Serge Avril

Serge Avril - Speaker and expert in relational intelligence

In the age of AI, human relationships make the difference

Serge Avril supports leaders, managers, salespeople, and teams in developing their relational intelligence: better understanding others, building trust, and communicating with greater impact.

His atypical background, from technical professions to the performing arts, through entrepreneurship and a solo crossing of the Atlantic, nourishes a concrete, accessible, and deeply human approach. Trained in various communication methods and behavior analysis, he also uses mentalism and stage techniques to make his interventions lively and memorable.

Through his conference "Relational Intelligence in the Age of Artificial Intelligence"

Serge Avril demonstrates that as technology progresses, our ability to listen, persuade, unite, and create authentic relationships becomes strategic.

His interventions combine humor, demonstrations, and concrete tools to make relational intelligence a true lever for cooperation and performance.

I became a speaker because at one point in my journey, I realized that what fascinated me the most was not magic, but the human being.

For years, as a magician, mentalist, and hypnotist, I observed how attention is directed, how beliefs are constructed, how decisions are made, and how our perceptions shape our reality. Behind every experience lay a deeper question: why do we function the way we do?

This quest led me far beyond the stage: towards the study of human behavior, communication, synergology, crossing the Atlantic solo, and several years spent in India exploring the psychological and contemplative dimensions of human experience.

Becoming a speaker then became a natural choice. I wanted to share what these experiences had taught me about our relationships, our ways of thinking, our limits, and our potential.

Today, I step on stage with the same passion as in my beginnings, but my goal is no longer to create illusion. It is to help everyone see better, understand better, and interact better with others and with themselves.

My travels in India taught me a lot about the psychological functioning of human beings

The relationship with others, each conference is different Each company is different Each audience is different with its own expectations

It's a real challenge every time...

With the sole objective that people leave with my 3 tips and a broader understanding of communication

I help organizations solve a fundamental problem: we spend our time communicating without truly understanding what influences behaviors, decisions, and human relationships. My conferences provide concrete keys to better decode humanity, strengthen positive influence, improve the quality of exchanges, and develop a more conscious, effective, and high-performing leadership.

Because I am neither just a speaker, nor just a mentalist, nor just a specialist in human behavior. I am at the intersection of these worlds. Participants do not simply attend a conference: they experience something that surprises them, makes them think, and permanently alters their perception of human relationships.

Communication, understanding, and relationship with others.

My experience as a mentalist, as a trainer. My experience as a stage artist that brings a dynamic to this conference that touches the audience. My years spent in India in monasteries to develop an understanding and the mental psychology of the human being.

« My conferences are interactive, dynamic, and experiential. I combine synergology, mentalism, and communication sciences to provide the audience with an experience that is both captivating and enriching, with tools that can be immediately applied in both professional and personal life. »

Participants leave with a new way of observing and understanding human interactions. They develop a finer attention to behaviors, more easily identify useful signals for communication, and have concrete tools to establish smoother, more authentic, and more effective relationships, both in their professional and personal lives.

FRENCH FEDERATION OF BUILDING ADEC NATIONAL POLICE SPORTS FEDERATION BAYER EVENTUALLY INTERMARCHÉ APIVIA MUTUAL SNAGAN CJD

The feedback that comes up most often at the end of my conferences is:

"A captivating conference from start to finish." "An intervention that makes you think long after the event." "A rare blend of performance, content, and human depth." "Serge knows how to make complex mechanisms of human behavior accessible." "A remarkable stage presence and a true connection with the audience." "Concrete, vivid, and immediately applicable examples." "An original approach that stands out from traditional conferences." "Time flies by." "Both inspiring, surprising, and useful." "An experience to remember." Participants particularly appreciate the combination of the interactivity of mentalism, the understanding of human behaviors, and the depth of reflections proposed on communication, relationships, and the functioning of the human mind.

I intervene with the same ease in intimate formats as on large stages, systematically adapting my content, energy, and interaction to the context of the event.

**Types of Events**

* Corporate conventions and seminars * Professional congresses * Study days and thematic conferences * Leadership and management events * Business meetings and sales forces * Colloquia, fairs, and associative events * Personal development and communication events

**Audience Size**

* Small interactive groups: 20 to 200 participants * Intermediate audiences: 200 to 500 participants * Large assemblies: several hundred to over a thousand participants

I particularly appreciate formats that allow direct interaction with the audience, but I also have solid experience in interventions on large stages requiring a strong presence, emotional impact, and the ability to mobilize a large audience.

**Audience Profile**

* Executives and managers * Team leaders and managers * Sales forces * Entrepreneurs * Communication and human resources professionals * Professional networks and associations * General public

My conferences, based on the observation of human behavior, non-verbal communication, synergology, applied mentalism, and understanding relational mechanisms, are aimed at any organization wishing to strengthen the impact of its communication, the quality of its relationships, and its capacity for influence.

