We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Courtney Stanley a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Courtney, we’re thrilled to have you sharing your thoughts and lessons with our community. So, for folks who are at a stage in their life or career where they are trying to be more resilient, can you share where you get your resilience from?
Resilience comes from life’s adversity. When you fall down and make the choice to get back up, you foster grit. You develop confidence in yourself to handle failure. You flex muscles that grow stronger. Resilience is a process. It’s intentionally and repeatedly looking adversity in the face and saying, “I will get through this.”
My confidence has been challenged over the years through experiences like being let go from my first – and second – jobs, even when I felt I was doing everything in my power to succeed. I launched a brand new company in the beginning of 2020 and had to completely redesign my business model revenue strategy in order to survive year one. These experiences were both painful and rich with growth opportunities. I am the person I am today because of the opportunities to fall down and choose to get back up, learn the lessons, and do things differently.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
I am a global keynote speaker, leadership coach, and the creator and host of the podcast for leading women in business, “Dare to Interrupt.” I have spent more than a decade engaging professionals, entrepreneurs and organizations in game-changing, impactful conversations that empower individuals to elevate their self-awareness, improve team and culture dynamics, and drive meaningful change.
With a background in experience design, leadership studies and business strategy, my mission is to empower people from all walks of life to lean fiercely into the power of leading with empathy, advocating for themselves and others, and seizing silver lining opportunities to grow personally and professionally. I aim to inspire professionals through vulnerable, meaningful dialogue that alters approaches to leadership across the world.
What lights me up the most is working with audiences or one-on-one in coaching sessions on elevating self-awareness, increasing confidence, and leading with vulnerability. I believe that every person on this planet has value, but sometimes life experience and societal expectations get in the way of walking through the world knowing – and communicating – our worth. Nothing brings me more joy than witnessing an audience member or a client fully lean into their authentic self with unapologetic confidence. To me, that is work worth doing.
This is my fourth year of business since taking the initial leap into entrepreneurship, and other than during the beginning of 2020’s chaos, I haven’t looked back. It has been the greatest challenge I’ve embarked on and therefore has offered an incredible, infinite level of personal and professional growth. I am incredibly grateful for this experience.
If you’re invested in expanding your brand, increasing your confidence and elevating your leadership legacy, get in touch. I’d love to work with you – or – present a life-changing, thought-provoking keynote to your team/community.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
Quality: Integrity
Doing what you believe is right will take you far. It’s okay to change your mind or discover new ideas about what is right, but believing in yourself and honoring your values, trusting your intuition, and making decisions that make you or the environment around you better will serve you well. For anyone who struggles with boundary-setting, know that you are worth the lines you draw in the sand. Stand up for what you know is right and stay the course.
Skill: Relationship-Building
There is no skill that I have found to be more important than understanding how to build, nurture and maintain healthy relationships with the people around you. At any stage of your career, finding a mentor who shares your values – not necessarily experience, industry or background – will provide support that elevates and amplifies your professional experience. There’s a reason people say “your network is your net worth”. Invest time and energy into relationships with the right people and you’ll see your efforts multiplied tenfold.
Knowledge: Creating a personal public relations strategy
You don’t need a traditional education in public relations or marketing to understand how to create visibility. Finding creative ways to shine a light on the work you do will stretch your network and increase your impact. Don’t be afraid to showcase your work, your ideas and your value.
As we end our chat, is there a book you can leave people with that’s been meaningful to you and your development?
“Polishing Our Pearl of Greatest Price: Rediscovering Your Purpose” by Deb Stanley is a journal with prompts that will offer space to think differently about your life’s purpose. This book was the push I needed to really consider how I want to experience life. If we only have one life to live, how do we want to live it, and what do we want to contribute to others? If you’re feeling stuck, lost or unsure of which direction you want to walk next, order a copy of this book on Amazon and go through the prompts. It’s a game-changer.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.courtney-stanley.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/courtneyonstage/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/courtneyonstage/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/courtneystanley/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/courtneyonstage
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F82Pf8iLmCM
Image Credits
Hello! DMC, Cvent Inc., David Daudin, IMEX
