Creating a Culture of Courage: Psychotherapist Marcia Bonato Warren On How Authenticity Benefits People and Profits in the Workplace

An Interview With Vanessa Ogle

Know yourself: For many people, being authentic can feel difficult, unfamiliar or even, unsafe. The first place to start in creating a culture where authenticity is welcomed, is to know what it feels like for ourselves. This process involves asking questions, both of yourself and of others that are part of your communities.

In today’s social media filled, fast-paced world, authenticity in the workplace and in our personal lives has become more difficult to come by. Business leaders must focus on the bottom line of profits and corporate success, but does that have to be at the expense of the authenticity of their employees? I believe it is quite the opposite. I know from my own experience that a culture of authenticity allows the hiring of a team that will bring their all to the workplace. That fosters innovation, creativity and a level of success that few companies dream of. Yet, fostering an environment where individuals feel secure enough to express their true selves remains a challenge. The importance of authenticity cannot be overstated — it is the foundation of trust, innovation, and strong relationships. However, creating such a culture requires intention, understanding, and actionable strategies. As part of this series, we had the pleasure of interviewing Marcia Bonato Warren, MA, MA, LPC.

Marcia Bonato Warren (she/her) is a trauma-informed Body Psychotherapist/Somatic Counselor, interculturalist and author with over thirty years of cross-cultural experience in the fields of international education, minority business development, Native American federal policy and legislative initiatives, non-profit organization management, and most recently, culturally responsive and trauma-informed counseling and training and education. She is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in the state of Colorado and holds a Master of Arts in International Relations from John’s Hopkins University (SAIS), a Master of Arts in Somatic Counseling/Body Psychotherapy from Naropa University, as well as certificates in Clinical Supervision (I and II), Intercultural Foundations, Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Trauma Training (I and II), and Indigenous Psychology.

In 2015, Marcia developed her own therapy practice called Embodied Code-Switching®, a new approach to counseling that explores how our bodies interpret and express our identities, which are often informed by cultural norms, communication styles, trauma, and systems of power and oppression. Embodied Code-Switching® provides tools and skills for individuals who identify as multicultural and/or work in multicultural settings to build capacity to engage with compassionate curiosity rather than resistance when confronted with identity-based differences.

In March 2025, Marcia published her first book, Movement and Identity: Multiculturalism, Somatic Awareness, and Embodied Code-Switching®, which brings together her personal and professional experiences into a comprehensive resource that guides readers through a journey of their own body’s expression of culture and identity using research, exercises, journal prompts, and tools that can be applied both personally and professionally.

Marcia is proud of her heritage and the gifts of her ancestors and identifies as an enrolled member of Santa Clara Pueblo in New Mexico and as Brazilian-Italian. She is passionate about developing the potential in people to embrace diversity through multicultural embodiment, sharing our stories and inspiring creativity.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series. Before we dive into our discussion our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you share with us the backstory about what brought you to your specific career path?

I am fortunate to have had a wide-ranging and fulfilling career path that has traveled many directions over time but has always stayed close to my desire to understand and bridge different cultures and identities. I was born in Santa Fe, New Mexico in the United States and was raised going in between the cultures of my parents. My mother is from Brazil and immigrated to the United States in the 1960’s as a university professor to teach Portuguese and Spanish. My father is Native American and through him, I am an enrolled member of my tribe, Santa Clara Pueblo (located in New Mexico).

I was brought up periodically immersed in each of my cultures, but because my father did not speak his Native language (a result of U.S. historical federal policies) and my mother did not teach my brother and I Portuguese growing up, my primary way of relating to each cultural context was nonverbally. Because it was the primary and ongoing way I interacted with my cultures, I became highly attuned to the movements, body language, tone of voices, etc. of people around me and learned quickly to adjust myself to others (often at the expense of myself). As a result of living my life physically and psychologically shifting between cultures in this way, I always sought a way to understand my experience: first, through what I chose to study in college and graduate school, and then later, throughout my career.

