SPEAKING & TRAINING
Steady leaders build teams that stay.
I help leaders and helping-profession teams stay grounded under pressure, so trust and retention follow.
I'm Heather. I lead with what actually happened.
Every talk starts with a true story, not a framework — that’s what makes a room remember it.
I’m a licensed therapist and the founder of Kalm Learning, where clinical training meets practical, room-tested tools for regulation, trust building, focus, and connection.
Drawing on both my clinical background and years leading in-person community practice — teaching through story, leadership training and public speaking —my talks translate nervous-system science into language and tools any team, staff room, or audience can use the same day.
Past audiences: Trauma As Justice Conference, International Academy of Spokane, Gonzaga University, Nourish of Spokane.
Topics & Keynotes
One speaker who’s lived what she teaches.
Every talk starts in the same place: a true story, told without the polish therapy usually gets. I don't lead with theory. I lead with what actually happened — to me, or to someone I sat across from — and let the room find themselves in it.
That's on purpose. People forget frameworks. They remember the car outside the window, the teacher with the brownies, the moment something finally made sense. My intention is to give your audience something they'll still be talking about weeks later, not just something they'll nod along to.
Each talk runs as a standalone keynote (30–60 minutes, with Q&A) or expands into a half-day workshop with guided practice, small-group reflection, and take-home tools — whichever fits your event. All three are available virtual, in-person, or hybrid.
Signature Talks
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Your team takes its cue from you. This talk gives leaders a way to catch burnout early, tell real strength from the kind that's costing them, and carry pressure without passing it down.
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Real rest, real belonging — for teams running on empty
45–60 minute keynote"Uncomfortable is not unsafe. That's exactly where change begins."
Your people don't need another day off. They need to know what real rest looks like, and what it means to actually belong on a team. This talk gives them both — through a story they won't forget.
A working definition of rest your team can use starting Monday
A live experience that builds connection across a room fast
A model for the kind of everyday leadership that earns trust
"Calm, kind, and inclusive… it is clear Heather values the experience of every person in the room."
— Group Program Participant -
For leaders and helping-profession teams who set the tone for everyone else
Keynote or half-day intensive"A black Escalade parked in front of my house. Two large men, just sitting there. It was the third time that week."
That story led to a hard truth about leading under pressure. If your leadership or clinical team sets the emotional tone for everyone below them, this talk is the one that changes how they carry it.
A framework for catching burnout before it looks like burnout
The line between real strength and strength that's costing something
Tools built for supervision, leadership teams, and peer consultation
"Heather has offered wonderful, ethical consultation… can't recommend her enough."
— Fellow Clinician & Consultation Colleague -
What we inherit, what we carry, and what we choose to carry forward.signature talk that extends into a full guided workshop
"Have you ever had a reaction to something in your life and thought — Why am I responding this way? Why does this feel so big?"
The Talk
We call it personality. Sometimes it's something else — a pattern passed down long after we needed it. Heather calls these ancestral echoes, and this talk is about learning to hear your own.
A new way to read your own survival strategy
A shared experience that builds trust fast, without oversharing
A takeaway practice that outlasts the room
Who It's For
Mental health and wellness conferences, corporate wellness and belonging/DEI programming, healing retreats, trauma-informed community organizations.
"She brought in her own Indigenous roots, offering sweet grass and smudging — a creative, embodied way to connect with yourself, beyond old-school journaling."
— Workshop Participant
Ways To Book
Formats
Keynote-45–60 min
A single, high-impact talk for a conference, all-staff day, or general session.
Breakout workshop-60-90 Minute
A focused, interactive session for one track of a larger conference or retreat. A working session with practice time — built for a department, school staff, or clinical team. A single, high-impact talk for a conference, all-staff day, or general session.
Team training- Half-day
Want to take the conversation deeper? Worshops tailored to your organization, audience and goals, giving people the opportunity to move from listening to connecting and practicing what they’ve learned.
WHAT PEOPLE SAY
From past rooms
“Calm, kind, and inclusive… it is clear this space values the experience of every person in the room."
— Workshop Participant
“ The talk was so clarifying, everyone was so open and that was because you created a space for them to feel that way. I left feeling like I had the tools I needed.”
-Workshop Participant
Let's talk about your team.
Fifteen minutes, no pitch deck. Tell me what your leaders are carrying and I'll tell you honestly whether I'm the right fit.
What happens next
1. A 15-minute call about your team and your event.
2. Recommend a talk and format, with a clear quote.
3. Shape the examples around what your leaders face.