Meet Kelly Poquiz Burke

We were lucky to catch up with Kelly Poquiz Burke recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Kelly, really happy you were able to join us today and we’re looking forward to sharing your story and insights with our readers. Let’s start with the heart of it all – purpose. How did you find your purpose?

As the daughter of Filipino immigrant parents, my main goal in life was to achieve the “American Dream”. For many years this was my primary pursuit, but everything changed for me at the beginning of 2020. In February 2020, I was just eight weeks pregnant with my first child when I received a shocking breast cancer diagnosis. A few weeks later, the world suddenly shut down due to the global pandemic.

It was a harrowing time filled with fear and uncertainty. While I desperately wanted my husband to go to every doctor’s appointment, because of the pandemic, I had to go alone. Going through cancer treatment in isolation, with the baby in my womb as my only companion, was life-changing. I found my deepest motivation in fighting not just for my own life, but for hers as well. As a young woman with no family history of breast cancer, I was reminded just how fragile and precious life truly is.

So, after beating breast cancer and delivering a healthy baby girl, I knew that I could not waste my second lease on life. That experience drove me to become a coach and find my own purpose of motivating others to live their lives authentically.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

I am an Executive Coach, Podcast Host, Speaker, and the Founder & CEO of Career Slay®. After my cancer experience, I realized how intertwined our personal and professional lives were and the importance of having a fulfilling career to support your overall life satisfaction. I originally launched Career Slay in 2022 as a podcast where I interviewed people who loved what they did for a living. I enjoyed these candid conversations so much, that I became a career and leadership coach and launched my own business. Today, Career Slay is an executive coaching company that helps high performers courageously develop their careers and become the fearless leaders they were meant to be.

Through personalized coaching, group facilitation, and leadership training, we unlock untapped potential by asking the right questions and motivating our clients to answer with action. We work with ambitious individuals who are either navigating a career transition, overcoming a leadership challenge, or wanting to accelerate their growth but need guidance on how to remove the barriers standing in their way. Our vision at Career Slay is to make the world a more joyful place by motivating people to love what they do for a living.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

The three qualities that have shaped my journey are grit, gratitude, and growth. I’ve overcome a lot of challenges in my life. Aside from my cancer story, I had to pay off nearly $200,000 in student loans and relearn how to walk three times. Having grit made me more resilient and it helped me turn those obstacles into opportunities. Secondly, gratitude puts everything into perspective. I’m grateful for this second chance at life and for the support that I’ve had on my journey because no one can get through it alone. Finally, having a growth mindset enabled me to embrace failure and learn from my mistakes. There’s always a path to a better future when you prioritize growth.

My advice to people who are just starting out is invest in yourself. Whether that’s education, personal training, therapy, or even self-care, every day we get to make deposits into the future version of ourselves that we aspire to be. There will be enough doubters and people who are scared to make the moves you will pursue. Don’t let their fear stop you. When you invest in yourself, not only are you saying, “I can do this”, but you’re signaling to the universe that you’re worth doing this for.

How would you describe your ideal client?

My ideal client is a high-performing professional who is ambitious, driven, and striving for more in their career, but recognizes the need for support to reach their full potential. They are typically in mid- to senior-level roles, working in fast-paced industries where the stakes are high and the expectations are even higher. Despite their track record of success, they feel a calling to push beyond their current limits, but they might lack the clarity, confidence, or courage needed to get to the next level of growth. If you are a passionate leader who is growth-oriented, reflective, open to transformation, and motivated by purpose, we would work really well together.

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