My undergraduate degree was in International Studies, and my first Master’s degree was in International Relations with a concentration in Conflict Management, which led me to my first job in international educational and professional exchange with the International Visitor’s Program in Washington, D.C. When I decided to move to Los Angeles, I began working for Hughes Electronics Corporate Marketing and International, during which time I was asked to write a market assessment to explore the use of satellite communications on tribal lands. Through a number of connections associated with the research of this assessment, I met an individual who suggested I turn it into a report for a foundation in Washington D.C. Around this time, I moved again and left the company, so after receiving permission from Hughes to use the non-proprietary information in the assessment, I revised it into a report, and it was published. This report was one of the most requested documents from the foundation, and it eventually led me to my next career in Native American policy and advocacy as both a U.S. Department of Commerce Senior Policy Advisor for Native American Affairs, and later, running my own non-profit organization, the Native Networking Policy Center (NNPC).

A few years later, I left my career in Native American policy and advocacy when my children were young to become a stay at home mother (which I absolutely loved!). After a few years when my kids were older, I decided to go back to school to become a counselor and begin a second career. I chose Naropa University’s Somatic Counseling program, which is a contemplative-based professional mental health counseling program focused on body-based psychotherapy. At the end of my program in 2015, I developed my own therapy practice called Embodied Code-Switching®, which focused on developing the resilience and unique expression of multicultural identities through somatic awareness. Since that time, I have worked with individuals and groups in the areas of cultural awareness, social justice, and intercultural communication as a therapist in private practice, a trainer for organizations and companies, and as faculty and a guest speaker for both the Somatic Counseling and Contemplative Counseling programs at Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado. I am proud to say that I am also an author, having recently published my first book, Movement and Identity: Multiculturalism, Somatic Awareness and Embodied Code-Switching® in March 2025.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started your career?

This story relates to two pivotal moments in bringing my therapeutic practice of Embodied Code-Switching® into the world through my writing and getting published — both of which were completely unseen and fortuitous. To give some background, the concept of Embodied Code-Switching® was developed from research I conducted for my Master’s Paper for my Somatic Counseling degree on cultural embodiment and the somatic impacts of moving between identities, or code-switching (as this kind of experience was called in the fields of linguistics and multiracial/multicultural psychology). At that time, in 2015, there were no sources that had directly studied the nonverbal and somatic experience of code-switching, so I created a theoretical model for how to support multicultural individuals embody their identities and bring choice and agency into how, and when, they switched between them. This theory developed into a therapeutic practice, now called Embodied Code-Switching®.

One of the requirements for graduation was to submit my Master’s Paper for publication to academic journals, which I attempted to do and was rejected. Of course I was disappointed, but I was happy to receive my degree and soon turned my focus to starting my private practice and working with Embodied Code-Switching® through trainings and workshops, thinking nothing more of publishing my paper. Three years later, I bumped into one of my former professors from the program, who asked me if my paper had been published; I said no. She asked if I would be interested in being included as a chapter in her upcoming book — I was completely surprised! Taking a deep breath, I answered yes, and a few months later, I had edited my paper into a now published chapter.

Fast forward to 2021, I did an online workshop on the topic of “Embodied Multicultural Identity — Our Superpower” and unbeknownst to me at the time, my future editor saw that workshop and decided to send me a message on Facebook. When I saw her message, I didn’t know what to think, but after our first conversation I was asked to submit a proposal, and it was accepted! From there, I began the next chapter of my life as an author, fully focusing on writing a piece of work that could integrate all my previous professional (and personal) experiences in a way that could be a resource, a guide, and a healing journey for multicultural individuals themselves, those that work to support them, and all of us who work within multicultural settings. As of March 2025, and because of that one pivotal moment, I am happy to say that I am now a published author of my first book, Movement and Identity: Multiculturalism, Somatic Awareness, and Embodied Code-Switching®.

Each of these moments taught me that building a career is part of a creative process that relies upon education and training, of course, but mostly on recognizing the moments that find us and surprise us with opportunities. I am grateful for all the people who were part of my professional life that not only found me in those moments, but believed in me, and supported me to grow into the next phase of my career.

You are a successful individual. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?

Love of learning

At the heart of what I do as a therapist, teacher and trainer — and now author — is the lifelong love I have held for learning. I was an early reader, and one of the first books I remember reading was Khalil Gibran’s The Prophet. I discovered this book in my grandmother’s house in Albuquerque, New Mexico, during the time I was in grade school, and I remember feeling absolutely transported by the words I found on those pages. From that time on, I continued to pursue many forms of formal education (as can be seen by the way I keep going back to school for degrees and certificates) but perhaps more importantly, also sought to learn about myself throughout my own healing journey.