What distinguishes my background is that it does not rely on a traditional academic curriculum, but on a field exploration of the human being in all its facets.

Completely self-taught, I first developed my expertise through live performance as a magician, mentalist, and professional hypnotist. This experience led me to perform on numerous stages and to become the magician of the television show **Fort Boyard**, where observation, communication, and understanding of human mechanisms are at the heart of the performance.

Beyond the stage, my journey is also marked by extraordinary life experiences. I notably crossed the Atlantic solo, an adventure that confronted me with questions of resilience, decision-making, and managing uncertainty.

I also spent several years in India exploring the psychological, relational, and contemplative dimensions of human experience. This immersion profoundly enriched my understanding of behavior, consciousness, communication, and the mechanisms that influence our choices and relationships.

Today, my conferences are based on this dual expertise: that of the observer of human behavior and that of the field man who has experienced influence, attention, perception, change, and transformation in extremely varied contexts.

It is this rare combination of performance, adventure, communication, behavioral psychology, and reflection on the human condition that constitutes the uniqueness of my approach.

Energetic, captivating, and deeply human. I combine the impact of performance, the interactivity of mentalism, and the depth of reflection on human behavior to create conferences that leave a lasting impression on participants.

The feedback that most often comes after my conferences is:

"A captivating conference from start to finish." "An intervention that makes you think long after the event." "A rare blend of performance, content, and human depth." "Serge knows how to make complex mechanisms of human behavior accessible." "A remarkable stage presence and a true connection with the audience." "Concrete, vivid, and immediately applicable examples." "An original approach that stands out from traditional conferences." "You don't notice the time passing." "Both inspiring, surprising, and useful." "An experience to remember." Participants particularly appreciate the combination of mentalism interactivity, understanding of human behaviors, and the depth of reflections offered on communication, relationships, and the functioning of the human mind.

Yes, my conferences are particularly visual and experiential.

My background as a magician, mentalist, and speaker has taught me that an idea is much more powerful when it is experienced than when it is simply explained. I therefore use demonstrations, interactive experiences, concrete illustrations, and situational setups that allow the audience to see and feel the mechanisms I talk about.

I also place great importance on storytelling. I enrich my interventions with personal stories and lived experiences, whether it be my journey in entertainment, my experience at Fort Boyard, my solo crossing of the Atlantic, or the years spent in India exploring the psychological and human dimensions of existence.

These narratives are never anecdotal: they serve to illustrate universal principles related to communication, perception, decision-making, resilience, and human relationships.

My goal is for each participant not just to learn, but to live a memorable experience that they will remember for a long time.

My interventions are based on a solid and proven structure while allowing for ample interaction with the audience.

I primarily operate in an **inspiring and experiential Keynote format**, where participants are invited to experience as much as to understand. Each conference follows a precise architecture, built around clear educational objectives and memorable key messages.

However, my background as a magician, mentalist, and speaker has also taught me the importance of adaptation. I remain very attentive to the energy of the room, the audience's reactions, and the exchanges that emerge. This allows me to adjust the pace, examples, and certain sequences in real-time to create a truly connected experience with the audience.

Depending on the needs of the event, I can also intervene in the form of a participatory workshop or an interactive conference, with exercises, demonstrations, and situational setups that promote the appropriation of concepts.

In summary: a rigorous structure, a great capacity for controlled improvisation, and ongoing interaction with the audience.

### The key learnings that participants take away

* Technology is evolving rapidly, but the quality of human relationships remains an irreplaceable advantage.

* Communication is not limited to words: listening, presence, attention, and non-verbal cues are essential levers of influence and trust.

* In the age of artificial intelligence, human skills are becoming more valuable than ever: empathy, discernment, creativity, cooperation, and relational intelligence.

* Our perceptions and biases influence our decisions much more than we imagine. Understanding them better allows for clearer and more effective communication.

* Trust remains the most valuable currency in organizations and human relationships.

* Those who can create connections, inspire, and mobilize others will retain a decisive advantage in an increasingly automated world.

* Artificial intelligence can amplify our capabilities, but it will never replace the depth of an authentic relationship.

* Understanding human mechanisms allows for better collaboration, negotiation, management, and living together.

* The future will not oppose humans to machines: it will belong to those who can combine technological intelligence and human intelligence.

* In a world saturated with information, what will make the difference is not what we know, but how we create meaning and relationships.

Participants leave with immediately usable keys to communicate better, understand others better, and collaborate better in a world where technology is taking up more and more space.

### Myths and Misconceptions Challenged by This Conference

* **"Artificial intelligence will soon replace human communication."**

In reality, as technology progresses, relational skills become more valuable and distinctive.

* **"Communicating is primarily about speaking well."**

The quality of communication relies more on listening, attention, understanding, and the quality of the relationship than on eloquence.

