We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Suzannah Kelly a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Suzannah thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s talk legacy – what sort of legacy do you hope to build?
As a career strategist, leadership coach, and life empowerment advocate, my work has always been deeply personal. It’s not just about helping women climb the corporate ladder or pivot into new opportunities; it’s about helping them see their potential, own their power, and live a life that feels deeply aligned with their values and aspirations. My legacy, I hope, will reflect the impact I have had on the lives of countless women who have reclaimed their confidence, reignited their purpose, and redefined success on their own terms.
At the heart of my legacy is empowerment. I want to be remembered as someone who gave women the tools, guidance, and encouragement to navigate not only their careers but also their lives with courage, clarity, and confidence. As a woman who herself, climbed the corporate ladder, I know firsthand that too often and for too long, women—especially in midlife—have felt stuck, burnt out, unseen and unrecognized. They’ve sacrificed their dreams for others, dimmed their lights to fit into spaces not designed for them, and battled self-doubt in silence. My mission has been to change that narrative, and I hope my legacy will be a shining example of what’s possible when we equip women with the skills to rise above these challenges and step into their power.
I also hope my legacy will emphasize the importance of self-discovery. Through programs like Find Your Passion, Find Your Purpose and workshops like Rise and Thrive, I’ve created frameworks that help women uncover what truly matters to them. My work goes beyond career strategy—it’s about helping women connect with their core values, uncover hidden strengths, and align their lives with their unique vision of success. I hope to be remembered as someone who inspired women to ask big questions about their lives and gave them the courage to answer those questions authentically.
Another cornerstone of my legacy is connection and community. Whether through small-group workshops, online programs, or one-on-one coaching, I’ve always prioritized creating spaces where women feel seen, heard, and supported. I hope my legacy is one of building not just individual success stories but also a movement of women lifting each other up. I want the communities I’ve built through my career to carry forward the ripple effect of empowerment, where each woman who has grown through my programs helps another find her way.
Lastly, my legacy is deeply tied to inspiration and action. I want women to remember me as someone who not only inspired them with words but also equipped them with actionable strategies to transform their lives. I hope my story—starting from the bottom of the corporate ladder and rising to executive leadership before building a business rooted in purpose—serves as a testament to resilience, vision, and the power of reinvention. My hope is that my clients and audience will not just admire my work but will feel compelled to take meaningful steps toward their own dreams.
In the end, I want my legacy to be a living one—reflected in the success, happiness, and fulfillment of the women I’ve had the privilege to guide. When people think of me, I hope they remember a woman who saw the potential in others and made it her life’s work to elevate and empower them. A woman who believed in the transformative power of clarity, confidence, and courage and…..a woman who left the world just a little better, brighter, and more hopeful than she found it.
This is what I hope my legacy will be: a lasting reminder that no matter where you are in life, it’s never too late to dream bigger, find or align with your purpose, and rise!
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I’m a career strategist and life empowerment coach with over 25 years of corporate experience, helping women navigate the complexities of their careers with confidence, courage, and clarity. I started my journey at the very bottom of the corporate ladder and worked my way up to executive-level leadership, all while balancing the challenges of family, my own personal growth, and navigating the unwritten rules of corporate life. This firsthand experience shaped my passion for guiding ambitious women to reclaim their purpose, break free from the often overwhelm that comes from the unique responsibilities we often have as women, the burnout we can experience, and align their careers with their values and dreams.
When I left the corporate world, I realized there was an opportunity in career coaching to focus specifically on women’s unique challenges and aspirations. That’s when I launched my business, which is all about empowering women to step into their power, achieve balance, and design careers they love.
What I Offer
I provide a range of services, including:
One-on-One Advisory Coaching: Personalized career and leadership coaching in 3-, 6-, or 9-month packages, with unlimited support.
Online Group Programs: Self-paced and self-guided courses combined with small group coaching sessions like Elevate – Uplevelling Your Leadership, Pivot Your Career, and Transition to Entrepreneurship, each designed to address specific career and leadership challenges.
Workshops: Small, interactive group settings like YOU – A Life and Career on Your Terms and Rise and Thrive which help women discover healthier habits, balanced thinking, build deep rooted confidence and develop impactful communication skills.