These pathways to my own inner knowing have been varied but constant, and continue to guide me through periods of my life when I encounter great difficulty or transitions.

Part of what I’ve come to understand through both of the ways that I have engaged with learning is that the definitions of success and healing must remain fluid and flexible, otherwise they can become enticing ways to separate myself from opportunities to grow and remain curious. I believe the concepts of both success and healing are relative: what we accomplish in this life is relative to how we understand ourselves, our cultures, and the gifts of our lineages to do what they perhaps could not during their lifetimes. For that reason, we must always hold curiosity and humility alongside the reality that we will always have something new to learn — and that is not a bad thing!

Goals and planning

I have to admit that one of my greatest joys, alongside learning, is planning. This skill has been instrumental throughout all of my careers: I have created strategic plans for federal programs, my non-profit, and my private practice, as well as incorporated goal setting and planning with my therapy clients, in my workshops, and for my classroom curricula. Having the ability to conceptualize goals and a pathway towards meeting them is essential to almost everything we do in both our personal and professional lives. The key, however, is understanding that the goals and planning we create most likely will shift as we move towards their realization, and we must be able to hold them loosely enough to let them “breathe” with the changes we encounter. This can be one of the most difficult things to do if a great deal of energy has been placed on the creation of those goals and the planning process. The plan cannot supersede the person, or people, it is meant to guide.

I’ve had many moments where my plans have had to “pivot” in this way: the strategic plan for my non-profit organization was revisited many times when funding shifted or the timeline for our projects had to adjust to new priorities. My clients’ goals shifted as our therapeutic work together reached different, and deeper areas of trauma and growth. The lesson plan for many of my classes were placed on hold to address more present topics brought by the students. The interesting thing I’ve noticed in all these instances was that whatever was in the original plan or goals that I thought had to be achieved, had to be reached, had to be learned, in fact, had to be set aside for something new and more responsive to the greater good of the person/project/class to be embraced.

Letting it all go

This one may feel counterintuitive, especially given the first two characteristics that I mentioned above, but it is the most important. There will come a time in any profession, business, relationship, etc. that what used to work, no longer works: The opportunities dry up. The job isn’t as fulfilling. The relationship doesn’t feel as supportive. It may seem at these moments that the world you know is falling apart, despite your best intentions and all the hard work you have invested in others, and yourself. But it is precisely when these moments begin to happen, that the seeds are being planted for the next phase are growing.

There is a concept I talk about in my book that doesn’t just apply to moving between our cultural identities, it is a place we have all experienced in the moments I describe above: liminal space. Liminal space is the “in-between,” the space between what was, and what can be. For many, this can be a place of discomfort and unease, because while we are in liminal space, we are no longer who we were and not yet who we are becoming. However, it is a space that is inherent in every transition, and if we allow ourselves to be there, can find ourselves at a point of deep insight, high creativity, and significant personal growth. The key to engaging with the liminal space? Letting go.

What were the moments when I let go? There are too many to count, but a few major ones include failing one of my oral exams in my first Master’s degree and having to take a class over in order to graduate (letting go of expectations). Leaving my first career to focus on being a stay at home mom (letting go of a career). Getting divorced and becoming an empty nester within a year (letting go of relationships). I have started over many, many times. Were these transitions difficult? Absolutely. Would I do them again? Without question. Without learning to let go, I would not have learned the ability to let in, and so much more came into my life at the end of these transitions than what I thought I had lost. And for all that, it was worth it.

Ok, thank you for that. Let’s now jump to the primary focus of our interview. Can you share a pivotal moment in your career or personal life when being authentic made a significant impact on your success or well-being?

I love this question, but before I answer, it feels important to talk about what being authentic means to me. As a woman of color, and especially as a person with two cultural identities that are from marginalized communities (indigenous and immigrant), the idea of being authentic is complicated and comes with many caveats.

For me, the constant navigation between others’ questions of “who are you?” and my own questions around “who am I?” (which is the very nature of a multicultural identity) rarely provided any answers that felt complete or fully satisfied. I grew up firmly aware of my differences, not only from the cultures of my parents, but the culture of the United States and became very good at adjusting myself to whatever groups I found myself in, whether it was to avoid standing out, or to try my best to fit in. Over time, my sense of self was formed around the need to be malleable, permeable, and overly responsive — always highly attuned, but to others more than myself. Being authentic was the last thing on my mind, and the idea of “authenticity” self often felt uncertain, unsafe, and at times, unwelcome.

