Most leaders have spent years performing a version of themselves that was built for someone else's approval. The title. The strategy. The persona. All of it carefully constructed to look the part.
Paid to Pretend asks the question no one is asking in the boardroom: what is it actually costing you?
This film is not a motivational speech. It is not a highlight reel. It is a moment of honest reckoning — the kind that changes how you lead, how you show up, and what you are willing to stop pretending.
Michael King Jr. is an award-winning keynote speaker, executive coach, and cinematic storyteller based in Omaha, Nebraska. His films are not supplemental content. They are the keynote.
Paid to Pretend is the latest in a body of work that includes Authentically Me, Still Here, Unbreakable Things, and The Sound of Leadership. Each film is built to do what most presentations cannot: create an emotional experience that changes the way an audience thinks about who they are and how they lead.
Best Executive Coach 2024 and 2026. Founder of Teams.Coach.