Speaking
When change is constant and the pressure is high, the leaders who thrive are those who know how to lead themselves first.
My core message is simple:
SIGNATURE TALK
When the Compass Spins: Leading Yourself Through Uncertainty
In times of rapid change, growth, and sustained pressure, leaders often look outward for answers — new strategies, new structures, new ways of working. Yet when certainty disappears, the most important leadership work is rarely external.
In When the Compass Spins, leadership coach and writer Joy Poole draws on her experience supporting leaders through complex change, as well as the hard-won lessons earned while sailing around the world, to bring into crystal-clear focus what self-leadership really requires when clarity is scarce and the pressure is high.
Through honest storytelling and thoughtful challenge, Joy invites audiences to take responsibility for how they lead themselves under pressure — how they make decisions, regulate emotional reactivity, and stay anchored to their values. The result is a compelling and human keynote that helps people at every level lead with greater clarity, steadiness, and confidence, so they can show up more powerfully for others in uncertain times.
Ideal For
When the Compass Spins is ideal for organisations navigating growth, reorganisation, or sustained pressure, and for audiences at any level who are being asked to lead through uncertainty and change.
Audience Takeaways
This keynote is designed to create a meaningful shift in perspective and provide practical entry points for taking current leadership capabilities to the next level. After this keynote, audiences will:
Understand why self-leadership is the foundation for leading well in uncertainty and gain practical ways to interrupt reactive patterns when pressure is high.
Build greater self-trust in moments of ambiguity through simple decision-making lenses that help clarify what matters most when the path forward isn’t obvious.
Learn accessible strategies for emotional regulation under pressure that support clearer thinking, steadier presence, and more constructive conversations during change.
Reframe personal values as a practical leadership tool using them as a compass for everyday decisions, priorities, and communication.
Leave with a clearer sense of how leading themselves differently changes how they show up for others.
Formats & Delivery
Keynote: A 20-30 minute high-impact, story-led keynote designed to create a meaningful shift in perspective around self-leadership in times of uncertainty. An optional fireside chat or Q&A session can be added on. This allows for deeper exploration of themes, real-time application to the organisation’s context, and audience engagement.
Workshop: A 90-120 minute facilitated session that not only covers the key topics but gives participants time to use practical tools and guided reflection to strengthen self-leadership capabilities, including values-based decision-making, emotional regulation and leading under pressure.
Key Topics
Self-leadership
Leadership in uncertainty
Change and transformation
Values-based leadership
Emotional regulation
Decision-making under pressure
Joy is also asked to speak on a number of topics related to personal and professional development, ranging from honing your unique leadership style to creating greater work/life fulfillment, to boosting confidence.
SPEAKER BIO
Joy is a sought-after leadership coach and a personal growth expert who delivers high-energy keynotes and workshops that challenge audiences to lead powerfully through growth, change, uncertainty, and sustained pressure. Audiences love her practical strategies that they can immediately apply professionally and personally.
Her perspective has been shaped not only through years of coaching senior leaders, but also through circumnavigating the world by sailboat with her family - where uncertainty was not theoretical, but a daily reality.
Joy earned her BA from Michigan State University and her Certified Professional Coach qualifications from the Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching. She spent the first 20 years of her career quickly climbing the ladder in the tech and consulting industries, while simultaneously battling debilitating cases of Imposter Syndrome and perfectionism. She speaks passionately and from experience about how strong self-leadership is the foundation for calm, credible leadership, especially when certainty disappears.
Organisations hire Joy for her ability to combine engaging, real-world storytelling with implementable strategies that help leaders gain the clarity and confidence needed to perform at their best at work and beyond.
Speaking passionately and from experience is the only way Joy knows how to do it!
Now booking speaking engagements for May 2026 onwards.
If you’d like to explore a keynote or workshop, you’re very welcome to get in touch. Just click the button below.
Trusted By
What People Are Saying
“Joy's thoughtful approach provoked open and spirited discussion, not only supporting our personal journeys with regards to challenging our own limiting biases, but also building a safe environment for the team to connect and share.”
— Christie Travers-Smith
Head of Travel & Retail Partnerships, EMEA at Google
“One of the best communicators I’ve ever met. Joy is able to demystify complex and intimidating topics using her relatable style and language. As a result, the audience is put at ease and primed for learning and growth.”
— Anni Tankhiwale
Director, Agency Southeast Asia at Meta
Inspirational, Relatable, Powerful.
— Women in Tech World Series attendees
Empowering, Energising, Motivating.
- Women in Digital @ Homes England
Let’s chat.
If you are looking for a speaker for an upcoming event or are just curious to learn more about my speaking tracks, we should talk! We can use this time to get acquainted, explore whether I am a good speaking fit for your team, business or upcoming event, and/or get into the specifics of booking.
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