Caroline Dowd-Higgins

The first time I heard Caroline speak on stage was life changing. Since that time, I’ve had the privilege of being in Caroline’s audience a half dozen times. Every time I hear her speak at an event, my life is changed for the better, and I can’t wait to hear more. She brings new material, fresh thinking, and an energy that sets the room on fire! During meals and networking sessions at events where Caroline speaks, you will hear attendees having in-depth discussions about how her speech inspired them and their plans to implement her framework and solutions in their organizations. From burnout to productivity to leadership, Caroline’s speeches offer real-world examples to illustrate realistic tactics that are proven to drive positive change. After sharing with my CEO how Caroline’s professional career advice changed my approach to leadership and team synergy, we hired her to speak at an annual event for our sales and marketing team members. She did not disappoint! She took great care in tailoring her message to our audience, helping them think critically about their professional development and wellbeing. Her speech incorporated moments of audience participation that felt natural. If you are responsible for creating an environment where people can do their best work, I recommend kick starting a program by hiring Caroline as a keynote speaker. She will inspire your team, giving them practical ways to improve collaboration and close performance gaps. I have not heard my last speech from Caroline. I’ll keep coming back year after year to hear her innovative ideas and techniques to navigate career challenges and opportunities. I’m hooked and a forever-fan!

“Caroline Dowd-Higgins has a dynamic message that plays successfully across all platforms. As careerists seek to improve their lives, they look for information that is inspiring, accessible, and easy to integrate. Dowd-Higgins produces content that truly satisfies those needs. Whether reading her posts over coffee, listening to her podcasts in the car, or watching a keynote at an event, Dowd-Higgins’ message fits easily into the ever-flowing rhythms and changing visions of our lives.”

As a conference producer for ten years I have worked with well over 800 speakers, and Caroline is in the top 2%. She has all the qualities as a speaker and career coach that you could possibly desire: ultimate professional, articulate, audience-centric, cutting-edge expertise, engaging, personable, creative, and conscientious. Her keynote sessions consistently receive rave reviews.

Caroline is masterful at holding the rapt attention of her audience with wonderful stories and examples, as well as by being very connective and interactive. She makes a presentation very participatory with actionable takeaways we can put into practice.

“Caroline’s keynote changed the conversation about how we address burnout in the workplace. She left our employees feeling inspired, energized, and engaged. If your organization is looking for a dynamic and thought-provoking speaker, Caroline Dowd Higgins is the right decision!” -

I had the great pleasure of seeing Caroline Dowd-Higgins serve as keynote speaker for the annual ACE WNI (American Council on Education Women's Network of Indiana) conference in April of 2023, and along with the rest of the crowd, was blown away by her delivery. As a former opera singer, Caroline has a stage presence that is absolutely unmatched. Not only that, but she is able to bring her star power together with an approachability and accessibility that is hard to pull off, placing her squarely in a league of her own. During this particular keynote address, Caroline discussed ways to mitigate burnout and breathe life into careers for women working in higher education in the state of Indiana. The room was completely attuned to Caroline's message, and she received rave reviews and lots of gratitude for providing inspiring and actionable content that day. Caroline is truly a gifted speaker, and I have no doubt that she will continue to dazzle her audiences for many years to come.

Caroline Dowd-Higgins spoke with our Bloomington Rotary club of 172 members on the topic of "Someday" is not a day of the week and the importance of owning your career and life outcomes. Her presentation was thought provoking and energetic, the club thoroughly enjoyed the content and methodology. There were a number of questions which followed that indicated the high engagement Caroline was able to stimulate from a club with a diverse set of backgrounds as the topic is applicable to us all. Traci Shindell Jovanovic, President Bloomington Rotary Club

Caroline spoke to the Rework America Alliance Peer Learning Network, a national group of career coach practitioners, about solutions to workplace burnout. Caroline’s captivating speaking style and masterful facilitation led to multiple robust conversations throughout the session. Not only does her deep knowledge of the area (just one of many in Caroline’s repertoire) shine through but also her passion for fostering healthy workplace cultures. The audience consisted of leadership and frontline staff. Both groups gleaned tangible tactics to reduce burnout and assist with employee retention. And while Caroline draws on a distinguished career as a practitioner herself, the real magic flows from a genuine (and often too rare) place of helping others design healthy organizations capable of delivering impactful services to their clientele.

“Caroline is a gifted speaker and consistently receives the highest evaluations from our audiences at Invent Your Future events. From her gracious nature to her high energy stage presence, she engages her audience from the get-go and provides real value with her thoroughly researched and relevant content. Her presentation skills top notch with great warmth, wit, and compassion.”

Caroline recently spoke at our Women’s Conference and she was amazing and so great to work with! Her effective communication helped us to plan the conference with ease. Just speaking with her via zoom, I was so excited to meet with her in person! After hearing her speak as our keynote speaker, I felt so empowered to work on myself and grow! The feedback from our attendees was outstanding and we couldn’t recommend Caroline more! We highly recommend her! Thank you, Caroline!

Caroline is someone whose work and insights I admire. I have been a part of her podcast series and have also invited her to contribute to our women and leadership network in Singapore. Her passion, energy and insights as a coach are world class. I never hesitate to recommend people who are looking for a great career coach to Caroline. If you are looking for a professional who knows what she is talking about, you have found her.

