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Tony D'Amelio

By: Tony D'Amelio on January 31st, 2019

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Breaking Barriers: 1st female Thunderbird pilot has message for women

Motivation | Organizational Culture | Nicole Malachowski

COL. NICOLE MALACHOWSKI (USAF, RET) wanted to fly military fighter jets since the age of five when she saw her first air show. She achieved that dream and then some. A graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy, Nicole was among the first group of women to fly modern fighter aircraft, one of the first women to fly in combat (logging 188 combat hours), and the first-ever woman to fly in the USAF Thunderbirds Air Demonstration Squadron

A wildly popular speaker, Nicole has addressed audiences for top companies, organizations, and associations on the subject of harnessing headwinds of change, leadership and pushing the envelope to be your best when it counts. Nicole has just added an important new speech to her offerings. In it she talks about the unique challenges women face when trying to excel in a male-dominated field. It's a subject she can address with authority from experience. 


Breaking Barriers: COL. NICOLE MALACHOWSKI (USAF, RET.) -- first woman Thunderbird pilot, combat veteran, and White House Fellow -- offers
real-world lessons about achieving success in a career where few women had gone before.  Invite her to speak at your next event.

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Here’s the description of Nicole’s new talk, Breaking Barriers. She's already delivered it with great success to a half-dozen women’s conferences with more scheduled for the future. It's an ideal presentation for women in business: 

BREAKING BARRIERS: CONQUERING SELF-DOUBT 
AND CULTURAL PARADIGMS

Every great accomplishment involves breaking barriers – both culturally and within. Nicole Malachowski is a trailblazer who succeeded in a traditionally male-dominated career field: the world of the fighter pilot. As uncomfortable and risky as stretching the limits of yourself and your surroundings might be, Nicole tells audiences there’s no reason to allow that to dictate your goals and aspirations. She became one of the first women to fly a modern-day fighter aircraft, the very first woman to fly with the Air Force Thunderbird aerial demonstration team, and she was inducted into the Women in Aviation International Pioneer Hall of Fame. She is relatable to women and men with a fascinating narrative of exactly what it took to be a woman vanguard and break tradition. Nicole offers actionable tools and real-world lessons about pursuing her dream, making choices, all while building a family and achieving success in a career where few women had gone before. Nicole inspires audiences with a message rooted in her personal mantra –
“Nobody wants to lead a scripted life.”

 

An excerpt from Breaking Barriers: Nicole reveals how asking for help spurred cultural change, even among her male colleagues.

 

The Work-Life Balance Myth

 

Nicole's Breaking Barriers presentation is getting great reactions and testimonials, like this:
 
“Automotive News had the pleasure of having Colonel Nicole Malachowski serve as the closing keynote speaker at our 2018 Leading Women Conference on October 30th.  She was outstanding and delivered an authentic, actionable message that hit home for every executive — male or female — who is trying to set clear goals, break barriers and improve their career path. Her thought-provoking message was delivered with passion and authority. She left our audience of leading women with a clear path to achieve greatness, create change and make better, brave decisions.”
--Conference Director, Automotive News

 Nicole Malachowski is a remarkable woman with a remarkable message to share. 

 

SUPPLEMENTAL READING: LEADERSHIP Q&A: FIRST WOMAN USAF THUNDERBIRD PILOT IS ROCK-STAR AVIATOR and INSPIRATIONAL TOUR DE FORCE: 1ST WOMAN THUNDERBIRD IS PURE MAGIC ON STAGE

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About Tony D'Amelio

Tony has spent his career putting talented people and audiences together, first in the music business and later representing the world's leading speakers. After concluding 27 years as Executive Vice President of the Washington Speakers Bureau, Tony launched D'Amelio Network, a boutique firm that manages the speaking activities of a select group of experts on business, management, politics and current events. Clients include: Mike Abrashoff, Mariana Atencio, Chris Barton, Lisa Bodell, Geoff Colvin, Daryl Davis, Suneel Gupta, Ron Insana, Katty Kay, Polly LaBarre, Nicole Malachowski, Ken Schmidt, and Bob Woodward.

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