Free Resources: Practical E-Books and Guides such as Empowered Leadership – 7 Daily Habits of Ambitious Women on the Rise, Your Guide to Getting the Promotion You Deserve, Your Quick Guide to Enhancing Your Leadership Brand and more!
Corporate Consulting: Helping organizations improve employee engagement, leadership development, and culture through coaching, retreats, and dynamic talent strategies.
Problems I Solve
I help my clients overcome career stagnation, burnout, lack of confidence, and unclear direction. For those who are aspiring leaders, I guide them in mastering skills like strategic thinking, emotional intelligence, and delegation so they can lead meaningfully with impact and influence. For those looking to pivot, I help them identify their passions and align their career paths with their purpose. For organizations, I help them achieve their business results by creating healthy, inspiring cultures where teams thrive and employees actually want to work!!
What sets me apart is my holistic approach—addressing not just professional growth but also the mindset shifts and habits necessary for true transformation. I combine real-world corporate expertise with a deeply empathetic understanding of the emotional and practical challenges women face.
What Makes My Work Unique
I believe in equipping women with actionable tools they can use immediately, whether it’s an impactful self-reflection exercise from one of my programs, strategies to navigate workplace politics, or scripts to tackle tough conversations. My style blends professional authority with an approachable and slightly unconventional tone that resonates with women who want real solutions that work for them—not clichés.
What I’m Most Proud Of
I’m proud of the transformations my clients experience. Seeing a woman go from doubting her abilities to owning her leadership role—or finally leaving behind a job that doesn’t align with her values—is what drives me. I’m also proud of the programs and resources I’ve created, like Empowered Leadership – The 7 Habits of Ambitious Women on the Rise, because they reflect my commitment to making career and life empowerment accessible.
What I Want You to Know
My coaching is about more than just career advancement—it’s about creating fulfilling lives. Whether you’re looking to climb the corporate ladder, pivot into something new, or simply rediscover what lights you up, my work is here to guide you so that ultimately you live a life that’s all yours, on your terms – purposeful and fulfilled.
Above all, I want my clients and followers to know that they are capable of achieving their dreams. With the right strategies, support, and mindset, you can create a career and life you truly love. I know because I have done it.
Any advice for managing a team?
Leadership is not always a straight road—it’s a winding journey filled with highs and lows. I learned this lesson during one of the most challenging times in my corporate career, managing a team through an organizational shakeup that left morale at an all-time low. This experience didn’t just test my skills as a leader—it redefined them.
At the time, my team was grappling with uncertainty, increased workloads, and diminished trust in senior leadership due to decisions beyond our control. As their leader, I felt the weight of their concerns and my own doubts. How could I motivate them when I wasn’t sure of the road ahead myself? That’s the paradox of leadership: you often have to guide others even when you yourself don’t feel certain or confident – navigating the unknown.
The first step was to acknowledge the challenges openly. Leadership isn’t about sugarcoating; it’s about being transparent while offering hope. I called a team meeting, laid out everything I knew (and admitted what I didn’t), and assured them that while the situation was tough, we’d face it together. That moment taught me the power of leadership vulnerability – it’s a powerful tool when done right!. Leaders don’t have to have all the answers—they just need to show up with honesty and resolve.
I also realized the importance of listening. People need to feel heard, especially during difficult times. I set up one-on-one check-ins to hear their concerns, frustrations, and ideas. Those conversations were humbling but necessary. They reminded me that leadership is as much about empathy as it is about strategy.
Rebuilding morale took time, but it started with small wins. We celebrated every success, no matter how minor. One of the simplest but most impactful steps was recognizing individual contributions. A handwritten note, a shout-out during a meeting, or a small team lunch—all of these gestures helped rebuild a sense of value and connection which is ultimately what employees want…..the more we recognize that the work, no matter how difficult happens through people….with emotions…..the more impactful and successful our leadership will be.
I also focused on giving the team a sense of control. When people feel powerless, morale dips. I asked for their input on how we could approach challenges and encouraged them to take ownership of projects. Empowerment isn’t just a leadership buzzword—it’s a morale booster that works.
That period wasn’t easy, but it was transformative. We came out of it stronger and more connected as a team, and I came out of it with a deeper understanding of what it means to lead. Leadership isn’t just about achieving results; it’s about the people you bring along with you. The reward is seeing your team thrive despite adversity, knowing you played a role in creating an environment where they felt supported and empowered.
