My career grew exponentially and unexpectedly at the start of 2021 when I decided to get more comfortable with public speaking.

Full of nerves, I spoke whenever and wherever. In a surprising turn of events, speaking became a small side hustle while I led Prezi’s editorial team.

Then I got laid off in 2022. The combination of that side hustle, the personal brand I had created, and my 10+ years of experience as a founding editor at numerous tech firms like LinkedIn and Prezi, gave me the confidence to start my own company, RISE Learning Solutions, where I am now a full-time corporate keynote speaker and trainer, consultant, content creator, and instructor with LinkedIn Learning and Stanford Continuing Studies.

Before this, I was someone who started off my career keeping my head down and doing the hard work. I soon realized during promotion and review cycles, however, that doing that wasn’t enough to help me advance.

Over time, I realized what it would take to grow my career. Skills like gaining buy-in, promoting my work, and building relationships with senior leaders all were important.

Looking back, I’ve realized that all the opportunities that have come my way have happened because of my 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 — both in terms of 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 others see me. I believe being intentional about these two things are the most critical factors to someone’s professional success, and it’s why I’m so passionate to share all the skills that fuel presence: from presentations and communication to managing up and LinkedIn.

Now, I help organizations and teams supercharge their professional presence — in both senses of the word — i.e. how they come across to others and where others come across them.

I bring 10+ years of experience as a founding editor at tech companies like LinkedIn and Prezi. Now, I’m the founder of RISE Learning Solutions where I speak, consult, and teach hundreds of thousands of professionals to become more recognized, influential, successful, and empowered.