stephen gifted James a red helicopter!
APRIL 24
St. Anselm College | Manchester, NH
Amanda Grappone joined the conversation with James at St. Anselm College, a historic mainstay of presidential campaigns.
APRIL 26
Global Korean Entrepreneurship Forum | Washington, D.C.
At the forum hosted by the GW School of Business Korean Management Institute (KMI) and partner institutes in GW, James delivered a keynote titled "Leadership in Counterpoint: A Korean and American Perspective on the Future" and served as a panelist for a discussion session on "Building Communication Leadership for Korean Companies in D.C."
APRIL 30
Argentum Senior Living Executive Conference | Phoenix, AZ
James and Jeff Leer, the President and CEO of AlerisLife, shed light on the profound impact that the red helicopter change process and operating system has had on AlerisLife's culture and financial results.
May 1
The Korea Society Inaugural AI Forum | New York, NY
At the forum titled “Changes, Challenges, and Chances in K-Startups amid AI Era”, James delivered the opening keynote on the implications of artificial intelligence on agency, humanity, and the meaning of entrepreneurship. His speech was covered by multiple Korean news outlets.
May 1
Citibank Asian Heritage Month Kick-Off Event | New York, NY
James and red helicopter landed at Citi headquarters for the official kickoff of Asian American Heritage Month.
May 3
Ward Melville High School | Setauket, NY
Students, alumni, faculty, and families gathered at the Spring Concert celebrating the retirement of beloved choral teacher, Linda Contino, who has made a deep impact on the lives of so many students, including James, who was one of her first Camerata members. James was invited to deliver closing remarks and spoke of the power of great leadership and music to bend space and time.
May 6
Sustainability Summit | Stockholm, Sweden
Ethos, As You Know, Claim.Impact, and red helicopter co-organized a summit on the future of sustainability.
May 7
Redwood Library & Athenaeum | Newport, RI
A conversation between Newport’s Mayor Xaykham Rexford Khamsyvoravong and James on the concept of agency and re-evaluating the measurements underlying the business of life and the life of business. The Redwood Library & Athenæum was founded in 1747 on the Enlightenment ideals of intellectual pursuit and civic engagement, and committed to lifelong, interdisciplinary learning.
May 8, May 14
Morgan Stanley | New York, NY
TIAA | Charlotte, NC
At Morgan Stanley, James joined Sam Lalanne and a broad cross-section of the firm to discuss his investment career, the writing journey, and future trends in the socioeconomic landscape.
At TIAA, James talked about his teaching journey and noted the full circle - TIAA had managed James’ first 401k when he was a high school teacher.
May 9
Guttman Community College | New York, NY
A fireside chat with Dr. Larry Johnson, President of Guttman Community College, about the red helicopter curriculum-of-the-future centered on financial, emotional, and mental agility.
May 16
Asia Society Texas | Houston, TX
Set against the backdrop of tornado-induced chaos, a conversation with Ginger Koto Vaughn about the influence of Asian philosophy on the red helicopter operating system.
May 29
Sony Music | Toigo Foundation | New York, NY
A book club discussion at Sony headquarters also turned into a mini jam session. James was gifted vinyls of the musical inspirations named in his book.
A conversation between MC Kamau Bell and James closed out Toigo Foundation’s 35th Anniversary Gala.
June 4, June 6
GlobalMindED at the Hornig Home | New York Urban League Frederick Douglass Gala | New York, NY
Leaders in higher education, civics, the arts, businesses, and non-profits converged in NYC at a book salon hosted by Joan Hornig, Owner of Philanthropy Is Beautiful® and Carol Carter, Founder & CEO of GlobalMindED. A few days later, a similar cross-section of leadership sat around the red helicopter table at New York Urban League’s Annual Frederick Douglass Awards Gala hosted by Arva Rice, CEO (red helicopter served as co-chair).
June 17-18
GlobalMindED Annual Conference | Denver, CO
At the GlobalMindED 10th Anniversary Celebration, James presented the 2024 GlobalMindED Inclusive Leader Award for Higher Education to L. Song Richardson, President of Colorado College and fellow CKA honoree. On the first day of the annual conference, James delivered a speech on "Landing Success for First Gen Leaders," which was followed by a book signing. The next day, Tarlin Ray, former Sr. Vice President of Big Future, College Board joined James in a fireside chat on learning, living, and leading like a red helicopter.
JUNE 20
Commonwealth World Affairs | San Francisco, CA
Commonwealth Club World Affairs and Council of Korean Americans (CKA) hosted a fireside chat between James and Yul Kwon, CKA board member and vice president of product management at Google. Joining the event were students from the East Bay Korean Association Next Generation Leadership Program.
June 21
Theatre Communications Group | Chicago, IL
Karena Fiorenza, Interim Chief Executive Officer of Theatre Communications Group, the largest national non-profit supporting theaters, and James “performed” on stage at the historic Studebaker Theater, using musical narrative to make transformation and reinvention more tangible to the leaders in the audience.
June 22-23
Council of Korean Americans | Warrenton, VA
A full weekend with CKA's 2024 Emerging Leaders Scholars and the 13th cohort of the Network of Korean American Leaders (NetKAL), which included lively discussions over meals and a dolphin tank simulation of leadership presentations by NetKAL XIII fellows.
See where we're headed next!