* **"Human decisions are rational."**

Our choices are heavily influenced by our emotions, perceptions, and cognitive biases, often without our awareness.

* **"The more access we have to information, the better our decisions are."**

Information alone is not enough. Discernment and the ability to create meaning become essential.

* **"Technological tools naturally create better relationships."**

Tools facilitate exchanges, but trust, engagement, and cooperation remain deeply human.

* **"Non-verbal communication is secondary to words."**

A large part of the impact of a message depends on the coherence between what is said and what is perceived.

* **"The future belongs to technical experts."**

The future also belongs to those who know how to understand, unite, positively influence, and create connections.

One of the ideas I seek to evolve the most is the belief that communicating is simply about transmitting a message.

In the age of artificial intelligence, information is everywhere and accessible in seconds. However, information does not necessarily create understanding, trust, or engagement.

I invite participants to realize that the quality of their relationships depends less on what they know than on their ability to listen, observe, understand, and connect with others.

I also wish to evolve the idea that technology will gradually replace human skills. On the contrary, my experience has taught me that as tools become more efficient, deeply human qualities gain value: presence, empathy, discernment, relational intelligence, and the ability to inspire trust.

At the end of the conference, I would like everyone to have a new perspective on communication and understand that it is not just a tool for exchange, but one of the most strategic skills of our time.

Only in-person

Every audience has its own energy. My role is not to wait for it, but to create it.

My experience as a magician, mentalist, and speaker has taught me to quickly read the dynamics of a room and adapt to it. When faced with a reserved or unresponsive audience, I do not seek to force participation. I start by establishing trust, sparking curiosity, and gradually creating the conditions for engagement.

To achieve this, I use interaction, humor, demonstrations, and concrete examples that allow participants to feel involved without being put in difficulty.

I believe there is no bad audience, only audiences that need to be met where they are. My goal is to create an authentic connection with the audience so that they gradually become active participants in the experience.

Thanks to my experience on stage and in improvisation, I can adjust my pace, level of interactivity, and examples in real-time to maintain attention and foster engagement.

I come from the performing arts, a universe where the unexpected is part of the job.

If a technical problem arises, I remain focused on what matters: the connection with the audience. My experience as a magician, mentalist, and speaker has taught me to adapt quickly to all situations and to continue the presentation without losing the quality of the experience.

My talks do not rely exclusively on technology. Even without visual aids, I can maintain attention through storytelling, interaction, demonstrations, and stage dynamics.

I believe that a technical failure is rarely a problem; it is often an opportunity to demonstrate live the importance of adaptation, presence, and human communication.

The audience rarely remembers a failure. However, they always remember how it was handled.

I welcome difficult questions as an opportunity for dialogue rather than as a challenge to be met.

My approach is to listen carefully to the question, clarify if necessary what is actually being asked, and respond with transparency, respect, and openness. When multiple viewpoints are possible, I present them clearly while sharing my experience and field observations.

My goal is not to be right, but to bring reflection, understanding, and value to the audience.

Regarding time management, I consider it an integral part of my professionalism. I always prepare my interventions with modular sequences that allow me to adjust the pace according to the constraints of the event, interactions with the audience, or any unforeseen circumstances.

If the exchanges are particularly rich, I prioritize respecting the timing agreed upon with the organizer while proposing, when possible, to continue certain discussions after the conference.

A successful conference is one that respects both the audience, the organizers, and the objectives of the event.

A conference fails when it ceases to be a human encounter. One can have the best ideas, the most beautiful slides, and the finest references, but if the audience does not feel involved, nothing happens. That is why I always work on three dimensions: the relevance of the content, the quality of the connection with the audience, and the experience lived by the participants. When these three elements come together, the conference becomes memorable.

A video transmission system with an HDMI connection at the edge of the stage preferably A sound system suitable for the room

I come with my own headset transmitter and receiver

(I can provide video and sound if needed, quote on request)

1h30 before

I accept travel abroad, on the condition that the conference is conducted in French

Yes, I remain available for exchanges before or after...

Organizers appreciate working with me because they know they can count on a committed, adaptable, and reliable partner.

I take the time to understand the event's objectives, the audience profile, and the specific challenges of the organization in order to propose a truly relevant and personalized intervention.

My experience in live performance has also taught me the importance of preparation, respecting constraints, and the ability to adapt to unforeseen circumstances. Organizers know they can trust me, both in content and form.

They also appreciate my relational simplicity and availability. I enjoy working collaboratively with technical teams to fully contribute to the success of the event.

Finally, my conferences combine content, interaction, and lived experience. Participants generally leave with concrete ideas, lasting awareness, and the memory of a moment that is both useful, surprising, and profoundly human.

My goal is for the organizer to be calm before the event, proud during the event, and satisfied long after.