Caroline was a wonderful addition to the agenda of our spring and fall customer service meeting. She brings an incredible amount of energy to her presentations and was ultimately very highly rated by our meeting attendees. I would welcome the chance to work with her again in the future!

Caroline was gracious enough to appear as a speaker for Finish Line's Women's Spotlight Series event. She spoke about thriving where you are in your career, a topic which connected with dozens of our employees. Her genuine, humble, funny, and warm style led for her to have a measurable impact on the participants, who are seeking out her message weeks later. If you're looking for an impactful speaker for your organization, Caroline is a no-brainer!

I've taken advantage of Caroline's talents as a speaker and invited her to serve as a Keynote for a Women & Hi Tech networking event. The feedback for the October 2021 Women & Hi Tech Executive Women's Forum, Network like a Ninja, was outstanding. First, the engagement from our audience throughout the event was awesome. Women were taking notes, nodding heads, smiling. When the mic was enabled for questions, we had fantastic engagement - women asking questions and feeling empowered to speak up. I watched in awe and with satisfaction that we gave women what they needed.

Caroline was the Keynote for a conference we recently co-chaired. Her professionalism began when we booked her! She was a prompt and thorough communicator providing us materials before they were needed. Her enthusiasm and impactful address were evident in her outstanding evaluations from attendees. Having read these evaluations from past conferences, her unanimous likability and ability to connect with her audience stuck out above the rest. Caroline went far beyond expectations providing an exceptional breakout session and staying throughout the conference to connect with attendees and sign books. I would recommend her without hesitation for anyone looking for a powerful speaker who will motivate a crowd and set the tone for an event.

I first became acquainted with Caroline Dowd-Higgins at a women’s conference in downtown Indianapolis. I found Caroline’s presentation to be extremely valuable; so valuable that I suggested she speak at an event I was coordinating. She demonstrated a high degree of expertise and her presentation was clear and immediately actionable. In addition, her style was open and inviting to questions (and expressed appreciation for them) and willingly gave her time to responding to questions thoroughly. Caroline is extremely enthusiastic about her work which is infectious. Her book “This Is Not the Career I Ordered” is definitely a must read for anyone interested in reinventing themselves. I certainly would recommend her for any speaking engagement.

Caroline is an engaging, energetic and inspirational public speaker. Caroline excels in her ability to professionally connect with a diverse audience - from graduate students to high level business executives - with intelligence, creativity and enthusiasm. I’ve had the pleasure to work with Caroline at the IU Maurer School of Law, where I experienced first-hand her dedication to professional development during her career seminar presentations. More recently, while at Kelley Executive Partners in the Kelley School of Business, I had the pleasure of again working with Caroline in the development and delivery of an executive education program for women in leadership. This program was customized for an international pharmaceutical company. Caroline exceeded our expectations in delivering a program that was insightful, passionate and relevant. I recommend her emphatically.

Caroline brings energy to her presentations. She is adaptable to any audience she speaks to. Our volunteers found not only motivation for their professional HR organizations, but also for their personal growth.

Caroline’s deep understanding of strengths brought empathy and insight to our team’s workshop. Caroline joined us for a full day of activities covering StrengthsFinder. Throughout the day, Caroline guided us through our unique strengths, addressing our questions and providing detailed explanations where needed. Her thoughtful approach fostered meaningful conversations amongst the group. We concluded the day feeling engaged and grateful for her time and expertise. If you are looking for someone to bring a similar level of expertise to your team, I highly recommend reaching out to Caroline.

When I heard about Caroline's work, her story, blog, and book, I knew immediately that she would be a perfect speaker for our Fellows. I visited her early one morning, and I was absolutely floored by her energy and eagerness to help. She quickly agreed to speak to our students about career development and networking, and the topics she presented were just right for our program. This generation of students especially must be comfortable with the fact that career paths are no longer so cut-and-dried as they once were, and those who can create their own careers will have the greatest opportunity to thrive. Caroline's focus on developing one's own strengths and passions provides a framework for achieving fulfillment in a career, while her own unique story and attitude are inspiring examples for all.

In addition to her skill with people, Caroline has a sixth sense for content creation and a pulse on the advice needed by people at all stages of the professional journey. She is a dynamic, high-energy leader and polished public speaker. She is willing to take risks, speak truths, and approach success and failure with honesty. This engenders deep trust and respect in the workplace and beyond.

I’ve had the privilege of seeing Caroline Dowd-Higgins speak on several occasions, and she is nothing short of spectacular! From the moment she introduces herself, you cannot help but be captivated and by her energy and passion. You can instantly tell she cares about the personal and professional growth of everyone she meets. Caroline is a phenomenal speaker to any audience—her sessions on career development and growth are top-notch and I always come away energized, inspired, and ready to act. I’ve had the privilege of seeing Caroline Dowd-Higgins speak on several occasions, and she is nothing short of spectacular! From the moment she introduces herself, you cannot help but be captivated and by her energy and passion. You can instantly tell she cares about the personal and professional growth of everyone she meets. Caroline is a phenomenal speaker to any audience—her sessions on career development and growth are top-notch and I always come away energized, inspired, and ready to act.

Caroline delivers excellent content in a smart, witty, and captivating way. She is high energy, informative, and motivating while delivering teachable moments with advice and action steps to empower the participants on their career journey.”