It took me many years to understand that this type of “chameleon”-like behavior was actually a skill, and if done consciously, I could form a strong sense of self with boundaries that did not depend upon compartmentalizing or sacrificing my cultural identities for fear of not being enough. But building this skill was not just an intellectual experience — it was deeply somatic and embodied. This personal process is what led me to writing my Master’s paper on Embodied Code-Switching®, and into the pivotal moment of becoming the author of my first book, Movement and Identity: Multiculturalism, Somatic Awareness, and Embodied Code-Switching®.

In writing my book, I discovered an invitation and a challenge for me to advocate for my authentic self in both what and how I wrote. Although I had been writing all my life, and even published a few times, I had never authored a piece of work that was fully reflective of my personal and professional experience. And to be honest, it was incredibly vulnerable. As I wrote, I often struggled with self-doubt as to whether my expertise would be enough (imposter syndrome, anyone?) and often fell into old patterns of academic writing where I would look for other voices as validation ahead of my own.

At one point, my intuition guided me to just write what I felt called to write, and if necessary, I could include additional research later. When I was able to do this, the format and content of the book began to flow much more naturally. The book began to take shape as a blend of styles, representing both a storytelling and multicultural approach. In the end, I found that all my voices could be included: my creative voice through poetry and essays; my academic voice through research and professional experience; and my counselor and educator voice through “thought bubbles” that held words of encouragement and invitations to check in throughout the book. In the end, I resisted the pull to fit myself into external expectations and was able to embrace all aspects of my personal and professional identities and integrate them into this book.

Engaging with my own self-determined authenticity in this way continues to impact me today. I feel confident in my vulnerability and hold much more compassion for the parts of myself that may not know all the “answers.” I also feel more able to stand alongside my work and be visible because I know my voice is valid, and lives in the pages of my book. But most importantly, I am learning to receive appreciation and support for my work in a new way that connects me to others with trust and cooperation.

How do you navigate the challenges that come with encouraging authenticity in a diverse workplace, where different backgrounds and perspectives may sometimes lead to conflict?

There are so many experts in this field, and so many perspectives I wish I could bring together to answer this central question! In order to narrow down the discussion a bit, I would like to offer my perspective as a therapist and educator to the question of how to encourage authenticity in a diverse workplace — which, by nature of our diverse populations and identities, is highly common and will continue to become so in the future.

First, I get curious about the question itself and what meanings it holds on a personal and relational level. As we know, words are more than just definitions — they represent emotions, memories, expectations, actions — and we often assume we share the meaning of a concept with others when in fact, each of us may be holding a completely different understanding. In this question, we have three major words that have the potential to impact people differently depending upon their cultures, identities, and experiences: authenticity, diverse, and conflict. The first challenge is to make explicit the meanings of these concepts, and provide the opportunity to compare, appreciate and integrate the different perspectives each word offers. This is an effort that must take place within ourselves (What do these concepts mean to me? How can I express them to others?), as well as with others in the workplace (What do these concepts mean to us? How do we express them to each other and in our work?).

Next, I would expand my questions towards the workplace itself: does my own understanding of authenticity, diversity, and conflict align (or misalign) with the values of my workplace? Is there language in the mission and/or vision statement of my company or organization, team, office, etc. that speaks to the values and expectations they hold for their workforce? Is authenticity important to them, and in what ways? What does diversity mean, and what is the process of conflict resolution or mediation if it is needed? All this information is essential towards understanding the culture of the organization, which can then provide the context for how we navigate our ability to be authentic within it.

You might be wondering at this point why so many questions are needed to answer a question that seems fairly straightforward. I have found in working with clients who have faced this question, and in my own personal experience struggling with being authentic in the workplace, that the less awareness we hold around what being authentic in the workplace means — especially if it involves diversity and conflict — the more vulnerable we are to having our experiences defined by other individuals or by the workplace culture itself. We must know ourselves as best we can, learn as much as we can about our workplaces (both the spoken and unspoken norms and rules), and then, we can proactively negotiate the challenges that arise instead of perpetually reacting to them.

