RandsdayCon 2026

In 2015 Harry Binswanger proposed a new holiday: Randsday, February 2nd, the birthday of Ayn Rand. (See his description of it here.) Ayn Rand developed and defended Objectivism, a philosophy that advocates “rational selfishness.” It was the ideas of Ayn Rand that inspired Jim Smith and Kathryn Eickoff-Smith in 2009 to create the Ayn Rand Society for Individual Rights of Naples (arsirn), in order to promote Objectivism. For many years now, members of arsirn have celebrated Randsday by holding an annual elegant, celebratory dinner. A highlight of that event has been the reading by each member of an Ayn Rand quote, frequently accompanied by an explanation of its personal context and meaning.

In 2024 Lin Zinser, who by then had become the director of arsirn, began to organize the first Randsday weekend conference, which was realized in 2025 in Fort Myers, Florida. One aim of the conference, in Lin's words, was “...to celebrate Ayn Rand because our lives are so much richer, more meaningful and joyful to the extent that we understand and embrace her philosophy.” Because that conference was such a success, we now invite you to join us for RandsdayCon 2026.

(On the final day of the first conference there was an optional outing to the nearby Ford and Edison Winter Estates. Some photos of that and of the conference are shown in the background and below.)

all photographs are courtesy of ellen kenner

Harry Binswanger is a leading Objectivist philosopher who was a close friend of Ayn Rand in her final years. He has taught philosophy at Hunter College, The University of Texas/Austin, and Ayn Rand University. Author of How We Know and creator of The Ayn Rand Lexicon, Dr. Binswanger is currently working on the philosophy of mathematics.
Yaron Brook is the host of the podcast and YouTube program The Yaron Brook Show. He is Chairman of the Board of the Ayn Rand Institute (ARI) and was the Executive Director of ARI for 17 years (2000-2017). Dr. Brook, an internationally sought speaker, travels extensively promoting Ayn Rand and her philosophy of Objectivism. He has co-authored many books focused on capitalism and the benefits of political and economic freedom.
Ellen Kenner is a clinical psychologist and was host of the radio talk show The Rational Basis of Happiness®. She and Dr. Edwin Locke co-authored The Selfish Path to Romance: How to Love with Passion and Reason, a guide for finding and nurturing romance, inspired by the ideas of Ayn Rand. Dr. Kenner currently coaches in and runs Jean Moroney's Thinking Lab Scholarship Program.
Shoshana Milgram, Associate Professor of English at Virginia Tech, teaches Literature and the Law, detective fiction, speculative fiction, and literature and film, in addition to courses in nineteenth- and twentieth-century fiction (American, British, French, and Russian). Her long-term study of the life of Ayn Rand aspires to do justice to the woman who wrote Atlas Shrugged: the project entails the examination of texts, the exploration of the relationships between texts, and archival detective work regarding the facts and principles of Ayn Rand’s public and private life.
Jean Moroney teaches ambitious people with challenging goals how to manage their minds so they make better decisions, set goals that motivate, and focus their thoughts for action. In addition to giving talks and all-day workshops, she runs an online membership program called The Thinking Lab that includes 20 self-study courses, a library of dozens of thinking tools, and new classes every month.
Peter Schwartz is a former chairman of the board, and currently a Distinguished Fellow, of the Ayn Rand Institute. He is the author of The Tyranny of Need (first issued under the title of In Defense of Selfishness). He is the founding editor of The Intellectual Activist, a periodical that covered political-social developments from a pro-individual-rights orientation. He is also the author of Libertarianism: The Perversion of Liberty.
Don Watkins is the bestselling author of six books, including Equal is Unfair with Yaron Brook. For four years, he worked with Alex Epstein, the New York Times bestselling author of Fossil Future, where they advised top political and business leaders on how to effectively advocate energy freedom. Mr. Watkins is currently the VP of marketing and development for the Ayn Rand Institute and an instructor at Ayn Rand University.

Friday, January 30

5:30 - 10:30 PM Opening Reception

Meet and mingle with fellow attendees while you enjoy a variety of appetizers and small plates as well as the restaurant's specialty of two chef-prepared and individually made-to-order tacos. At 8:00 PM we'll start “Games Night.” We will provide several decks of cards and a few board games. We hope you will bring a favorite game. A cash bar will be available until 11:00 PM.

