Biography

Heidi Dening is an empowering keynote speaker whose elegant, yet powerful presence on stage leaves audiences wanting to do more, give more, have more and be more. She is the author of a best-selling self-leadership book called ‘Her Middle Name Is Courage’, and an experienced educator who believes that resilient, healthy self-leaders create profitable, impactful organisations.

Over the last 22 years she has started, scaled and sold an award-winning health and education business; founded an international not-for-profit with hundreds of volunteers across three countries; and delivered empowering presentations and programs to business leaders at Accenture, Westpac, & Random House to name just a few, on topics such as business performance, resilience and self-leadership.

Heidi was recently chosen for the NSW Government’s Inspirational Women showcase in the entrepreneurial and empowerment category and has been awarded Westpac’s International Women’s Day Local Hero Award. She is the only Australian to be selected for a global advisory position that looks at how our workplaces impact our stress levels, resilience, productivity and mental health. This gives her access to cutting edge data on these topics.

Since transforming her real-life setbacks such as a paralysing illness where she lost the use of her legs, to gunpoint kidnappings, from tsunami terror, and firebomb attacks, she now shares her impactful strategies from stage and in workplaces so others can become the courageous self-leaders they were destined to be. This results in organisations improving their performance, retention and bottom line.

Heidi hates seeing people not live their life to the fullest. That is why she has made it her mission to empower as many people as she can on how to strengthen their resilience and embrace self-leadership strategies so they can overcome adversity and rise out of tough times stronger than ever. She believes that this will then send a ripple effect of vitality, resilience and optimism into workplaces, into families, and into communities … potentially improving the lives of hundreds of thousands of people globally.