James Mapes is the founder of Quantum Leap Thinking™, creator of The Transformational Coach™, expert on the psychology of applied imagination, best-selling author, highly acclaimed business speaker, consultant, seminar leader, and personal excellence coach. For over 30 years, he has been an ardent student of human behavior and dedicated to helping individuals, teams, and organizations identify and break through barriers to reach their goals and achieve success. He encourages people to be open to new ways of thinking, and his goal is to help everyone make the "quantum leap" toward more creative, productive and confident lives. For both businesses and individuals, his message promotes an innovative, powerful way of thinking and provides a newfound mastery over their imagination and perceptions so that, in his words, "the invisible becomes visible and the impossible becomes possible." The results have been nothing short of extraordinary, creating key breakthroughs in both organizational and personal excellence.
Mr. Mapes' success as a speaker and highly regarded authority on the imagination, creative thinking, communication, managing change, organizational problem-solving, successful teamwork, and coaching is due to his early training as an actor and experience as a theatrical producer. In 1969, he graduated from California State University with a Master of Arts degree in theater and speech. He then worked in Repertory Theater, off-Broadway, and directed two of his own theater companies, amassing dozens of television and movie credits. As a performer, he developed a unique stage presence with a special talent for connecting with his audience. Mr. Mapes' work has earned him appearances on CNN, The Today Show, Good Morning America and Fox Family Channel, among other media outlets.
As a recognized business speaker and performance coach, James Mapes has spoken to hundreds of public and private companies in more than 70 countries. His clients include financial institutions, software companies, the military, the healthcare industry, financial institutions, training and development divisions of large corporations and major non-profit organizations. Companies, associations, universities, and business schools including—IBM Corporate, U.S. Coast Guard, Lockheed Martin, and The Princeton Center for Leadership Training—have quoted Mr. Mapes in training manuals and textbooks.
Mr. Mapes personal goal of living an exceptional life is reflected in both his business activities as well as his recreational pursuits, which range from scuba diving, ballooning, racecar driving, Kempo Karate, and world travel, to an avid interest in reading. His two highly regarded books are Quantum Leap Thinking: An Owner's Guide to the Mind and The Workbook: The Magic of Quantum Leap Thinking. His new book The Elephant and the Rider: Living an Exceptional Life is scheduled for publication in 2012.
James Mapes’ presentations are personal, interactive, and humorous. Above all, he creates results and makes a lasting difference in the energy level, commitment, and productivity of each individual in his audience.