Saturday, January 31

9:00 - 10:30 AM Ellen Kenner Bringing Out the Heroic in Yourself

We've all faced moments: Do I speak up for my values, or do I stay silent? Should I pursue my goals, or give up? Dr. Kenner addresses the question of how to build confidence and overcome internal barriers so that you never “let the hero in your soul perish.” She explores the cost of inaction and the rewards of moral clarity and earned pride. Whether dealing with family, friends, coworkers, or the general public, you'll gain practical strategies from a values-based perspective to expand your comfort zone and awaken the heroic within.

11:00 - 12:30 PM Don Watkins What I Wish I Knew About Defending Capitalism When I Started

How can you be a more effective champion of capitalism? In this talk, bestselling author Don Watkins shares what he has learned over the course of two decades about how to make the case for laissez-faire. Drawing on lessons from the front lines of persuasion—debates, media appearances, policy battles and years of speaking to hostile and sympathetic audiences alike—Mr. Watkins reveals the mistakes that held him back, the insights that propelled him forward and surprising truths about what really moves minds. Whether you’re a student, intellectual or activist, you will come away with a deeper understanding of what it takes to win the battle of ideas.

2:30 - 4:00 PM Jean Moroney Reliance on Your Power to Think

Ayn Rand described self-esteem as “reliance on one's power to think.” Jean Moroney will adopt this uniquely Objectivist perspective to discuss what self-esteem is, what strengthens it, and what weakens it. She will conclude by showing how this approach suggests ways to address “old baggage” such as self-defeating beliefs and defense values.

4:30 - 6:00 PM Yaron Brook The Free-Trade Debate

The issue of free trade vs tariffs and protectionism has been central to American politics since the founding. Indeed, in its power to divide the nation, it was second only to the issue of slavery in the post-Constitution era. This talk addresses the following questions: Why, historically, was this subject so contentious? What were the long-term consequences of America’s embrace of high tariffs for much of the pre-WWII era.? Why did policymakers change their view after the war—a change that has led to the boom in global trade over the last 75 years? Finally, Dr. Brook will delve into our current political situation and the looming crisis over trade.

8:30 - 9:30 PM Harry Binswanger, Yaron Brook, Peter Schwartz Q&A Panel: Life in a Laissez-Faire Society

Instead of discussing the ills of today’s culture, we will focus on the workings of an ideal society. Audience members will be invited to ask questions they might have about how seeming problems—e.g., unlicensed doctors, homeless orphans, traffic rules, etc.— would be handled under a system of full laissez-faire.

Sunday, February 1

9:00 - 10:30 AM Shoshana Milgram 1926: “The Great Sense of Beginning”

In 1926 Ayn Rand left Russia and would never return to the land of her birth. Dr. Milgram, who is working on a comprehensive biography of Ayn Rand, presents new information about that first year in America—a year of aspiration and adventure—as Ayn Rand began composing, in English, stories and screen treatments. Her notes included plans for “the woman who never failed” and “the man who stopped the world.” In Chicago, she met the cousin who inspired the character of Fred Kinnan in Atlas Shrugged. In Hollywood, she met the secretary who was the model for Kay Gonda’s secretary in Ideal, and the Hollywood playwright who collaborated with her in planning a play designed for Broadway. Learn about these, and many other, intriguing details uncovered by Dr. Milgram in the course of her research for her book.

11:00 - 12:30 PM Peter Schwartz How To Write Clearly

Good writing is clear writing. Whether in a short letter-to-the-editor, a longer blog post, a comprehensive essay or a complete book, if your message is unclear, your writing has failed. This talk presents guidelines for effective writing. It includes: the crucial integrating function of the theme; communicating an idea vs understanding it; the need to remain constantly aware of the distinction between the reader’s and the writer’s context; the function of outlines; and the respective roles of the writer’s conscious mind and his subconscious. (This is an updated version of a talk Mr. Schwartz delivered in 1998.)

2:30 - 4:00 PM Harry Binswanger How To Study Ayn Rand

Ayn Rand’s writings can be understood on different levels, and mining them fully is a demanding enterprise. All Objectivists know the experience of re-reading, after years, a familiar sentence, and exclaiming, “So that’s what this really means!” In part, this experience is inherent in the nature of philosophic abstractions; in part, it is due to the remarkable economy of Ayn Rand's writing. How can one direct, and accelerate, this process of gaining a deeper understanding of her works? Dr. Binswanger presents the general method and the specific techniques he has found most fruitful in studying Ayn Rand's non-fiction writings. (This is an updated version of a 1994 lecture.)

6:30 - 10:00 PM Celebratory Banquet and Trivia Contest

A formal celebration of Ayn Rand and her ideas. A highlight of the evening will be the reading by volunteers of personally meaningful Ayn Rand quotes. And after dinner Harry Binswanger will host a trivia contest.