In essence, if we can extend our curiosity and awareness around how to be authentic not only to ourselves, but to others, we expand our capacity to include different ways of communication, expression, learning, and working into our lives, which in turn reduces suffering, isolation, and resentment. Being authentic is a fluid state that rests on our ability to center ourselves as a place of authority and autonomy, while cultivating the ability to respond to our workplaces (and our coworkers) with present moment awareness and choice.

Ok super. Here is the main question of our interview. Based on your experience and research, can you please share “5 Ways to Create a Culture Where People Feel Safe to be Authentic?” What strategies have you found most effective in fostering an environment where employees or team members feel safe to express their true selves, including their ideas, concerns, and aspirations? If you can, please share a story or an example for each.

1 . Know yourself: For many people, being authentic can feel difficult, unfamiliar or even, unsafe. The first place to start in creating a culture where authenticity is welcomed, is to know what it feels like for ourselves. This process involves asking questions, both of yourself and of others that are part of your communities.

Questions to ask: What do you want to know about yourself and who you are? What do your identities and cultures have to say about authenticity? Can you express your individuality and still be part of a group? How do you feel in your body when you are true to yourself? To a group?

2 . Get curious: This part of the process is an ongoing invitation to hold curiosity about our workplaces and the relationships we form with our co-workers, clients, and others in our professional spheres. Our brains are built for high efficiency, which often means that once we have formed an idea of a place or thing, and our initial judgements have been reinforced a few times, a neural pathway is set so that the brain no longer needs to categorize that particular piece of information again. As a result, we may find that the moment we feel like we have all the answers is precisely when we most often miss an opportunity to feel connected and seen.

Questions to ask: What aspects of my job/organization/business align with my sense of self? Where do I feel unvalidated, excluded, unseen? Are there people in my work life with whom I can be myself? How do I sense belonging in my body? What don’t I know about my work or co-workers that I can still learn?

3 . Learn what (and who) feels ‘safe-enough’: Authenticity and safety are deeply connected. If we don’t feel safe to be our true selves, those selves will not emerge. This is especially true when people have lived experiences where the expression of ideas, concerns, and aspirations has rarely occurred safely, or even resulted in further exclusion or penalization. One term that is used in trauma-informed therapy is the concept of finding “safe-enough” spaces — safety can never be fully guaranteed unfortunately — where our nervous systems can move from constant activation (fight, flight, or freeze) towards regulation (rested, relaxed, relational and responsive).

Questions to ask: What does feeling “safe-enough’ mean to me? How does my nervous system feel at work in general? Are there people at work that I trust? Is the physical environment welcoming to me (accessible, inclusive, comfortable, etc.)? Which parts of myself feel safe to show at work? Do I feel more able to be authentic one-on-one, with groups, in person, on Zoom calls, etc.? Where is my ‘safe-enough’ place at work if I need to regulate myself? In what situations do I have the most choice and autonomy to be myself?

4 . Find common ground: Each person is unique, but what helps a group feel connected is finding points of common experience while acknowledging and appreciating individual differences. Whether this is creating a shared goal for a project or establishing regular activities to work together as a group, it is important to cultivate a group identity that can form itself around a shared vision that values each member’s authenticity and contribution.

Questions to ask: Do I feel that I am a part of a larger purpose with my organization/team/co-workers? What do I have in common with my co-workers or team? Do I feel appreciated and seen as an individual within my group(s) at work? What am I contributing to the organization that I value? What does the organization value about me? How does my organization recognize the contribution of its members, both individually and collectively?

5 . Communicate (verbally and nonverbally): No one is a mind reader, and although we may often wish others could anticipate our feelings and needs, it’s up to us to communicate what we want others to know. This seems like a given — we’re communicating all the time, right? Yes, but how we communicate and whether or not it is mutually understood, is a different thing. We each have our own styles of communication, much of it determined by our families, our cultures, and the roles and identities we hold. These styles are not just reflected in the languages we speak, but in our bodies as well. In fact, most of our communication is nonverbal and if it comes to believing words or body language, we tend to believe the body. Our ability to be authentic is intrinsically connected to how we express ourselves, and a large part of feeling received in our authenticity is noticing the smaller nonverbal cues others send that let us know we are welcomed in the space.

