When you don’t want business as usual — you want Make Shift happen® International.
Marissa Coleman Moore doesn’t deliver motivational speeches. She delivers honest ones. Grounded in thirty years of real experience navigating change — personally and professionally — her keynotes create the kind of shift that doesn’t wear off on the drive home.
She speaks to the person underneath the title. The one navigating the drift, the disruption, the decision about what comes next. She names what most speakers leave on the table. And she meets every audience where they actually are.
Before we take the stage we take the time.
What to expect
Every engagement begins with a real conversation about your audience — who they are, what they’re working on, what they’re grappling with, and what would actually move the needle. What gets delivered is customized to your moment. Not recycled from the last event.
Every talk can be delivered as a keynote, a breakout session, a retreat theme, or a half-day or full-day workshop. The content scales to the format and the audience. If you’re not sure what fits — that’s what the discovery conversation is for.
We show up prepared, professional, and fully present. And we stay in relationship with your audience long after the session ends.
Every change journey moves through three critical moments.
A keynote built for any one of them — or all three.
READINESS: Before the change
Ready or Not, Here Comes the Shift
How to Know If You—or Your Organization—Are Truly Prepared for the Change You’re Pursuing
OVERVIEW
Most change efforts don’t fail because the strategy was wrong. They fail because the conditions for success were never established in the first place. Leaders launch initiatives, organizations announce transformations, and individuals commit to major life shifts — without ever asking the most important question: are we actually ready for this? This talk introduces the Five Conditions to Make Shift Possible — Clarity, Confidence, Capacity, Commitment, and Accountability — and gives audiences a practical framework for assessing where they are, identifying the gaps, and building the foundation before they build the plan.
WHAT YOUR AUDIENCE WILL LEAVE WITH
- Understand why most change efforts stall — and what the research and experience actually show about what makes change stick
- Discover the five conditions every person and organization needs before embarking on a major shift
- Assess their own readiness honestly — and identify exactly where to focus before moving forward
- Leave with a clear next step based on where they actually are — not where they hope to be
FORMATS
Keynote · Breakout session · Workshop · Retreat theme · Half-day or full-day
Best for: Organizations preparing for culture change, strategic transitions, or major initiatives · Leadership teams and boards · Foundations and funders investing in organizational capacity · Individuals navigating a major life or career decision
RESISTANCE: During the change
Aww Shift
How to Navigate the Internal and Interpersonal Resistance That Derails Change
OVERVIEW
Here’s what nobody tells you about leading change: the hardest resistance you’ll face isn’t from other people. It’s from yourself. Before we can manage the group dynamics, the communication breakdowns, the role shifts, and the relationship tensions that come with every major change — we have to manage the enemy within. The part of us that doubts, protects, avoids, and resists the very shift we said we wanted. This talk goes deep into SHIFT 2.0 — exploring the Five D’s that derail change from the inside out: Delusion, Denial, Distortion, Disillusionment, and Delay. It equips leaders with the mindset and practical tools to do the internal work first — and then lead others through the inevitable resistance that surfaces when change disrupts the status quo.
WHAT YOUR AUDIENCE WILL LEAVE WITH
- Name and navigate the Five D’s — the internal patterns that derail even the most well-designed change efforts
- Understand how unaddressed internal resistance shows up in group dynamics, communication, and relationships
- Develop the self-awareness to lead change from a grounded, honest place — rather than from reactivity or avoidance
- Apply practical tools for navigating resistance in themselves and others with more skill, empathy, and effectiveness
- Leave with a framework for managing the people side of change — beginning with the person in the mirror
FORMATS
Keynote · Breakout session · Workshop · Retreat theme · Half-day or full-day
Best for: Organizations in the middle of a change initiative · Leadership teams navigating resistance, conflict, or misalignment · ERGs and community organizations managing internal dynamics · Leaders who need to lead others through change while navigating their own
RESTORATION: When the change goes off track
Make Shift Happen
How to Reclaim Your Purpose, Reconnect with What Matters, and Lead Yourself Back When Change Takes You Off Course
OVERVIEW
Sometimes the shift you navigate takes more from you than you expected. You set out to lead a transformation — and somewhere along the way, you lost yourself in it. The work stopped feeling like yours. The vision stopped feeling real. You kept showing up — performing, producing, delivering — while something essential quietly went dark. This is Marissa’s signature story. And it is the story of more leaders than anyone admits. Built on the SHIFT Methodology and the personal journey behind the book, this keynote names the drift that happens when change — organizational or personal — disconnects us from our purpose, our identity, and our sense of what we’re really here to do. And it gives audiences a path back — not to who they were before, but to who they’ve been becoming all along.
WHAT YOUR AUDIENCE WILL LEAVE WITH
- Recognize the signs of drift — and understand why high-achieving people are the most vulnerable to it
- Understand the difference between surviving change and being restored by it
- Identify what was lost — and what reclaiming it actually requires
- Leave with the SHIFT Mindset as a daily practice for staying connected to purpose through every season of change
- Experience the kind of honest, personal keynote that creates shifts that don’t wear off on the drive home
FORMATS
Keynote · Retreat theme · Breakout session · Women’s conference closing or opening
Best for: Women’s conferences and leadership summits · Employee resource groups · Nonprofit and philanthropic leadership gatherings · Executive and senior leadership retreats · Any audience navigating change that has cost them something
A FEW THINGS WORTH KNOWING
Marissa takes a limited number of speaking engagements each year. Priority is given to events aligned with the MSHI mission and audiences where the content will create real impact.
She is available for in-person and virtual engagements. Travel expenses are covered by the hosting organization.
Partnerships and multi-session engagements are preferred over one-off appearances. If your event is the beginning of a longer relationship — say so. Those conversations move to the top of the list.
If your event is a strong fit — reach out. If it isn’t — she’ll tell you honestly.
