This Didn't Start with a Plan.
It Started with Uncertainty.
This website didn’t begin with a grand vision or a carefully mapped strategy. It began with uncertainty.
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About six months before my promotion board met, I told my husband that if I wasn’t selected, I would retire from the Air Force. As soon as I said it out loud, panic set in. I had spent two decades as an Air Force health care administrator, and for the first time in my life, I didn’t have a clear picture of what came next.
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Like many leaders, I had always been focused on the mission directly in front of me. I knew how to lead teams, manage complexity, and operate under pressure. I always knew what the next step in my career would be, but planning my next chapter felt surprisingly difficult.
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What I did know was this: I wanted to continue bringing value to others. I had spent years sharing lessons from leadership, mistakes, and lived experience with teammates and peers. I just hadn’t yet figured out how to do that beyond the spaces I already occupied.
Choosing Action Over "What If?"
The idea to start a blog didn’t feel bold or confident. It was scary.
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What if no one read it? What if people didn’t like my writing? What if I ran out of things to say?
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Eventually, I realized those questions weren’t the real issue. The real risk was staying silent.
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With great trepidation, I wrote and published the first post and Inspired Authenticity was born. I have nothing but deep gratitude to my husband, who believed in the idea long before I did and has supported me every step since.
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Not long after, I was selected for promotion. I won’t be retiring from the Air Force anytime soon — but the blog is here to stay. What started as a response to uncertainty became a commitment to share what I’ve learned about leading yourself authentically so you can be an inspirational leader.
Leadership Was Never Meant to Be Easy
Early in my leadership journey, I was told I wasn’t cut out to lead because I was:
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Too quiet
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Too nice
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Too introverted
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Too young
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Too inexperienced
All of those things were true. Add in "too female" and it seemed like I didn't have a chance.
​I even believed them for a while. I questioned myself, second-guessed decisions and tried to lead in ways that didn't align with who I was.
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Over time, through experience and self-reflection, I learned that inspirational leadership is impossible when you aren’t being your authentic self. You don't have to become someone else's idea of a perfect leader. You just have to be your version of an inspirational leader. ​
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This perspective changed everything.
Inspirational Leadership Matters Most When the Stakes are High
I’ve led in environments where decisions mattered, expectations were high, and people were watching closely. They were watching not just what I decided—but how I showed up while doing it.
I've seen capable, committed leaders struggle under the weight of self-doubt and unspoken pressure to have all the answers.
I’ve also seen what happens when leaders slow down, reflect, and reconnect with who they are: trust deepens, teams perform better, and leadership becomes more sustainable.​
​I care deeply about helping leaders discover how to lead themselves authentically by understanding their own strengths and values. In doing so, they will transform into inspirational leaders, and there's nothing more meaningful to me than seeing leaders grow with confidence while building leadership that lasts.
"Creating positive change is the best way to test whether a person can lead well...and everyone deserves to be led well."
- John C. Maxwell
Experience that Shapes My Leadership Perspective
My perspective on leadership has been shaped by more than two decades as an Air Force officer and health care administrator. I’ve served in a variety of leadership roles, including deployments, command at the Air Force Group and Squadron levels, and assignments at the Pentagon.
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I’ve led in situations where clarity, presence, and trust weren’t optional — they were essential.
I’m a Maxwell Leadership Certified Team Member and have completed the Maxwell Method of Coaching course.
I’m also board certified as a Certified Emergency Manager through the International Association of Emergency Managers.
My education includes:
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Master of Military Operational Art and Science, Air University
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Master of Arts in Disaster and Emergency Management, American Military University
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Bachelor of Arts in Chinese Language and Literature, Washington University in St. Louis
These experiences inform how I think about leadership, but they don’t define it. The most important lessons I’ve learned came from people, moments, and decisions that required humility, courage, and self-awareness.