That experience is one of the reasons I’m so passionate about coaching women and others to be great leaders. Leadership is hard work, and there will always be pain points—difficult conversations, moments of doubt, and challenges that feel bigger than you but when leadership is done right, it’s some of the most rewarding work you can do.
I coach women to lead because I know what it’s like to feel unsure of your ability to manage a team or make an impact. I know the pressure of balancing compassion with accountability and I know the incredible feeling of seeing someone rise to their potential because you believed in them and gave them the tools to succeed.
Leadership isn’t about being perfect—it’s about showing up for your team, even on the hardest days, and knowing that your influence matters. That’s the work I’m proud to do, and that’s the work I empower others to take on with confidence and courage.
Have you ever had to pivot?
Sometimes, life hands you a pivot you didn’t see coming. For me, it came in midlife when I suddenly started to feel a shift inside about my career….I wasn’t happy…..and then 2 years later….in the form of losing my executive job after 25 years of climbing the corporate ladder. I had spent decades building my identity around that title, that salary, and that role. When it was gone, I was left with one pressing question: Who am I without it?
What followed was one of the hardest seasons of my life, but also the most transformative. I actually wasn’t sad about losing my job – I had been craving change for a while….. but I learned that losing what you thought defined you can be the best opportunity to discover who you really are. It required unlearning old beliefs, shedding layers of past conditioning, and stepping into an entirely new version of myself. I’ve loved every minute of the journey!
Losing my job wasn’t just about losing a paycheck—it was moreson about confronting everything I thought success was supposed to look like. For 30 years, I had internalized the idea that success was tied to promotions, power, and productivity. Suddenly, I had to confront what those beliefs had cost me: my well-being, my purpose, and sometimes and evermore increasingly, my joy.
The hardest part wasn’t finding my next step—it was unlearning the mindset that my value was tied to my work. I had to peel back the layers of my corporate identity to uncover the woman underneath. The delayering process takes real work but it’s so worth it in the end!
The Tangible Steps I Took
Sitting in the Discomfort
I didn’t rush to find my next job or project. Instead, I gave myself permission to pause. I sat with the discomfort of not knowing and resisted the urge to fill the void with busyness. This gave me the clarity to ask myself big questions: What do I really want? What brings me joy? Who do I want to be? And also just important…..what do i not want?
Reconnecting with My Values
I started journaling and reflecting on what mattered most to me, outside of a job title. My values—empowerment, authenticity, and helping others grow—began to emerge as guideposts for my next chapter.
Reclaiming My Purpose
I realized that my real passion wasn’t just leading teams—it was empowering people, especially women, to see their potential and step into their own power. That’s when the seed for my coaching business was planted. I’ve always loved coaching and I reconnected with my passions that I had buried deeply over the many years of corporate life.
Building a New Vision
I began mapping out what my new career could look like, not based on societal expectations, but on what aligned with my purpose. I envisioned a business where I could help other women navigate career transitions, reclaim their confidence, and design careers they love.
Investing in Myself
I had been a certified leadership coach for almost a decade but I took some additional courses, got certified in leadership and emotional intelligence assessments, and surrounded myself with mentors and coaches who had navigated similar transitions. For the first time in years, I wasn’t investing in a company’s bottom line—I was investing in me.
Taking Action, One Step at a Time
Starting my business wasn’t about having it all figured out; it was about starting. One step at a time! I launched small workshops, began coaching women 1:1, and created online programs to share the strategies that helped me rebuild my own career and identity.
Why I Help Women Do the Same
That pivot taught me that reinvention is possible at any stage of life. It also showed me how isolating and overwhelming it can feel to face such a big transition alone. That’s why I’m so passionate about coaching women through their own pivots. Whether it’s navigating a layoff, stepping into leadership, or pivoting into a completely new career, I want women to know they don’t have to do it alone—and they don’t have to settle for anything less than a fulfilling, purpose-driven career.
The process is rarely easy, but it’s worth it. When you take the time to unlearn, delayer, and rebuild, you step into a version of yourself that’s more authentic and aligned. And that’s where the magic and happiness happens.
If you’re facing your own pivot, know this: you’re capable of so much more than you think and when you lean into who you truly want to be, incredible things can happen.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.suzannahkellyconsulting.ca www.suzannahkelly.ca
- Instagram: @suzannahkellycoaching
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suzannahmkelly
