Words that Move People.
Leadership that Moves Business.
Charlene delivers powerful keynotes as a top female leadership speaker—challenging thinking, igniting courage, and transforming culture through bold, authentic messages.
Trusted by Leading Brands
Organizations that have trusted Charlene to inspire, challenge, and move their people to action.
I didn’t choose to be underestimated—but I chose what to do with it.
As a Black woman keynote speaker, former C-suite executive, and lifelong barrier breaker, I speak because I’ve lived through moments where being seen, heard, and valued wasn’t guaranteed. I know what it means to lead while navigating systems that weren’t built for you—and to rise anyway. Today, I use my voice to ignite others. Whether I’m delivering a keynote to 500 leaders, guiding a culture transformation, or empowering women to lead with authenticity, my message is always the same:
It’s choice—not chance—that changes everything.
I speak to remind leaders—especially those who feel invisible, underestimated, or overextended—that their story, their voice, and their leadership matter. Not just in theory, but in business, in culture, and in the bottom line.
From Underestimated to Unstoppable—This is Why I Speak…
Signature Keynotes
Each of Charlene’s keynotes blends real-world experience, transformative storytelling, and actionable insight. Whether you're looking to energize your team, shift your culture, or empower your emerging leaders, these keynotes deliver inspiration with impact.
DARE TO DECIDE
How Courageous Choices Build Leaders, Cultures, and Companies that Thrive
Most organizations don’t fail from a lack of talent.
They stall because leaders default to what’s comfortable instead of deciding what’s necessary. In Dare to Decide™, former global executive Charlene Wheeless gives leaders a system to choose courage over default, and turn intention into culture and performance by design.
Default is the enemy of performance.
People default to what’s familiar.
Teams default to comfort.
Cultures default to whatever goes unchecked
Default is a decision; you just didn’t make it consciously
The Core Idea: From Default to Design
In high-stakes environments, indecision has a cost: lost time, stalled initiatives, eroded trust. Charlene shows leaders how to move from culture-by-chance to culture-by-choice using her Decision Effect™ and Seven Seconds of Courage™ frameworks. This keynote gives leaders a practical way to pause in the moment, choose aligned action, and create a ripple effect from individual courage to organizational clarity, alignment, and measurable results.
What Leaders Will Learn
Name and confront default behavior that quietly shapes culture, like silence in the room; workarounds; and “that’s just how we do it here.”
Use Seven Seconds of Courage to move from automatic reaction to intentional response in the moments that send powerful culture signals.
Apply the Decision Effect™—courage → clarity → alignment → performance—to make decisions that match the culture they say they want.
Model visible, values-aligned decisions that build trust, psychological safety, and accountability across teams
✅ Best for: Executive and senior leadership teams, Company-wide meetings and all-hands, Sales kickoffs and revenue organization events, Culture, change, and transformation initiatives, M&A, integration, or restructuring environments
Dare to Decide: Women Who Lead
Move from “Performing” to Choosing, on Purpose
Most women don’t burn out because they’re weak.
They burn out because they’ve been performing strength for too long.
In Dare to Decide™: Women Who Lead, former global executive and cancer survivor Charlene Wheeless helps women leaders stop shape-shifting to fit expectations and start designing their leadership by choice, not chance. Using her Seven Seconds of Courage™ methodology and Decision Effect™ framework, she shows women how to make bolder decisions in rooms that weren’t built for them, without sacrificing their health, voice, or humanity.
What Women Leaders Will Learn
In this keynote, women learn how to:
Name the performance script they’ve been running (perfect, pleasing, proving) and decide what still serves them, and what doesn’t.
Use Seven Seconds of Courage to speak up, set boundaries, and ask for what they really want in high-stakes moments.
Shift from culture-fitting to culture-shaping, moving from “Do I belong here?” to “This room is different because I am in it.”
Claim their story as a strategic asset, not a liability, and lead without shrinking.
Outcomes for Organizations
This isn’t another “feel-good women’s talk.” It’s a strategic culture play. Organizations hosting Dare to Decide™ Women Who Lead see:
Women leaders who are more decisive, vocal, and aligned with the organization’s real priorities.
Clearer conversations about career pathing, sponsorship, and power, not just confidence.
A shared language for talking about choice, courage, and culture across the business.
Stronger pipelines of women ready to step into stretch roles, P&L responsibility, and executive positions—without burning out along the way.
✅ Best for: Women’s leadership conferences and summits, Corporate women’s networks and ERGs, Emerging and mid-level women leaders stepping into bigger roles, Senior women executives ready to lead differently
On Stage and in the Moment
Charlene doesn’t just speak—she shifts the room. Here’s a glimpse of her in action at leadership conferences, company offsites, and industry events around the world. Whether in the room or on screen, Charlene brings clarity, courage and connection to every audience.
Through story and truth, Charlene reminds leaders what courage looks like in real time. She meets audiences where they are and moves them somewhere better.
Let’s make Your Next Event Unforgettable!
Whether you're planning a high-energy leadership summit, an intimate retreat, or a corporate sales meeting, Charlene brings the inspiration, clarity, and impact your audience deserves.
Each keynote is tailored to the moment—and to the people in the room. Charlene delivers more than motivation; she creates messages that move people, shift mindsets, and spark lasting change.