THERE’S NOTHING WORSE THAN CARVING OUT THE TIME AND MONEY FOR AN EVENT THAT MISSES THE MARK.
You want people to walk away with something that feels like it was said directly to them. For them.
You want a speaker who can give participants the experience of being seen, and known, and spoken to.
If you want catchy-sounding productivity hacks or vague solutions to hard problems, Sherry isn’t the speaker for you. She relishes depth, hates over-simplification and draws an audience in to help them face the raw, vulnerable parts of themselves. But she doesn’t stop there. She elegantly moves an audience from challenge to hopeful action through humor, warmth, pragmatism and good old fashion intelligence.
Sample Topics
Burnout: Simple Strategies to Prevent You From Getting Fried
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Do you ever feel exhausted? Really exhausted? Have you felt like nothing is moving forward, no matter how hard you work? Perhaps a creeping cynicism or sense of withdrawal from your team or your clients...
You’ve heard of burnout- it’s all the rage on the HuffPost blog. Despite being common, burnout is much more serious than a self-help fad. Burnout is linked to changes in brain structure and chemistry and can have significant implications for productivity, creativity, interpersonal interactions, and overall physical and mental health. Thankfully 40 years of research have helped to clarify the major drivers of burnout. In this keynote presentation, Dr. Walling will focus on how you can recognize and prevent burnout before it wreaks havoc on your business and personal health.
Exiting a Company
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The Psychology of When, Why, and How to Leave Your Business
Learn more: Have you ever wondered what happens when it’s time to part ways with your business? Entrepreneurs pour their time, resources, and creativity into their companies, making them a part of their identity. But that relationship isn’t permanent. Leaving a business can be an incredibly challenging process, intertwining logistics, relationships, and emotions into a unique experience.
Dr. Sherry invites you to explore the human aspects—those rarely considered—of exiting a business. We’ll dive into the motivations behind these decisions and discuss how to prepare for the intensity, complexity, and length of the exit process. We’ll also tackle the deep and transformative work of reorienting your life after stepping away from your business.
Entrepreneurship and Identity: My business, My self
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You and your business are in an interdependent relationship. In many ways, need each other to survive. You are the heart and soul of your business. And your business is an extension of you. Sometimes this relationship gets messy. Where does your business end and where do you begin? In this talk, we'll do a deep dive into the complex way that our personal identity overlaps with our life as an entrepreneur. We'll also explore strategies to help protect our individual health and connections to other humans as we engage in this messy relationship with our business.
Where You Come From: How to Use Your Origin Story as your Secret Weapon
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The key to a good superhero movie is the backstory- the angst, insecurity, early success or the mentor that shaped the trajectory of the hero’s life. Entrepreneurs aren’t so different. The way that we show up in our business is shaped by the things that happen to us, even the experiences from our earliest days. Understanding our own origin story can be the key to avoiding the automatic reactions and sabotaging patterns that accompany an unexamined life. In this keynote, Dr. Walling will help you identify common blindspots and give you tools to help you make your past experiences one of your greatest assets.
Simple strategies for "business-proofing" your family
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A demanding work life can take a significant toll on your personal relationships. Running a business is stressful, isolating, and wrought with the kinds of challenges that can cause friction in the even the most connected couples. In this highly personal talk, Dr. Sherry will walk you through how to protect your most important relationships in the midst of the growing your business.
SPEAKING Videos
Leadership Superpowers You Didn't Know That You Needed
TuringFest presents Dr. Sherry Walling, Aug. 15, 2022
Why a grieving psychologist joined the circus
TEDxBreckenridge
Why We Need the Medicine. And What We Fear
Psychedelics as Medicine 2023
The Psychology of Exiting Your Company
MicroConf US 2022
Leadership and brokenness
Panel discussion at Mastermind Talks
Growth at the Edges: Reflections on an Immersion into Grief
Cadre YOUniversity presents Dr. Sherry Walling, Sept. 29, 2022
the soul of entrepreneurship
My business is my baby
Entrepreneurship and identity
Isolation and mental health
Recent Events
A Speaker that delivers
“Sherry knows her subject and knows how to make it interesting, engaging and accessible for an audience of very bright tech savvy people who are more used to thinking about life in binary terms. She was a wonderful speaker at Business of Software Conference who never missed a moment in the run up to the event to support, promote and work up a talk that was relevant and actionable to the members of our community.”
“I’ve been a fan of Sherry’s work on mental health in founders for years. Her conference talks are among the best I’ve heard in my career, on any topic. ”
“Sherry brought tremendous value to the EO Minnesota chapter with her engaging presentation style and extremely relevant content. Our members left with actionable ideas to ensure they can continue to thrive in business without sacrificing their mental health nor the connection with their significant other.”
“Even amongst a speaker lineup that had big names who have raised $100m+ and had >$1b exits, Sherry was the fan favorite by a mile. She is what you get when you blend a master teacher with an entrepreneur who is in the trenches. She’s hyper actionable, has the audience’s full attention, and her words strike to the core of what most founders are craving. ”