Questions to ask: What do I notice about the way people in my organization like to communicate (lots of meetings, mostly emails, remote working, social events, etc.)? Is there a predominant cultural style of communication that my co-workers use (direct and “to the point,” circular talking or “storytelling,” etc.)? What is my style and is it similar or different to my co-workers? Nonverbally, what do I notice about my use of personal space, eye contact, tone of voice, use of touch, etc.? Are there moments when others’ nonverbal communication feels unfamiliar or uncomfortable to me? Or, when they feel comfortable and understood? When I feel able to express myself authentically, how does it feel in my body (relaxed, tense, etc.)? How do others react to these moments of expression (lean in towards me, lean away, look at me, look away, nod, speak over me, use sounds to encourage me to continue, etc.)? How do I know when I’ve been understood?

In your opinion, how does authenticity within an organization influence its relationship with customers, clients, or the broader community?

Authenticity is a quality that must be cultivated and revisited, both by the individual and the organization. Ideally, if a person feels that they can be their authentic self within an organization, they most likely will feel supported to work towards the success of that organization, which translates directly to the customers, clients and communities they serve.

The challenge here is to understand that one person or one organization’s sense of authenticity may not meet another person or organization’s expectation of the same. In these moments, all we can do is be transparent and clear about who we are and what our organizations represent, and let the customers, clients and communities decide what is the best fit for them. This is the beauty of embracing diversity and complexity, as it can give us a wider range of choices and understanding of the many ways authenticity can be expressed.

You are a person of great influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)

I believe we are at a pivotal point in human evolution where we have two potential pathways: repeat patterns of historical trauma and power dynamics, or create a new paradigm based on conscious healing and embracing the complexity in ourselves and others. The movement I would start has already begun, and it’s a movement that begins within each of ourselves first:

• If you have heard the call to discover your own inner knowing and wisdom, follow it. Our bodies know our stories and speaks to us in its own language. Make time to listen.
• If you can interrupt intergenerational trauma, do so — you have the means to heal these wounds in a way your ancestors did not, and this healing will extend to you and the generations after.
• If you want to change the perpetuation of “power-over” dynamics, find opportunities to build “power-with” relationships through co-creation and collaboration. Also, remember the greatest power is the power we hold within ourselves, which rests on the ability to have agency in our lives, no matter how subtle or small those actions may be.
• If you wish to bridge differences in the world, engage with your own with compassion and curiosity. By embracing the complexity of our own cultural identities through self-awareness and empathy, we naturally accept those of others with greater understanding. And the more each of us do our own inner awareness and healing work, the more it helps all of us become more resilient and able to bend — not break — from the challenges and suffering in our world.

Most importantly, and this may sound optimistic, but I would support a movement based on the energy and intention of love. Love has sparked and sustained many movements for change throughout history, and its presence has never truly been defeated…even in our darkest times.

How can our readers further follow you online?

Readers can follow me through my website at www.marciabonatowarren.com, where I have a blog, a newsletter, and important news and events updated regularly. I’m also on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/marcia-bonato-warren, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/MarciaBonatoWarren and Instagram at @marciabonatowarren

Thank you for the time you spent sharing these fantastic insights. We wish you only continued success in your great work!

About The Interviewer: Vanessa Ogle is a mom, entrepreneur, inventor, writer, and singer/songwriter. Vanessa’s talent in building world-class leadership teams focused on diversity, a culture of service, and innovation through inclusion allowed her to be one of the most acclaimed Latina CEO’s in the last 30 years. She collaborated with the world’s leading technology and content companies such as Netflix, Amazon, HBO, and Broadcom to bring innovative solutions to travelers and hotels around the world. Vanessa is the lead inventor on 120+ U.S. Patents. Accolades include: FAST 100, Entrepreneur 360 Best Companies, Inc. 500 and then another six times on the Inc. 5000. Vanessa was personally honored with Inc. 100 Female Founder’s Award, Ernst and Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year Award, and Enterprising Women of the Year among others. Vanessa now spends her time sharing stories to inspire and give hope through articles, speaking engagements and music. In her spare time she writes and plays music in the Amazon best selling new band HigherHill, teaches surfing clinics, trains dogs, and cheers on her children.

Please connect with Vanessa here on linkedin and subscribe to her newsletter Unplugged as well as follow her on Substack, Instagram, Facebook, and X and of course on her website VanessaOgle.